;m« 




UBRARY OF CONGRESS 



DDOnsabTST 




t ^ % 






ABliAHAM LIXCOl.N 



4^' ANECDOTES, 



;rr 



Poetry and Incidents 

OF THE WAR: 

NORTH ^NT> SOUTH. 

1860-1865. 



COLLECTED AND ARRANGED 

BY FRANK MOORE, 

Editor of "The Rebellion Record," "Diary of the American Revolution," Etc., Etc. 



NEW YORK: 
PUBLICATION OFFICE, BIBLE HOUSE. 

JAMES PORTEUS, GENERAL AGENT. 
1867. 



Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1865, by Frank Moore, in the Clerk's Office 
of the District Court of the United States, for the Southern District of New York. 






ST"EEEOTTPED AT THB 

BOSTON STEREOTYPE FOUNDRY, 

Ho. U Spring Lane. 



INTRODUCTORY NOTE. 



In the preparation of this volume, it has been the design of the 
editor to preserve, as far as possible, the most notable anecdotes and 
incidents of the late war, and also such songs, ballads, and other pieces 
of versification, as have been well received, and are considered worthy 
of perpetuation by the reading public. Of course, many of the bril- 
liant and heroic adventures that form an important part of the private 
and personal history of the great conflict, will not be found in these 
pages, for the simple and very proper reason, that the actors therein 
alone know them, and as yet they have not made them public. As 
it is the intention of the editor to prepare and publish a second series 
at a suitable time, should he find material sufficient for the purpose, 
it is important that the noble soldiers and sailors who have now 
returned from the field should forward to him such anecdotes and in- 
cidents as they may have knowledge of, that are not already included 
in this work. And should the reader discover any errors of fact in 
these pages, he will confer an obligation by advising of such errors, 
that they may be corrected in a future edition. 

R M. 

New York, May, 1866. 




u 



,^ -1.^ 4- 







ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



ANECDOTE OF GENERAL GRANT. 

The following was told by an officer of Gen- 
eral Grant's staff : — 

The hero and veteran, who was citizen, cap- 
tain, colonel, brigadier and major-general within 
a space of nine months, though a rigid disciphn- 
arian, and a perfect Ironsides in the discharge of 
his official duties, could enjoy a good joke, and 
is always ready to perpetrate one when an oppor- 
tunity presents. Indeed, among his acquaint- 
ances, he is as much renowned for his eccentric 
humor as he is for his skill and bravery as a com- 
mander. 

When Grant was a brigadier in South-east 
Missouri, he commanded an expedition against 
the rebels under Jeff. Thompson, in North-east 
Arkansas. The distance from the starting-point 
of the expedition to the supposed rendezvous of 
the rebels was about one hundred and ten miles, 
and the greater portion of the route lay through 
a howling wilderness. The imaginary suffering 
that our soldiers endured during the two first 
days of their march was enormous. It was im- 
possible to steal or " confiscate " uncultivated real 
estate, and not a hog, or a chicken, or an ear of 
com was anywhere to be seen. On the third 
day, however, affairs looked more hopeful, for a 
few small specks of ground, in a state of partial 
cultivation, were here and there visible. On 
that day, Lieutenant Wickfield, of an Indiana 
cavalry regiment, commanded the advance-guard, 
consisting of eight mounted men. About noon he 
came up to a small farm-house, from the outward 
appearance of which he judged that there might 
be something fit to eat inside. He halted his 
company, dismounted, and with two second lieu- 
tenants entered the dwelling. He knew that 
Grant's incipient fame had already gone out 
through all that country, and it occurred to him 
that by representing himself to be the general 
he might obtain the best the house afforded. So, 
assuming a very imperative demeanor, he ac- 
costed the Inmates of the house, and told them 
he must have something for himself and staff 
to eat. They desired to know who he was, and 
he told them that he was Brigadier-General 
Grant. At the sound of that name they flew 
around with alarming alacrity, and served up 
about all they had in the house, taking great 



pains all the while to make loud professions of 
loyalty. The lieutenants ate as much as they 
could of the not over-sumptuous meal, but which 
was, nevertheless, good for that country, and de- 
manded what was to pay. " Nothing." And 
they went on their way rejoicing. 

In the mean time General Grant, who had 
halted his army a few miles further back for a 
brief resting-spell, came in sight of, and was 
rather favorably impressed with, the appearance 
of this same house. Riding up to the fence in 
front of the door, he desired to know if they 
would cook him a meal. 

" No," said a female in a gruff voice ; " Gen- 
eral Grant and his staff have just been here and 
eaten everything in the house except one pump- 
kin pie." 

"Humph," murmured Grant; "what is your 
name ? " 

" Selvldge," replied the woman. 

Casting a half-dollar in at the door, he asked 
If she would keep that pie till he sent an officer 
for it, to which she replied that she would. 

That evening, after the camping-ground had 
been selected, the various regiments were noti- 
fied that there would be a grand parade at half- 
past six, for orders. Officers would see that their 
men all turned out, etc. 

In five minutes the camp was in a perfect up- 
roar, and filled with all sorts of rumors ; some 
thought the enemy were upon them, it being so 
unusual to have parades when on a march. 

At half-past six the parade was formed, ten 
columns deep, and nearly a quarter of a mile in 
length. 

After the usual routine of ceremonies the Act- 
ing Assistant Adjutant-General read the follow- 
ing order : 

HEAD-QUARTERS, ARMY IN THE FIELD. 

SPECiit Order No. • 

Lieutenant Wickfield, of the Indiana cav- 
alry, having on this day eaten everything in Mrs. 
Selvldge's house, at the crossing of the Ironton 
and Pocahontas and Black Elver and Cape Girar- 
deau roads, except one pumpkin pie. Lieuten- 
ant Wickfield is hereby ordered to return with 
an escort of one hundred cavalry and eat that 
pie also. U. S'. Grant, 

Brigadier-General Comni;uiuic5 



/ 



ANECDOTES, POETEY, AND INCIDENTS. 



LITTLE EDDIE THE DRUMMEE-BOY. 

A REMINISCENCE OF WILSON'S CKEEK. 

A FEW days before our regiment received or- 
ders to join General Lyon, on his march to Wil- 
son's Creek, the drummer of our company was 
taken sick and conveyed to the hospital, and on 
the evening preceding the day that we were to 
march, a negro was arrested within the lines of 
the camp, and brought before our captain, who 
asked him " what business he had within the 
lines ? " He replied : " I know a drummer that 
you would like to enhst in your company, and I 
have come to tell you of it." He was immediate- 
ly requested to inform the drummer that if he 
would enlist for our short term of service, he 
would be allowed extra pay, and to do this, he 
must be on the ground early in the morning. 
The negro was then passed beyond the guard. 

On the following morning there appeared be- 
fore the captain's quarters during the beating of 
the reueille, a good-looking, middle-aged woman, 
dressed in deep mourning, leading by the hand 
a sharp, sprightly-looking boy, apparently about 
twelve or thirteen years of age. Her story was 
soon told. She was from East Tennessee, Avhere 
her husband had been killed by the rebels, and 
all their property destroyed. She had come to 
SL Louis in search of her sister, but not finding 
her, and being destitute of money, she thought if 
she could procure a situation for her boy as a 
drummer for the short time that we had to remain 
in the service, she could find employment for 
herself, and perhaps find her sister by the time 
we were discharged. 

During the rehearsal of her story the little fel- 
low kept his eyes intently fixed upon the counte- 
nance of the captain, who was about to express 
a determination not to take so small a boy, when 
he spoke out: "Don't be afraid, captain, I can 
drum." This was spoken with so much confidence, 
that the captain immediately observed, with a 
smile : " ^Vell, well, sergeant, bring the drum, 
and order our fifer to come forward." In a few 
moments the drum was produced, and our fifer, 
a tall, round-shouldered, good-natured fellow, 
from the Dubuque mines, who stood, when erect, 
something over six feet in height, soon made his 
appearance. 

Upon being introduced to his new comrade, he 
stooped down, with his hands resting upon his 
knees, that were thrown forward into an acute 
angle, and after peering into the little fellow's 
face a moment, he observed : " My little man, 
can you drum V " " Yes, sir," he replied, " I 
drummed for Captain Hill in Tennessee." Our 
lifer immediately commenced straightening him- 
self upward until all the angles in his person had 
disappeared, when he placed his fife at his mouth, 
and played the " Flowers of Edlnborough," one 
of the most didlcult things to follow with the drum 
that could have been selected, and nobly did the 
little fellow follow him, showing himself to be a 
master of the drum. When the music ceased, 
our captain turned to the mother and observed : 
" Madam, I will take your boy. What is his 



name ? " " Edward Lee," she replied ; then 
placing her hand upon the captain's arm, she 
continued, " Captain, if he is not killed " — here 
her maternal feelings overcame her utterance, 
and she bent down over her boy and kissed him 
upon the forehead. As she arose, she observed : 
" Captain, you will bring him back with you, 
won't you ? " 

" Yes, yes," he replied, " we will be certain to 
bring him back with us. We shall be discharged 
in six weeks." 

In an hour after, our company led the Iowa 
First out of camp, our drum and fife playing 
" The girl I left behind me." Eddie, as we call- 
ed him, soon became a great favorite with all the 
men in the company. When any of the boys had 
returned from a horticultural excursion, Eddie's 
share of the peaches and melons was the first aj)- 
portloned out. During our heavy and fatiguing 
march from RoUa to Springfield, It was often 
amusing to see our long-legged fifer wading 
through the mud with our little drummer mount- 
ed upon his back, and always in that position 
when fording streams. 

During the fight at Wilson's Creek I was sta- 
tioned with a part of our company on the right of 
Totten's battery, while the balance of our com- 
pany, with a part of the Illinois regiment, was 
ordered down Into a deep ravine upon our left. 
In which It was known a portion of the enemy 
was concealed, with whom they were soon en- 
gaged. The contest In the ravine continuing 
some time, Totten suddenly wheeled his battery 
upon the enemy in that quarter, when they soon 
retreated to the high ground behind their lines. 
In less than twenty minutes after, Totten had 
driven the enemy from the ravine, the word pass- 
ed from man to man throughout the army, " Lyon 
Is killed ! " and soon after, hostilities having ceased 
upon both sides, the order came for our main 
force to fall back upon Springfield, while a part of 
the Iowa First and two companies of the Missouri 
regiment were to camp upon the gi'ound and 
cover the retreat next morning. That night I 
was detailed for guard duty, my turn of guard 
closing with the morning call. When I went 
out with the ofiicer as a reUef, I found that my 
post was upon a high eminence that overlooked 
the deep ravine In which our men had engaged 
the enemy, until Totten's battery came to their 
assistance. It was a dreary, lonesome beat. The 
moon had gone down In the early part of the 
night, while the stai's twinkled dimly through a 
hazy atmosphere, lighting up Imperfectly the 
surrounding objects. Occasionally I would place 
my ear near the ground and listen for the sound 
of footstejis, but all was silent save the far-off 
howling of the wolf, that seemed to scent upon 
the evening air the banquet that we had been 
preparing for him. The hours passed slowly 
away, when at length the morning light began 
to streak along the eastern sky, making surround- 
ing objects more plainly visible, Presently I 
heard a drum beat up the morning call. At first 
I thought It came from the camp of the enemy 
across the creek ; but as I listened, I found that 



AKECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



it came up from the deep ravine ; for a few min- 
utes it was silent, and then as it became more 
light I heard it again. I listened — the sound 
of the drum was familiar to me — and I knew 
that it was 

Our drummer-boy from Tennessee 
Beating for help the reveille. 

I was about to desert my post to go to his as- 
sistance, when I discovered the officer of the 
guard approaching with two men. We all listen- 
ed to the sound, and were satisfied that it was 
Eddie's drum. I asked permission to go to his 
assistance. The officer hesitated, saying that the 
orders were to march in twenty minutes. I 
promised to be back in that time, and he consent- 
ed. I immediately started down the hill through 
the thick undergrowth, and upon reaching the 
valley I followed the sound of the drum, and soon 
found him seated upon the ground, his back lean- 
ing against the trunk of a fallen tree, while his 
drum hung upon a bush In front of him, reaching 
nearly to the gi-ound. As soon as he discovered 
me he dropped his drumsticks and exclaimed, 
" O Coi"poral ! I am so glad to see you. Give me 
a drink," reaching out his hand for my canteen, 
which was empty. I immediately turned to bring 
him some water from the brook that I could hear 
rippling through the bushes near by, when, think- 
ing that I was about to leave him, he commenced 
crying, saying : " Don't leave me. Corporal — I 
can't walk." I was soon back with the water, 
when I discovered that both of his feet had been 
shot away by a cannon-ball. After satisfying his 
thirst, he looked up into my face and said : " You 
don't think I wIU die. Corporal, do you ? This 
man said I would not — he said the surgeon could 
cure my feet." I now discovered a man lying in 
the grass near him. By his dress I recognized 
him as belonging to the enemy. It appeared that 
he had been shot through the bowels, and fallen 
near where Eddie lay. Knowing that he could 
not live, and seeing the condition of the boy, he 
had crawled to him, taken oflf his buckskin sus- 
penders, and corded the little fellow's legs below 
the knee, and then laid down and died. While 
he was telling me these particulars, I heard the 
tramp of cavalry coming down the ravine, and 
in a moment a scout of tlae enemy was upon us, 
and I was taken piisoner. I requested the officer 
to take Eddie up in front of him, and he did so, 
carrying him with great tenderness and care. 
AVhcu we reached the camp of the enemy the 
little fellow was dead. 



How TO CROSS A River. — Colonel Weer, at 
the head of his division, arrived at White River, 
Arkansas, at night and found the stream impassa- 
ble. The recent snow had gone off with a rain, 
raising the water very fast, and the whole army 
was hurrying by forced marches to cross the 
river before it rose, as it was so low as to be 
fordable ; but, with all his haste, his forces were 
too slow. Colonel Weer ordered Captain Stock- 



ton to cross his battery " as soon as possible." 
The captain asked, "Where are the boats?" 
Colonel Weer determined to beat Gens. Schofield 
and Herron, who marched upon two other roads, 
repfied : " Make them, sir, the quickest way pos- 
sible ! " Captain Stockton took two wagon beds 
of his mule wagons, and covered them with 
tarpaulins, and making a cable out of prolongs, 
was crossing his battery within two hours ! The 
next morning the rope across the stream broke, 
and all attempts to get across by swinmaing 
horses and tying it to mules' tails, failed, when 
Stockton drove a plug into a shell and fii-ed it 
across ! His lieutenant on the opposite shore, 
ran and picked it up, and all things went on 
swimmingly again. A trip with this boat was 
made and loaded in ten minutes ! The boat was 
in constant use four days, and not a single acci- 
dent happened. 



A BRAVE Woman. — Captain Bolghtof Com 
pany H, Twenty-Third Kentucky Regiment, re- 
lated the following anecdote of the war. 

During the retreat of the army of Kirby Smith 
from Cumberland Gap, the regiment to which he 
belonged was in the van of the Federal army. 
One morning, when the regiment was about 
twenty-six miles east of the Wild Cat Moun- 
tains, they were surprised to see a file of ten 
men, all of them secesh, marching toward their 
lines, and a woman marching in their rear with 
a musket in her hands ; on their coming within 
the Federal lines she coolly gave them up to the 
officer commanding as prisoners. In accounting 
for their capture, she said that her husband had 
joined a military company in the Federal ser- 
vice, and had left her alone to take care of the 
house, which lay between the two ai-mies. Eleven 
secessionists had come into the house that 
morning and proceeded to make themselves per- 
fectly at home, first killing all her chickens, and 
setting them to roast by the fire. They then 
proceeded to dispose of the things around the 
house, taking up the carpets, and constructing 
horse blankets out of them. 

They next perpetrated other atrocities of a de- 
structive and objectionable character, which had 
the effect of making the lady of the house " furi- 
ously wild," as the captain expressed it, and she 
determined that such outrageous conduct should 
not go unpunished. She accordingly carried 
away their muskets to a place of safety, reserving 
two for her own use, and then going to the room 
in which they were regaling themselves on her 
defunct chickens, she informed them that they 
were her prisoners. One of them jumped up to 
seize her, when she levelled her gun at him and 
fired, causing him to bite the dust, which laj 
thickly strewed on the carpetless liooi*. Throw- 
ing away the now useless gun, she took the other 
in her hand and ordered the remaining ten to 
march toward the Union camp threatening to 
shoot the first who attempted to run away. 
Having a wholesome fear of sharing a similar fate 
to that of their companion, they went quietly 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCmENTS. 



along, and were accordingly handed over to the 
military authorities. On being laughed at for 
being taken prisoner by a woman, they said they 
had been -wanting to get captured for some time 
past, and were heartily glad that they were pris- 
oners at last. They were entirely sick of the 
war, they said, and did not care how, so that 
th6y got out of it. 



UNDER THE WASHINGTON ELM. 
CAMBRIDGE, APRIL 27, 1861. 

BY OLIVER WENRELt. HOLMES. 

Eighty years have passed, and more, 

Since under the brave old tree 
Our fathers gathered in arms, and swore 
They would follow the sign their banners bore, 

And fight till the land was free. 

Half of their work was done, 

Half is left to do — 
Cambridge and Concord and Lexington ! 
When the battle is fought and won, 

What shall be told of you 1 

Hark ! 'tis the south wind moans — 

Who are tiie martyrs down ? — 
Ah, the marrow was true in your children's bones, 
That sprinkled with blood the cursed stones 

Of the murder-haunted town ! 

What if the storm-clouds blow ? 

What if the green leaves fall ? 
Better the crashing tempest's throe, 
Than the army of worms that gnawed below ; 

Tiximple them one and all ! 

Then, when the battle is won, 

And the land from traitors free, 
Our children shall tell of the strife begun 
When Liberty's second April sun 

Was bright on our brave old tree ! 



Fun on the Rappahannock : — A soldier 
of the Eighth Ohio regiment, writing from Fal- 
mouth, makes the following notes on the move- 
ments in that vicinity : — 

" Everything seemed to be progressing finely 
until Tuesday night, when the " heavens opened 
and the flood descended." " Eph " suggested 
that the flood n;ates must be entirely off their 
hinges, as his sleeping apartment suddenly be- 
came a bath house, and his bunk a bathing tub. 
Indeed our " brown stone front " came near 
being dissolved, and the " aristocratic " inmates 
drowned. The storm continued with very little 
cessation until Friday morning, and as every 
hour made the " soil " more soft than " sacred," 
the roads soon became blocked with an indescrib- 
able mass of artillery wagons, and " pontoons," 
hopelessly stuck in the mud. It was very evi- 
dent that this " delay of the pontoons " was not 
attributable to a lack of energy on the part of Q. 
M. General Meigs, nor yet on account of a mis- 
understanding between Messrs. Generals Halleck 



and Bumside. " Eph " thinks a greater General 
than any of these had something to do with it, 
and remarked that " it was undoubtedly on ac- 
count of the same One to whom Victor Hugo as- 
cribes Napoleon's failure to win the battle of 
Waterloo.'' 

One thing is certain, the artillery and " pon- 
toon" could move no more at present. The 
" meeting " was postponed, and after lying out in 
the mud and rain for three days and nights, the 
troops that had moved up the river came back, 
probably helievmg that it was " all for the best," 
but on account of the mud that obstructed their 
vision they failed to " see it." As we were to 
have crossed the river nearly opposite our camp, 
we did not leave our quarters, and had a good 
opportunity to witness the return of the muddy, 
straggUng mass. The scene was anything but a 
pleasant one, yet there were many ludicrous in- 
cidents connected with it. " Eph " and three or 
four of the " boys" were standing near our man- 
sion, looking at the floating mass of men, horses, 
mules, artillery, and wagons, when we observed a 
conglomeration of blue cloth and mud approach- 
ing. As it had on a gun, knapsack, haversack 
and canteen, we concluded it was a '' straggler," 
and " Eph " hailed him with — 

" Hallo ! Earthen-ware ! what regiment do 
you belong to ? " 

The figure never paused, but the earth ; visible 
under the visor of a cap, moved, displaying a cav- 
ern from which issued the words : — 

" Don't speak to me ! I'm a spared monu- 
ment ! I've marched in mud, swam mud, drank 
mud, and slept in mud for three days and nights. 
My colonel and regiment were all drowned in 
mud. I'm the only man left, and I'm demoral- 
ized as " 

"Eph" extracted the leather pontoons he 
wears from the rich soil in which he was stand- 
ing, retreated " without loss " to the " sitting 
room," threw himself into the " easy " chair be- 
fore the " coal grate," elevated his pontoons to 
the " mantel-piece," and remained in this position 
evidently meditating until we came in. After 
we had requested him to remove his muddy 
" pontoons" from the " furniture," he said : — 

" That's the first demoralized monument, I ever 
saw. He was probably a brother of the Fire 
Zouave we saw over in Fredericksburg the 
other day, and I am inclined to believe most of 
his story." At this juncture some one called him 
out to look at the new balloon Avhich was going 
up from near General Sumner's headquarters. 
On his return we asked him " what he supposed 
the professor saw that attracted him to such a 
dizzy height so often ? " " Well," said " Ejih," 
(at the same time setting one of his soiled " pon- 
toons" down on our boots just pohshed for ''in- 
spection,") " I guess it ain't what he sees while 
he's up there so much as it is the five thousand 
dollars he sees every time he comes down." 

To-day we rode down to the river to look at 
the enemy's fortifications, see their cannon and 
ask their pickets the price of cotton. At Fal- 
mouth we visited the ruins of an old bridge, on 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



the end of which ive had a picket to watch a 
gray-back " picket who was stationed at the op- 
posite end, and whose duty was evidently to 
watch ours. All along the river we found the 
pickets of the opposing armies within easy hailing 
distance, and apparently quite friendly, but as 
conversation was not allowed, we asked no ques- 
tions. 

The hills back of Fredericksburg looked as 
though they were in possession of an enterprising 
oil company who were engaged in boring for 
" ile," but from the fact that the piles of fresh 
earth increased daily we suspected they had not 
" struck a vein." On our return we passed 
through the little hollow near General Sum- 
ner's headquarters, where a part of our hos- 
pitals were located during the battle of the 12th 
ult., and stopped to read some of the names ap- 
pearing upon the little headboards that were 
planted in a regular row on one side. " Eph " 
made the discovery of several, that read " Pri- 
vate, Unknown," and one " Lieut., Unknown," 
whereupon he immediately seated himself upon a 
log, and crossing his " pontoons " — upon each of 
which he had strapped a " buzz saw" the two 
constituting what he calls his " spurs," and 
said : — 

" Death is a rude customer to meet at any 
time and at any place ; he is not welcome even 
at home and among friends — but to think of a 
fellow dying as it were alone, with not even an 
old comi-ade or a familiar face near, and upon 
whose monument — a pine board two by three 
— appears the inscription ' Private or Lieutenant 
Unknown,' reminds me that I am not well and 
ought to be discharged." Here he looked pale, 
and we began to think he loas unwell, but he 
continued : " I wonder if the one who wrote 
those epitaphs had an idea that when the Chief 
Bugler comes to sound the last 'reveille,' he 
vx)uld pause to learn whether the ashes that 
slnmber beneath these pine boards ever wore 
straps or not?" Here he paused again and 
looked at his old blouse, shrugged his shoulders, 
and concluded — 

"When the epauletted general who commands 
and the soldier without straps who obeys, both 
stand before One in whose presence all 

* # * .' tinsel of time, 

Must fade and die in the light of that region sublime,' 

I wonder if they will remain Unknown ? " 



" When you is about, we is." — During the 
passage of the national troops through Missouri, 
in pursuit of General Price, a crowd of negroes 
came out from a large house to see them, when 
the following colloquy took place " Boys, are 
you all for the Union ? " " Oh ! yes, massa, 
when you's about we is." " And when Price 
comes, you are secesh, are you ? " " Lor, yes, 
massa, we's good secesh then. Can't allow de 
white folks to git head niggers in dat way." 



Army Spouts. — The following extract is 
from the letter of a soldier in the army of the 



Potomac : — "I was accidentally a witness of a 
most interesting scene the other day, which oc- 
cured close to the camp of the 141st New York 
regiment. It was a rabbit hunt, in which a 
whole company participated, and conducted it 
on strictly military principles. They first de- 
ployed as skirmishers, and each with a stick in 
his hand, moved in good order through a piece 
of land from which most of the wood had been 
taken ; heaps of branches and limbs scattered 
here and there, afforded excellent retreats for 
the game in question. As they marched along, 
each one beat every bush within reaching dis- 
tance of his stick, until a rabbit was started. 
This was announced by a yell, that instantly put 
every one on the alei't, and the scene that fol- 
lowed was exciting and ludicrous in the extreme ; 
the yell was caught up by every soldier, and a 
chase of the most vigorous description was the 
rapid result. The flankers sti-ained every nerve 
to flank or surround the terrified creature, who, 
bewildered by the tumult on every side, would 
double at each point where a soldier opposed 
him, until his retreat was effectually cut off, and 
he was either caught ahve or felled by a blow of 
a stick. AVhere the rabbit was an old one, he 
often escaped by fleeing to the cover, yet un- 
disturbed by the axe, and the chase would have 
to be abandoned. I stood on a small hill for 
more than an hour, watching them, and the 
shouts of the men, the efforts of the quarry to 
escape, which was almost always in sight, the 
agile movements of the soldiers and the roars 
of laughter which followed when one less 
cautious or more excited than the others, tripped 
and fell his length in the bushes, while his com- 
panions either ran over him or around him, 
(never stopping) making altogether a most 
pleasing spectacle. Although ten blows hit a 
soldier where one hit the rabbit when he 
was surrounded, still the utmost good hu- 
mor prevailed, and the fallen ones took the laugh 
of their comrades without the slightest sign of an- 
ger or ill feeling. Such little episodes in the life 
of a soldier are not only invaluable as regards 
his health and the important part they take in 
preventing a depressed state of mind, but furnish 
also a welcome change in the place of " hard 
tack," and salt beef, which compi-ise the staple 
articles of the soldier's food, for the company 
just mentioned caught eleven in less than two 
hours, which was about one half the number 
started." 



SKEDADDLE. 

The shades of night were falling fast, 
As through a Southern village passed 
A youth, who bore, not over nice, 
A banner with the gay device. 
Skedaddle ! 

His hair was red, his toes beneath 
Peeped, like an acorn from its sheath. 
While with a frightened voice he sung 
A burden strange to Yankee tongue. 
Skedaddle! 



10 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



He saw no household fire where he 
Might warm liis tod or hominy ; 
Beyond the Cordilleras shone, 
And from his lips escaped a groan. 
Skedaddle ! 

" Oh ! stay," a cullered pusson said, 
" An' on dis bossom res' your hed ! " 
The octoroon she winked her eye. 
But still he answered, with a sigh. 
Skedaddle ! 

" Beware McClellan, Bucli, and Banks, 
Beware of Halleck's deadly ranks ! " 
This was the planter's last Good Night ; 
The chap replied, far out of sight. 
Skedaddle ! 

At break of day, as several boys 
From Maine, New York and Illinois 
Were moving Southward, in the air 
They heard these accents of despair. 
Skedaddle ! 

A chap was found and at his side 
A bottle, showing how he died. 
Still grasping in his hand of ice 
That banner with the strange device, 
Skedaddle ! 

There iii the twilight, thick and gray, 
Considerably played out he lay ; 
And through the vapor, gray and thick, 
A voice fell like a rocket-stick, 
Skedaddle ! 



An Ixcident. — When the United States 
vessels were on their way to attack Fernandina, 
Florida, they picked up a contraband who had 
ventured to sea in a small boat to notify them 
that the rebels were deserting the place. While 
questioning the black, some of the officers of the 
Alabama remarked that he should have brought 
them newspapers to let them know what was go- 
ing on. " 1 thought of dat," replied the contra- 
band, " and fetched a Charleston paper wid me." 
With this he put his hand In his bosom and brought 
forth a paper, and with the air of a man who was 
rendering an important service, handed It to the 
circle of Inquirers. They grasped It eagerly, but 
one glance Induced a general burst of laughter, to 
the profound astonishment of poor Cuff'ee, who, 
it seems, could not read, and imagining that one 
paper was as good as another, had brought one 
dated 1822. It Is a little odd that this paper, 
which had floated so long down the stream of 
time, contained ah article in favor of negro eman- 
cipation. 



Postal Affairs. — The following is the 
superscription of a letter that passed through the 
Louisville, Ky., post-office : 

"Feds and Confeds, let this go free 
Down to Nashville, Tennessee ; 
This three-cent stamp will pay the cost 
Until you find Sopliia Yost. 



" Postmasters North, or even South, 
May open it and find the truth ; 
I merely say my wife's got well, 
And has a baby cross as , you know.* 



Who first answered the President's 
Call ? — On the morning of the sixteenth of 
April, 18G1, at nine o'clock, the Logan Guards 
received orders from Gov. Curtln to proceed Im- 
mediately to Harrlsburgh, and by nine o'clock 
that night they were ready to leave for that place 
with one hundred members. Through some mis- 
management of the railroad company, they did 
not get off until the next morning at four o'clock. 
As a consequence, they arrived In Harrlsburgh 
about six o'clock on the morning of the seven- 
teenth, which was, at least one hour before the 
arrival of any other company. After the other 
companies arrived, they were all sworn in togeth- 
er ; and on the morning of the eighteenth the 
five companies left Harrlsburgh for Washington 
city. During their passage through Baltimore, 
and their entrance into Washington, tlie Logan 
Guards had the right, and were thefrst company 
to report themselves for duty to the Adjutant Gen- 
eral. The credit should fall on those who deserve 
It — the gallant Logan Guards, Capt. John B. 
Selhelmer, of Lewlston, Mifflin County Pennsyl- 
vania. 



Touching Farewell Address. — Orpheus 
C. Kerr thus wrote, about the time General Mc- 
Clellan was relieved from the command of the 
army of the Potomac : — 

But the whole body of the Mackerels, sane and 
insane alike, unite In a feeling of strong anguish 
blended with enthusiasm, at the removaV of tie 
beloved General of the Mackerel Brigade. He 
has been so much a father to them all, that they 
never expected to get a step farther while he 
was with them. 

There's a piece of domestic philosophy for tou, 
my boy. 

When the General heard of his removal, my 
boy, he said that It Avas like divorcing a husband 
from a wife who had always supported him, and 
Immediately let fly the following farewell address : 

Head-quakters of Army of Accomac, ] 

FOOT OF TUE BluE EiDGE. ) 

My Children : An order from the Honest 
Abe divorces us, and gives the command of all 
these attached beings to Major General 'Wobert 
Woblnson. [Heartrending and enlhusiastic 
cheers.] 

In parting with you I cannot express how 
much I love your dear bosoms. As an army, you 
have grown from youth to old age under my care. 
In you I never found doubt or coldness, nor any- 
thing else. The victories you have won under 
my command wIU live In the nation's work of fic- 
tion. The strategy we have achieved, the graves 
of many unripe Mackerels, the broken forms of 
those disabled by the emancipation proclama- 



ANECDOTES, POETEY, AND INCIDENTS. 



11 



tion — the strongest associations that can exist 
amono- men — still make it advisable that you 
should vote for me as President of the United 
States in 1865. Thus we shall ever be comrades 
in supporting the Constitution, and making the 
Constitution support us. 

The Genekal of the Mackerel Bbioade. 
[Green Seal.] 



Adeoit Smuggling : — Some Irish women 
searched the market for a very large chicken, and 
on being shown one, asked if it would hold a pint 
flask. The dealer thought that it would, and the 
flask being produced, he satisfied them that it 
would. That was the chicken they wanted. The 
women finally admitted that they were going to 
cook the chicken, place the flask, after filling it 
with brandy, inside of it for stufiing, and send 
it to camp. 



THERE'S LIFE IN THE OLD LAND YET ! 

BY JAS. E. RANDALL, 

Bt blue Patapsco's billowy dash, 

The tyrant's war-shout comes, 
Along with the cymbal's fitful clash, 

And the growl of his sullen drums, 
"We hear it ! we heed it, with vengeful thrills, 

And we shall not forgive or forget ; 
Tliere's faith in the streams, there's hope in the hills, 

There's life in the old land yet ! 

Minions ! we sleep, but we are not dead ; 

We are crushed, we are scourged, we are scarred ; 
We crouch — 'tis to welcome the triumph tread 

Of the peerless Beauregard. 
Then woe to j'our vile, polluting horde 

When the Southern braves are met, 
There's faitli in the victor's stainless sword, 

There is fife in the old land yet ! 

Bigots ! ye quell not the valiant mind, 

With the clank of an iron chain. 
The spirit of frecdoni sings in the wind. 

O'er Merri/man, TJiomas, and Kane; 
And we, though we smite not, and are not thralls. 

We ai'c piling a gory debt ; 
While down by McHenry's dungeon-walls, 

There's life in the old land yet ! 

Our women have hung their harps away, 

And they scowl on )'Our brutal bands. 
While the nimble poignard dareS the day. 

In their dear defiant hands. 
They will strip their tresses to string our bows. 

Ere the Northern sun is set ; 
There's faith iu their unrelenting woes. 

There's life in the old land yet ! 

There's life, though it throbbeth in silent veins, 

'Tis vocal without noise, 
It gushed o'er Manassas' solemn plains, 

From the blood of the Maryland Boys ! 
That blood shall cry aloud, and rise 

With an everlasting tlu'eat, — 
By the death of the brave, by the God in the skies, 

There's life in tlie old land yet ! 



A Hero Indeed. — Colonel Edward E. 
Cross, thus described his experience at the bat- 
tle of Fredericksburg : — "It came near being my 
last battle. _ As we were advancing to those fatal 
heights in line of battle, I was near my colors. 
A twelve-pounder shell, from the Washington 
battery, burst right in front of me. One frag- 
ment struck me just below the heart, makings 
bad wound. Another blew off my hat ; another 
(small bit) entered my mouth, and broke out 
three of my best jaw-teeth, while the gravel, bits 
of frozen earth, and minute fragments of shell 
covered my face with bruises. 

" I fell insensible, and lay so for some tjme, 
when another fragment of shell, striking me on 
the left leg, below the knee, brought me to my 
senses. My mouth was full of blood, fragments 
of teeth and gravel, my breast-bone almost bro- 
ken in, and I lay in mud two inches deep. My 
brave looys had gone along. I always told them 
never to stop for me. Dead and wounded lay 
thick around. One captain of French's division 
was gasping in death within a foot of my head, 
his bowels all torn out. The air was full of hiss- 
ing bullets and bursting shells. Getting on my 
hands and knees, I looked for my flag. Thank 
God, there it fluttered right amid the smoke and 
fire of the front line. I could hear the cheers of 
my brave men. T^vice the colors dropped, but 
were up in an instant. 1 tried to crawl along, 
but a shot came and struck the steel scabbard of 
my sabre, splitting it open, and knocking me 
down flat. 

" Dizzy and faint, I had sense enough to lay 
myself out decently, 'feet to the foe.' Two 
lines pased over me, but soon they swayed back, 
trampling on the dead and dying. Halting about 
thirty yards in the rear, one line laid down and 
commenced firing. Imagine the situation. Right 
between two fires of bullets and shell — for our 
own artillery fire from over the river was mostly 
too short, and did great damage to our own 
troops. I lay on the field for "hours, the most 
awful moments of my life. As the Ijalls from 
our line hissed over me within a foot of my head, 
I covered my face with both hands, and counted 
rapidly from one to one hundred, expecting 
every moment my brains would spatter the 
ground. But they didn't. 

" The guardian angels (if there be such person- 
ages) or my destiny saved me. The end of my 
days was reserved for another and I hope more 
fortimate occasion. For if I am to die on the 
battle-field, I pray that it may be with the cheers 
of victory in my ears. When it became dark 
some of my men found me and I was earned to 
the hospital." 

And the prayer of the brave New Hampshire 
Colonel was answered, for he did " die with the 
cheers of victory in his ears," on the ever memo- 
rable field of Gettysburg. 



ADVENTURES IN EaST TENNESSEE. — A 

rifleman belonging to the Southern army gives 



12 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



tl 



the following account of his experiences in the 
service : — 

In the beginning of the American war I be- 
longed to a regiment of mounted riflemen, and 
we were sent into Eastern Tennessee, where 
there was a good deal of bushwhacking about 
that time. We were picketed one day in a line 
about two miles long across countrj', and I was 
on the extreme left. I took my saddle off, hols- 
ters and all, and hung it on a branch of a peach- 
tree, and my carbine on another. We knew 
there were no Yankees near, and so I was kind 
o' off guard, eating peaches. By and by I saw a 
young woman coming down to where I was, on 
horseback. She wanted to know if there were 
many of the boys near, and if they would buy 
some milk of her if she took it down to them. I 
said I thought they would, and took about a 
quart myself; and as she hadn't much more, I 
emptied the water out of my canteen and took 
the rest. Says she, " If you'll come up to the 
house yonder, I've got something better than 
that ; you may have some good peach brandy — 
some of your fellows might like a little." I said 
I'd go, and she says, " You needn't take your 
saddle or carbine, it's just a step, and they are 
safe enough here — there's nobody about." So I 
mounted bareback, and she led the way. When 
we passed the bars where she came in, she says, 
" You ride on a step, and I'll get down and put 
up the bars." I went on, and as she came up 
behind, she says pretty sharp, " Ride a little 
faster, if you please." I looked round and she 
had a revolver pointed straight at my head, and 
I saw that she knew how to use it. I had left 
everything behind me like a fool, and had to 
give in and obey orders. " That's the house if 
you please," she says, and showed me a house in 
the edge of the woods a quarter of a mile away. 
We got there, and she told me to get down and 
eat something, for she was going to give me a long 
ride — into the Yankee lines, about twenty miles 
away. Her father came out and abused me like 
a thief, and told roe that he was going to have 
me sent into the Federal lines to be hung. It 
seems he had a son hung the week before by 
some of the Confederates, and was going to have 
his revenge out of me. I ate pretty well, for I 
thought I might need it before I got any more, 
and then the old fellow began to curse me and 
abuse me like anything. He said he would shoot 
me on the spot if it wasn't that he'd rather have 
me hung ; and instead of giving me my own 
horse, he took the worst one he had in his stables, 
and they put me on that with my feet tied 
together under his belly. Luckily they didn't 
tie my hands, for they thought I had no arms, and 
couldn't help myself: but I always carried a 
small revolver in my shirt-bosom. The girl kept 
too sharp watch on me for me to use it. She 
never turned her revolver from me, and I knew 
that the first suspicious move I made 1 was a 
dead man. We went about ten miles in this 
way, when my old crow-bait gave out and 
wouldn't go any further. She wouldn't trust me 
afoot, and so had to give up her own horse ; but 



she kept the bridle in her own hands, and 
walked ahead with one eye turned back on me, 
and the revolver cocked, with her finger on the 
trigger, so that I never had a chance to put my 
hand in my bosom. We finally came to a spring, 
and she asked me if I wanted to drink. I didn't 
feel much like drinking, but I said yes, and so 
she let me down. I put my head down to the 
water, and at the same time put my hand down 
to where the revolver was, and pulled it forward 
where I could put my hand on it easily ; but 
she was on the watch, and I couldn'L pull it out. 
I mounted again, and the firet time she was off' 
her guard a little, I fired and broke the arm she 
held the pistol in. " Now," says I, " it's my turn ; 
you'll please get on that horse, and we'll go 
back." She didn't flinch or say a word, but got 
on the horse, and I tied her legs as they had mine, 
and we went back to the house. The old man 
he heard us come up to the door and looked out 
of the window. He turned as pale as a sheet 
and ran for his rifle. I knew what he was after, 
and pushed the door in before he was loaded. 
Says I, " You may put that shooting-iron down 
and come with me." He wasn't as brave as the 
girl, but it was no use to resist, and he knew it ; 
so he came along. About half way back we met 
some of our fellows who had missed me, and 
come out to look me up. They took them both, 
and I don't know what they did with them, but 
I know very well what they would have done 
with me. 



A KAINY DAY IN CAMP. 

'Tis a cheerless, lonesome evening 
When the soaking, sodden ground 

Will not echo to the footfall 
Of the sentinel's dull round. 

God's blue star-spangled banner 

'To-night is not unfurled, 
Surely He has not deserted 

This weary, warring world. 

I peer into the darkness, 

And the crowding fancies come ; 
The night wind blowing northward 

Carries all my heart towards home. 

For I 'listed in this army 

Not exactly to my mind ; 
But my country called for helpers, 

And I could not stay behind. 

Lo, I have had a sight of drilling, 
And have roughed it many ways. 

And Death has nearly had mc, — 
Still I think the service pays. 

It's a blessed sort of feeling, 

Whether you live or die, 
To know you've helped your country, 

And fought right loyally. 

But I can't help thinking, sometimes 
When a wet day's leisure comes, 

That I hear the old home voices 
Talking louder than the drums. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS- 



13 



And that far familiar faces 

Press in at the tent door, 
And the little children's footsteps 

Go pit-pat on the floor- 

I can't help thinking, sometimes, 

Of all the parson reads 
About that other soldier-life 

Which every true man leads. 

And wife, soft-hearted creature, 
Seems a saying in mine ear, 

" I'd rather have you in those ranks 
Than see you Brigadier." 

I call myself a brave one. 

But in my heart I lie ; 
For my country and her honor 

I'm fiercely free to die, 

But when the Lord who bought me, 

Asks for my service here. 
To fight the good fight faithfully 

I'm skulking in the rear. 

And yet I know that Captain 

All love and care to be ; 
He would not get impatient 

With a raw recruit like me. 

And I know He'd not forget me. 
When the day of peace appears, 

I should share with Him the victory 
Of all the volunteers. 

And it's kind of cheerful thinking 

Beside the dull tent fire. 
About that great promotion 

When He says " Come up higher." 

And though 'tis dismal rainy, 
E'en now with thoughts of Him, 

Camp-life looks extra cheery, 
And death a deal less grim. 

For I seem to see him waiting 
Where a gathered Heaven greets 

A great victorious army, 

Surging up the golden streets. 

And I hear him read the roll-call. 
And my heart is all a flame 

When the dear " Recording Angel " 
Writes down my happy name. 

But my fire is dead white ashes. 
And the tent is chilling cold, 

And I'm playing win the battle. 
When I've never been enrolled. 



Beau Hackett as a Zouave. — Militia 
companies have always been popular, but never 
so much so as since the war broke out. Young 
men with stay-at-home-and-take-care-of-the-wo- 
men proclivities, are more than ever inclined to 
join the Home Guards, in consequence of in- 
creased mortality in the army of the United 
States, as shown by the newspaper statistics. 

With a laudable ambition to support the Gov- 
ernment, in any and every emergency, I have re- 



cently become a member of the War Department 
myself. I joined the Ellsworth Zouaves, a rem- 
nant of what used to be a troupe of acrobats, who 
distinguished themselves all the way from Chicago 
to Washington, by turning double somersaults, 
with muskets in their mouths and bayonets in 
their hands. 

There are no members of the Old Zouave bat- 
talion in the new one, but the new one retains 
the name of Ellsworth because one of the mem- 
bers has a brother that once saw a picture of 
Colonel Ellsworth's grandfather. The names 
of organizations frequently have a more remote 
origin than this, and many of them are about as 
consistent and reasonable as a man claiming 
relationship to the President of the United States 
because he was born in Lincolnshire, or suppos- 
ing he would be Governor if he married a gov- 
erness, or trying to pass free at a circus as a rep- 
resentative of the press because he is a cheese- 
maker. 

I was put through a rigid coui-se of examina- 
tion before I could be made a Zouave, and I say 
it with feelings of gratification and self-esteem, 
that I was remarkably well posted in the cate- 
chism. My father was a hero of the revolution, 
having been caught once in a water-wheel, and 
whirled around rapidly a number of times. 
Others of the family have also distinguished them- 
selves as military men at difierent periods, but 
their deeds of courage are too well known to 
need repetition. 

The following is a copy verbatim et literatim 
et wordim of most of the questions propounded 
to me, and the answers thereto, which my inti- 
mate acquaintance with the Army Regulations 
and the report of the Committee on the Conduct 
of the War enable me to answer readily and 
accurately. My interrogator was a little man in 
Federal blue, with gold leaves on his shoulders. 
They called him Major, but he looked young 
enough to be a minor. He led oflf with — 

" How old are you, and what are your qualifi- 
cations ? " 
" Twenty-two and a strong stomach." 
Then I requested him to fire his interrogations 
singly, which he did : 

" What Is the first duty to be learned by a 
soldier ? " 

" How to draw his rations." 
" What is the most difficult feat for a soldier 
to perform ? " 

" Drawing his bounty." 

" If you were in the rear rank of a company 
during an action, and the man in the front rank 
before you should be wounded and disabled, what 
would you do ? " 

" I would despatch myself to the rear for a sur- 
geon immediately. Some men would step for- 
ward and take the wounded man's place, but 
that is unnatural." 

" If you were commanding skirmishers, and 
saw cavalry advancing in the front and infantry 
in the rear, which would you meet ? " 

"Neither; I would mass myself for a bold 
movement, and shove out sideways." 



14 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



"If you were captured what line of conduct 
would you pursue ? " 

" I would treat my captors with the utmost 
civility." 

" What are the duties of Home Guards ? " 

" Their duty is to see that they have no 
duties." 

" What will you take ? " 

The latter question may have been answered 
with too much vehemence, and may have im- 
pressed listeners with the belief that I am in the 
habit of jumping at conclusions. Such, however, 
is not the case. 

I am a Zouave ; I am a Home Guard. I have 
been through all the manoeuvres, and can right 
about face ; I can also write about any other 
part of the body. I can do the hand-springs, 
and the tumbling, and the lay down and roll- 
overs, which are done with or without a musket. 
I have been drilled till the drill has become a 
bore. I have di'illed in all the marches and 
leaps and vaults, and in the bayonet exercises, 
?md in all the steps, — the common step, the 
quick step, the very quick step, and the double 
quick step, and the trot and the run ; also in slow 
time and long time, which I never learned from 
my landlady nor my tailor. I can shoulder arms, 
and bear arms, and carry arms, (if they are not 
too heavy,) and reverse arms, and support arms, 
(ordinarily my arms support me,) and I can 
order arms better than I can pay for them after 
they are ordered. I can parry and tierce, and I 
can throw a hand-spring with a sword-bayonet 
in my hand without breaking the sword-bayonet 
in more than three pieces, and I can bite off a 
cartridge without breaking my teeth out. 

Once, when an order was given to sling knap- 
sacks, I slung mine out of the window, and when 
the order was given to unsling knapsacks, I went 
out and slung it back again quicker than any- 
body else could have done it. I have got a pretty 
knapsack too — thei-e are letters on it. It is 
just the thing to sit down on in the time of an 
action, and is big enough for a breastwork in 
case of danger from bullets or anything of that 
sort. It's hea^y, though, and I felt that there 
was an immense resijonslbility resting on me the 
first time I shouldered it. I must have felt some- 
thing like Atlas did the first time he shouldered 
the world. It was so heavy that, as a piece of 
masterly strategy, i fell back the first time I 
strapped it on^ and as a piece of unmasterly 
strategy I came near breaking my head against 
the iloor. The Major had promised to put saw- 
dust, softened with soda-water, on the floor 
hereafter. 

I have been getting a Major General's uni- 
form made. There is every opportunity that 
could be desired for promotion, in our corps, 
where real merit exists, and a Major General of 
Home Guards is not to be sneezed at. I may 
have to keep my uniform a few yeai*s before I 
will have occasion to wear it, but a Major Gen- 
eral's toggery is a good thing to have in case of 
promotion. I trust my friends will give them- 
selves no uneasiness, as I feel sure of ultimate 



success in the enterprise I have undertaken. I 
mean to strike the keynote of my campaign 
soon, and then look out for a sensation in mihtary 
circles. 

I haven't shaved my upper lip since yesterday 
afternoon. To-morrow will be the third day. I 
mean to grow a moustache that will be an object 
of admiration and envy. Mustachios are indis- 
pensable to the achievement of a Major Genei'al- 
ship. Mustachios are absolutely necessary to the 
achievement of anything that is useful. 

In the event of a war between the United 
States and the Esquimaux, Chicago my residence 
will, in all likehhood, be one of the first cities at- 
tacked by the invading enemy, and every precau- 
tion should be taken to be fully prepared for 
them. Should such attack ever be made by the 
warlike and bloodthirsty Esquimaux, or any 
other of the great powers of the earth, and should 
it be my misfortune to be imable personally to 
command my forces, (for I have often observed 
that an invasion is productive of sickness,) I shall 
take care that my second ofiicer is a man of suffi- 
cient capacity to defend the city as ably as I 
would do it myself. Should the worst come to 
to the worst, I stand ready to sacrifice a substi- 
tute on the altar of my country. 



Bishop Rosecrans. — As Bishop Kosecrans 
(brother of the General) was at dinner, the con- 
versation reverted to the war. 

" It would seem to me. Bishop, that you and 
your brother, the General, are engaged in very 
different calHngs," remarked a gentleman. 

"Yes, it appears so," returned the Bishop. 
" And yet," he continued, " we are both fighting 
men. While the General is wielding the swoi-d 
of flesh, I trust that I am using the sword of the 
Spirit. He is fighting the rebels, and I am fight- 
ing the spirits of darkness. There is this differ- 
ence in the terms of our service : he is fighting 
with Price, while I am fighting without price." 



Incident of Fort Pillow. — When Com- 
mander Davis took possession of Fort Pillow af- 
ter its evacuation by the Confederates the follow- 
ing letter was found lying on a table in the offi- 
cers' quarters : 

" Fort Pillow, Tenn. 
To the first YanJiee wlio reads tJds : 

I present this table not as a manifestation of 
friendship, yet I entertain no personal animosity 
to him, but because I can't transport it. After 
six weeks' bombardment, without doing us any 
harm whatever, I know you will exult over the 
occupation of this place, but our evacuation will 
hurt you from another point with disastrous effect. 
Five miUions white men fighting to be reheved 
from oppression will never be conquered by 
twenty millions actuated by maUce and pecuni- 
ary gain, mark that. We have the science, en- 
ergy and vigor, with the help of God, to extricate 
ourselves from this horrible and unnatural difii- 
culty pressed upon us by the North ; the day of 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



15 



retribution is approaching, and will fall upon you 
deadly as a bolt from heaven ; may your sojourn 
at this place be of few days and full of trouble." 



Soldier Wit. — The Colonel of an Alabama 
regiment, was famous for having everything done 
up in military style. Once, while field officer of 
the day, and going his tour of inspection, he came 
on a sentinel from the eleventh Mssissippi regi- 
ment sitting flat down on his post, with his gun 
taken entirely to pieces, when the following dia- 
logue took place : 

Colonel. " Don't you know that a sentinel 
while on duty, should always keep on his feet ? " 

Sentinel (without looking up). " That's the 
way we used to do when the war first began ; but 
that's played out long ago." 

Colonel (beginning to doubt if the man was 
on duty). Are you the sentinel here ? " 

Sentinel. " Well, I'm a sort of a sentinel." 

Colonel. " Well I'm a sort of officer of the 
day." 

Sentinel. " Well, if you'll hold on till I sort 
of git my gun together, I'll give you a sort of sa- 
lute." 



SOUTH CAROLINA GENTLEMAN. 
Air — The Fine Old English Gentleman. 

Down in a small Palmetto State the curious ones 
may find, 

A ripping, tearing gentleman of an uncommon kind, 

A staggering, swaggering sort of chap who takes his 
whiskey straight, 

And frequently condenms his eyes to that ultimate 
vengeance which a clei^yman of high stand- 
ing has assured must be a sinner's fate ; 

This South Carolina gentleman, one of the present 
time. 

You trace his genealogy, and not far back you'll see, 
A most undoubted Octoroon or mayhap a mustee. 
And if you note the shaggy locks that cluster on his 

brow. 
You'll find every other hair is varied with a kink that 

seldom denotes pure Caucasian blood, but on 

the contrary, betrays an admixture with a race 

not particular popular now : 
This South Carolina gentleman, one of the present 

time. 

He always wears a full dress coat, pre-Adamite in 
cut. 

With waistcoat of the broadest style, through which 
his ruflfles jut ; 

Six breast-pins deck his hon-id front, and on his fin- 
gers shine 

Whole invoices of diamond rings which would hardly 
pass muster with the original Jacobs in Chat- 
ham street for jewels gen-u-ine ; 

This South Carolina gentleman, one of the present 
time. 

He chews tobacco by the pound and spits upon the 

floor, 
If there is not a box of sand behind the nearest door ; 
And when he takes his weekly spree, he clears a 

mighty track 



Of everything that beai-s the shape of whiskey-skin, 
gin and sugar — brandy sour, peach, and 
honey, irrepressible cocktail, rum and gum, 
and luscious apple-jack, 

This South Carolina gentleman, one of the present 
time. 

He takes to euchre kindly, too, and plays an awful 
hand, 

Especially when those he tricks his style don't under- 
stand. 

And if he wins, why, then, he stops to pocket all the 
stakes. 

But if he loses, then he says to the unfortunate 
stranger who had chanced to win, " It's my 
opinion you are a cursed Abolitionist, and if 
you don't leave South Carolina in one hour, 
you will be hung like a dog;" but no offer 
to pay his losses he makes. 

This South Carolina gentleman, one of the present 
time. 

Of course he's all the time in debt to those who 

credit give. 
Yet manages upon the best the market yields to live. 
But if a Northern creditor asks him his bill to heed. 
This honorable gentleman instantly draws his bowie- 
knives and a pistol, dons a blue cockade, and 
declares that in consequence of the repeated 
aggressions of the North, and its gross viola- 
tions of the Constitution, he feels that it would 
utterly degrade him to pay any debt whatever, 
and that in fact he has at last determined to 
. Secede, 
This South Carolina gentleman, one of the present 
time. 



True Soldiers. — The following occurred on 
board the steamer Canada during her passage 
from Dubuque to St. Louis. 

In the evening while many of the passengers 
were engaged in conversation, others whiling away 
their time at " euchre," while some more rude 
perhaps, with the ribald jest and nngentlemanly 
oath, were passing the evening away, a young 
man seated himself at one of the tables, and en- 
gaged in reading his Bible. Another, and still 
another took their places around this temporary 
altar, until nearly all of that little band of soldiers, 
numbering about twenty, were reading the Scrip- 
tures. An aged man took his station in their 
midst. He had a pious and venerable air, for 
his hoary locks proclaimed that many a winter 
had passed over his head. There, those forming 
boys, with that old man, formed a group, whose 
actions indeed were worthy of all commendation. 
The creaking machinery of the boat, the dii-ge- 
like music of the wind, was loud ; yet, above the 
clatter, all things else, we know those boys were 
heard in heaven, and that their prayers will be 
answered ! Their Bibles, precious gift of home, 
are sacred with them, and will shield them too, 
when the glittering mail of yore would fall. Pa- 
rents and friends of home, fear not for such brave 
sons, who, relying on Heaven, are not ashamed 
nor afraid to praise God, and do battle for the 
Star-Spangled Banner. 

These were soldiers of the regular army enlist- 
ed in Dubuque, by Captain Washington. 



16 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



A SCOUT TO EAST TENNESSEE. 

BY THE LOCHIEL CAVALRY. 

At sunrise, on December 20th, 1862, ten com- 
panies of the Ninth Pennsylvania Cavalry — 460 
men, under command of Major Russell, and eight 
companies of the Second Michigan — 300 men, 
under command of Col. Campbell, marched due 
east from Nicholasville, Ky., on a secret expedi- 
tion, for which thirty days were allotted for those 
who should be so fortunate as to return, _ The 
orders were to move " light and easy," without 
tents, baggage or extra clothing ; carry on your 
horse all you wanted, and two shoes and twenty 
nails for him. There were ten days' rations is- 
sued, which each trooper carried. Marching 
through the farms and by-paths to avoid _ all 
towns and villages, crossing the Kentucky river 
at an out of the way ford, and ascending Big 
Hill south of Richmond, we arrived at M'Kees, 
county town of Jackson county, Ky., containing 
six or eight houses, being the first village we had 
passed through. We were halted here one day, 
tor a corn and provision train to come up that 
had pack-saddles in it. There were fifty mules 
packed here with two days' rations, and the 
wagons sent back to Lexington with half team 
force, leaving corn for our return, there being 
none in Jackson county. 

December 24:th. — The weather had been very 
fair and beautiful, except this last day, which 
was rainy and cold, and we marched out in 
the rain for Goose creek, near its junction 
with the Red Bird fork of Kentucky river. 
Halting in the meadow an hour to give the 
horses a bite of hay (the first they had for four 
days, and about all they ever got on the march), 
we were joined by the Seventh Ohio Cav- 
alry — 240 men — from Winchester, Ky., under 
command of Major Reany. The whole force now 
numbered 1,000 men, and was under command 
of Brig. Gen. Cai-ter, having on his staff Col. 
Carter, Col. Walker, Col. Garrett, Capt. Watkins, 
Capt. M'Nish, Capt. Easley and others, all acting 
as aids, assistants, or guides. We now ascertained 
we were sent to burn the bridges on the East 
Tennessee raih-oad, and were expected to foot it 
half the way over the successive steep and rug- 
ged mountain ranges of Kentucky, Virginia, and 
Tennessee, and recommended to cheerfully endure 
all the hardships and place ourselves on half 
rations to begin with. I will say for the soldiers 
that no man cavilled at it, or wanted to turn his 
back, but all went cheerfully forward, bearing 
their own burdens as best they might, without 
sleep, on half rations, food half cooked, and boots 
worn off their feet by tramping over the rocks to 
ease their own good horses, and trusting to Provi- 
dence to keep down the wide and swift rivers that 
drain these wild mountains. There was to ford, on 
going and coming, the Cumberland, Powell's 
river, Wallen's river, the Clinch, North Holston, 
South Holston and the Watauga, the Holston 
and Clinch being navigable for steamboats when 
the waters are up. Providentially they were 
kept down for us. In three days after our exit 



they were in full flood, so that they could not 
even have been swum by our horses. From 
Goose creek we had only bridle-paths, and 
marched by file across a deep depression in the 
ridge to the Red Bird, up that and across it 
scores of times to its topmost spring. 

December 27th. — Crossing the Kentucky 
Ridge, and down to the waters of the middle 
fork of Kentucky river, crossing and rising 
that, we came down to Straight creek and 
halted for half an hour to breathe, ere breast- 
ing the pine mountain that appeared to push 
its rocky side up like the wall of a house to 
near the clouds then lowering and dripping 
on our Reads. The zig-zag paths up the face 
of this mountain turn and return on each other 
as often as a fox trail, and the toiling men 
and horses crawling up its side, looked, from 
the valley, like flies ascending and sticking to a 
wall. Its sandy eastern front was too steep to 
ride down, and there were several miles of ardu- 
ous marching over the Pine Mountain ere we 
reached the Poor Fork at the Cumberland. 
Marched up its quicksand shores and beside the 
horizontal rock ledges that are natural for- 
tresses, ready made to the hand of the men of 
Harlan county to defend themselves from inva- 
sion by way of Cumberland Gap or any other in 
the mountain range. Fording the Cumberland 
and Clover Fork and following up Martin's 
creek, we camped during the rainy night and 
slept by the fires for the last time for many days 
until our return into Kentucky again. Marching 
over a high i-idge, the bold and beautiful Cum- 
berland mountain rose majestically before us, 
and extended like a frowning barrier to right 
and left as far as the eye could reach without a 
perceptible break in the unifoi'mity of its crest 
Two-thirds of the way up the mountain was a 
level shoulder, as it were breaking the uniformity 
of its side and appearing as if there had been 
great waves running the length of the moun- 
tains, and thus arrested and changed to rock 
while in motion adding greatly to its beauty, 
while the softened rays of the declining sun shone 
in contrasted light and shadow on the gray rock 
waves, the green pines and the bare, brown 
poplars and oaks. Halting beside the little 
stream in the pleasant valley, an hour was spent 
in giving corn to the jaded horses, sending back 
the whole pack mule train, all inefficient horses 
and a few sick men to Lexington. At sunset, 
leading our horses for a two mile march up, and 
a one mile march down, we cheerfully addressed 
ourselves to the task of crossing the Cumberland 
mountain. We reached the summit in two hours, 
under the light of the full soft moon that silvered 
and beautified the scene, and passed over into 
the State of Virginia through Crank Gap, so 
called from its tortuous break in the horizontal 
rock crest of the Cumberland, some 200 feet 
deep and a quarter of a mile in width. This 
pass is more beautiful and picturesque than any- 
thing I have ever seen. It arrested the attention 
of every soldier and according to his tempera- 
ment he viewed it to ri^ht and left in silent admi- 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



17 



ration at the wondei-lTil works of God, or in 
rapturous comment as the soft moonlijiht silvered 
o'er and smoothed the ruggedness of each nat- 
ural " frieze and coign of vantage" that was bro- 
ken or rounded and carved, and overhung our 
winding path with all the softness of a summer Ital- 
ian landscape by Claude Lorraine. Passing the 
crest we turned to the left and went down an 
easy grade on a projecting Sierra from the face 
of the mountain, with a precipice on each side. 
Reaching the end of that we turned short again 
to the left with our faces to the mountain and 
slipped down into chaos, pitching and sliding 
from rock to rock into a wild gorge. Looking 
directly up to the Kentucky heights was rock 
scenery of such savage character over our heads, 
as would have delighted the heart of Salvator 
Rosa. It would but have required a camp fire 
while our troops were filing and plunging down, 
and his pencil, to more than rival his scenes in 
the Appenines. The cliffs here were in shadow 
from the moon, and crested the whole north- 
eastern face of the mountain in one rude unbro- 
ken strata, and projected like a threatening arm 
from Kentucky, raised to chastise any invader. 
It is not to be wondered that the white man had 
his superstitions in invading the western home of 
the Indian while climbing these cliffs from the 
east. 

This Crank pass has the singular appearance 
of having fallen two hundred feet into some 
subterranean gulf, the pass being level for a 
quarter of a mile in width, winding over the 
mountains in a curve between the buttressed 
walls for more than half a mile, with the rocks 
torn sheer down from both sides, leaving the 
singular rock walls overhanging. The pass has 
the same kind of soil and trees on it that cap the 
rock battlements, and to soften the wild scene, 
were glassy glades around a dilapidated house, 
where some mountaineer had once built him a 
home, now abandoned. Below his house the 
sounds of falling water greeted our oars as we 
crossed the sunken pass, through an avenue of 
hemlocks and gigantic rhododendrons, intermingl- 
ed with isolated rocks, moss covered by the falling 
waters, that were of such enormous sizes as 
would have made dwellings for the Genii or the 
Titans. 

Turning with a sigh from all this wealth of 
natural beauty, thinking how nuich it would be 
endeared to us could the loved ones at home be 
at our side to appreciate it, and pondering on 
the thought of how %r distant was the day when 
we could visit it with smiling peace waving her 
wing over the land, Ave looked the jiresent toils 
and dangers fully in the face, and strode man- 
fully on. Passing north up Poor Valley to avoid 
alarming Jonesville, we forded Powell's river 
and crossed Lee county during the night, reach- 
ing Wallen's Ridge at sunrise, where resting 
two hours, cooking our coffee and toasting our 
meat on long sticks or eating it raw (as many 
preferred), and feeding our horses with the corn 
we carried over the Cumberland we pushed on 
for Tennessee, crossing Powell's mountain. At 



sunset we reached the broad and swift Clinch 
river ; fording it, we halted at a very picturesque 
spot, where was a large old-time mansion and the 
only good flouring mill we had seen in our 
travels, with its very large wheel driven by the 
tumbling waters at a mountain brook poured on 
the top of it, glistening like silver in the soft 
twilight, Avhile the river waters murmured by. 
Halting here for an hour for coffee, and to give 
to the horses a good feed of corn, which the mill 
and farm-house furnished, and was paid for in 
" greenbacks," though under the confederate iron 
rule the miller would not dare to use them, we 
joushed on through the mountain passes at Pur- 
chase Ridge and Copper Ridge for Estillville. 
We had captured many small squads of confed- 
erate soldiers and conscripts on our way, parol- 
ing them all. We this night captured several, 
under charge of a lieutenant, who were halting 
at a farm-house by the road-side. Before start- 
ing, orders were given that we were to report 
ourselves to inquirers along the road as confeder- 
ate Georgia and Tennessee cavalry returning 
from a secret expedition, and every one along 
the road was deceived by it, as they thought we 
were purposely disguised in blue clothes. Pass- 
ing Estillville, crossing Scott county, Virginia, 
and fording the north fork of the Holston at 
night, we reached Blountsville, Tennessee, at 
eight A. M. The Ninth Pennsylvania and 
Seventh Ohio were halted here an hour, and the 
Second Michigan were pressed fbrwaixl six miles 
to Union Station, where the East Tennessee 
railroad crosses the south fork of Holston on an 
expensive bridge 1,000 feet long. Here, as we 
had understood from our prisoners of last night, 
were stationed three companies of the Sixty- 
second Noi'th Carolina confederate troops under 
Major McDowell. After all our marches, toils 
and trials, here was to be tested the complete 
surprise and success of our expedition, or we 
were to be met by the enemy, repulsed and 
driven back over the mountains without accom- 
plishing our object. It was a moment for anxious 
thought on the part of General Carter, which was. 
fully shared by each one in the expedition from 
highest to lowest. As it proved, the Almighty 
was pleased to bless our cause, for never was 
surprise more complete. We had outtravelled all 
certain information, but rumors of a coming host 
had preceded us like the mutterings of a thunder 
storm. Within eighty rods of the station Ser- 
geant Whitemore, Co. A, commanding the Michi- 
gan VIdettes, met six citizens riding up ; they 
asking who our troops were, were answered First 
Georgia Cavalry. They were delighted, shook 
hands with the Sergeant and said, " The d — d 
Yankees were in Estillville, fifteen miles off, 
five thousand strong '' — that " they had raised a 
hundred men besides the troop, and were going 
out Into the country to raise more men to defend 
the post — that the Major was coming along 
right up and the Sergeant would meet him be- 
fore he got to the bridge." Col. Carter came up 
to the citizens at that moment and passed them 
to the rear. The Sergeant told him he would 



18 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



go down to meet the Major. He said, " Yes, do 
so." The Sergeant moved forward to a sharp 
curve in the road and saw the Major and two 
citizens, at sixty rods' distance, talking to the 
sentinels at the bridge. He came back out of 
sight, dismounted three men and himself, sent 
the horses back to the column halted up the road, 
and secreted his men in a fence coi-ner behind 
the road curve to await the Major's coming. 
When the Major and the two citizens came up, 
conversing about the "Yankees "to within five 
feet of the ambush, they were appalled by the 
sight of the bright revolving rifles close to their 
heads at full cock. The Sergeant said, " You are 
my prisoners." Involuntarily they halt, wheel 
their horses to flee, when a sharp halt ! brought 
them to front face again. The Sergeant 
moved them up toward the column. Colonel 
Campbell had come to the point with Colonel 
Carter. Colonel Campbell addressed the Major, 
took his hand and told him lie had come to take 
Ids post, and if he did not surrender uncondi- 
tionally he loould take it at amj rate ; saying 
also, " My men are posted to fire on you — 
you have not a moment to lose to avoid use- 
less bloodshedding. The Major wrote a note 
to the Captain in command at the post and 
advised its surrender. It was sent down with a 
flag of truce and the place was surrendered at 
once ; the rifles peering across the Holston from 
the hill commanding the camp being persuaders 
too potent to be gainsaid. The telegraph was 
instantly destroyed before an intimation of our 
presence could be conveyed and the railroad 
bridge fired. The two hundred prisoners (who 
appeared to be rejoiced) were placed under 
guard, and the Ninth Pennsylvanian and Seventh 
Ohio ordered forward from the Blountsville road. 
On their arriving, an expedition was ordered 
under Colonel Walker and Colonel Carter to 
capture and burn the bridge nine miles south- 
west across Watauga river, consisting of compan- 
ies A, C, and D, the twelve rifles of Co. B, fifteen 
of Co. F, Ninth Pennsylvania Cavalry ; compa- 
nies A, and F, Second Michigan Cavalry, and two 
companies of the Seventh Ohio Cavalry. The 
balance of the troops were kept back by Gen- 
eral Carter to destroy the county bridge, the 
turn-table, cars, ammunition, camp and commis- 
sary stores, and to follow us down to Watauga 
and defend our rear from the enemy's 800 troops 
at Bristol, fourteen miles by railway, and Hum- 
phrey Marshall's force at Abingdon, thirty miles 
off by railway. At five miles out the "Watauga 
expedition heard a whistle. The troops were 
instantly dismounted and ambushed at both ends 
and besides a deep cut, a rail cut out Avith our 
axes in front, and men ambushed with orders to 
cut out a rail in her rear the instant the engine 
ran into the deep cut — all in less time than it 
takes me to write It. A locomotive and tender 
came in sight, ran into the cut, saw the rail out, 
reversed and backed out instanter, but not be- 
fore the rail was up In their rear, and they were 
fully caged on the rifles peering over the bank. 
We had gotten a prize, having captured Col. 



Love, of the Sixty-second North Carolina, a 
Major, a Captain and a telegraphic staff coming 
up to ascertain why the telegraph would not 
work. Five minutes sufficed to put a guai'd on 
the locomotive and run her down after us, and 
we were again on our way and on the alert. It 
had been raining slowly all day and now came 
on heavily. Nearing the rebel camp, Col. Car- 
ter, who knew all the ground, arranged the attack, 
Col. Walker assisting. Companies A and F, 
Second Michigan, dismounted on the right ; the 
twelve rifles of Company A, Ninth Pennsylvania 
Cavalry, in the centre, and Company D, Seventh 
Ohio, with their rifles, on the left, were to sur- 
round the camp, the balance of the rifles being 
posted as rear guard and on the left of the road, 
and then it was to be summoned to surrender, 
to save useless bloodshed. Unfortunately there 
were some rebel soldiers on the ourtskirts of the 
camp chopping wood, six of whom were captured 
as the troops deployed, but two ran in and 
alarmed the camp. A shot was fired by some 
one on the left, and the attack became general.. 
The rebels were under arms and the firing was 
very heavy on both sides for the numbers en- 
gaged, for ten minutes, whon the Ninth Pennsyl- 
vania, followed by the Seventh Ohio, charged 
on the camp pistol in hand, and the enemy fled. 
Companies C and D and the balance of Company 
A, Ninth Pennsylvania Cavalry, had been formed 
in fours around the hill to charge with sabre 
should there be resistance. ^Vhen the firing 
slacked they were ordered to charge, and did so, 
on the camp. Finding it almost abandoned, 
they galloped over the Watauga. Companies C 
and D filed left into a ploughed field to head off 
the retreating enemy. Company A kept the 
road, and at full charge came on them drawn up 
in two ranks by the roadside. Capt. Jones 
ordering them to throw down their arms at thirty 
paces, the rebels were so startled by the rush of 
horses and glancing of sabi'cs that they all obeyed 
the order, but a half dozen, who came near losing 
their lives by not doing so. There were two 
lieutenants and seventy-two men who surren- 
dered and saved much blood-shedding. They 
were making their way to a log house close at 
hand — a capital fortress — which we would 
have been compelled to have stormed at once. 
Companies C and D went down the road and 
overhauled sl.xteen more. The short, sharp action 
cost several lives. One man of Company D, 
Seventh Ohio, shot dead ; one man of Company 
A, Second Michigan, mortfily wounded in the 
abdomen, and two of the twelve men, Company 
A, Ninth Pennsylvania, Avounded in tiie leg; one 
had to be amputated and the man left with the 
rebel Avounded. Of the rebel forces, there Avere 
tAvo killed and fifteen wounded. Our surgeon 
assisted In dressing their Avounded, and tAvo of 
our wounded men were left at the station, Col. 
Love and Lieut. Hill promising they should have 
the same care as their oavu men. The two Lieu- 
tenants, Hill and , of the Sixty-second 

North Carolina, fought their commands AvIth 
great gallantry. What a pity that it should be 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



19 



exerted in so evil a cause as the disruption of 
their country. 

Our prisoners were all paroled on the road, 
and here, amounting to near four hundred and 
fifty, inclusive of one Colonel, two ]\Iajors, two 
Captains and five Lieutenants. It was now dark. 
The telegraph was instantly destroyed, the camp 
and the bridge fired, the arms broken and put 
on the locomotive, and after the bridge had fall- 
en, steam was drawn on the engine and she was 
run over the abutment on to the burning mass 
below with a great crash. In our haste to ex- 
pedite these matters we lost a prize of another 
locomotive and train that came up in sight at the 
burning bridge, reversed her wheels and scudded 
down the road toward Knoxville. Jeff Davis 
himself might have been on the train. It is the 
only thing we have to reproach ourselves for dur- 
ing the expedition as being left undone, or half 
done. There were two hundred and fifty cav- 
alry came up after dark to reinforce the infan- 
try. Hearing of the fight they wheeled about 
and marched over into North Carolina, report- 
ing there were thirty thousand of us at the rail- 
way. Our men were ordered to feed their horses 
on the rebel corn, and rest for a few hours ; but 
there was no rest after the excitement of the 
day and night, and at one o'clock on the night of 
December 30th, we commenced our retreat, and 
by strategy to baffle the enemy that oar scouts 
told us were massing to cut us off' aud pursue us. 
We felt confident tliey must be great adepts if 
they could outmanccuvre Gen. and Col. Carter 
and our guides. Our poor horses were sinking 
under the severe toil of marching, and it became 
a matter of prime mihtary necessity to replenish 
the stock or leave sti-aggling men on our re- 
treat. Every man having a worn-out horse v^as 
sent out with a sergeant or corporal to trade 
off his horse at any farm-house right or left, day 
and night, leaving his own horse in exchange, it 
taking only one to make a horse-trade Ilorgan 
fashion. Some hundreds of horses were thus 
pressed into the service, but some six unwary 
men fell behind the column and were captured 
by the rebel troops that were following us at a 
safe distance for themseWes in our rear. I find 
that the Richmond papers give us the credit of 
doing no marauding, nor injury to private prop- 
erty. Our scouts informed us that five hours 
after we left Watauga river the enemy had six- 
teen hundred infantry and four pieces of artil- 
lery brought up by railway from Jonesboro or 
Greenville, and put upon our trail. We laugh- 
ed at the idea of footmen and field-pieces fol- 
lowing up the paths we came across the farms 
and lanes and ravines. Our guides certainly 
must have been coon-hunting over that coun- 
try all their lives at dark nights, to have guided 
us so unerringly. We got so that we left the 
horses to follow up in the dark, and although it 
felt sometimes as if both horse and saddle Vere 
going from under one and we going to perdition, 
we came out all right on the ravine bottom at 
last. Humphrey Marshall moved troops from 
Abingdon to Blountsville on our right, aud troops 



were moved from Kogersville to Kingsport to in- 
tercept us ; but we passed between " Scylla " on 
the one hand and " Charybdis " on the other, 
and came out ahead of them all. While on our 
rout to Kingsport, a man by the roadside told 
me that the infantry and artillery stationed there 
had crossed our route six hours before marching 
to Blountsville, expecting to intercept us there. 
While on the high ridge above Kingsport we 
had a beautiful view of a snowy mountain, illum- 
ined by the setting sun. At fifty miles distance 
towered up the black mountain of North Caro- 
lina, six thousand nine hundred feet in the air, — 
the highest land in the old United States proper, 
standing like Saul a full head and shoulders over 
all his companions. It looked exceedingly rug- 
ged at that great distance, with its rude con- 
cave side towai'ds us, seamed and furrowed by 
tremendous chasms from top to bottom. It had 
a crest of two or three miles in length, and is 
crescent-shaped on top, very steep on both ends, 
and towering so high above all others, seemed 
not to be a member of any chain of mountains 
that I could perceive in the distance. For an 
isolated mountain it was very picturesque in ap- 
pearance, and was beautified by being covered 
with snow, Avhile the surrounding landscape was 
dark. It looked a-rifted, inaccessible, and un- 
inhabitable as the high Alps of Switzerland. 
Riding at night down the South Holston at 
Kingsport, — there a broad and beautiful stream 
fit for steamboating, — we were fired upon from 
over the river, the bullets whisthng over our 
heads and striking the fence between our horses. 
I got tired at the one-sided arrangement and or- 
dered some of my lads, who are adepts with then* 
rifles, to try some long shots in the moonhght — 
dismounted; they never require a second bid- 
ding for that kind of work, and the popping from 
over the river was quickly ended. I cannot tell 
if there was " anybody hurt," but we came off" 
clear. After fording the north Holston at its 
junction with the main stream, we marched on 
to a very fine and extensive farm, where the 
horses were fed and the men had their coffee. 
The night had become unusually nipping, and 
large fires with fence-rails were a great luxury 
to benumbed fingers and toes. The enemy would 
not let us rest in peace to enjoy our coffee, but 
kept popping at us from the hill-tops occasionally. 
There was quite a little skirmish back in town. 
Some of the cavalry following us up had the au- 
dacity after dark to attack Col. Carter, his orderly 
and a private, at a hotel in Kingsport, where he 
was acquainted, and had halted behind the col- 
umn to appease his hunger. Some twenty or 
thirty shots were exchanged in the dark. The 
orderly got a ball through his hand, and our 
force of three were compelled to beat a retreat 
to camp across the North Fork. Our pickets 
dashed into the town, but the enemy had fled 
and all Avas quiet again. After resting three 
hours, we were in the saddle again at midnight, 
understanding there were some two hundred 
cavalry forward of us whom we desired to cap- 
ture. Our advance came near their camp near 



20 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



Clinch river, but they fled and our poor horses 
were too jaded to pursue them. The "bush- 
whackers " had quite a busy time, popping at us 
crossing Clinch river. Rested at night for a few 
hours on a limestone mountain, and exchanged 
a few long shots with the enemy to no purpose. 
Started at daybreak, without brealcfast or horse- 
feed, on our last long day's march to the Cum- 
berland mountain, crossing Powell's mountain, 
river, and valley. The " bushwhackers " here 
had an unusually busy day at it, even for them, 
lively as they are. But they are either miser- 
able shots or have miserable guns, for they have 
not touched a man since we left tlie railroad, ex- 
cept Col. Carter's oi'derly, shot in the hand-to- 
hand fight ; whereas two of the Michigan sharp- 
shooters "incontinently" rolled two of them 
down the rocks at about seven hundred yards. 
While I was fording Powell's river, they were 
darting in and out among the trees and rocky 
hill-tops, and throwing down some lead in a very 
spiteful way, but did no damage. I concluded, 
after crossing and seeing one fellow blazing away 
among the rocks, to try and cure him with a 
little saltpetre, as salt was scarce, and called two 
of my lads out of the ranks. One of them drew 
a sight on him, and he cut up some very ludi- 
crous antics for a sane man. lie ilew round and 
scrabbled about among the rocks, and then made 
a dart up the hill, rattling down the stones at an 
alarming rate ; he bounced about it as if burnt 
with a hot iron, and not at all pleased with the 
impression made. 

At Joncsville, Va., the rebels had quite a 
force. After our column had passed they en- 
gaged our rear guard of the Seventh Ohio, and 
we Avere all halted, the General sending back the 
rifles of Co. B, Ninth Pa. Cavalry, to deploy as 
skirmishers and engage them in the open field, 
and Co. D, Ninth Pa., with sabres. It was un- 
derstood that they expected to engage our at- 
tention, so long as to enable a force to move 
around by Poor valley, occupy the mountain 
pass, engage our front, and have us between two 
tires. A\'e were crossing at our old gap (only 
twenty miles from the Cumberland Gap), con- 
trary to their expectations. There was some 
little firing on our front, and quite a brisk little 
skirmish in the rear. As usuiil they kept at too 
great a distance for their shooting and did no 
harm, but there were several rebels shot down 
by our rear guard and skirmishers, among whom 
were some IMichigan rifles, when they concluded 
to draw off and let us go on our " winding way," 
which we did without further molestation. "We 
had made a very severe day's march, with a 
little sprinkling of fighting, and nothing to cat 
since the night before for man or beast, and 
while we were at Jonesville, there was a very 
fair prospect of a regular mountain battle for tl^ 
possession of the pass. I had been giddy from 
want of food and rest, while marching down to 
Watauga, but did not feel it much during the ex- 
citement of the homeward march. I "slept on 
my horse during the bushwhacking of the day ; 
and while waiting for the rear to scatter the ene- 



my at Jonesville, one of my men said he was 
hungry. I had entirely forgotten that I had not 
eaten for twenty-four hours, and felt no symptoms 
of hunger, and told him that we might yet have 
a two days' fight up the clifTs of the Cumberland 
mountain without coffee, and I felt as if I would 
be able to stand it for three. We moved on to 
the foot of the mountain, and now there was the 
excitement to know whose horse would reach 
the top and whose would fail. They were all 
very carefully handled, but many a one of them 
failed, and the poor cavalryman would be seen 
breaking up his saddle with a rock and cutting 
up the leather with a knife to prevent sece^ 
from using it. The poor horse wanted no 
quietus ; he generally dropped dead in his efforts 
to scale a rock, and fell over out of the path, ex- 
cept one that made a convenient stepiDing-place 
for his more fortunate fellow horse. There must 
have been thirty horses fallen dead ascending 
the Cumberland. The men shouldered their 
blankets, gave one last look at their steed stiff- 
ening in the keen frosty night air, and clambered 
on over the rocks. When I reached the topmost 
crest I cried, " All hail, Kentucky !" and stretch- 
ed out my arm as if to grasp and welcome a long 
lost friend. The excitement was over, and I 
felt faint and giddy. I scarcely know how I 
got down; and when I reached the little valley 
at the foot of the mountain, and had a fire of 
rails kindled, fatigue overpowered all the animal 
wants and ailments, and the moment I lay down 
upon the frozen earth, I was fast asleep, and so 
continued until well shaken after sunrise. Our 
horses had corn here, but we were on short ra- 
tions. The ground was frozen hard, and all the 
shoes had been put on the horses' feet, and none 
short of Richmond or NIcholasville. There had 
been no kegs of shoes brought to McKees with 
the corn, and the prospects ahead were dark for 
the men who had limping horses v/hose feet were 
worn to the quick. I saw them cut up clothes 
and blankets and tie them on their feet, but it 
did no good; nothing but iron would answer 
on the frozen and rocky creek beds and gullies 
Avhich formed our path. We had been signally 
favored by Providence with unfrozen roads in 
the enemy's country, but now they were telling 
on horse-flesh. Every day a score or more of 
men were compelled to drop their horses and 
shoulder their muskets. There was no mur- j 
muring; nor did I hear a whimper from any r 
man who marched twenty or thirty miles in a 
day (all unused to walking as he was), with his 
boots worn and torn, and his feet on the rocks 
and frozen ground. Two days after our arrival 
on Kentucky soil, we encountered a storm, which 
raised all the Tennessee rivers and made them 
unfbrdable. Two days after our arrival here at 
Nicholasville, has come upon us the heaviest 
snow-storm for many years. I lift my hands 
in praise when I think of our escape from this 
storm among the mountains, and shudder at the 
thought of what would have been the condition 
of man and beast there without food or forage. 
We should have been compelled to adopt the | 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AJSTD INCIDENTS. 



21 



plan Duroc proposed to Napoleon at Moscow : 
to slaughter, salt, and cat his horses to save his 
men. "Our most arduous and hazardous march 
of five hundred miles to and fro in twenty days, 
over an almost impracticable mountain country 
in mid-winter, has been a complete success. Of 
one thousand men, there were only two killed, 
two wounded, and six missing — supposed to be 
captured. 

I must relate a little incident of the march com- 
ing down the Red Bird, in a country where 
" corndodgers " are worth a dime. A part of 
one I have preserved as a curiosity, for its fos- 
sil-like appearance, to show what a soldier can 
subsist on when he is put to it. I think I must 
have it engraven for Harper or Frank Leslie, with 
all the finger-marks on it. The " corndodger " 
is an institution; and he is fitly named, as any 
one can tell who takes him in hand ; for if he is 
mixed up as usual with water and no salt, and 
well baked and thrown at you, if you do noi dodge, 
and he hits you, his name Avill be i-emcmbered for 
many a long day, I warrant it. 

In the western counties of Kentucky saw-mills 
and grist-mills are known to but few inhabitants. 
The corn is broken into coarse grains with a j^es- 
tle attached to a spring-pole, or grated on a piece 
of tin or iron punched out rough with a nail. The 
country is clear of wind-mills or sieves to clear it 
of husks ; such superfluities have been played out, 
or rather they have never been played in ; but 
hospitality has not been played out. I will relate 
an incident. The horse of one of my soldiers 
yielded up his life on the rugged paths this side 
of the Cumberland mountain. The soldier was 
making his way in the rear of the column over 
the rocks of the Red Bii-d, with his pistol at his 
belt and his trusty rifle, which had done him such 
good service at Watauga river (his " Betsy Ann," 
as he cafled it), on one shoulder and his blankets 
on the other, trudging along at sunset for the 
camp, miles ahead of him, and " whistling as he 
went for want of thought," when a native over- 
took him. " Stranger," said he, " you have a 
heavy load ; give me your blankets " (and he 
took them off his shoulder). " You must come 
and stay with me to-night down to my house at 
the Big Rocks." So soldier, nothing loth, acqui- 
esced, and they trudged through mud and over 
rocks, and in the bed of the creek for some 
miles, and arrived at his clay-chinked cabin, 
where wei-e his " household gods " in form of 
a wife and a host of children, such as are to be 
found in every poor man's cabin in Kentucky. 
You will almost see the exact counterpart of the 
primer-book picture of John Rogers' wife, ex- 
cepting there v/lU be ten, eleven, or twelve children 
who can just peep over each others' heads in 
regular gradation beside " the one at the breast." 
The host says, " Mary Ann, can you get supper 
for this tired soldier ? " " Yes," says the wife, 
" if you pound the corn," and she handed him 
four ears, which he soon manipulated with his 
spring pole and pestle in the yard. The supper 
was soon prepared of the corn mixed with water 
(no salt, for they had none), and scraps of bacon 



fried, and he ate on the principle of the Indian, 
" eat much, get strong ! " The tired soldier, who 
had not seen the inside of a house for months, 
rested, after six days' march and no sleep, as 
only such men can rest when they know the 
pickets are posted and the guard mounted ; he 
taking the Kentuckian for his guard. At sun- 
rise he was wakened by the " thud, thud," of the 
corn-grinding machme, and presently the good 
dame invited him to sit at the table to the corn- 
dodgers, the bacon-scraps, and the corn-coffee, 
innocent of sugar or cream, so as to expedite 
him on his way before the children were up to 
have their remnants of clothes put on them. 
After he had eaten, not before, his host apologized 
for the lateness of his breakfast, saying that his 
corn was all eaten over night, and he had to go 
four miles to borrow some of his near neighbor tor 
the soldier's breakfast. The soldier donning his 
load, having received no pay for more than four 
months, thanked him as he should have been 
thanked by a man ready and willing to pay, but 
having no money in his pocket, and with 
unwonted full stomach went on his way rejoicing 
to overtake his comrades. 

Where indeed among the rich will such hospi- 
tality, such a,bnegatIon of self be found ? or 
where among them the man that will contribute 
such a mite to his country ? It is like the 
scriptural widow, who, out of her poverty " gave 
even all that she had." When we arrived at 
Big Hill we were met by a wagon train ladened 
with rations and corn that had been sent for by 
Gen. Carter's messenger pressed'on before us at 
Manchester, on our homeward route, to order the 
train forward to us. When the white-topped 
wagons were seen by our men, one universal 
shout went up as a glorification lor the hard 
bread they knew them to contain. To men who 
had been roasting lumps of corn meal or of 
wheat flour In the ashes for daj's, the transition 
was great indeed, and ere dark the " slow 
enough " coffee was boihng, the bacon toasting on 
the sticks, and " there was a great feast of fat 
things " that night. Resting at Big Hill a few 
hours, with the cares and perplexities of the 
march ofi" my shoulders, I had time to look back 
at the beauties of the place, v/hlch I had not 
done when we moved forward. Here is a table- 
land four hundred feet high, which was once the 
shore of the great lake of which the " blue grass 
region " is the bottom. The sand-stone strata of 
seventy feet crowning this table land has been 
washed into many singular and unique forms, 
each cliff so unlike the other that each would 
make a sepai'ate picture. In one place there is 
a genuine mountain, apart as it were. The wa- 
ter had washed entirely around it. The soft 
under strata giving way was only saved by the 
capping, which, covered with some earth and 
trees, once formed an island in the lake some 
distance from shore. Moving along for several 
miles these sand-stone cap rocks are seen in 
fantastic array succeeding each other, and you 
are astonished at the varied forms of them and 
at the sudden change in the form of each as you 



22 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



view it from another point. They are all well 
worth transferring to canvas, and as they have 
been somewhat noted in these wars, they should 
be placed with its illustrations. The quiet " blue 
grass region " possessed a great charm to our 
Avorn and anxious minds longing for -rest, and 
the old walnut-trees near Richmond, covered 
with mistletoe until they looked like pine-trees, 
had a charm of still life in them that was very 
soothing, lulling the mind into dreams of the 
Druids and of that olden time when rushing, 
fiery modern wars were unknown. 



THE VOICE OF THE NORTH. 

BY JOHN G. WHITTIER. 

Up the hill-side, down the glen, 
Rouse the sleeping citizen : 
Summon out the might of men ! 

Like a lion growling low — 
Like a night-storm rising slow — 
Like the tread of unseen foe — 

It is coming — it is nigh ! 
Stand your homes and altars by, 
On your own free threshold die. 

Clang the bells in all your spires, 
On the gray hills of your sires 
Fling to heaven your signal-fires. 

Oh ! for God and duty stand, 
Heart to heart, and hand to hand, 
Eound the old graves of the land. 

Whoso shrinks or falters now, 
Whoso to the yoke would bow, 
Brand the craven on his brow. 

Freedom's soil has only place 
For a free and fearless race — 
None for traitors false and base. 

Perish party — perish clan ; 
Strike together while you can, 
Like the strong arm of one man. 

Like the angels' voice sublime, 
Heard above a world of crime, 
Crying for the end of Time. 

With one heart and with one mouth, 
Let the North speak to the South ; 
Speak the word befitting both. 



Christmas among the Freedmen. — It is 
•well understood that Christmas was the grand 
holiday of the slaves on the southern planta- 
tions. In some parts of the South, the colored 
people have this year, 1863, celebrated it with 
unusual zest. A correspondent writes home about 
one celebration by the soldiers of the Ninth Lou- 
isiana Regiment, corps d' Afrique, and tells how 
they met and gave expression to their feelings, on 
Christmas day — their first free Christmas. After 
praypr, and speeches were in order, one man, 
says the correspondent, spoke about as follows : 



" Fellow Soldiers of the Sehenth Regiment : I is 
mighty glad to enjoy dis portunity for enjoying 
dis fust free Christmas in dis world what we live 
in. A year ago, where was we ? We was down 
in de dark land of slavery. And now where are 
we ? We are free men, and soldiers of the United 
States. And what have wc to do ? We have to 
fight de rebels so dat we never more be slaves. 
'SVhen de day of battle come what will we do ? 
I speak for me, and I say for myself, I go and 
fight de rebels till de last man die. Yes, under 
de flags what was presented to us from New 
York, we fight till de last man die ; and if I be 
de last man, what will I do ? I hold up de flags, 
and if I die, den I go to my grave consified for 
doing my duty. De President of de United 
States is one great man what has done more 
good dan any oder man what ever was borned. 
I bless de Lord we fight for so good Commander. 
I have no more to say now and evermore — 
Amen." 



Conscript Quakers. — An amusing incident 
occurred at the Provost Marshal's oflice at Gen. 
Lee's head-quarters at Orange Court House, Va. 
Four Quakers were brought in as conscripts from 
Loudon. They were ordered to fall in the ranks, 
in order to be marched to the command to which 
they were to be assigned. They refused, saying, 
" We win not fill in, but will follow whitherso- 
ever thou leadest." A few persuasive arguments, 
however, in the shape of thrusts with bayonets, 
changed their opinions, and they fell in and 
marched oft' to camp. 



The Puesidext and the Paymaster. — 
One of the numerous paymasters at Washington 
sought an introduction to Mr. Lincoln. He 
arrived at the White House quite opportunely, 
and was introduced to the President by the 
United States Marshal, Avith his blandest smile. 
While shaking hands with the President the pay- 
master remarked, " I have no official business 
with you, Mr. President, I only called to pay my 
compuments." " I understand," replied " honest 
Abe," " and from the complaints of the soldiers, I 
think that is all you do pay." 



An Incident of Yicksburg. — A corre- 
spondent relates the following : — A wife who 
dwelt in the West, beyond the lakes, whose hus- 
band is an oflicer in the army, had not heard 
from him for some weeks. Two snuiU boys 
were with him, — their only ones. While she sat 
at home, reading a paper, her eyes fell upon a 
notice of the death of her husband. All the 
tenderness of a mother's love, all the strength of 
a wife's devotion, nerved her to start immediately 
for her children, and clasp them to a widowed 
heart. Day after day passed ; how slowly let a 
mother tell ; how tedious let a widow speak who 
knows her idol broken in a distant laud. Two 
weeks were past ere she reached Yicksburg 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



Three days a sand bar ! What torture ! At 
last she reached the hoped-for city. As the boat 
neared the wharf one looked at the crowd, and 
saw her two boys upon ponies, and beside them 
the fcither ai«d husband. One long, piercing cry 
of joy filled the air ; the husband flew, rather 
than ran, and took the lifeless form in his arms. 
It was too much of joy for a heart overcharged 
with grief. The strings snapped and reason tot- 
tered for a time, to fall, in two days, to the sleep 
of death. 



The Amnes-jy Proclamation. — A few days 
after the publication of the President's Message 
and Proclamation, the fact of its promulgation 
having been made known to the rebel pickets, 
they manifested great curiosity to hear it ; and 
one of our men consenting to read it to them, 
quite a party collected on the opposite bank to 
listen. While it was reading, the utmost silence 
and attention were preserved by the listening 
rebels, and after it was finished one of them 
called out : " Well, that sounds about right. 
We '11 go back to camp and tell the boys about 
it." Papers are frequently exchanged by the 
pickets, but the rebels tell our men that their 
officers do not like them to get our papers of late 
as " there is nothing encourasin«; in them." 



Letters to Soldiers. — The army coire' 
spondent of the Atalanta " Intelligencer," relates 
the following incident to show how welcome a let- 
ter from home was to the soldier, and how de- 
pressing it was when those at home neglected to 
write to him : 

" I witnessed an incident yesterday which goes 
far to show how welcome a letter is to the soldier, 
and how sad he feels, Avhen those at home neg- 
lect to write to him. As I was riding to town I 
heard a man on horseback hail another in a 
wagon, and, going up, handed him a letter. 
Another man in the same wagon inquired if 
there was no letter for him, and the reply was 
' none.' It was at that moment I noted the 
feeling between the two men by their changed 
countenances. The features of one lit up with 
pleasure, as he perused the epistle in his hand, — 
doubtless the letter of some dear wife or mother, 
— and as he read it, a smile of joy would illumi- 
nate his weather-beaten face. This was happi- 
ness. It was an oasis on the desert of his rough 
life of danger and suffering, and no doubt was 
welcomed by him as the dearest gift a relative 
could send. With the other the opposite effect 
was observed ; as soon as the word ' none ' had 
passed the lips of the man addressed, the look of 
anxiety with which the question was put faded 
away, and an appearance of extreme sorrow 
could have been seen plainly stamped on his feat- 
ures, while a feeling of envy at his fortunate com- 
rade was very apparent. This was unhappiness. 
The song of hope that had illuminated his heart 
when he inquired if there was any letter for him 
had died away, and a feehug of loneliness and re- 



gret at the neglect of those at home took posses- 
sion of him. Happy are they who have homes 
and loved ones to hear from*! While it is the 
cruelest of all neglect not to write to those rela- 
tives in the army ; if it makes them sad and un- 
happy, how much more must those feel whose 
homes are in possession of the enemy, and they 
cannot hear from their relatives." 



ABOU BEN BUTLER. 

Abou Ben Butler (may his tribe increase !) 
Awoke one niglit down by the old Belize, 
And saw, outside the comfort of his room, 
Making it warmer for tlie gathering gloom, 
A black man shivering in the winter's cold. 
Exceeding courage made Ben Butler bold, 
And to the pi-esencc in the dark he said : 
" What wantest thou 7 " The figure raised its 

head, 
And with a look made of all sad accord 
Answered: " The men who'll serve the purpose 

of the Lord." 
" And am I one 1 " said Butler. " Nay, not so," 
Replied the black man. Butler spoke more low, 
But cheerily still and said : " As lam Ben, 
You'll not have cause to tell me that again." 

The figure bowed and vanished. The next night 
It came once more, environed strong in light. 
And showed the names whom love of freedom 

blessed, 
And lo ! Ben Butler's name led all the rest. 



Anecdote of General Sumner. — When 
a young man, he was a stage-driver among the 
Berkshire hills, in Massachusetts, and this is how 
he happened to get into the army : At a time in 
winter when the roads were dangerous, going 
down a steep hill, the stage slewed and turned 
over, but the horses kept on. One of the passen- 
gers pushed out the door on the upper side of the 
coach and chmbed upon the box, and attempted 
to take the reins from Sumner's hands. '_' You 
let the reins alone or I'll throw you off ! " said the 
driver, with determination. The passenger wise- 
ly abandoned his attempt at interference, and 
Sumner guided the team firmly till it was safe to 
stop them, dragging the overturned coach along, 
and so saved passengers and team. The passen- 
ger who attempted to take the reins was General 
Worth. He was so impressed with young Sum- 
ner's sterling quaUties that he cultivated his ac- 
quaintance and induced him to join the army, 
and the cool and determined driver made an in- 
trepid commander." 

The Bible on the Battle-field. — 
Among the dead of one of the battle-fields before 
Kichmond was a rebel soldier, who lay uuburied 
several days after the conflict. Already the 
flesh had been eaten by the worms from his fin- 
gers, but underneath the skeleton hand lay an 
open copy of the Bible, and the fingers pressed 
upon those precious words of the twenty-third 
Psalm, " Thy rod and thy staff they comfort me" 



/% 



24 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



ENLISTED. 



BY W. A. KENDALL. 



" You've donned the peerless uniform 

Of good old Uncle Sam " — 
Around my neck her arms she threw, 
And to her breast my own she drew — 

With tears her fond eyes swam. 

" You're dearer to me than I thought — 
Since in this steadfast hue 
Your form was draped, its impress takes 
A depth such as a hero's makes — 
All hail, my own true blue ! 

" Prouder am I to see you thus — 
Though it preludes good-by — 
Than were you crowned perchance a king, 
"Whose name in action ne'er did ring. 
Whose soul gives fame the lie. 

" Your stature seems to gain in height 
From your high motive's aim ; 
And to such eminence my heart 
Is lifted, I am strong to part — 
Oh ! to reserve were shame ! 

" Go, save our country ! she is first — 

Stand guard until you fall ; 
Or till the danger overcome 
Shall resjiite the alarum-di-um — 

I will delay recall. 

" Go, where along the lurid front 
The Union vanguards tramp ! 
Do your whole duty, danger spurn. 
When Freedom's laurelled, then return — 
These arms shall be your camp ! 

" As I would ask, so you have done — 
' God shield you ! ' is my charm : 
Should you survive, redeem this kiss 
And should you perish, one will miss 
From life its sweetest balm. 

" These tears attest the grief I feel — 
God's and my own true blue ! 

For every one speed thou a shot ; 

When quietus the foe has got, 
Valor for love may sue." 

So spoke my own brave girl, and fled, 

Fearing her heart's dread pain 
Would traitor prove unto her will, 
And rising with rebellious thrill, 
Persuade me to remain. 

To die for her were sweeter far 

Than loved by less to live ; 
Such natures wear an aspect grand, 
As with an unreserving hand 

They answer Duty's " give ! " 

O woman ! how much patriot fire 
Thy breath has woke to flame ! 
How many heroes were not such 
But for thy consecrating touch, 
None less than God can name ! 



AREMAKKABLE PROPHECY. 

The vision or prophecy of Joseph Hoag, which 
is published below, is so remarkable yi the accura- 
cy of some of its details, that were its authenticity 
not attested by the most respectable and reliable 
living witnesses, we should hardly credit it. The 
predicted " civil war," through which we have 
just passed is not more singular than arc several 
other features in the vision which have been 
verified. 

Joseph Hoag was an eminent minister of the 
Gospel in the Society of Friends. At the date of 
bis subjoined vision, in 1803, thi? Society was a 
unit, the division in it not having occurred until 
1827 After the separation, Hoag afliliatedwith 
the orthodox branch, in which connection he con- 
tinued until his death, at the age of forty-five. 
His ancestors were among the early settlers of 
New-England, and lived for several generations in 
the State of New Hampshire, although he was 
born in Duchess County, New York, but in early 
life removed to the home of his ancestors. In his 
services as a minister he travelled extensively 
throughout the United States, and he is well re- 
membered by a large number of the old members 
of the Society of Friends in Philadelphia as a 
very gifled and spiritual-minded minister. Those 
who knew him best say that he was a man of 
great piety and very correct life and conversation 
from his youth ; also, that his spiritual perceptions 
were very deep and clear, so much so that he was 
often favored with a sense of the condition of 
other people without outward knowledge, and, In 
many instances, known to persons -still living, 
foretold circumstances which occurred long after- 
ward, and of which he could have had no knowl- 
edge when he predicted them. A journal of his 
life exists, in which the author says Hoag " was a 
man of good understanding, retentive memory, 
and a mind seasoned with grace. His conversation 
was truly instructive. He appeared most conspic- 
uous in the gift of the ministry, and the spirit of 
prophecy." The following is Joseph Hoag's vis- 
ion as transcribed by his daugliter — who is still 
living — in the year 1805, since which time many 
duplicate ms. copies have been made and pre- 
served by members of the Society, as a curious, 
interesting, and, as the sequel has shown, an amaz- 
ingly jjremonitory document : 

"In the year 1803, in the eighth or ninth 
month, I was one day alone in the field, and ob- 
served that the sun shone clear, but a mist 
eclipsed its brightness. 

" As I reflected upon the singularity of the 
event, my mind was struck into a silence the most 
solemn I ever remembered to have witnessed, for 
all my faculties were low, and unusally brought 
into deep silence. I said to myself: ' What can 
all this mean ? I do not recollect ever before to 
have been sensible of such feelings.' 

"And I heard a voice from heaven, saying: 
' This which thou scest is a sign of the present 
coming times. I took the forefathers of this country 
from a land of oppression ; I planted them here 
among the people of the forest ; I sustained them and 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



25 



•while they Avere humble I blessed them, and fed 
them, and they became a numerous people. But 
they have now become proud, and forgotten me, 
who nourished them, and protected them in the 
wilderness, and are running into every abomina- 
tion and evil practice of which the old countries 
are guilty, and have taken quietude from the land, 
and sufl'ered a dividing spirit to come among 
them — lift up thine eyes and behold.' And I 
saw them dividing in great heat. The division 
began in the churches on points of doctrine. It 
commenced in the Presbyterian Society, and 
went through the various religious denomina- 
tions, and in its progress and close, its effects 
were the same. Those who dissented went off' 
with high heads and taunting language, and those 
who kept to their original sentiments appeared 
exercised and sorrowful. And M'hen the dividing 
spirit entered the Society of Friends, it raged in 
as high degree as in any I had noticed or before 
discovered ; and, as before, those who separated 
went off" with lofty looks, and taunting, censuring 
language. Those M'ho kept their ancient princi- 
ples retired by themselves. It next appeared in 
the Lodges of the Free Masons ; it broke out in 
appearance like a volcano, inasmuch as it set the 
country in an uproar for a time. 

" Then it entered politics throughout the United 
States, and did not stop until it produced a civil 
war. An abundance of blood was shed in the 
course of the combat ; the Southern States lost 
their power, and slavery was annihilated from 
their borders. Then a monarchical ])ower sprang 
up, took the government of the States, established 
a national religion, and made all societies tribu- 
tary to support its expenses. I saw them take 
property from Friends. I was amazed at be- 
holding all this, and I heard a voice proclaiming : 
' This power shall not always stand, but with it I 
will chastise my Church until -they return to the 
faithfulness of their forefathers ; thou seest what 
is coming upon thy native country for their in 
iquities and the blood of Africa, the remembrance 
of which has come up before me.' 

" This vision is yet for many days. I had no 
idea of writing it for many years, until it became 
such a burden, that, for my own relief, I have 
written it." 



The True Balance. — Two councilmen of 
New Orleans were one evening in February, 1861, 
reeling down to the city hall steps discussing 
poHtics, as well as their cups and hiccups would 
permit them. One said solemnly, — 

" The South's true balance must not be over- 
thrown ; " to which the other replied, — 

" Confound the South's balance ; try to keep 
your own." 



An Irish Regular. — The following dialogue 

took place between Lieutenant A. C. C d, late 

of the United States Texan army, and Pat Fletch- 
er, one of the privates of the Second Cavalry, at 
Carlisle, then near Fort Bliss : — 



Officer. — Well, Pat, ain't you going to follow 
the General (Twiggs) ? 

Pat. — If Gineral Scott ordhers us to folly him, 
sir, begor, Toby (Pat's horse) can gallop as well 
as the best of 'em. 

Officer. — I mean, won't you leave the abolition 
army, and join the free South? 

Pat. — Begor, I never enlisted in th' abolition 
army, and never will. I agreed to sarve Uncle 
Sam for five year, and the divil a pin mark was 
made in the contract, with my consint, ever since. 
When my time is up, if the army isn't the same 
as it is now, I Avon't join it agin. 

Officer. — Pat, the " Second " (Cavalry) was 
eighteen months old when you and I joined. The 
man who raised our gallant regiment is now the 
Southern President ; the man who so lately com- 
manded it, is now a Southern General. Can you 
remain in it, when they are gone ? 

Pat. — Well, you see, the fact of the matther 
is, Lieut. C, I ain't much of a scholar ; I can't 
argue the question Avith you ; but what Avould ray 
mother say, if I desarted my colors? Oh, the 
divil a give-in I'll ever give in, noAV, and that's 
the ind of it. I tried to run away once, a feAV 
weeks after enlistin', but a man wouldn't be 
missed thin. It's quite different now, Lieutenant, 
and I'm going not to disgrace naither iv my 
countries. 

Officer. — Do you knoAV that you AA'ill have to 
fire on green Irish colors, in the Southern ranks ? 

Pat. — And Avon't you have to fire on them 
colors, (pointing to the flag at Fort Bliss,) that 
yerself and five of us licked nineteen rangers un- 
der ? Sure, it isn't a greater shame for an Irish- 
man to fire on Irish colors, than for an American 
to fire on American colors. An' th' oath '11 be 
on my side, you knoAV, Lieutenant. 

Officer. — Confound the man that relies on 
Paddies, I say. 

Pat. — The same compliments to desarters, 
your honor. 



Anecdote of Roger A. Pryor. — The fol- 
lowing occurred during the attack on Fort Sum- 
ter in 186L Roger A. Pryor, of Virginia, 
ex-member of Congress, Avas one of the second 
deputation that Avaited upon INIajor Anderson. 
Pie Avas the very embodiment of Southern chiv- 
alry. Literally dressed to kill, bristling with 
boAvie-knives and revolvers, like a Avalking arse- 
nal, he appeared to think himself individually 
capable of capturing the fort, M'ithout any extra- 
neous assistance. Inside of the fort he seemed 
to think himself master of every thing — mon- 
arch of all he surveyed — and, in keeping Avith 
this pretension, seeing upon the table what ap- 
peared to be a glass of brandy, drank it Avithout 
ceremony. Surgeon (afterward General CraAv- 
ford, Avho had Avitnessed the feat, approached him 
and said : " Sir, Avhat you have drank is poison 
— it was the iodide of potassium — you are a 
dead man ! " The representative of chivalry in- 
stantly collapsed, boAvie-knives, revolvers and all, 
and passed into the hands of Surgeon Crawford, 



26 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



viho, by purgings, pumpings, and pukings, de- 
feated his own prophecy in regard to his fate. 
Mr. Pryor left Fort Sumter a " wiser if not a 
better man." 



TAKEN BY THE PIRATES. 

The following letter is from a young Scotch- 
man, who married a wife, and set sail from New 
York for Cardenas ; the vessel was taken by a 
rebel piratical craft, and the pai-ty had the pleas- 
ure of a visit to Charleston, S. C. : — 

Matanzas, Nov. 11, 1801. 

We sailed from New York on board the brig 
Betsy Ames, on October 5tli. In all we were six 
passengers, beside Mrs. Bartlett, the wife of the 
captain. "We were bound for Cardenas, and aU 
went well until the morning of the I7th ult., 
when we observed a schooner making right for 
us. There was nothing suspicious about her at 
first sight, but about nine A. M. she fired at us, 
her shot falling short about a quarter of a mile. 
Captain Bartlett then ordered all sail to be 
made, but the breeze shortly after died away, 
and the now suspicious schooner made upon us, 
and fired another shot, which also fell a little 
short of our vessel. A third shot was fired, 
but we could not see in what direction it went. 
They fired a fourth shot, which passed close 
alongside our brig. This latter result caused 
our captain to take in sail and jog along more 
leisurely, till the schooner made up to us about 
twelve o'clock, M. Still, we could not tell what 
the little craft was, as she had no color flying. 

When she came up to us, the captain of the 
schooner ordered our captain to take one of his 
boats and come on board with his papers, to 
which he responded, " My boats are unfit for ser- 
vice." The captain of the schooner then said, 
" I will come on board your brig, then," which he 
immediately did. He came in his own boat, with 
an officer and four men, when the captain and his 
officer went down into the cabin with our captain, 
and took possession of all his papers ; then told 
him that he was a prisoner of the Confederate 
States of America. 

While the officers were in the cabin, the men 
who were left in the boat sprang on deck and 
into the forehold, from which they took two bar- 
rels of potatoes, about two dozen cabbages, and 
a coil of rope, and put them into their boat. 

When the officers came up on deck again, they 
ordered our crew to the boat, and thence to the 
privateer, which proved to be the Flying Sally, 
of Charleston, on board of which there were 
about sixty men and two pivot-guns. In a short 
time a prize crew was sent on board, and as our 
avptain had his wife, they did not transfer him. 

The prize crew were seven in all. The master 
was an old cooper, named Joseph TuUy, who 
used to cooper both at Matanzas and Cardenas. 
He evidently knew nothing of seamanship. 

About two o'clock we parted with the pirate 
schooner, and nothing particular occurred until 
the 24th, at daybreak, when we made land, but 



did not know where we were. Some of the crew 
said we were north of Charleston ; but, as it 
turned out, we were south of North Edisto, where 
we ran aground and lost our false keel, but got 
off again, and went to sea. On the following clay 
we saw no land, and on the evening of the 27th 
we made the land of St. Helena, almost the exact 
place where we were on the 25th. After tacking 
off and on all night, we were still in the same place. 
Then we beat up to the North Edisto Inlet. 

While beating up we espied a schooner, which 
fact caused the crowd to take alarm, and, to a 
man, they rushed below, armed themselves with 
their swords, knives, and pistols, bagged their 
clgthing and a few little valuables, then prepared 
for the boats, as they intended to beach the brig. 
They were apprehensive that the vessel sighted 
was a United States gunboat. When they came 
on deck, however, and took another observation, 
they discovered that it was only a little schooner. 
Then we made the inlet, when a boat's crew, 
armed to the teeth, came on board, and piloted 
us up to the anchorage, about forty miles inland. 
There they discharged their prizes, and the ves- 
sels were towed up to Charleston by tow-boats. 

We arrived at Charleston at about three o'clock, 
P. M., on the 27th. Next morning the steamer 
General Clinch took us on board, with our bag- 
gage. I may also state, that the steamer Planter 
towed us up to tliis safe " pu'ates' village ground." 

When we got into Charleston the prize captain 
took us to a private boarding-house, his agent 
having closed his office previous to our arrival. 

Next morning we strolled about the city, and 
called upon the British Consul, who told us, 
strange as it may seem, that he could render us 
no assistance, as we had done wrong in taking 
our passage on board an American vessel, know- 
ing that the two countries were at war ; therefore, 
if the owners of the prize had the good feeling to 
pay our expenses, it was only to be expected from 
theii' generous character, but they could not be 
forced to do so. About twelve o'clock we were 
called upon to go to the marshal's office, and 
when we got thei'e the marshal told us that we 
were prisoners. We were then sent to the city 
jail. The captain's wife, and the other lady of 
our company, did not accompany us to the jail. 
We remained in this limbo till half past eight 
o'clock, P. M., having been released at that time 
through the exertions of Her British Majesty's 
Consul, Mr. Bunce, who had been induced to act 
then only because an old English captain, who 
saw us in prison, went to him and prevailed upon 
him to use his influence in our behalf. 

The next day we looked round to see if we 
could devise any means of getting away. The 
Spanish Consul informed us that the only schoon- 
er which was going for some time had been 
loaded, and had sailed already for Matanzas. 
However, we had the good fortune to meet Mr. 
Salas, the owner of two vessels which were ready 
for sea, and it appeai-ed that Mr. Bunce had been 
to him to endeavor to procure us a passage ; and 
as he could not assist us, ^Ir. Salas offered to 
take us to Matanzas on credit. That arrange- 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



27 



ment included the other British passengers, my 
■wife, and myself. The other three passengers 
were Germans, having American passports, and 
could not be taken on board the schooner Jasper. 
The crew on board this craft declared her un- 
seaworthy, after getting their advanced pay, and 
left. Mr. Salas had therefore to ship another 
crew, and we got ready for sea. As the bark 
Eowena was getting her name changed to the St. 
Helena of Charleston, S. C, having been loaded 
with a cargo of naval stores, awaiting a favorable 
opportunity to run the blockade, we waited and 
went out with her. So, on the night of the 2d 
inst., she was taken in tow by a steamer, and we 
followed her as closely as Ave could out past the 
United States vessels, and in half an hour -were 
after her, and could see the lights of the United 
States ships quite distinctly, although none of 
them seemed to make any movement, and did not 
observe us. It was about ten o'clock, P. M., 
when we got clear of their lights. Then we 
thought ourselves safe on the sea once more. 
We arrived here safely on the mght of Saturday, 
the 9th inst. 

And now, when I think of the scenes I have 
passed through since I left New York, (the scenes 
of a honeymoon excursion,) what impi'essed me 
most was the almost death-like solemn appearance 
of Charleston, and the entire absence of anything 
like business. It appeared as if a Scotch fast day 
was being observed. At least one half of the 
stores have " To Let " posted upon the shut 
doors, and those which are occupied are all closed 
at noon every day, and every man has to turn out 
to drill, or be fined by the jiolice the next day. 

Another thing which struck me was the afmost 
entire absence of " hard cash." One of my com- 
panions and I went into a bar-room to have a 
drink, and the only money we had to offer was 
Spanish. My friend offered a two dollar piece, 
but the bar-keeper was bewildered ; he did not 
know its value, and asked us what it was worth. 
Being informed that it was worth two dollars 
twelve and a half cents in Cuba, he offered two 
dollars twenty-five cents in paper change. Then 
a crowd gathered around us, staring their eyes 
out of their heads, almost, at the novelty of the 
sight of gold, and many of them seemed really 
anxious to be the possessors. We saw no small 
cliange except pieces of paper, which certify that 
they are " good for five cents," " good for ten 
cents," and so on. 

I must say that men, women, and children in 
Charleston seem united in the cause of secession. 
When they found that one of my fellow-passen- 
gers and myself were Scotchmen, they treated us 
very respectfully. Though our Consul did not at 
first seem to sympathize with us, still he exerted 
himself well on our behalf when he found that 
we were in prison. All seemed to have great re- 
spect for him in Charleston. 



ton, has a peculiar interest. The original is in 
Latin, and bears marks of great antiquity. It is 
said to have been Avritten by a recluse, some cen- 
turies since : — 

" Before thirteen united 

Shall be thrice what they are, 
The eagle shall be blighted 
By the lightning of war. 

When sixty is ended, 

And one takes its place, 
Then brothers offended 

Shall deal mutual disgrace. 

If white remain white. 
And black stiJl be black. 

Once more they'll unite 
And bring happiness back. 

But whenever the Cross 

Stands aloft 'mong the Stars, 

They shall gain by their loss, 
And thus end all their wars." 



A Prophecy. — The following, translated a j 
few years since by a lady, who is an inmate of a [ 
religious institution in the vicinity of Washing- j 



Occupation of Fort Sumter. — The follow- 
ing impressive incident occurred at Fort Sumter 
on Major Anderson taking possession of that 
place in December, 1860 : It is known that the 
American flag brought away from Fort Moultrie 
was raised at Sumter precisely at noon on the 
27th of that month. It was a scene that will 
be a memorable reminiscence in the lives of those 
who witnessed it. A short time before noon. 
Major Anderson assembled the whole of his little 
force, with ' the workmen employed on the fort, 
around the foot of the flag-staff. The national 
ensign was attached to the cord, and Major An- 
derson, holding the end of the lines in his hand, 
knelt reverently down. The oflUcers, soldiers, 
and men clustered around, many of them on their 
knees, all deeply impressed with the solemnity 
of the scene. The chaplain made an earnest 
prayer — such an appeal for support, encourage- 
ment, and mercy as one would make who felt 
that " man's extremity is God's opportunity." As 
the earnest, solemn words of the speaker ceased, 
and the men responded Amen with a fervency 
that perhaps they had never before experienced. 
Major Anderson drew the " Star-spangled Ban- 
ner " up to the toji of the staff, the band broke 
out with the national air of *' Hail, Columbia ! " 
and loud and exultant cheers, repeated again and 
again, were given by the officers, soldiers, and 
workmen. " If," said the narrator, " South Caro- 
lina had at that moment attacked the fort, there 
would have been no hesitation upon the part of 
any man within it about defending the flag." 



Incident of the White House, Va. On 
the occupation of the White House, Va., by the 
soldiers of General McLellan, a small piece of 
])aper, bearing the following inscription, was 
found pinned on the casing of an inner door : — 



28 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



" Northern soldiers, Avho profess to reverence 
Washington, forbear to desecrate the house of his 
first married life, the property of his wife, now 
owned by her descendants. 

" A granddaughter of Mrs. Washington." 

Beneath the inscription was written the follow- 
ing : 

" Lady : A Northern officer has protected your 
property in the sight of the enemy, and at the 
request of your overseer." 



A Fighting Clergyman. — Rev. B. C. Ward, 
pastor of a Congregational church in the village 
of Geneseo, Illinois, conceived it to be his duty 
to forsake the pulpit for the field. He received 
authority to raise a company of infantry, but 
proposed to enlist clergymen only. An appeal to 
his clerical brethren, published over his own sig- 
nature, called upon " the fighting stock of the 
church militant" to prove to the world their will- 
ingness to " seal with their blood what they have 
talked in their pulpits," and closed with this ex- 
traordinary passage : 

" ]Much as we have said and done to prove our 
loyalty, we have not yet resisted unto blood, 
striving against sin. Shall we now, at the call 
of Christ, come out from beliind our velvet-cush- 
ioned barracks, whence we have so often hurled 
bold, indignant v/ords at the giant iniquity of the 
age, and meet it face to face with the hot shot of 
rifled artillery, with the gleaming bayonet, or with 
clashing: sabres in hand-to-hand encounter ? " 



The Last Man of Beaufokt. — On the day 
the town of Beaufort, S. C, was entered by the 
national troops, all the inhabitants were found to 
have tied, except one white man, who, being too 
much intoxicated to join his compatriots in flight, 
had been forced to remain behind. 

" 'Tis the last man at Beaufort 

Left sitting alone ; 
All his valiant companions- 
Had ' vamosed ' and gone ; 
No secesh of his kindred 

To comfort is nigh, 
And his liquor's expended, 

The bottle is dry ! 
We'll not leave thee, thou lone one. 

Or harshly condemn — 
Since your friends have all ' mizzled,' 

You can't sleep with them ; 
And it's no joking matter 

To sleep with the dead ; 
So we'll take you back with us — 

Jim, lift up his head ! 
He muttered some words 

As they bore him away, 
And the breeze thus repeated 

The words he did say : 
' When the liquor's all out, 

And your friends they have flown, 
O, who would inhabit 

This Beaufort alone ? ' " 



J. ]\L Learned, of Oxfordville, New Hamp- 
shire, had three twins in the army. Two of 
them, twenty-three years old, were in the Massa- 
chusetts Fourteenth. The third, whose mate is 
a girl, was in the Fifth New Hampshire regiment. 



A Reminiscence of Abraham Lincoln. — 
AVhen the convention was held in Chicago, which 
nominated Mr. Lincoln for the Presidency in 
1860, a respectable gentleman in Massachusetts 

— not of jNIr. Lincoln's party — was induced to 
take the opportunity, in company with several 
delegates and others interested in the objects of 
the convention, to go out to Chicago, and speixd 
a few days in visiting that section of the country. 
In a very few minutes after the final balloting 
was had, and Mr. Lincoln was nominated, it hap- 
pened that a train of cars started upon the Cen- 
tral R,ailroad, passing through Springfield, the 
place of Mr. Lincoln's residence, and Mr. R., the 
gentleman alluded to, took passage in the same. 
Arriving at Springfield, he put up at a public 
house, and loitering upon the front door steps, 
had the curiosity to inquire of the landlord where 
]\Ir. Lincoln lived. A\'^hilst giving the neces- 
sary directions, the landlord suddenly remarked, 
" There is Mr. Lincoln now, coming down the 
sidewalk ; that tall, crooked man, loosely walk- 
ing this way ; if you wish to see him you will 
have an opportunity by putting yourself in his 
track." 

In a few moments the object of his curiosity 
readied the point our friend occupied, who ad- 
vancing, ventured to accost him thus : " Is this 
Mr. Lincoln ? " " That, sir, is my name." " My 
name is R., from Plymouth county, Massachu- 
setts, and learning that you have to-day been 
made the public property of the United States, I 
have ventured to introduce myself with a view to 
a brief acquaintance, hoping you will pardon such 
a patriotic curiosity in a stranger." Mr. Lincoln 
received his salutations with cordiality, told him 
no apology was necessary for his introduction, and 
asked him to accompany him to his residence. 
He had just come from the telegraph office, where 
he had learned the fact of his nomination, and 
was on his return home when our friend met and 
accompanied him thither. 

Arriving at Mr. Lincoln's residence, he was in- 
troduced to Mrs. Lincoln and the two boys, and 
entered into conversation in relation to the Lincoln 
family of the old colony — the Hinghai^ General 
Lincoln of the Revolutionary army, and the two 
Worcester Lincolns, brothers, who were Govern- 
ors of Massachusetts and Maine at one and the 
same time. In reply to Mr, R.'s inquiry whether 
Mr. Lincoln could trace his ancestry to either of 
those early families of his own name, Mr. Lin- 
coln, with a characteristic facetiousness, replied 
that he could not say that he ever had an ancestor 
older than his father, and therefore had it not in 
his power to trace his genealogy to so patriotic 
a source as old General Lincoln of the Revolution 

— though he wished he could. After some fur- 



I 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



29 



ther pleasant conversation, chiefly relating to the 
early history of the Pilgrim Fathers, with -which 
he seemed familiar, Mr. R. desired the privilege 
of writing a letter to be despatched by the next 
mail. Mr. Lincoln very promptly and kindly pro- 
vided him with the necessary means. As he be- 
gan to write, Mr. Lincoln approached, and tap- 
ping him on the shoulder, expressed the hope 
that he v/as not a spy Avho had come thus early 
to report his faults to the ])ublic. " By no means, 
sir," protested Mr. R. ; "I am writing home to 
my wife, who, I dare say, will hardly credit the 
fact that I am writing in your house." " O, sir," 
exclaimed Mr. Lincoln, " if your wife doubts your 
word, I will cheerfully indorse it, if you will give 
me permission ; " and taking the pen from Mr. 
R., he wrote the following words, in a clear hand, 
upon the blank page of the letter : 

"I am happy to say that your husband is at the 
present time a guest in my house, and in due time I 
trust j'ou will greet his safe return to the bosom of 
his family. A. LiNCOLX." 

This gave our friend an excellent autograph 
of Mr. Lincoln, besides bearing witness to his 
liospitable and cheerful spirit. 

^Vhilst thus engaged in pleasant conversation, 
the cars arrived that brought from Chicago the 
committee of the convention appointed to notify 
Mr. Lincoln of his nomination. He received 
them at the door, and conducted them to seats 
in his parlor. Our friend, who related the inter- 
view to us, says that on the reception of this 
committee Mr. Lincoln appeared somewhat em- 
barrassed, but soon resumed his wonted tran- 
quillity and cheerfulness. At the proper time the 
chairman of the committee arose, and, with 'be- 
coming dignity, informed Mr. Lincoln, that he 
and his fellows appeared in behalf of the con- 
vention now in session at Chicago, to inforn him 
that he had that day been unanimously nomi- 
nated to the office of President of the United 
States, and asked his permission to report to that 
body his acceptance of the nomination. Mr. 
Lincoln, with becoming modesty, but very hand- 
somely, replied, that he felt his insufficiency for 
the vast responsibilities which must devolve upon 
that office under the impending circumstances 
of the times, but if God and his country called 
for his services in that direction, he should shrink 
fi"om no duty that might be imposed upon him, 
and therefore he should not decline the nomi- 
nation. 

After this ceremony had passed, Mr. Lincoln 
remarked to the company, that as an appropriate 
conclusion to an interview so important and in- 
teresting as that Avhich had just transpired, he 
supposed good manners would require that he 
should treat the committee with something to 
drink ; and opening a door that led into a room 
in the rear, he called out, "Mary! Mary!" A 
girl res])onded to the call, whom Mr. Lincoln 
spoke a few words to in an under-tone ; and, closing 
the door, returned again to converse with his 
guests. In a few minutes the maiden entered, 
bearing a large waiter, containing several glass 
tumblers, and a large pitcher in the midst, and 



placed it upon the centre-table. Mr. Lincoln 
arose, and gravely addressing the company, said, 
— " Gentlemen, we must pledge our mutual 
healths in the most healthy beverage which our 
God has given to man ; it is the only beverage I 
have ever used or allowed in my family, and I 
cannot conscientiously depart from it on the 
present occasion ; it is pure Adam's ale from the 
spring ; " and taking a tumbler, he touched it to 
his lips and pledged them his highest respects in 
a cup of cold water. Of course, all his guests 
were constrained to admire his consistency, and 
to join in his example. 

Mr. R., when he went to Chicago, had but little 
political sympathy Avith the Republican convpn- 
tion which nominated Mr. Lincoln ; but when he 
saw, as he did see for himself, his sturdy adher- 
ence to a high moral principle, he returned an 
admirer of the man, and a zealous advocate of 
his election. 



"ALL WE ASK IS TO BE LET ALONE." 

BY H. H. BKOWNELL. 

As vonce I valked by a dismal swamp, 
There sot an old cove in the dark and damp, 
And at everybody as passed that road 
A stick or a stone this old cove throwed. 
And venever he flung his stick or his stone, 
He'd set up a song of " Let me alone." 

' ' Let me alone, for I loves to shy 

These bits of things at the passers-by ; 

Let me alone, for I've got your tin, 

And lots of other traps snugly in ; 

Let me alone — I am rigging a boat 

To grab votever you've got afloat ; 

In a veek or so I expects to come, 

And turn you out of your ouse and ome ; 

I'm a quiet old cove," says he, with a groan ; 

" All I axes, is. Let me alone." 

Just then came along, on the self same vay, 
Another old cove, and began for to say : 
" Let you alone ! That's corain' it strong ! 
You've be7i let alone — a darned sight too long ! 
Of all the sarce that ever I heerd ! 
Put down that stick ! (You may well look skeered. 
Let go that stone ! If you once show fight, 
I'll knock you higher than ary kite. 

" You must have a lesson to stop your tricks, 
And cure you of shying them stones and sticks ; 
And I'll have my hardware back, and my cash, 
And knock your scow into tarnal smash ; 
And if ever I catches you round my ranch, 
I'll string you up to the nearest branch. 
The best you can do is to go to bed, 
And keep a decent tongue in yoiir head ; 
For I reckon, before you and I are done, 
You'll wish you had let honest folks alone." 

The old cove stopped, and the other old cove, 
He sot quite still in his cypress grove, 
And he looked at his stick, revolvin' slow, 
Vethcr 'twere safe to shy it or no ; 
And he grumbled on, in an injured tone, 
" All that I axed vos. Let me alone." 



30 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



The Man who wouldn't be made a Pris- 
oner. — During the last -week in December, 1861, 
while about a dozen oyster smacks were on their 
wajr to the " banks " in Mississippi^ Sound, they 
were surrounded by a number of launches from 
the national ships ; all were seized in the name of 
the Government, and a guard put aboard each 
to co'hduct them under the guns of the ships of 
war. One of the smacks thus seized was the 
" elide," commanded and owned by Capt. King, 
a man who had resided in New Orleans since 
boyhood, and who was well known as a brave 
and determined seaman by all of his acquaint- 
ances around the New Basin. A sergeant and 
one soldier were placed aboard the " Glide," with 
orders to steer for the New London, then 
some twelve or eighteen miles off. The wind 
was ahead, and the boat had to beat all the way. 
The " Glide," somehow, strange to say, worked 
badly ; all the rest of the smacks were soon sev- 
eral miles ahead, and still the contrary wind was 
blowing, and the lazy boat dragging slowly along. 
So passed the greater part of the day, and at five 
o'clock in the afternoon the fleet was yet several 
miles off. The soldiers on board the " Glide " 
grew hungry, and asked Capt. King if he had 
anything to eat aboard. He politely told them 
that there was plenty in the cabin — a sort of lit- 
tle hold in the after part of the craft, reached by 
a narrow scuttle and two or three crooked steps. 
The sergeant volunteered to go down and get the 
victuals, directing the soldier to keep a sharp 
watch while he did so. He started down the 
steps with rifle in hand, Gapt. King standing 
near, officiously showing the way. As soon as 
he had got into the cabin, and was about to stoop 
and go forward, the hitherto polite and kind cap- 
tain suddenly seized his rifle, and jerking it from 
his hand, shot him dead on the spot. Not stop- 
ping to swap jack-knives, Gapt. King jumped for- 
ward, and seizing the other soldier's gun before 
he had time to Tecover from his fright and aston- 
ishment, commanded him to surrender. The 
soldier saw there was no use to resist, gave up, 
and was securely tied and laid in the hold. 

Gapt. King then set sail for Fort Pike, and as 
if understanding the necessity for haste, the little 
craft recovered from her languor, and sped over 
the water at raUroad speed. And it was well she 
did, for the men on the other boats had heard 
the musket shot, and suspecting something wrong 
from seeing the " Glide " suddenly change her 
course, made chase, one and all. The affair then 
grew exciting, and for a while Gapt. King's chances 
for safety were rather squally ; but his gallant 
little craft was in earnest, and rushed on towards 
the haven of safety as if she understood the whole 
affair. Night soon came on, and darkness hiding 
her from the view of her pursuers, enabled her to 
get safely to Fort Pike, where Ca])t. King recited 
his adventures, and excited the admiration of the 
garrison. Leaving the fort the next morning, he 
arrived in the New Basin with his prisoner and 
dead sergeant, who were placed in the hands of 
the military authorities. Besides his prisoner, 
Gapt. King captured a fine six-oared launch. 



nearly new, one Minie rifle, one musket, three 
bayonets, one sergeant's sword, and four cartridge 
boxes fUled with ammunition — quite a good day's 
work for a simple oysterman. 



Gen. Cheatham's Escape. — The following 
story was told by Gen. Cheatham of the manner 
in which he escaped capture at the battle of Bel- 
mont, Mo. : — 

Just as the opposing armies were approaching 
one another. Gen. Cheatham discovered a squad- 
ron of cavalry coming down a road near his 
position. Uncertain as to which force it belonged, 
accompanied only by an orderly, he rode up to 
within a few yards of it, and inquired, — 

" What cavalry is that ? " 

" Illinois cavalry, sir," was the reply. 

" O ! Illinois cavalry. All right ; just stand 
where you are ! " 

The cavalry obeyed the order, and unmolested 
by them, who supposed he was one of the Fed- 
eral officers, the general rode safely back, directly 
under the guns of another Federal regiment, 
which had by that time come up, but who, seeing 
him coming from the direction of the cavalry, 
also supposed that he was one of them. Some 
of the national officers remembered the incident, 
and agreed with the hero of it, that if they had 
known Avho he was, it was very probable that 
there would have been one general less that 
niffht. 



An Incident with a ]Moral. — A chaplain in 
one of the regiments on the Potomac narrates 
the case of a sick soldier, which strikingly illus- 
trates the reasoning of many men in the camp 
and out of it. Some one had mentioned to the 
soldier the case of the Vermonter who was sen- 
tenced to be shot for sleeping on his post. During 
the evening following, the fever set in violently ; 
the sick man imagined he was the one sentenced 
to be shot. The surgeon being called, the fol- 
lowing conversation ensued : — 

" Doctor, I am to be shot in the morning, and 
wish you to send for the chaplain. I desire to 
make all necessary preparations for my end." 

" They shall not shoot you ; I'll take care of 
you. Whoever comes to take you from here, I 
shall have them arrested and put under guard." 

" Will you, dear doctor ? Thank you, thank 
you — well, then, you need not send for the 
chaplain 'just yet.'" 



THE SPOTTED HAND. 

AX ANECDOTE OF JOHN C. CALHOUN. 

One morning, at the breakfast table, when I, 
an unobserved spectator, happened to be present, 
Calhoun was observed to gaze frequently at his 
right hand, and brush it with his left in a hurried 
and nervous manner. He did this so often that 
it excited attention. At length one of the per- 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



31 



sons comprising the breakfast party — his name, 
I think, is Toombs, and he is a member of 
Congress from Georgia — took upon himself 
to ask the occasion of Mr. Calhoun's disquie- 
tude. 

" Does your- hand pain you ? " he asked of Mr. 
Calhoun. 

To this Mr. Calhoun replied, in rather a hur- 
ried manner, — 

" Pshaw ! it is nothing but a dream I had 
last night, and which makes me see perpetually 
a large black spot, like an ink blotch, upon the 
back of my right hand ; an optical illusion, I 
suppose." 

Of course these words excited the curiosity of 
the company, but no one ventured to beg the de- 
tails of this singular dream, until ToomSs asked 
quietly, — 

" What was your dream Kke ? I am not very 
superstitious about dreams ; but sometimes they 
have a great deal of truth in them." 

" But this was such a peculiarly absurd dream," 
said Mr. Calhoun, again brushing the back of his 
right hand ; *' however, if it does not intrude too 
much 01], the time of our friends, I will relate it 
to 3'ou." 

Of course the company were profuse in their 
expressions of anxiety to know all about the 
dream, and Mr. Calhoun related it. 

" At a late hour last night, as I was sitting in 
my room, engaged in writing, I was astonished 
by the entrance of a visitor, who, without a word, 
took a seat opposite me at my table. This sur- 
prised me, as I had given particular orders to 
the servant that I should on no account be dis- 
turbed. The manner in which the intruder en- 
tered, so perfectly self-possessed, taking his seat 
opposite me without a word, as though my room 
and all within it belonged to him, excited in me 
as much surprise as indignation. As I raised 
my head to look into his features, over the top 
of my shaded lamp, I discovered that he was 
wrapped in a thin cloak, Avhich effectually con- 
cealed his face and features from my view ; and 
as I raised my head, he spoke : — 

" ' AVhat are you writing, senator from South 
Carolina ? ' 

" I did not think of his impertinence at first, 
but answered him voluntarily, — 

" ' I am writing a plan for the dissolution of 
the American Union.' 

" (You know, gentlemen, that I am expected 
to produce a plan of dissolution in the event of 
certain contingencies.) To this the intruder re- 
plied, in the coolest manner possible, — 

" ' Senator fi-om South CaroHna, will you allow 
me to look at your hand, your right hand ? ' 

" He rose, the cloak fell, and I beheld his face. 
Gentlemen, the sight of that face struck me like 
a thunder-clap. It Avas the face of a dead man, 
whom extraordinary events had called back to 
life. The features were those of Gen. George 
Washington. He was dressed in the Revolu- 
tionary costume, such as you see in the Patent 
Office." 



Here Mr. Calhoun paused, apparently agitated. 
His agitation, I need not tell you, was shared by 
the company. Toombs at length broke the em- 
barrassing pause. 

" Well, what was the issue of this scene ? " 

Mr. Calhoun resumed : — 

" The intruder, as I have said, rose and asked 
to look at my right hand. As though I had not 
the power to refuse, I extended it. The truth 
is, I felt a strange thrill pervade me at his touch ; 
he grasped it, and held it near the light, thus 
affording full time to examine every feature. It 
was the face of Washington. After holding my 
hand for a moment, he looked at me steadily, 
and said in a quiet way, — 

" ' And with this right hand, senator from 
South Carolina, you would sign your name to a 
paper declaring the Union dissolved ? ' 

" I answered in the affirmative. 

" ' Yes,' I said, ' if a certain contingency arises, 
I will sign my name to the Declaration of Disso- 
lution.' 

" But at that moment a black blotch appeared 
on the back of my hand, which I seem to see 
now. 

" ' What is that ? ' said I, alarmed, I know not 
why, at the blotch on my hand. 

" ' That,' said he, dropping my hand, ' is the 
mark by which Benedict Arnold is known in the 
next world.' 

" He said no more, gentlemen, but drew from 
beneath his cloak an object which he laid upon 
the table — laid upon the very paper on which I 
was writing. This object, gentlemen, was a 
skeleton. 

" ' There,' said he, ' there are the bones of 
Isaac Hayne, who was hung at Charleston by the 
British. He gave his life in order to establish 
the Union. When you put your name to a Dec- 
laration of Dissolution, why, you may as well 
have the bones of Isaac Hayne before you — he 
Avas a South Carolinian, .and so are you. But 
there was no blotch on his right hand.' 

" With these words the intruder left the room. 
I started back from the contact with the dead 
man's bones, and — awoke. Overcome by labor, 
I had fallen asleep, and had been dreaming. Was 
it not a singular dream ? " 

All the company answered in the affirmative, 
and Toombs muttered, " Singular, very singular," 
and at the same time looking curiously at the 
back of his right hand, while Mr. Calhoun placed 
his head between his hands, and seemed bmied 
in thought. 



A CONTRABAND REFRAIN, 

MUCH IN VOGUE AT FORTRESS MONKOE. 

Wake up, snakes, pelicans, and Sesh'ners ! 
Don't yer hear 'um comin' — 
Comin' on de run ? 
Wake up, I tell yer ! Git up, Jefferson I 
Bobolishion's comin' — 
Bob-o-lish-i-on. 



32 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



Anecdote of President Lincoln. — The 
following is one of Mr. Lincoln's stories. These 
he told often in private conversation, rarely in his 
speeches. 

*' I once knew a good, sound churchman, whom 
we'll call Brown, Avho was on a committee to erect 
a bridge over a very daugerous and rapid river. 
Architect after architect failed, and at last Brown 
said he had a friend named Jones, who had built 
several bridges, and could build this. ' Let's have 
him in,' said the committee. In came Jones. ' Can 
you build this bridge, sir ? ' ' Yes,' replied Jones ; 
' I could build a bridge to the infernal regions, if 
necessary.' The sober committee were horrified ; 
but when Jones retired, Brown thought it but fair 
to defend his friend. ' I know Jones so well,' said 
he, ' and he is so honest a man, and so good an 
architect, that, if he states soberly and positively 
that he can build a bridge to Hades — why, I be- 
lieve it. But I have my doubts about the abut- 
ment on the infernal side.' So," Lincoln added, 
" when politicians said they could harmonize the 
Northern and Southern wings of the Democracy, 
why, I believed them. But I had my doubts 
about the abutment on the Southern side." 



Mr. Winthrop, one of the Boston Union Com- 
mittee, called on Senator Mason, in January, 1861, 
and, referring to his former visit to Massachusetts, 
remarked in the blandest tones : " I hope, Mr. 
Mason, we shall see you again at Bunker Hill.". 
To which the senator stiffly jerked out the re- 
sponse : " Not unless I come as an ambassador, 
sir." 

General Rousseau and a Rebel Clergy- 
man. — Rev. Frederick A. Ross had just been ex- 
amined on a charge of treason, and convicted['upon 
his own showing. Under charge of a guard he 
was about to leave the General's tent. Putting 
on a particularly sanctimonious expression of 
countenance, he took up his hat, turned to the 
General, and said : " Well, General, we must each 
do as we think best, and I hope we will both meet 
in heaven." The General replied : " Your getting 
to heaven, sir, will depend altogether upon your 
future conduct ; before we can reasonably hope to 
meet in that region, you and I must become bet- 
ter men." The effect of this brief rejoinder was 
irresistible. 



REBELS. 

Rebels ! 'tis a holy name ! 

The name our fathers bore. 
When battling in the cause of Right, 
Against the tyrant in his might, 

In the dark days of yore. 

Rebels ! 'tis our family name I 

Our father, Washington, 
Was the arch-rebel in the tight. 
And gave the name to us — a right 

Of father nnto son. 



Rebels ! 'tis our given name ! 

Our mother, Liberty, 
Received the title with her fame, 
In days of grief, of fear and shame, 

When at her breast were we. 

Rebels! 'tis our scaled name ! 

A baptism of blood ! 
The war — ay, and the din of strife — 
The fearful contest, life for life — 

The mingled crimson flood. 

Rebels ! 'tis a patriot's name ! 

In struggles it was given ; 
We bore it then when tyrants raved, 
And through their curses 'twas engraved 

On the doomsday book of heaven. 

Rebels ! 'tis our fighting name ! 

For peace ri^es o'er the land, 
Until they speak of craven woe — 
Until our rights receive a blow, 

From foe's or brothers' hand. 

Rebels ! 'tis our dying name ! 

For although life is dear, 
Y'et, freemen born and freemen bred, 
We'd rather live as freemen dead, 

Than live in slavish fear. 

Then call us Rebels if you will — 

We glory in the name ; 
For bending under unjust laws, 
And swearing faith to an unjust cause, 

We count a greater shame. 



An Editor before the Cabinet. — The ed- 
itor of the Chatauque (N. Y.) Democrat was spend- 
ing his time in Washington, and w'riting home let- 
ters for publication. One of them, it was claimed, 
contained *' contraband news," and the editor (if 
his statement may be believed) was summoned be-i 
fore the Cabinet to answer for the heinous oflence.- 
Here is his account of the affair : — 

" So many weeks had slipped away since my 
friends in Jamestown commenced sending the 
Democrat regularly to. the members of the Cabi- 
net and General McClellan, that the vision of a 
file of ferocious soldiers had departed from my 
imagination, when one morning the subscriber re- 
ceived a gilt-edged, jockey-club-scented note, re- 
questing his distinguished presence at the White 
House at a certain hour. I had no doubt but the 
note was from -Mrs. Lincoln, who, I supposed, 
wished to apologize for the blunder that she made 
in my not receiving her invitation to the White 
House ball. 

" So, giving my boots an extra blacking, and my 
moustache an extra twist, I wended my way to the 
President's domicile. After disposing of hat, 
cane, &c., I was conducted into the room used for 
Cabinet meetings, and soon found myself in the 
presence of the President, Messrs. Seward, Stan- 
ton, and W'^lles. ^Slr. Seward, whom I had met 
at a duiner-party at General Risley's, in Fredonia, 
during the campaign of 18G0, recognized me, and 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



33 



at once alluded to the excellence of General Ris- 
ley's brandy, and proposed to Abe that he should 
send over to his cellar at the State Department, 
and get a nice article that he had there. I noticed 
three copies of the Chatauque Democrat spread 
out on the table, bearing certain initials, which for 
the sake of avoiding personalities I ■will not men- 
lion. I also noticed ominous black lines draAvn 
around certain passages which I recognized as 
being part of my letter of several weeks ago. 
They looked like Mr. Benton's expunged resolu- 
tions on the Senate Journal. 

Mr. Welles was so deeply engaged in reading 
a fourth copy, that he did not look up as I went 
in. It seems that the " mailing clerks " at James- 
town had neglected to furnish the Navy Depart- 
ment with a copy, and the Secretary was deeply 
absorbed in its perusal. Mr. Stanton was busy 
writing his recent order, thanking God and Gen- 
eral Halleck for the victory and slaughter at 
Pittsburgh Landing, and paid no attention to my 
entrance. 

Mr. Lincoln said : " A Cabinet meeting had been 
called at the request of General McClellan, to con- 
sider my offence in writing the letter consiiicuous- 
ly marked in the Democrat before us, and which 
had been kindly furnished several of their number 
by certain patriotic and high-toned gentlemen in 
Jamestown, N. Y. But they would have to delay 
a few minutes, to await the arrival of the Commo- 
dore from Yorktown, with despatches from Gen- 
eral McClellan, who had telegraphed that the 
business must not go on till his despatches ar- 
rived." 

During the interval, me, and Abe, and SeA\ard, 
sauntered through the rooms, looking at the vari- 
ous objects of interest. On entering the library, 
we found that the messenger had returned from 
Seward's cellar, with some of the Secretary's best 
Auburn brand. The cork was drawn, and we 
sampled the fluid. We next visited the ladies' 
parlor, and were presented to " Mary," who came 
forward, and shook me cordially by the hand, and 
desired to know " how I flourished ; " said " she 
never should forgive me for not attending her 
ball." She was greatly shocked to hear that there 
had been a failure to connect, about getting the 
sard of invitation. 

We were soon summoned to the council ; the 
Commodore had arrived, bringing seventeen of 
General McClellan's staff, who had been delegated 
by him to transmit to the President his copy of 
the Democrat, which he had received at Fortress 
Monroe. On opening it, the same ominous ink- 
marks were drawn around the passages intended 
to be brought to the especial notice of the Gen- 
eral. The "'Staff-officers then withdrew, and the 
President proposed to proceed to business. At 
this juncture Mr. Welles looked up from the paper 
he had been so busily perusing, and inquired of 
the President : " If he had ever heard anything 
about the fight the Democrat spoke of, between 
the Monitor and the Merrimac, and the danger 
there Avas of the latter getting out and coming up 
the Potomac and bombarding Washington ? " 
Mr. Lincoln said : " It was a fact." The Secretarv 



seemed greatly surprised, and said : " He must 
write to his brother-in-law in Ncav York, to send 
round a vessel to Hampton Roads, to v/atch the 
Merrimac, and also to send him the Weekly Post, 
so that he could get the news." He chose the 
Post, because he had been in the habit, aforetime, 
of contributing essays for its columns. He also 
remarked that there was " much valuable and 
deeply interesting news in the Democrat,'" which 
was then only some four weeks old. 

Mr. Stanton here proposed that the contraband 
article should be read, as he had been so busy of 
late, he had not read the copy sent him by his 
patriotic correspondents at Jamestown. So Mr. 
Seward read the article through carefully. When 
it M'as completed, Mr. Stanton brought his fist 
down on the table with the energy and vigor for 
which he is celebrated, and says he : " Them's my 

sentiments, by ." The Secretary, contrary 

to the opinion of many who know him only by 
his short, pungent, pious, pithy, patriotic, and pe- 
culiar proclamations, profanes pretty profusely 
Avhen excited. During the reading he had been 
fumbhng his vest-pocket. Says he : " What's 
the price of that paper per annum ? " I informed 
him that it was furnished to advance paying sub- 
scribers at one dollar. He handed me a gold dol- 
lar, and says he : " Send it along." Mr. Welles, 
who was just then absorbed in reading the account 
of the "embarkation" of the army from Alexan- 
dria, looked up and said : " He had thought of sub- 
scribing himself, but as Mr. Stanton had done so, 
he would have George send him the Post, and 
they could exchange." 

The President now called for an opinion from 
the other members of the Cabinet, Mr. Stanton 
having voted, as I have before remarked. Mr. 
Seward, who Avas in a happy frame of mind, said 
that : " Perhaps it Avas impolitic to have AA'ritten 
just such an article, as he Avas ahvays opposed to 
the expression of any decided opinions, but he 
thought the editor of the Democrat kncAv good 
liquor Avhen he smelt it, and in vieAV of the fact 
that he hailed from Old Chatauque, Avhose inhab- 
itants he remembered AA'ith pride, having once 
been a resident there, he voted that the article 
Avas not contraband, but that the Avriter must not 
do so again." 

Mr. Welles said : " He did not knoAV enough 
about the subject under consideration to give an 
opinion. He had been much interested in the 
perusal of the article, and had found some useful 
hints in it in regard to the danger to be appre- 
hended from the Merrimac, Avhich he thought he 
should act upon by next year — on the Avhole, 
he thought the good balanced the evil, and he 
Avas for calling it square." 

It Avas the President's turn, noAv, to decide the 
matter. He ahvays gets the opinion of his " con- 
stitutional advisers " all round, and then does 
as he has a mind to. Abe turned to me Avith a 
merry tAvinkle in his eye, and his lovely and ex- 
pressive countenance seemed more seraphic than 
ever, and says he to me, says he : " Your letter 
on McClellan reminds me of a story that I heard 
in the days of John Tyler's Administration. There 



34 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



was an editor in Rhode Island, noted for his love 
of fun — it came to him irresistibly — and he 
couldn't help saying just what came into his mind. 
He was appointed Postmaster by Tyler. Some 
time after Tyler vetoed the Bank Bill, and came 
into disrepute with the Whigs, a conundrum Ment 
the rounds of the papers. It was as follows : 
' Why is John Tyler like an ass ? ' This editor 
copied the conundrum, and could not resist the 
temptation to answer it, which he did as follows : 
' Because he is an ass.' This piece of fun cost 
him his head, but it was a fact. 

" On the whole," said Abe, " here's a dollar ; 
send me your valuable paper for a year, and be 
careful in future how you disclose Government 
secrets that have been published in the Norfolk 
J )at/ Book only two weeks." 

I promised to be more discreet hereafter, pledg- 
ing myself not to interfere further with General 
Thomas •' or any other man " in his exclusive 
right to give the rebels the earliest information 
possible ; also pledging myself to the best of my 
ability to aid the Government in its patriotic ef- 
forts to promote " loyal ignorance " among the 
masses of the Northern people. 



"CALL ALL! CALL ALL!" 

BY " GEORGIA." 

Whoop ! the Doodles have broken loose, 
Roaring round like the very deuce ! 
Lice of Egypt, a hungry pack ; 
After 'em, boys, and drive 'em back. 

Bull-dog, terrier, cur and fice, 
Back to the beggarly land of ice, 
Worry 'em, bite 'em, scratch and tear 
Everybody and everywhere. 

Old Kentucky is caved from under, 
Tennessee is split asunder, 
Alabama awaits attack, 
And Georgia bristles up her back. 

Old John Brown is dead and gone ! 
Still his spirit is marching on, 
Lantern-jawed, and legs, my boys, 
Long as an ape's from Illinois ! 

Want a weapon ? Gather a brick ! 
Club or cudgel, or stone or stick. 
Anything with a blade or butt ! 
Anything that can cleave or cut ! 

Anything heavy, or hard, or keen ! 
Any sort of slaying-machine ! 
Anything with a willing mind, 
And the steady arm of a man, behind. 

Want a weapon ? Why, capture one ! 
Every Doodle has got a gun, 
Belt and bayonet, bright and new : 
Kill a Doodle and capture two ! 

Shoulder to shoulder, son and sire ! 
All, call all ! to the feast of fire ! 
Mother and maiden, and child and slave 
A common triumph or a single grave. 



" Ethan Spike " writes, that Hornby has 
" seceded," and that he consequently resigns his 
seat in the Maine Legislature. The following 
resolutions were passed at a public meeting of 
the new " sovereignty " : 

Resolved, That we are opposed to koertion, 
except when exercised by ourselves. 

liesolved, That the okepation of the Baldwin 
lightus, by a State keeper, is a irritatin' circum- 
stance, an' onless he is withdrawn, aour army be 
instructed to take possession of the same in the 
name of the taoun. 

Resolved, That ef aour reasonable demands is 
not complied to, that we will take possession of, 
and hold for aour oivn use, the State's prison, 
and the insane assylum. 

Resolved, That the haybius korpus act, taxes, 
an' the Main law be an' is suspended. Also an 
ordnance relating to weights and measures as 
used in the likker trade. Be it enacted, That 
henceforth and for ever, in this ere realm, every 
quart pot shall hold a gallon. 

Ordered, that the forgoin' articles shall be the 
constitution of this suvrinty. 



To THE Officers of the Navy. — Lieut. 
Craven, commanding the United States steamer 
Mohawk, which arrived at New York February 
7, 1861, from Key West, published the follow- 
ing letter, addressed to the officers of the navy : 

Basely unprincipled incendiaries have scattered 
throughout our land doctrines of a revolutionary • 
character — doctrines calculated to inflame the 
minds of the excitable and thoughtless multitude 
— calculated to mislead the weak and wavering, 
and to lead on and incite to frenzy the needy ad- 
venturers — those wolves of the human race who 
rejoice in that anarchy and disorder which loosen 
the restraints of laAv, and afford them occasion 
for indulgence in license and rapine. 

Sad indeed in the history of the world will be 
the day which witnesses the dismemberment of 
this Confederation — disastrous to the march of 
human freedom and civilization, the event which 
blots from the page of history our great and glo- 
rious nation of self-ruled men. 

The oppressed of the earth, with hopeful hearts, 
have long regarded us as the exponents of " lib- 
erty, fraternity, equality." God avert from us 
the abasing acknowledgment that man is not 
capable of self-government. What a humiliating 
reflection, that man, in his passions, can be ruled 
only by the bayonet, by force — despotic force ; 
his reasoning faculties gone, he sinks to the level 
of the brute ; with no principle to guide him, he 
yields only to force. 

Officers of the navy, be, as ever, loyal, brave, 
and true ; our beloved country is convulsed with 
distracting troubles ; our country is in danger ; 
the great temple of liberty, founded by our ftithers, 
and dedicated to the use' of the human race, now 
reels and totters to its base ; destruction threatens 
it ; the machinations of designing men have 
brought it to the verge of ruin. . 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



35 



Officers of the navy, our country is in peril, 
and it behooves us, my friends, to consider well 
and earnestly what are our duties to the nation 
which has given us honored places among her 
sons ; has enrolled us among her defenders ; has 
" reposed special trust and confidence in our valor, 
patriotism, and fidelity." 

There is no one among us, my friends, however 
humble his station, who has not, with laudable 
pride, enjoyed the honor of being a servant of his 
country ; one of her defenders on the seas ; one 
of the fostered sons of the favored arm of national 
defence. There can be no feeling more ennobling 
than that of him who bears arms in his country's 
defence ; let us be slow to throw aside that ar- 
mor ; slow to abjure all allegiance, and never 
betray the trust reposed in us. 

We have in a marked manner been the honored 
and cherished sons of our country ; our country- 
■ men have with exalted estimate valued the ex- 
ploits of our heroic men, whose deeds have shed 
such lustre on our flag, and carried it in triumph 
and honor to all parts of the wqrld ; recollect, my 
friends, that each one of us is a sharer in all the 
glories won by naval valor ; our great men have 
passed away, but they have left the honor of the 
navy, the honor of the flag, in our keeping. 
Some among us have had the fortune to do battle 
against our country's foes ; all of us have had 
each our individual role in the great machinery 
by which the whole is moved ; the fame of our 
flag belongs to us, and our duty is to rally to its 
support. 

We must not forget that our initiation into 
the service of our coimtry was by taking a solemn 
oath " to support the Constitution of the United 
States." That vow, my friends, is recorded on 
high ; that vow was heard by Him who has said, 
"Render unto Caesar the things which are 
Cajsar's." We must beware how we lightly treat 
so solemn an oath; it cannot be thrown off; we 
cannot ignore the claims of our country ; we may, 
it is true, cease to serve, but we cannot, dare not, 
ofiend the Most High by turning our arms against 
those laws which we have sworn to sustain ; nor 
can we be too guarded, lest by any act of ours a 
single stain is brought upon our bright escut- 
(.•heon. 

Let us not be deceived by the vain and idle 
sophistries of those deluded men who would tell 
us that the United States are only bound together 
by a weak alliance, to be shaken ofi" at pleasure 
by any one, without even so much notice of the 
abrogation as common decency has established 
^ . as customary among the civilized nations of the 
earth. Let us discard from our minds the illu- 
sions of those who would in fact persuade us that 
we never had any nationality. If their arguments 
are correctly based, we have never indeed been 
one nation. We are mere pretenders, who have, 
without shadow of right, adopted a national style 
and law by which to impose upon mankind. 

Let us not listen to the reasoning of those who 
would seduce us from our allegiance by special 
pleading and abstract questions of State sover- 
eignty. " Remember your oath " — " Remem- 



ber ! " What have we to do with States? What 
indeed have you to do with States, those of you 
who, by virtue of your national office, are dis- 
franchised by the laws of the States in which you 
reside ? 

The Union is our country ; the Union is our 
State; the Constitution is our law. A great trust 
devolves on us. Let not the poisonous bane of 
revolution have any spread among our ranks. 
Let us show ourselves ever worthy of the confi- 
dence of our countrymen. ^Ve are not partisans. 
We must not listen to treason in any shape or 
form. We cannot abjure our duties without 
being guilty of treason ; and by no train of rea- 
soning can acts against the Government be styled 
by any other name than treason. 

The fame of our proudly-waving flag belongs 
to us, and Avhatever be the fate of that honored 
emblem of our country, — that honored badge of 
our power, — whatever be its fate, my friends, let 
us beware that it suffer no stain through the navy. 
T. AuGS. Craven, 

Lieutenant commanding U. S. steamer " Mohawk." 



A Baking Exploit. — During the month of 
December, 1861, a squad of some half dozen left 
Col. Shackleford's regiment, at Calhaun, Ky., on 
Green River, to bring back three soldiers who 
had gone to Todd County. While on their route, 
after night, they came upon some rebel cavalry, 
and our men seeing that resistance would be use- 
less, took to the woods. One of them, named 
Wilkins, was separated from his companions, and 
in winding about through the woods, came sev- 
eral times in close proximity to rebel squads, but 
succeeded in eluding them. He at last overtook 
three of them, and seeing that his chances were 
desperate, he determined to join them, and pass 
himself off" as one of their number. By keeping 
a little in the rear, he watched a favorable oppor- 
tunity, when he drew his revolver, and firing 
rapidly, killed one, badly wounded another, and 
caused the third to take to flight. Wilkins suc- 
ceeded in making his escape, and returned to 
camp at Calhoun, where a gentleman arrived the 
next day from Elkton, and stated that the rebel 
cavalry reported that the country was overrun 
with Federal troops, and that they had been 
forced to retreat before a superior force. The 
camp at Calhoun contained plenty of such pluck 
in the regiments under Cols. Shackleford, Jack- 
son, Hawkins, and Burbridge. 



An incident that carries its own comment is 
related by a visitor on his way to one of the 
patriot camps in the Old Dominion. Seated by 
the roadside was a soldier, his musket in one 
hand, and a volume in the other, which he was 
reading witli deep interest. He was clad roughly 
but comfortably, and bore the evidences of hav- 
ing seen hard service. As the party approached, 
he rose to his feet, advanced into the road, and 
exclaimed, " Halt ! Let me see your pass." After 



36 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



carefully inspecting the strangers and their pass, 
he quietly told them to move on, and resumed 
his seat and his book. One of the party glanced 
at the volume, and found that it was a beautiful 
copy of Tennyson's Poems. 



A Heroinf in Baltimore. — The band of the 
Sixth Regiment that left Boston in April, 1861, 
consisted of twenty-four persons, who, together 
with their musical instruments, occupied a car by 
themselves from Philadelphia to Baltimore. By 
some accident, the musicians' car got switched 
off at the Canton Depot, so that, instead of being 
the first, it was left in the rear of all the others, 
and after the attack had been made by the mob 
upon the soldiers, they came upon the car in 
which the band was still sitting, wholly unarmed, 
and incapable of making any defence. The in- 
furiated demons approached them howling and 
yelling, and poured in upon them a shower of 
stones, broken iron, and other missiles, wounding 
some severely, and demoHshing their instru- 
ments. Some of the miscreants jumped upon 
the roof of the car, and Mith a bar of iron beat a 
hole through it, while others were calling for 
powder to blow them all up in a heap. Finding 
that it would be sure destruction to remain longer 
in the car, the poor fellows jumped out to meet 
their fiendish assailants hand to hand. They 
were saluted with a shower of stones, but took 
to their heels, fighting their way through the 
crowd, and running at random, M'ithout knowing 
in what direction to go for assistance or shelter. 
As they were hurrying along, a rough-looking 
man suddenly jumped in front of their leader, 
and exclaimed, " This way, boys ! tliis way ! " It 
was the first friendly voice they had heard since 
entering Baltimore, and they stopped to ask no 
questions, but followed their guide, who took 
them up a narrow court, where they found an 
open door, into which they rushed, being met 
inside by a powerful-looking woman, who grasped 
each one by the hand, and directed them up- 
stairs. The last of their band was knocked 
senseless just as he was entering the door, by a 
stone, which struck him on the head ; but the 
woman who had Avelcomed them immediately 
caught up their fallen comrade, and carried him 
in her arms up the stairs. 

" You are perfectly safe here, boys," said the 
Amazon, who directly proceeded to wash and 
bind up their wounds. 

After having done this, she procured them 
food, and then told them to strip oft' their uni- 
forms, and ])ut on the clothes she had brought 
them, a motley assortment of baize jackets, rag- 
ged coats, and old trousers. Thus equipped, they 
were enabled to go out in search of their com- 
panions, without danger of attack from the Plug 
Uglies and Blood Tubs, who had given them so 
rough a reception. 

They tl;ien learned the particulars of the attack 
upon the soldiers, and of their escape, and saw 
lying at the station the two men Avho had been 



killed, and the others who had been wounded. 
One of their own band Avas missing, and he has 
not jet been found, and it is uncertain whether 
he was killed or not. On going back to the 
house where they were so humanely treated, they 
found that their clothes had been carefully tied 
up, and with their battered instruments, had 
been sent to the de])ot of the Philadelphia Rail- 
road, where they were advised to go themselves. 
They did not long hesitate, but started in the 
next train, and arrived at Philadelphia just in 
time to meet the Eighth Regiment of jNIassachu- 
setts Volunteers, under the command of Gen. 
Butler, who told them to hurry back to the Old 
Bay State to show their battered faces and 
broken limbs, and that they should yet come 
back, and play Hail Columbia in the streets of 
Baltimore, where they had been so inhumanly 
assaulted. 

The noble-hearted woman who rescued these 
men is a well-known character in Baltimore, and 
according to all the usages of Christian society, 
is an outcast and a polluted being ; but she is a 
true heroine, nevertheless, and entitled to the 
grateful consideration of the country. When 
Gov. Hicks had put himself at the head of the 
rabble rout of miscreants, and Winter Davis had 
fled in dismay, and the men of wealth and official 
dignity had hid themselves in their terror, and 
the police were powerless to protect the handful 
of unarmed strangers who were struggling with 
the infuriated mob, this degraded woman took 
them under her protection, dressed their wounds, 
fed them at her own cost, and sent them back in 
safety to their homes. As she is too notorious 
in Baltimore not to be perfectly well known by 
what we have already told of her, it will not be 
exposing her to any persecution to mention her 
name. Ann Manley is the name by which she 
is known in the city of Blood Tubs, and the 
loyal men of the North, when they march again 
through its streets, should remember her for her 
humamty to their countrymen. 



THE MODERN GILPIN. 

A EALLAD OF BULL EUX. 

Will Russell was a writer rare. 

Of genius and renown, 
A war-trained correspondent he 

From famous London town. 

On Indian and Crimean coasts 
He wrote of guns and drr;ms, 

And now as through our land he posts, 
To Washington he comes. 

Will Russell said to chosen friend, 
"Though four months I have been 

In search of some great Yankee fight, 
No skrimmage have I seen. 

To-morrow's sun will see a fight 
On Bull Rim's banks, they say; 

So there, my friend, we'll early go, 
All in a ttco-'oss shay. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



37 



I'll also take a saddle-horso 

To bear the battle's brunt, 
Whereon m my Crimean style, 

I'll see the fight in front. 

And I will don the coolest of 

My Himalayan suits — 
My belt, felt hat, revolver, and 

My old East Lidian boots. 

Fresh stores of pens I'll surely need, 

And foolscap, too, I think ; 
And in one holster snugly thrust 

A pint of Dovell's ink. 

While in the bottom of the gig 

We'll stow the choice Bordeaux, 
And eke this bottle of cold tea — 

To cool us off, you know ! 

And for that, in this heathen land, 

The grub is all a sham, 
I've here wrapped up some sausage, too, 

And sandwiches of 'am. 

Experience on Crimean shores 

Has taiight me how to forage, 
And how these creature comforts tend 

To keep up martial courage." 

Smack ! went his lips at thought thereof, 

Off rolled the Yankee gig, 
Before the shouts and rolling whites 

Of starers, small and big ! 

Like clouds of dust his spirits rise. 

While merry cracks the whip ; 
The led-horse pranced and "bobbed around" 

Like porpoise round a ship. 

The Long Bridge planks jumped up and down 

In sympathetic jig — 
They little thought he would return 

Minus the " creaking gig." 

That rotten Rubicon is passed. 

And likewise frowning <' Runyon" — 

Its outline marked with many a black 
Columbiad on its trunnion. 

Past fields where just the day before 
The harvest-scythe was sweeping, 

They rushed where soon its human sheaves 
Death's sickle would be reaping ! 

As rise the distant cannon's tones, 

So mounts his martial ardor. 
His thoughts half on the work " in front " — 

Half on his meagre larder. 

At length he's there at Centreville ! 

In sight and sound of what 
He came so far to see and sketch. 

Where rained the shell and shot ! 

But ere he ventures, careful soul ! 

To reach that scene of death, 
He seeks a cool and shady place 

" To give his horses breath." 

Then forth lie draws the precious stores, — 

Cold tea, Bordeaux, and 'am, — 
'Mid cannon-shots and bottle-pops, 

Enjoys his lunch and dram. 



The dubious issue of the fight 

Contents him with his seat, 
Until a courier from the field 

Reports the foe's retreat ! 

Up sprang Will Russell from the charms 

Of tea and 'am so vile — 
His toilet for "the front" prepares 

In his Crimean sty?e. 

" My 'oss ! my 'oss ! quick, bring it me ! 

What would the Thunderer say, 
If they should end this Bull Run fight, 

AVhile I lunch in my shay?" 

His " Indian " sack hangs down and hides 

Each short and sturdy limb ; 
His hat o'erhangs his jolly form 

With amplitude of brim. 

Beneath its shade, his round, red face 
Flames like St. George's banner ; 

AVhile from its rim, in haveloch style, 
A buff' and red bandanna ! 

In guise like this, he grandly mounts 

And starts in warlike trot, 
That did not turn to gallop as 

He neared the deadly spot. 

But lo ! a motley frightened crowd 

Before him doth appear, 
Of such as ever follow camps, 

All hurrying to the rear. 

And pushing through this heaving mass 

Of human breakers, soon 
He found himself 'mid reeling ranks. 

Battalion and platoon! 

But 'mid that frightened crowd, he says 

He only kept his wits, 
And puffs, and scolds, and wonders, too, 

What trouble " gave them fits ! " 

" I do declare ! What means all this ? 

What has your vict'ry nipped ? 
Why run you so ? " — the sole reply 

Was panted forth, " We're whipped !" 

" Dear me ! I fain would get in front ! 

How would the people stare, 
If Fame should ask my whereabouts. 

And echo say, ' the rear ! ' 

" You cravens, stand ! why do you run? 

Return to the assault ! " 
Bang ! bang ! — a shell bursts o'er his head ■ 

Will Russell calls a halt ! 

" Aw ! that icas near ! no further need 

For me to make researches — 
I'll simply book what I have seen. 

Behind yon grove of birches." 

Bang! bang! "Aw! there's another shell ! 

And one that is a screamer ; 
And, let me think — I must leave now. 

To write by Wednesday's steamer ! 

And though my steed has come to-day 

Full thirty miles and better, 
Needs must he now to take me back 

To mail my battle-letter." 



38 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



Ho turns his horse ! both are afloat 

On the retreating wave ! 
But as he struggles back, he scoffs 

In words — not accents brave. 

To clear the road and let him pass, 

He hails each runaway ; 
But their respect for rank, alas ! 

Is broke and done away ! 

Wagon and cart, and man and beast. 

All in the turnpike jammed ; 
Mess pork and hams, and shot and grain, • 

No thoroughfare so dammed ! 

The dainty stores that fed " the staff" 
Mixed with the private's fare ! 

Sad waste ! •' O, what, my countrymen, 
A falling off was there ! " 

The teamsters " cut and ran," and left ; 

No traces you could find ; 
While those afoot from horsemen feared 

A dreadful " cut behind ! " 

" The Cavalry ! " at that dread sound 
Will's courage was bereft him ; 

Although he tried, by valiant words, 
To show it had not left him. 

And eke before his mental eye 

The dreadful vision rose. 
Of that warm suit the Southern press 

Had threatened him for clothes ! 

" That threat ! when 'tis so 'orrid 'ot — 
Beyond East Indian weather ! 

How my too solid flesh would melt 
In suit of tar and feather ! " 

His anxious looks, yet valiant words, 
Make many jeer and hoot him, 

AVhile every random shot he fears 
Is some attempt to shoot him. 

While thus he trembles for his life, 

By coward taunt and curse, 
So, to his eye, each ambulance 

Seems an untimely hearse ! 

At each artillery " thud " he hears, 

Up close his legs he tucks. 
Then down upon his saddle bow 

His anxious visage ducks ! 

And eke behind his Indian sack 
Swells in balloon-like manner, 

While flaps and flies around his neck 
The buff and red bandanna ! 

Again he's back at Centreville, 
In search of friend and gig ; 
i'hey are not here ! nor 'am, nor tea — 
They're just the things to prig. 

O for a glass of wine, or slice 
Of those fine wasted 'ams ! — 

But though there's plenty on the road. 
They're no longer Uncle Sam's ! 

So now for Washington, my steed ! 

It is no use to whine ; 
You brought me here to see a fight, 

Now take me back to dine ! " 



A sudden squad of fugitives 

Here through tlic village fled, 
And Bill's great fancy for the front 

Soon placed him at their head. 

But as he leads the flying herd 

Adown a hill's decline, 
Behold, across tlie road drawn up 

A regiment in line ! 

" What brings you here ? " the Colonel shouts. 

"Back ! back ! I say : I'll shoot 
The coward that across my ranks 

Would dare to place his foot ! " 

The herd recoils, save Russell wild, 

Who, fumbling in his vest : 
"But, sir — you know! — I'm English ! Come! 

You must not me arrest ! 

I have a pass — aw ! here it is ! 

'Tis signed by General Scott — 
Don't keep me here ! " " Pass this man up ! " 

Replied the Colonel, hot. 

Nor time lost Will, as off he dashed, 

In sudden bolt that snapped 
A loop of sack and havelock both. 

That now far rearward flapped ! 

At Fairfax Court House next he stops. 

To breathe his horse and sup ; 
But here his rest by Boniface 

Is quickly broken up. 

Quoth he, " They fear Virginia's horse ? 

AVcU may the)', stranger, when 
These mountain riders number now 

Full twenty thousand men ! " 

" Good 'eavens ! no ? — but do they though? " 

Our startled hero cries. 
Then off again, though cruel need. 

To Washington he flics ! 

Night finds him bravely spurring on 
Past wood, and grove, and thicket, 

With brave words frequent cheering up 
Each watchful, anxious picket. 

" What news ? What ncAvs ? " they all do shout. 

Says Russell in reply : 
" It is no rout ! the army's safe ! 

Keep up your heart — don't fly ! " 

" Stop ! stop ! Bill Russell ! tell us why," 

Loud after him they bawl, 
" If all is safe, you run so fast, 

Or why you run at all ? " 

Yet on Jie flies ; up hill, down dale. 

In very ghost-like manner ; 
While ever rearward flaps and flies 

The buff and red bandanna ! 

The night wanes on, the moon is up, 

And soon our correspondent, 
Though near his goal, with ncAv-born fears 

Grew suddenly despondent. 

" The guards are set upon the bridge ; 

Dear me, what fate is mine ! 
They'll hail me soon, and I may die 

And give no countersign ! " 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



39 



His fears are vain — that yet'ran name 

Is good, as you'll agree, 
(As has been often said before,) 

To pass him through, IScott free. 

At last he's safe upon the bridge ! 

He sees the lights oft town, 
Mirrored in broad Potomac's tide, 

Hang brightly dripping down ! 

Then droops his head, then droops his steed, 

In sympathetic manner ; 
Then droops his sack, then droops also 

The buff and red bandanna ! 

Can this be he that o'er these planks 

At morning dashed so trig r 
Revisiting beneath the moon 

In such a dismal rig ! 

The bridge is passed ! and he again 

Resumes his martial port, 
And swells, and puffs, and comforts all 

With words of valiant sort. 

But sudden from the rising clouds 

A vivid lightning flash ! 
♦' The foe ! " he cries, and fearful lists 

To hear the cannon's crash ! 

He's off again ! up Fourteenth Street ! 

Once more, like ghostly banner, 
Behind him dimly flaps and flies 

The buff and red bandanna ! 

His rooms are reached, he bolts his door, 

When lo ! before his eyes, 
A midnight supper ready spread, 

To which he instant flies. 

No time, by dofiing hat or dress, 

To balk his famished jaws ! 
But, Cassius-like, he " plunges in, 

Accoutred as he was ! " 

Sausage, and cheese, and 'am again, 
With draughts of wine between ; 

Down that vast throat of British gauge, 
In quick procession seen ! 

What grunts of bliss beneath that hat 
O'er this unlooked-for manna ! 

While as he munched still rose and fell 
The buff and red bandanna ! 

At last he's full ! but quickly now 

His brain is all astir ; 
To forge fit bolts of caustic for 

His chief, the Thunderer ! 

His pen is drawn, and o'er his sheet 

Fast its vocation plies. 
In telling what he thought he saw — 

Wherein his genius lies ! 

But soon the inspiration's o'er ! 

With wine and sausage pressed, 
His eyelids close, his burly head 

Down drops upon his breast. 

Hark to the thunders of his snore ! 

In deep, bassoon-like manner ! 
While with each swell still rose and fell 

The buff and red bandanna ! 



Rest, Russell, rest ! thy race is o'er ; 

And well you won it, too ; 
For no such time was ever made 

Since days of Waterloo ! 

Now let us sing, in jolly ring, 
Great Russell's martial spree — 

When next he goes to see a fight, 
ilay he get there to see ! 

Ye poets ! who may sing some day, 
In strains, rich, racy, full, 

The race from Bull Run, don't forget 
The run of Mr. Bull. 



Incidents of Bull Run. — At the battle, 
when the order came from the headquarters for 
the retreat, word was passed down the line to the 
NeAV York Zouaves. " Do not ! " exclaimed a 
score of the " pet lambs " in a breath. " Do 
not ! " " AVe are ordered to retreat," said the 
commander. " Wot'u thunder's that ? " respond- 
ed one of the hard-heads, who evidently did not 
comprehend the word exactly. "Go back — re- 
tire," continued the commander. " Go back — 
where'}" "Leave the field." ''Leave'} AVhy, 
that ain't what we come for. We're here to fight," 
insisted the boys. "We came here with 1,040 
men," said the commander, " There are now 600 
left. Fall back, boys ! " and the " lambs " sulkily 
retired, evidently displeased with the order. 

Two of the New Hampshire Second were leav- 
ing the field, through the woods, when they were 
suddenly confronted by five rebels, who ordered 
them to "7<rtZi.' or we fire." The Gi'anite boys 
saw their dilemma, but the foremost of them pre- 
sented his musket, and answered, " Halt you, or 
loe fire ! " and, at the word, both discharged their 
pieces. The rebel fell, his assailant was unharmed. 
Seizing his companion's musket, he brought it to 
his shoulder, and said to the other, " Fii'e ! " 
Both fired their guns at once, and two more 
rebels fell. The others fled. The leader's name 
was Hanford, from Dover, N. H. 

As the Maine troops were leaving the field of bat- 
tle, a soldier stepped up to one of the officers of the 
Fifth regiment, and requested him to lend him a 
knife. The officer took out a common pocket- 
knife, and handed it to the soldier, who sat down 
at the side of the road, pulled up the leg of his 
trousers, and deliberately dug a musket-baU out 
of his leg, jumped up, and resumed his march. 

When the news of the repulse reached the 
camp meeting at Desplaines, 111., Rev. Henry 
Cox, who M-as preaching at the time the intelli- 
gence was received, remarked, on closing his ser- 
mon, " Brethren, we had better adjourn this 
camp meeting, and go home and drill." 



Adventure of a Spy. — I have lately re- 
turned from the South ; but my exact where- 
abouts in that region, for obvious reasons, it 
would not be politic to state. Suspected of being 
a Northerner, it was often my advantage to court 



40 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



obscurity. Known as a spy, a " short shrift " and 
a I'eady rope would have i)rcvented the blotting 
of this paper. Hanging, disguised, on the out- 
skirts of a camp, mixing with its idlers, laughing 
at their jokes, examining their arms, counting 
their numbers, endeavoring to discover the plans 
of their leaders, listening to this party and pur- 
suing that, joining in the chorus of a rebel song, 
betting on rebel success, cursing Abolitionism, 
reviling Lincoln, traducing Scott, extolling Gen. 
Beauregard, despising Northern fighters, laugh- 
ing at their tactics and sneering at their Meapons, 
praising the beauty of Southern belles and de- 
crying that of Northern, calling New York a den 
of cutthroats, and New Orleans a paradise of im- 
maculate chivalry, is but a small portion of the 
practice of my profession as a spy. This may not 
seem honorable nor desirable. As to the honor, 
let the country that benefits by the investigations 
and warnings of the spy be judge ; and the dan- 
ger, often incurred, is more serious and personal 
than that of the battle-field, which may, perhaps, 
detract from its desirability. 

It was a dark night. Not a star on the glim- 
mer. I had collected my quotum of intelligence, 
and was on the move for the Northern lines. I 
was approaching the banks of a stream whose 
waters I had to cross, and had then some miles 
to traverse before I could reach the pickets of our 
gallant troops. A feeling of uneasiness began to 
creep over me ; I was on the outskirt of a wood 
fringing the dark waters at my feet, whose pres- 
ence could scarcely be detected but for their sul- 
sen murmurs as they rushed through the gloom. 
The wind sighed in gentle accordance. I walked 
forty or fifty yards along the bank. I then crept 
on all-fours along the ground, and groped with 
my hands. I paused — I groped again — my 
breath thickened, perspiration oozed from me at 
every pore, and I was prostrated with horror ! I 
had missed my landmark, and knew not where I 
was. Belov/ or above, beneath the shelter of the 
hank, lay the skifl' I had hidden ten days before, 
when I commenced my operations among the fol- 
lowers of Jeff. J3avis. 

As I stood gasping for breatli, with all the un- 
mistakable proofs of my calling about me, the sud- 
den cry of a bird or plui>ging of a fish would act 
like magnetism on my frame, not wont to shud- 
der at a shadow. No matter how pressing the 
danger may be, if a man sees an opportunity for 
escape, he breathes with freedom. But let him 
be surrounded by darkness, impenetrable at two 
yards' distance, within rilie's length of concealed 
foes, for what knowledge he has to the contrary ; 
knowing, too, with painful accuracy, the detec- 
tion of his presence would reward him with a 
sudden and violent death, and if he breathes no 
faster, and feels his limbs as free and his spirits 
as light as when taking a favorite promenade, he 
is more fitted for a hero than I am. 

In the agony of that moment — in the sudden 
and utter helplessness I felt to discover my true 
bearings — I was about to let myself gently into 
the stream, and breast its current, for life or 
death. There was no alternative. The Northern 



pickets must be reached in safety before the 
morning broke, or I should soon swing between 
heaven and earth, from some green limb of the 
!)lack forest in which I stood. 

At that moment the low, sullen bay of a blood- 
hound struck my ear. %The sound was reviving 
— the fearful stillness broken. The uncertain 
dread flew before the certain danger. I was 
standing to my middle in the shallow bed of the 
river, just beneath the jutting banks. After a 
pause of a few seconds I began to creep mechani- 
cally and stealthily down the stream, followed, as 
I knew from the rustling of the grass and fre- 
quent breaking of twigs, by the insatiable brute ; 
although, by certain uneasy growls, I felt assured 
he was at fault. Something struck against my 
breast. I could not prevent a slight cry from 
escaping me, as, stretching out my hand, I grasp- 
ed the gunwale of a boat moored beneath the 
bank. Between surprise and joy I felt half 
choked. In an instant I had scrambled, on board, 
and began to search for the painter in the bow, 
in order to cast her from her fastenings. 

Suddenly a bright ray of moonlight — the first 
gleam of hope in that black night — fell directly 
on the spot, revealing the silvery stream, my own 
skifl", (hidden there ten days before,) lighting the 
deep shadows of the verging wood, and, on the 
log half buried in the bank, and from which I had 
that instant cast the line that had bound me to 
it, the supple form of the crouching bloodhound, 
his red eyes gleaming in the moonlight, jaws dis- 
tended, and poising for the spring. With one 
dart the light skiflf was yards out in the stream, 
and the savage after it. With an oar I aimed a 
blow at his head, which, however, he eluded with 
ease. In the effort thus made the boat careened 
over towards my antagonist, who made a desper- 
ate eff"ort to get his forej^aws over the side, at 
the same time seizing the gunwale with his teeth. 

Now or never was my time to get rid of the 
accursed brute. I drew my revolver, and placed 
the muzzle between his eyes, but hesitated to fire, 
for that one report might bring on me a volley 
from the shore. Meantime t^e strength of the 
dog careened the frail craft so much that the 
water rushed over the side, threatening to swamp 
her. I changed my tactics, threw my revolver 
into the bottom of the skift", and grasping my 
•' bowie," keen as a Malay creese, and glittering, 
as I released it from the sheath, like a moonbeam 
on the stream. In an instant I had severed the 
sinewy throat of the hound, cutting through 
brawn and muscle to the nape of the neck. The 
tenacious wretch gave a wild, convulsive leap 
half out of the water, then sank, and was gone. 

Five minutes' ])ulling landed me on the other 
side of the river, and in an hour after, without 
further accident, I was among friends, encom- 
passed by the Northern lines. That night I re- 
lated at headquarters the intelligence I had 
gathered. 

A FlDDLEK. — When Wright's Georgia regi- 
ment was drawn up in line of battle, to go into 
its first fight in North Carolina, Wright, (after- 



\ 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



41 



wards a Major-General,) in passing in front of his 
regiment, observed a tall, gaunt fellow, with a 
violin case strapped to his back. Wright asked 
him " what he was going to do with his fiddle ? " 
The rude soldier had never heard of Mirabeau's 
dying exclamation, but he almost quoted it when 
he said, he wanted to " die to the sound of Betsy," 
this being the term of endearment which he ap- 
plied to his vioHn. 

After the fight was over, the fiddling soldier did 
not answer at roll-call. He was found, with a 
broken leg, at the root of a tree, to which he had 
crawled, quietly sawing the strings of " Betsy." 



THE STORY OF BALL'S BLUFF. 

BY AN OFFICER WHO TOOK PART IN IT. 

The history of the battle of Ball's Bluff has 
never been published. No event of the war since 
the assault upon Fort Sumter created a like sensa- 
tion ; and the cause of the disaster, the name of the 
persons culpable, or the plans and purposes of the 
officers who ordered the movement, have not 
officially or certainly been made known. The 
report of General Stone, in command, was not 
satisfactory to the country, and Congress called 
upon the War Department for the facts. Major- 
General McClellan, who, it was known, ordered 
the movement, refused to furnish the facts. The 
insulted Congress repeated its demand, and re- 
ceived a second time the same answer. A joint 
committee of both Houses of Congress was ap- 
pointed to inquire into the " conduct of the pres- 
ent war," especially, as was remarked in the debate, 
" as regards the battle of Ball's Bluft'." That com- 
mittee has as yet made no report.* General 
Stone, by order of the President, was arrested 
and imprisoned upon several charges involving 
disloyalty, and " for misconduct at the battle of 
Ball's Bluff." After a confinement of six months 
he was discharged without trial, and the cherished 
expectations of the public for the facts so long 
withheld were again disappointed. 

Ball's Blufl", so called from Mr. Ball, a farmer 
living in the vicinity, is a bold embankment, of one 
hundred feet elevation, on the Virginia shore of 
the Potomac, three miles from Leesburg north- 
westerly, and an equal distance from Edwards' 
Ferry in a southern direction. Poolsville, Md., 
lies opposite, five miles, and by the road running 
easterly, Washington is distant thirty-four miles. 
From the river's edge to the summit, the Bluft' is 
covered with trees and bushes, which, joining with 
the woods on either side, enclose above, in the 
form of a half circle, an open natural clearing of 
seven acres. In the middle of the Potomac, in 
front of the Bluff, lies Harrison's Island, a fertile 
strip of land two hundred yards wide and four 

* This paper ^vas written in July, 1862. The report of 
the War Committee, published in March, 1863, corrobo- 
rates all its statements. The late restoration of Gen. 
Stone to active duty is a vindication and acquittal of 
misconduct charged upon him, and places the respon- 
sibility upon another. 



miles long. At a distance of half a mile north of 
the Bluff is Smoot's Mill, situated upon a gentle 
slope of the bank ; and near to it a road leads 
from the river, by an easy ascent, to the Leesburg 
turnpike, which, running southerly to Drainesville, 
passes near to Edwards' Ferry. On the day of 
the battle General McCall, with twenty-four thou- 
sand men, was in that turnpike, nine miles from 
Ball's Bluff, and General Gorman, with fourteen 
hundred men was at Edwards' Ferry, on the 
Virginia side. The whole distance from Ball's 
Bluft" to the Maryland side of the Potomac, across 
Harrison's Island, is not six hundred yards. 

On Sunday night, Oct. 20, 1661, in obedience 
to orders of General Stone, Colonel Devens, of the 
Fifteenth Mass. Volunteers, proceeded, with three 
hundred men, from camp at Poolsville to a point 
opposite Ball's Bluff and Harrison's Island, and 
in three small boats crossed to the Virginia shore, 
arriving at the summit just before daylight. The 
landing-place was soft and mucky, and the ascent 
winding and difficult. At the same time four 
companies of the First INIinnesota Volunteers 
crossed the river at Edwards' Ferry. No enemy 
was encountered at either place, and his pickets 
had not been seen for tM'o days. Whatever 
knowledge of the tojDography of our country our 
forces possessed had been acquired by distant 
observation from Maryland, and no guide accom- 
panied them. 

At daybreak Colonel Devens led his troops 
over the open field, and through the woods to- 
wards and within one mile of Leesburg, where, in 
scattered small numbers, he descried rebels, and 
after exchanging several volleys with them at 
long range, fell back to the woods. Here being 
attacked, he repulsed the enemy with small loss 
on both sides, and then retii'cd to the Bluff, where 
he was joined by the remainder of his regiment, 
and by Colonel Lee with one hundred men of the 
Twentieth Mass. Volunteers, making in all seven 
hundred and twenty Federal troops across the 
river. The day was fair. 

At the same time, eight o'clock, A. M., Colonel 
Baker arrived from his camp near Poolsville on 
the Maryland side, opposite, where he found the 
first battalion of the California regiment, six 
hundred and eighty officers and men, Lieutenant- 
Colonel Wistar commanding. He was informed 
of an order from General Stone, then at Edwards' 
Ferry, that in the event of heavy firing in front, 
the California battalion should cross and reinforce 
Colonel Devens. Upon inquiring as to the means 
of transportation, and learning tliat they consisted 
of two frail scows, each capable of carrying twen- 
ty-five men, and the»river deep and rapid. Col- 
onel Baker rode in haste to Edwards' Ferry that 
he might have better assurance of an order so 
extraordinary. Meanwhile several dead and 
wounded arrived from the Bluft", where firing was 
growing more frequent, and three companies of 
the California regiment crossed to Harrison's Isl- 
and. Colonel Baker returned from Edwards' 
Ferry at eleven o'clock, bearing a written oi'der 
from General Stone to reinforce or retire Colonel 
Devens, " in his discretion." The returned wounded 



42 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



reported the enemy in force, pressing Colonel 
Devens. How could seven hundred men be 
safely retired in two small boats under the fire 
of a bloodthirsty and superior enemy? Shall 
they be left to their fate, or will he reinforce them 
and share their peril ? Colonel Baker was not 
long in determining upon his course of duty. 

A lai'ger scow, discovered in the canal running 
parallel to the river, was with great labor dragged 
across the tow-path and launched in the channel. 
Placing Captain Hitman in charge of the trans- 
portation of the troops, and directing that they 
should cross as rapidly as possible, with his staff 
comix)sed of Assistant Adjutant-General Harvey 
and Captain Young, Brigade Quartermaster, 
Colonel Baker embarked for the Island, where, 
on the western side, he found three hundred men 
awaiting their chance to go over to the Virginia 
shore. Impressed with the grave responsibility 
of his position. Colonel Baker was silently re- 
marking the two small boats plying with their 
heavy freight of reinforcements, when his atten- 
tion was called to an officer of one of the Massa- 
chusetts regiments standing on the Virginia shore, 
who cried out, " We can see three regiments of the 
enemy coming down from Leesburg." Colonel 
Baker responded, "All right; be of good cheer — 
there will be the more for us ta whip " — and im- 
mediately crossed the river. On reaching the 
summit, and assuming command, he found the 
Massachusetts troops drawn up on the right of the 
field in good order, quietly awaiting a nearer at- 
tack of the enemy, who, though silent, with the ex- 
ception of occasional shots, Avere known to be in 
large force in the wootls in the front and on the 
right. It was three o'clock before all of the Cal- 
ifornia battalion had crossed and climbed the Bluff, 
which, joined to two companies of the Tammany 
regiment, made with the Massachusetts troops, om- 
whole force seventeen hundred. An order was re- 
ceived from General Stone advising Colonel Baker 
that the enemy was four thousand strong, and that 
he might count upon General Gorman coming to 
his reinforcement from Edwards' Ferry, on the left. 
He decided, therefore, not to advance, but await 
the arrival of the promised aid, formed his line 
of battle by placing Colonel Devens and his com- 
mand on the right at the border of the woods, 
resting upon and making a right angle with the 
centre, composed of two companies of Twentieth 
Mass. and two companies of the Tammany regi- 
ment ; the California battalion forming the left and 
touching the woods bounding the plateau to the 
south. The ground, sloping from a point distant 
thirty yards from the edge of the cliff, afforded a 
fair cover for men Ij^ng upon their faces, from 
the increasing fire of the enemy in the woods. 
At three o'clock Colonel Coggswell of the Tam- 
many regiment arrived upon the field, and being 
received by Colonel Baker with much enthusiasm, 
was placed in command of the artillery, consist- 
ing of one six-pounder and two mountain howit- 
zers, then in charge of Lieutenant Bramhall, of the 
Ninth New York State Militia. The pieces were 
drawn into the open field, twenty yards in ad- 
vance of the centre of the line of battle. Colonel 



Baker, with his staff on foot, — there were no 
mounted officers on the field, — traversed several 
times the whole line of forces under his command, 
addressing pleasant words to officers and men, 
and setting them an example of coolness, courage, 
and confidence. From the Maryland shore fre- 
quent shells came flying over the river and bluff, 
bursting harmlessly far in the rear of the enemy, 
who seemed patiently to defer his attack until we 
crossed in greater numbers. 

At precisely four o'clock loud yells preceded 
a flashing line of fire in the woods, and the report 
of a thousand rifles announced the opening of the 
engagement with part of the enemy, several of 
whom had climbed into the trees, that they might 
have a better aim at our recumbent men. For 
nearly an hour showers of bullets and buck-shot 
continued to pour upon our devoted line ; but 
considering the nearness of the enemy, the cas- 
ualties were not very great. On our part the 
cannon alone for the fii-st half hour responded 
with thimdering voice, clearly telling General 
Stone and the Union forces at Edwards' Ferry 
of the hot engagement near them ; and flying 
farther, reached the ears of General McCall and 
his division, which, by order of Major-General 
McClellan, was returning to its camp at Draines- 
ville. Six thousand troops had, during the after- 
noon, assembled at the crossing-place opposite 
tl>e Bluff, but by reason of the small means of 
transportation, were obliged to remain there re- 
garding in helplessness and rage the unequal con- 
test. A rope had been stretched across the chan- 
nel to the island, which aided much in the passage 
of the boats ; but from the Virginia side there Avas 
no rope, and the solitary leaky scow was poled 
over and back sloM'ly. By five o'clock nearly 
two thousand men had ascended the Bluft', and 
engaged in most part in returning the fire of the 
enemy. Notwithstanding the discouraging as- 
pect of matters, our troops generally exhibited 
good feeling, determined courage, and obedience 
to command. The wounded and some dead were 
carried by their comrades dowrw the hill, who, 
after placing them in the boat, returned to the 
field. The enemy was several times driven back 
with great loss by discharges of the cannon, 
which, after the artillery men had been killed or 
wounded, was loaded and fired by Colonel Coggs- 
well, Lieutenant Bramhall, and other officers. A 
volley of musketry from the thick forest on the 
left attracted our attention, and Colonel Baker, 
thinking it came from the expected and promised 
reinforcement from Edwards' Ferry, ordered a 
company of the California men to advance cau- 
tiously, and discover if they were friends or foes. 

The officer commanding the company, having 
called out, " AVho are you ? " received for answer, 
" Confederates ! " and another volley following im- 
mediately, many of our men were killed and wound- 
ed. Colonel Baker fell dead, struck with three 
balls. Five or six rebels ran from the woods 
towards his body, lying ten yards in advance 
of the line of battle, when Captain Bieral, of 
the California regiment, with a dozen of his 
men, dashed forward, and driving the others back, 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



rescued the corpse and sword, which were imme- 
diately carried from the field by Captain Young, 
who had but a moment before been ordered by 
Colonel Baker to go to General Stone, and re- 
port the state of the engagement, and ask for 
reinforcements. At the same time Lieutenant 
Colonel Wistar and Lieutenant Bramhall, being 
seA'erely wounded, were helped down the hill, and 
with Colonel Baker's body, safely reached the 
island. At the last discharge of the cannon it 
recoiled even to the edge of the cliff, and falling 
over, was inextricably lost in the rock and jungle. 
Later the two howitzers, wliich had not been fired 
during the engagement, were thrown over the 
bank, and they with the cannon were afterwards 
recovered by the enemy. By seniority Colonel 
Coggswell assumed command, and regarding the 
battle as hopelessly lost, and there being no re- 
treat by the river, he determined to fight his way 
to Edwards' Ferry. By his order the Fifteenth 
Massachusetts moved across the field from the 
right to the left of the line, where the two com- 
panies of the Tammany regiment had already 
moved. While making the proper arrangements 
for retreat, a rebel officer misled our troops by 
approaching them and giving a command to charge 
upon a large body of the enemy who now occu- 
pied our late position on the right. Rushing for- 
ward en masse, our men received a destructive fire, 
and the line being broken, general confusion en- 
sued for a few moments. Re-forming in line, 
several volleys were exchanged with the enemy, 
who were now near, in sight, in front, with con- 
siderable loss on both sides ; but night coming 
on, and no one knowing the road to Edwards" 
Ferry, Colonel Coggswell abandoned his plan of 
retreat to that point, and gave an order to fall 
back to the river's bank, below the Bluff, leaving 
two companies above to hold the enemy in check. 
At this moment, the only boat in the channel was 
seen to go down, overloaded with wounded and 
fugitives ; and thus disappeared the only means 
of escape, except by swimming. The enemy soon 
occupied the heights, and poured down a fatal 
fire upon the crowded mass below. Three times 
bodies of our men climbed to the summit, and 
after delivering their fire, returned to their help- 
less comrades below. Throwing their arms and 
clothing into the river, many swam for the island, 
while others, aided by the increasing darkness, 
crept along the bank above and below the Bluff, 
and on logs, and in a small skiff which by good 
fortune was found, escaped. 

There was no formal surrender, but a sullen 
submission to adverse fate. The colors, heavily 
weighed with stones, were cast into the stream. 
At eight o'clock all firing and noise had ceased, 
save the moans of the wounded, and the shrieks 
of the drowning in their vain attempts to swim 
to the island. At midnight twenty-two commis- 
sioned officers and seven hundred and ten men 
were prisoners of war, on their march to Lees- 
burg. 

Never was a conquered army less subdued in 
spirit. Astounded, bewildered, indignant, there 
was no feeling of shame, for never did soldiers i 



conduct themselves with more courage. Each 
man felt that something had gone wrong. " Some 
one had blundered," or may be worse, and silently 
niarching under the rebel guard, each sought in 
his own mind, or in whispering voices of his com- 
panions, for an explanation of the disastei-. 

The enemy's force engaged is not known, but is 
stated in the report of Colonel Evans, who com- 
manded them, at twenty-six hundred. It is be- 
lieved that there were full four thousand. His 
loss was not less than four hundred, mostly 
killed. On our side the casualties cannot be pre- 
cisely stated, as many were missing whose death 
by drowning or killed on the field could not be 
ascertained. The total loss was one hundred and 
fifty killed, two hundred wounded, and seven 
hundred and ten taken prisoners. 

Such is the narrative of the affair at Ball's Blufi", 
as told by those who were engaged in it, but had 
no part in its planning, and are still ignorant of 
its purpose. As stated, all attempts to discover 
the object of sending across the Potomac at that 
point a small force, while Generals McCall and 
Smith, Avith over twenty thousand men, were 
already on the Virginia side, within nine miles of 
Leesburg, have not been successful. In vain is the 
inquiry repeated, " Why was Ball's Bins' chosen 
as a crossing-place, while, at a distance of one 
half mile above it, the land slopes to the river 
bank, and an easy ascent and open country would 
have placed our force on equal footing with the 
enemy ? Why was not transportation provided in 
advance, adequate for a successful withdrawal of 
Colonels Devens and Lee and their commands, or 
for tlu-owing over a large force for their support ? " 
The movement was not unpremeditated, and there 
was no want of boats or material for pontoons 
and bridges in the vicinity of Harrison's Island. 
An ai'my of ten thousand men had been lying 
idle at Poolsville for months, expecting at some 
time to cross the river. The canal leading to 
Washington offered excellent facilities for furnish- 
ing the necessary means for crossing, and three 
frail scows, made of inch plank, and one skiff, 
were all that our army found there on the day of 
the battle. 

Why were not the promised reinforcements 
sent to our aid from Edwards' Ferry ? During 
the engagement fourteen hundred troops, under 
the command of General Gorman, awaited on the 
Virginia shore, at Edwards' Ferry, an order to 
march to our aid ; and in his report General 
Gorman says, that at the moment Colonel Baker 
fell. General Stone sent an order for them to 
throw up intrenchments ! There was no enemy 
between Edwards' Ferry and the battle-field, and 
we may fairly suppose that one hundred men 
coming up and attacking them on their flank 
would have changed the fortunes of that day. 
That night General McClellan, at Washington, 
having learned of the disastrous result of the ex- 
pedition he had ordered, despatched an order to 
General Banks, at Darnstown, Md., twelve miles 
from Ball's Bluff", to march his division to the 
Potomac, at the same points, which, during the 
day, had been occupied by eight thousand of our 



44 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



troops, vainly demanding transportation to their 
commands over the river ! Generals McCall and 
Smith, at Drainesville, Va., received no orders. 
Two days afterwards, all of the Federal forces 
returned to their respective catops ; and thus con- 
cludes the affair of Ball's Blufi". 



ON THE SHORES OF TENNESSEE. 

" Move my arm-chair, faithful Pompey, 

In the sunshine bright and strong, 
For this world is fading, Pompey — 

Massa won't be with you long ; 
And I fain would hear the south wind 

Bring once more the sound to me 
Of the wavelets softly breaking 

On the shores of Tennessee. 

" ilournful though the ripples murmur, 

As they still the story tell, 
How no vessels float the banner 

That I've loved so long and well, 
I shall listen to their music, 

Dreaming that again I see 
Stars and Stripes on sloop and shallop. 

Sailing up the Tennessee. 

" And, Pompey, while old Massa's waiting 

For death's last despatch to come. 
If that exiled starry banner 

Should come proudly sailing home. 
You shall greet it, slave no longer — 

Voice and hand shall both be free 
That shout and point to Union colors, 

On the waves of Tennessee." 

" Massa's berry kind to Pompey ; 

But ole darky's happy here. 
Where he's tended corn and cotton 

For 'ese many a long-gone year. 
Over yonder Missis sleeping — 

No one tends her grave lilie me ; 
Mebbe she would miss the flowers 

She used to love in Tennessee. 

" 'Pears like she was watching, Massa, 

If Pompey should beside him stay ; 
Mebbe she'd remember better 

How for him she used to pray ; 
Telling him that "way up yonder 

AVhite as snow his soul would be, 
If he served the Lord of heaven 

"While he lived in Tennessee." 

Silently the tears were rolling 

Down the poor old dusky face, 
As he stepped behind his master, 

In his long-accustomed place. 
Then a silence fell around them. 

As they gazed on rock and tree, 
Pictured in the placid waters 

Of the rolling Tennessee; — 

ilaster, dreaming of the battle 

Where he fought by Marion's side, 
When he bid the haughty Tarleton 

Stoop his lordly crest of pride ; 
Man, ren embering how yon sleeper 

Once he held upon his knee, 
Ere she loved the gallant soldier, 

Ralph Vervair, of Tennessee. 



Still the south wind fondly lingers 

'Mid the veteran's silvery hair ; 
Still the bondman, close beside him, 

Stands behind the old arm-chair. 
With his dark-hued hand uplifted. 

Shading eyes, he bends to see 
Where the woodland, boldly jutting, 

Turns aside the Tennessee. 

Thus he watches cloud-born shadows 

Glide from tree to mountain crest, 
Softly creeping, aye and ever. 

To the river's yielding breast. 
Ha ! above the foliage yonder 

Something flutters wild and free ! 
"Massa! Massa! Hallelujah! 

The flag's come back to Tennessee ! " 

♦' Pompey, hold me on your shoulder, 

Help me stand on foot once more, 
That I may salute the colors 

As they pass my cabin door. 
Here's the paper signed that fi-ees you ; 

Give a freeman's shout viith me — 
' God and Union ! ' be our watchword 

Evermore in Tennessee." 

Then the trembling voice grew fainter, 

And the limbs refused to stand ; 
One prayer to Jesus — and the soldier 

Glided to that better land. 
When the flag went down the river, 

Man and master both were free, 
While the ring-dove's note was mingled 

With the rippling Tennessee. 



Incidents of Roanoke Island. — Colonel 
Russell, of the Tenth Connecticut regiment, fell 
dead from his horse at the head of his regiment, 
while marching against the enemy. Strange as it 
may appear, not a scratch was found upon his 
body Avhen examined, and his death must have 
come from the wind of a cannon ball, or from ex- 
citement. 

Lieutenant-Colonel De Monteil, who volun- 
teered in the assault upon the rebel battery, 
received his death wound while heading the 
advance, and while in the act of shouting : 
" Come on, boys ! Ave'U show them how to 
fight ! " 

In the course of the action a shell burst on the 
United States gunboat Hetzel, and set her maga- 
zine on fire. Lieutenant FrankHn, her executive 
officer, ordered the men to the magazine to ex- 
tinguish the fire ; but seeing that they hesitated, 
he took the hose in his own hands, and sprang 
down and extinguished the flames before they 
reached the powder. 

A similar occurrence took place on board the 
Ceres, from the bursting of a gun, when Acting- 
Master Diarmaid sprang into the magazine and 
extinguished the fire. 

A shell entered the coal-bunks of another of 
the steamers, setting them on fire. The flames 
were subdued after much difficulty, -with but little 
damage to the vessel. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



45 



EXPLOITS OF CAPT. CARPENTER, OF 
THE "JESSIE SCOUTS." 

The secret history of any military campaign 
would be of absorbing interest ; much more the 
secret story of our war. In all camps there are 
men whose occupation it is to gain for the com- 
manding general information of the enemy's force, 
positions, and movements. Much depends on 
this ; and the most successful generals have al- 
ways been the best informed. 

In our own service, during the present war, 
the spy service has been jjerformed by different 
classes of men. Some of o-ur commanders have 
had the wit and fortune to secure the services of 
men whose hearts were full of zeal for the Union 
and of hatred for the slave aristocracy and their 
rebellion. Such men, when they have also the 
activity, presence of mind, ingenuity, and cour- 
age needed for this office, are the best that can 
be got. Such, we have reason to know, are the 
company known as the " Jessie Scouts," who first 
served under Gen. Fremont in Missouri, after- 
wards in Tennessee under Grant, McClernand, 
and others, and again in Vii-ginia under Fremont, 
Milroy, &c. 

There is another class, hirelings, who serve not 
for the sake of the cause, but for the sake of the 
reward. Such men, too, are valuable ; but a 
great commander seeks rather to use men who, 
from devotion to a principle, or else by reason of 
some jiersonal wrong, are animated by enmity to 
the opposite side. 

Our spy system has not always been well con- 
ducted, else Stuart's "raids " would not have be- 
come famous ; else Jackson could not have made 
his march down the Valley ; else Corinth could 
not have been secretly evacuated by Beauregard, 
nor Yorktown by Johnson, nor Winchester before 
the fii-st battle of Bull Run, by the same officer. 
If we had an efficient spy service. Gen. McCleUan 
would have known that after the battle of Fair 
Oaks, Ilichm<xid lay in his power ; and Patterson 
would have held Johnson in check, or else fol- 
lowed him pell-mell into the first battle-field of 
Pull Run, and saved the day. 

There is a story told of that first campaign in 
Virginia which does not redound to the credit of 
our military authorities. Some weeks before Bull 
Run, Patterson, it is said, sent a man as spy into 
Winchester. The felloAV rode there, examined 
thoroughly the rebel camp, works, and forces, 
and returned with a full report. He was sent to 
Washington to get his pay, and when he got 
there, received from the officer under Gen. Scott, 
who attended to his case, the sum of twenty-five 
dollars, which did not pay the expenses of his 
journey. It is added that he swore he would go 
over to the enemy; probably he did. If spies 
and scouts were treated thus in our fu'st Virginia 
campaign, no wonder Johnson got away from 
Patterson. 

Probably no man in this Avar has lived through 
as many exciting and desperate adventures as 
Capt. Carpenter, who was leader of the " Jessie 
Scouts." He was originally one of " John 



Brown's men," and participated in the attack on 
Harper's Ferry, where he escaped by crawling 
through a long culvert, or covered drain, which led 
from the famous engine-house to the river. The 
Captain does not love the slave lords ; he has 
notions about the crime of claiming ownership in 
men which to some would seem extreme, and he 
certainly thinks almost anything good enough 
for a man-selling aristocrat who rebels against 
the Union. 

The writer of this passed a few quiet hours 
with Capt. Carpenter lately, while the latter was 
an invalid from a severe wound received last fall 
in Western Virginia. Some of the campaigning 
stories then heard will interest the reader, and 
will attract the sympathy of all who admire 
daring, skUl, and invention — especially where, 
as in this case, all these faculties are sharpened 
and vivified by a single-hearted and fiery devo- 
tion to liberty and the Union. Capt. Carpenter 
boasts, in a quiet way, that no army for which 
he has scouted has ever suffered from a "raid" 
in its rear, or has ever been surprised. He has 
an idea that such things cannot be done where 
trustworthy and zealous scouts are employed. 

" Did you ever see Price ? " he was asked. 

He replied, " Several times." 

Once he drove a team in Price's army two 
days, at the end of which time, unluckily, the 
team and wagon, and a negro who happened to 
be in it, ran away, " and curiously enough, never 
stopped till we got into our own lines," said the 
Captain, with a twinkle in his eye. 

" The black man is working for himself now 
in Iowa, and I sold the mules to pay my ex- 
penses." 

Once he rode down to the rebel pickets at 
Wilson's Creek, dressed as a woman, to deliver 
a letter to a supposititious brother in Price's 
army. He bears witness to the politeness of the 
rebel officer who escorted the lady half back to 
our lines. This trip was made because " the 
General " wanted to know precisely the position 
of a part of the rebel lines. 

" After the surrender of Lexington," said the 
Captain, " Gen. Fremont suspected that the tele- 
graph operators between Hannibal and St. Joseph 
were disloyal, and had given information to the 
enemy, and I was ordered to make an investiga- 
tion. The fact was, however, the rebels had 
' tapped ' the wire. A woman in St. Louis told 
me. She asked me if I knew a rebel spy was in 
town. I asked who he was and what he did ; and 
she replied that he had a telegraph apparatus on 
the Hannibal and St. Joseph Railroad, and had 
told her so. He was to see her and take her to 
a theatre that evening. 

" I told her I would give her fifty dollars if she 
would say, when he came, that she was sick, and 
would not go. She agreed, and I arranged that 
she should introduce me to him as a rebel spy 
from Pillow's camp, which she did. I immedi- 
ately gained his confidence. We drank wine to- 
gether, and the fool told me everything. Soon 
he left the city, and I took one of my men with 
me, and off we stai'ted after him. 



46 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



" We found him on the Grand River, near the 
railroatl, just where he had said. He had a hut 
in the brush, where the telegraphing operations 
were carried on. There were two men — my 
man and another. We crept up to them, and on 
a survey, came to the conclusion that as we might 
not be able to capture them, the best way was 
to shoot them. I shot my man, but Hale only 
wounded his. We rushed up. He made fight. 
I had to despatch him with my pistol. We got 
the telegraph instruments, with twenty-two hun- 
dred feet of silk wire, two horses, blankets, and 
sixty-five dollars in money. There were also two 
daguerreotypes. 

" I went into Price's camp when Mulligan was 
at Lexington. I had a double-barrelled shot-gun 
with both locks broken, and rode into the camp 
with numbers of country people who were flock- 
ing to join Price. I rode around freely, talking 
secession, and very soon saw how things were 
going. I could see plainly that Mulligan was in 
a tight place, and I started off for St. Louis as 
soon as possible, and gave the information that 
Mulligan must surrender. Twelve hours after, 
news came that he had surrendered. 

" Fremont did all he could to help Midligan, 
but the telegraph ' tapper ' (who was afterwards 
killed) got a despatch which was sent by Fremont 
for Sturgis to move across the river to the sup- 
port of Mulligan ; and the rebels, having posses- 
sion of our plans, moved against Sturgis, and 
compelled him to fall back. 

" Henry Hale, one of the best scouts in the 
country, left Leavenworth, while Mulligan was 
before Lexington, with despatches. As he rode 
alon-g, men from every direction were going to 
join Price. He saw one old secessionist with a 
little shot-gun, and thought it would be a nice 
thing to drive off the fellow, and take his horse 
into Lexington. So he engaged the man in con- 
versation, and getting an opportunity, put his 
revolver to the secessionist's head, ordered him 
to tie his gun to the saddle, to dismount, and 
finally to skedaddle.' The old man made 
tracks rapidly, glad to escape with his life. 
Hale took the horse by the bridle, and rode on 
whistling ' Yankee Doodle.' He had ridden a 
mile or two, when at a turn of the road, he was 
suddenly ordered to halt. The old secessionist 
had procured another gun, and got ahead of him. 
The gun was squarely aimed at Hale's head. 
' Get off that horse,' cried the secessionist. 
Hale got down. ' Tie that revolver to the sad- 
dle.' He obeyed. ' Pull off your pants.' Hale 
did it. ' Skedaddle ! ' an order which Hale at 
once carried into effect, merely saying, ' Well, 
Captain, I thought my shirt would come next — 
good-bye.' The secessionist went off with the two 
horses, whistling ' Dixie ; ' while Hale marched 
seven miles into Lexington, with only his coat 
and shirt on. His coat contained his despatches. 
He will never be permitted to forget that seven 
miles' march. 

"I burned Randolph, Mo. The town was a 
rebel depot, where their supplies were gathered. 
The country people came in every day with pro- 



visions, and these provisions and other goods 
were conveyed to the enemy. I went over with 
twenty-two men, and routed two hundred and 
fifty. It was a year ago on the 10th or 12th of 
September. I divided my men, and had them 
approach from different directions. I made them 
all officers, and up we went, every man of us 
shouting (Out orders as though each had a regi- 
ment at his back. 

" The rebels were frightened. They ran in all 
directions, but we killed several of them. One 
of my men was badly wounded, and I was 
wounded also. I tackled one fellow with a sabre. 
He fought savagely, but I killed him after he had 
given me a thrust over the eye that might havo 
finished me. He had been a soldier in the regu- 
lar army, but deserted, and went over to the 
rebels. He belonged to the Fhst United States 
Dragoons. We took seventeen prisoners. Of 
course we could not, with our small force, hold 
the town ; so we set fire to the rebel stores, and 
destroyed them, 

" I was captured back of Paducah — Lieutenant 
Robb and I ; and we were placed under guard, to 
stay all night. There were thirteen guardsmen 
in all ; but ten of them went to a party, and got 
drunk. The othei-s got some whiskey, too. 
Robb and I concluded to rebel. We managed 
to seize their revolvers. Robb tapped one, that 
came at us first, over the head and stunned him, 
and before the others could come to his assistance 
we shot them. Then we made off. We went by 
Fort Donelson, clear across the country, and told 
Zollicoffer that we Avere spies, and had despatches 
for Breckinridge. We had forged despatches for 
the purpose, and thus jiassed. As we had just 
come from the rebels, we knew enough to deceive 
the old fellow, who treated us with great kind- 
ness, told us to be careful of the Yankees, gave 
us horses thi-ough his lines, and good horses, and 
in three hours and a half we were inside our lines. 

" At Platte City I made a speech to the rebels 
in favor of Jeff. Davis, which was very successful ; 
but in the afternoon a fellow in town recognized 
me, and had me seized. They put me under 
guard, in a house ; but the same night I got out, 
got on a horse which fell in my way, and rode out 
till I ran in the dark against two rebel videttes. 
They stopped me ; I explained to them that I was 
hurrying off to bring up some recruits who were 
wanted ; but the men were obstinate, and would 
not let me go without a pass. So I proposed to 
one to go in with me to headquarters, and I would 
get him my pass. He consented ; we walked our 
horses along the road. My case was desperate ; 
if they caught me they would hang me. I talked 
to the man in the dark till we were some distance 
in, then suddenly pulled out my knife, and with 
one stab slew him. 

" I waited a while, then rode back to where the 
other vidette remained, and handed him a piece 
of an old letter, saying, ' There's the pass.' He 
must go to the smouldering fire in the wood near 
by to examine it, and as he did so I knocked him 
over, and rode off. 

" I rode into Jeff. Thompson's camp, half naked, 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



47 



as a crazy man, shouting and whooping so that 
the -whole camp was aroused. No better way 
to get in occurred to me just then. General 
Thompson is much of a gentleman. He caused 
a surgeon to examine me, who reported that I 
had lost my senses from a blow on the temple, 
the mark of which was still fresh. He said I was 
quite harmless, and the General proposed to send 
me into the Yankee lines, because they could take 
care of such a poor fellow better than he. 

" I lay down under a wagon, near the General's 
tent, when it came dark, and listened to hear 
what I could hear. About midnight a messenger 
rode in, on a fine horse, and tied it near me. 
When he got into the tent, and no one was look- 
ing, I got on the horse, and, having the best road 
in my mind, rode out as hard as I coilld drive, 
the pickets firing at me, but without effect ; and 
I got safely in to make mj' report. 

" I went into Fort Henry two days before the 
attack on it, and brought General Grant an accu- 
rate account of the position and number of the 
rebel forces and defences. I have General Grant's 
letter certifying to that. 

" Also I went into Fort Donelson, while our 
troops lay at Fort Henry. I went in there in 
Confederate uniform ; and I have General McCler- 
nand's letter to show that I brought him informa- 
tion which proved to be accurate. On my way 
out a cavalry force passed me, while I lay by the 
roadside ; and its commander told one of his men 
to leave a fine flag, which he feared would be torn 
on the way. The flag was stuck into the road, 
that a returning rebel picket might carry it in. 
But I got it, wrapped it around my body, and 
rode into Fort Henry with it." 



Southern Mathematics. — General D. H. 
Hill, who was captured at Roanoke Island, is 
rather a remarkable character. He has written 
one or two theological works of some note. He 
is also a mathematician. The youthful rebels are 
allowed to regale themselves at school with Hill's 
Elements of Algebra, a work which is conceived 
iri the true spirit of a gallant Southron. One 
would think it rather difficult to give mathemati- 
cal instruction such a form as to imbue pupils 
with "contempt and hatred for the North. But 
Hill has attempted the work, ami has displayed 
no little ingenuity in the eff"ort. He has framed 
problems beginning in the following style : 

" A Yankee mixes a certain quantity of wooden 
nutmegs, which cost him one fourth cent apiece, 
with a quantity of real nutmegs, worth four cents 
apiece," etc. 

" A Northern railroad is assessed one hundred 
and twenty thousand dollars damages for con- 
tusions and broken limbs caused by a collision 
of cars." 

" The years in which the Governors of Massa- 
chusetts and Connecticut send treasonable mes- 
sages to their respective legislatures, is expressed 
by four digits." 

" The field of battle of Buena Vista is six and 



a half miles from Saltillo. Two Indiana volun- 
teers ran away from the field of battle at the 
same time." 

A Brave Fellow. — In the Fort Henry gun- 
boat fight, in the explosion on the Essex, one of 
the seamen was shockingly scalded. His cloth- 
ing was at once removed, linseed oil and flour 
applied to his parboiled flesh, and he was care- 
fully wrapped in blankets and placed in bed. A 
few moments after came the news that the rebel 
flag M'as struck, and the fort surrendered. In 
his enthusiasm he sprang out of his berth, ran up 
on deck, and waved his blanket in the air, huz- 
zaing for the Stars and Stripes. The poor fel- 
low, after the first excitement was over, was 
assisted below, and in the night he died, full of 
rejoicing to the last at the triumph of the old 
flag. 

A Rebel Song. — The following " song," com- 
posed by some enthusiastic rebel soldier, was 
found in Fort Bartow, Roanoke Island. It is 
Avritten on a half-sheet of foolscap paper : 

Sir William was king georges son to the north 
the waryers race was run he wore A star all on 
his breast to show you a sign of the waryers 
dress, come young ladies will you list and go, 
come young ladies will you list and go. A new 
silk dress you shall put on, to follow up the mu- 
sic fife and drum, the drum shall beat and the fife 
shall play, the drum shall beat and the fife shall 
play its A merry lives we'l march away. 

new york.s A pretty place, ; and so is Phila- 
delphia the streets are lined with doll, bills and 
pretty girls a plenty. 

Come my love com go with me, for I am a 
roveing dandy, 1,11 take you home I'll treat you 
well, 1 11 feed you on sweet candy, where coffee 
grows on white oak stump and the rivers flow 
with brandy, and little hills are lin'd with gold 
and the girls are sweet as candy. 



Religious Music among the Soldiers. — A 
letter from Hatteras Inlet, N. C, says : The New 
England troops excel in the musical faculty, and 
in every regiment from Massachusetts, Connecti- 
cut, or New Hampshu-e, music teachers or good 
singers abound, and many an otherwise tedious 
evening has thus been beguiled by the elevating 
influence of music. In this respect, no regiment, 
perhaps, is more favored than the Massachusetts 
Twenty-third, composed chiefly of Salem, Marble- 
head, Danvers, and Boston men. Many of the of- 
ficers were members of the best musical societies, 
and leaders or pillars in their church choirs at home. 
Could their friends have looked in upon us on 
board of the Highlander, during many of the 
boisterous nights we have been anchored in this 
Sound, while the storm howled without, they 
might have heard : 

" Perhaps Dundee's wild, warbling measures rise, 
Or plaintive Martyrs, worthy of the name, 
Or noble Elgin beat the heavenward flame." 



48 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



On board of the Huzza, which carries the left 
wing rof the Twenty-thii'd, they have their full 
share of sweet singers, and a very excellent band 
of music, under the lead of Henry C. Brown, of 
Boston. In the centre of the fleet, which covers 
an area of some two miles of the bay, is anchored 
the S. R. Spaulding, the present flag-ship of Gen. 
Burnside. From her high deck he can easily 
survey the entire fleet, and observe all that is 
going on. On the deck of one or two vessels 
near us are gathered quiet groups of soldiers, and 
the sublime strains of " Old Hundred," which 
float across the waters, human voices mingling 
with the bands, testify that they are engaged in 
religious worship. To many of these brave and 
earnest men it will be, i>erhaps, their last Sabbath 
on earth. 

Incidents of the Paint ville Battle. — A 
body of the enemy was posted on a commanding 
liill, and it became necessary to dislodge them. 
The Fourteenth Kentucky volunteered for the 
service, as they knew the nature of the ground. 
Said Col. Garfield : " Go in, boys ; give them 
Hail Columbia!" 

The hill was cleared, and soon the reserve of 
the brigade came in at a double-quick. As 
soon as he saw them, Col. Garfield pulled off his 
coat, and flung it up in the air, where it lodged 
in a tree, out of reach. The men threw up their 
caps with a wild shout, and rushed at the enemy, 
Col. Garfield, in his shirt-slcves, leading the way. 

As the Federal troops reached the top of the 
hill, a rebel officer shouted in surprise : " Why, 
how many of you are there ? " " Twenty-five 

thousand men, you ! " yelled a Kentucky 

Union officer, rushing at the rebel. In an instant 
the rebels broke and ran in utter confusion. 

Several instances of personal daring and cool- 
ness were related. A member of Capt. Bushnell's 
com^jany, in the Forty-second, was about to bite a 
cartridge, when a musket-ball struck the cartridge 
from liis fingers. Coolly facing the direction from 
which the vshot came, he took out another car- 
tridge, and exclaimed : " You can't do that again, 
old fellow." 

MARYLAND. 

BY J. K. KANDALL. 

The despot's heel is on thy shore, 

Maryland ! 
His torch is at thy temple door, 

Maryland ! 
Avenge the patriotic gore 
That flooded the streets of Baltimore, 
And be the battle queen of yore, 

Maryland ! My ^Maryland ! 

Hark to thy wandering son's appeal, 

Maryland ! 
My mother State ! to thee I kneel, 

Maryland ! 
For life and death, for woo and weal, 
Thy peerless chivalry reveal, 
And gird thy beauteous limbs with steel, 

Maryland ! My Maryland ! 



Thou wilt not cower in. the dust, 

lilaryland ! 
Thy beaming sword shall never rust, 

Maryland ! 
Remembei' Carroll's sacred trust, 
Remember Howard's warlike thrust. 
And all thy slumberers with the just, 

Maryland ! jNIy Maryland ! 

Come ! 'tis the red dawn of the day, 

Maryland ! 
Comei with thy panoplied array, 

Maryland ! 
With Ringgold's spirit for the fray, 
With Watson's blood at Monterey, 
With fearless Lowe and dashing ilay, 

Maryland ! My Maryland ! 

ComcS ! for thy shield is bright and strong, 

Maryland ! 
Come ! for thy dalliance does thee wrong, 

Maryland ! 
Come ! to thine own heroic throng. 
That stalks with Liberty along. 
And give a new Keij to thy song, 

Maryland ! My Maryland ! 

Dear Mother ! burst the tyrant's chain, 

Maryland ! 
Virginia should not call in vain, 

Maryland ! 
She meets her sisters on the plain — 
" Sic semper," 'tis the proud refrain, 
That baffles minions back amain, 

Maryland ! 
Arise in majesty again, 

^Maryland ! IMy Maryland 5 

I see the blush upon thy cheek, 

Maryland ! 
But thou wast ever bravely meek, 

Maryland ! 
But lo ! there surges forth a shriek 
From hill to hill, from creek to creek — 
Potomac calls to Chesapeake, 

JIaryland ! My Maryland ! 

Thou wilt not yield the Vandal toll, 

Maryland ! 
Thou wilt not crook to his control, 

Maryland ! 
Better the fire upon thee roll, 
Better the blade, the shot, the bowl, 
Than crucifixion of the soul, 

Maryland ! My Maryland ! 

I hear the distant thunder hum, 

Maryland ! 
The Old Line's bugle, fife, and drum, 

Maryland ! 
She is not dead, nor deaf, nor dumb — 
Huzza ! she spurns the Northern scimi ! 
She breathes — she bums! she'll come ! shell 
come ! 

Maryland ! ^ly ^Maryland ! 



A Race for Life. — A soldier from Rhode 
Island, while on picket-guard, was rushed upon 
by a party of rebel cavalry. He instantly fired 
his piece at the foremost, and ran. The way be- 
fore him was an open field, about fifty rods across, 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



49 



the other side being hemmed in by an old, rotten, 
log fence, and, still be3'ond, a sort of chaparral 
of brier bushes and underbrush. To this retreat 
the soldier started, on quadruple quick, with half 
a dozen horsemen after him. Fortunately for the 
soldier, the rains had made the field quite muddy, 
and the horses slumped through the turf so badly 
that they could not lessen the distance between 
them and the fugitive. All this time the rebels 
were keeping up a roar of instolry, one of the 
balls passing through the soldier's hat, and 
another went clean through his cartridge box and 
lodged in his coat. Still on ran the hero, and 
still on splashed the horsemen. The picket at 
last reached the fence, and with one bound landed 
on the top, intending to give a long spring ahead ; 
but the fence was frail, and crumbled beneath his 
weight. It so chanced that a hog had rooted out 
a gutter at this place, and was lying snoring 
therein. At the cracking of the fence, his swine- 
ship evacuated his hole, and scampered, barking, 
into the underbrush. As luck would have it, the 
soldier fell in that hole, muddy as it was, and the 
fence rattled down upon him. This was no more 
than fairly done, when up came the horsemen, 
and, hearing the rustling of leaves, and not 
doubting it was their prey, dashed through the 
gap in the fence, and, seeing a path in the brush, 
they put through it after the hog, and were soon 
out of sight. When the sound of their footsteps 
died away, the picket returned to camp and re- 
ported. The next day one of these rebel horse- 
men was taken prisoner. When our hero saw 
him he recognized him at once, and sung out : 

" I say, old fellow, did you catch that hog yes- 
terday ? " 

" We did that," retorted the prisoner, " hut it 
wasn't the one ive loere after." 



A Sharp Ride. — A correspondent with Gen- 
eral Grant's army gives the following amusing ac- 
count of a cotton broker in the neighborhood of 
Lagrange, Tennessee. He says: 

The experience of a Mr. Cones, who was cap- 
tured near Lagrange, was relieved by some flashes 
of humor which may be an apology for the very 
emphatic language which was used by the actors. 

Cones, in company with two or three other 
buyers, had bought some cotton out at Moscow, 
twelve miles from Lagrange, just before our army 
marched from the latter place, and as General 
Quinby's division had just removed from there, 
they thought the sooner they got the cotton into 
Lagrange the better ; consequently four of them, 
besides the drivers of the teams, started out after 
it. Cones was the only one of the four who was 
not armed and was not on horseback, he riding 
in one of the teams. They succeeded in getting 
the cotton, and hurried back until they came in 
sight of the Union pickets at Lagrange, and then 
Cones' three friends, thinking the mules were 
out of danger, left him, and rode on into town. 

Only two or three minutes after they had left, 
and as the wagons went down into a hollow, out 
4 



of sight of the picket-guards, five guerrillas 
dashed out of the wood and were alongside in an 
instant. " Halt ! '' Every one of the teams halted 
as though they had run against a stone wall. 
The next instant the muzzle of a revolver was at 
the ear of every one of them, Cones included, who 
was riding on the cotton. 

"Are you armed?" said the guerrilla, who 
held his pistol at Cones' head. 

" No, sir." 

" Then get down and unhitch them mules, and 
turn 'em around devilish quick ! " 

It Avas done in the time specified. 

Guerrilla. — " Have you a match ? I want to 
touch off this cotton." 

Cones. — " No, sir. I am glad to say I haven't." 

Guerrilla. — " Then git on to that mule, quick." 

In an instant. Cones was mounted on what he 
says was " a Avonderful sharp-backed mule." 

Guerrilla (giving the mule a terrific slash with 
the wagon whip). — " Now, lick them mules up'. 
Make 'em go ! Give 'em thunder ! " 

And away they went at a pace which, to Cones 
on his razor-back mule, he thought must split 
him in tAvo before many miles, three guerrillas be- 
hind lashing the mule at every jump. Five miles 
or more they went at this pace, and not another 
word had been spoken by any one, when they 
turned out of the main road into an old and un- 
frequented road, that wound its zigzag through one 
of the densely- wooded creek bottoms. "Halt!" 
said the guerrilla, and he who gave the command 
commenced hurriedly to relieve himself of some 
of his accoutrements, as though he was about to 
go to work in earnest at some devilish deed. 
The place was lonely and fitting to such murder- 
ous intents, and Cones says he felt a cold sort of 
chill run down the full length of even his long legs. 

Guerrilla (drawing the cork out of his canteen) 
— " You look a pretty good feller. Let's take a 
drink ; and for fear you might think it's pizen, I'll 
drink first!" 

And suiting the action to his words, he placed 
the canteen to his lips, and turned his face up in 
the position of one making astronomical observa- 
tions. After a long pull, he passed the canteen 
over to Cones, who thought it ' mightn't be pizen,' 
and imbibed. 

Guerrilla. — " Now, lick up them mules ; give 
'em thunder ! Hurry up ! " 

At each injunction he emphasized on the rear 
of the flying mules with his whip. 

They bivouacked in a thicket that night, but 
early the next morning began their journey at the 
same pace, and toward evening of that day they 
galloped into a rude-looking camp, which turned 
out to be the nest of Richardson and his guerrilla 
band, within a few miles of Fort Pillow. In a fcAV 
minutes Cones was marched up before Colonel Rich- 
ardson. After a number of questions as to what 
was his business, whether he had served against 
the Confederate States, &c., Richardson said : 

" Well, sir. I'll parole you." 

At the mention of " parole," the guerrilla who 
had been the most prominent in the capture, and 
had invited Cones " to drink," began to remonstrate. 



oO 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



Querrilla. — "Why, Colonel, you ain't a goin' 
to parole that infernal cotton-buyer, are you ? " 

Richardson. — " Well, I've got to parole him or 
shoot him ; and (turning to Cones inquii-ingly) 
you'd rather be paroled than shot, hadn't you P " 

Cones. — " Yes, but I don't want to take another 
ride on that mule." 

The parole was soon written, and much to his 
astonishment, without being robbed of his money 
and watch, he was told that he was at hberty to 
walk back to Lagrange, forty miles. In an horn- 
afterward he started, and soon after leaving the 
camp he was startled again by the command 
" Halt ! " He halted, and out started the guerrilla 
who had been most prominent in his cajjture, and 
had gone away sulky because the Colonel would 
not shoot " that infernal cotton-buyer," instead 
of paroling him. 

Cones was unarmed, and began to have serious 
apprehensions of what was to follow, when the 
guerrilla said : " Old feller, let's take a drink ! " 
Cones' heart felt lighter immediately. So did 
the canteen. 

During the next three days he footed it back 
to Lagrange, but he never after looked at a lean, 
sharp-backed mule without a shuddei*. 



Camp Anecdote. — The Sergeant of the picket- 
guard being stationed near Pohick Church, Va., 
had his attention drawn to the tinkling of a cow- 
bell in the bushes. With visions of new milk 
running through his head, he examined carefully, 
and to his intense astonishment made the discov- 
ery that as he advanced the cow-bell retreated. 
The Sergeant made a double quick retrograde 
movement, and immediately reported the aflair to 
Colonel Hays. The Colonel secreted a squad of 
men in the Avoods, and the Sergeant again made 
himself conspicuous. He brushed ^bout among 
the bushes, and the cow-bell approached. The 
squad soon had the satisfaction of seeing — not 
the cow, but a " Secesher " with a cow-bell hung 
to his neck, and a six shooter in his belt. When 
he got within easy range, and in sight of the squad, 
the Sergeant hailed him : 

" I say, old fellow, would you rather go to the 
devil or to Washington ? " 

The squad at the same time rushed forward. 

" To AVasliington, I reckon," drawled the rebel. 
" I ain't clothed for a warm climate." 

And he accordingly delivered himself up. 



A Joke on a Rebel Editor. — The editor 
of the Rebel Banner, published at Murfreesboro' 
until Bragg's retreat to Shelbyville, and after- 
wards hailing from the latter town, tells the fol- 
lowing good story : 

On Wednesday, the 31st of December, 1863, we 
went to the battle-field in search of glory and items. 

While following up the charge of General Mc- 
Cown's division, we met a body of prisoners mov- 
ing to the rear, and at once struck up a conversa- 
tion with them. Unfortunately, we Avere dressed 



in cerulean habiliments, and, upon attempting to 
leave, were ordered by the guard to remain where 
we were. With a smile of ineffable contempt, we 
drew from our pocket a pass ; but what was our 
chagrin when we were accosted with, " I say, my 
boy, none of us can read ; but that thar trick's too 
old ; and I'll tell you another thing, yer infernal 
blue-bellied Yankee, if you try any more of them 
dodges, I'll souse this thing into yer gizzard." 

Think of that, O ye tribe of brother quill- 
drivers? The editor of this paper, the leading 
journal of the South, to be called a Yankee, and 
to be accredited with possessing an azure abdo- 
men. 

General Rousseau relates the following in- 
cident of Shiloh : 

Two days after the battle I walked into the 
hospital tent on the ground where the fiercest 
contest had taken place, and where many of our 
men and those of the enemy had fallen. The 
hospital was exclusively for the wounded rebels, 
and they were laid thickly around. Many of them 
were Kentuckians, of Breckinridge's command. 
As I stepped into the tent, and spoke to some 
one, I was addressed by a voice, the childish tone 
of M-hich arrested ray attention : " That's General 
Rousseau! General, I knew your son Dickey. 
Where is Dick? I knew him very well." Turn- 
ing to him, I saw stretched on the ground a hand- 
some boy about sixteen years of age. His face 
was a bright one, but the hectic glow and flush 
on the cheeks, his restless manner, and his grasp- 
ing and catching his breath as he spoke, alarmed 
me. I knelt by his side and pressed his fevered 
brow with my hand, and would have taken the 
child into my arms, if I could. " And who are 
you, my son ? " said I. " AVhy, I am Eddy Mc- 
Fadden, from Louisville," was the reply. "I 
know you, General, and I know your son Dick. 
I've played with him. Where is Dick ? " I 
thought of my own dear boy, of what might have 
befallen him ; that he, too, deluded by villains, 
might, like this poor boy, have been mortally 
wounded, among strangers, and left to die. My 
heart bled for the poor child ; for he was a child ; 
my manhood gave way, and burning tears at- f 
tested, in spite of me, my intense suffering. I : 
asked him of his father. He had no father. His i 
mother. He had no mother. Brothers and sis- ; 
ters. " I have a brother," said he. " I never t 
knew what soldiering was. I was but a boy, and 
they got me oft' down here." He was shot through c 
the shoulder and lungs. I asked him what he 
needed. He said he was cold and the ground was 
hard. I had no tent nor blankets ; our baggage c 
was all in the rear at Savannah. But I sent the r 
poor boy my saddle-blanket, and returned the 
next morning with lemons for him and the rest ; ' i 
but his brother, in the Second Kentucky regiment, 
had taken him over to his regiment to nurse him. 
I never saw the child again. He died in a cLay or 
two. Peace to his ashes. I never think of this 
incident that I do not fill up as if he were my own \ 
child. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



51 



THE DEAD DRUMMER BOY. 

'Midst tangled roots that lined the ■wild ravine, 
Where the fierce fight raged hottest through the 
day, 
And where the dead in scattered heaps were seen, 
Amid the darkling forest's shade and sheen, 
Speechless in death he lay. 

The setting sun, which glanced athwart the place 

In slanting lines, like amber-tinted rain, 
Fell sidewise on the drummer's upturned face, 
"Where Death had left his gory finger's trace 
In one bright crimson stain. 

The silken fringes of his once bright eye 

Lay like a shadow on his cheek so fair ; 
His lips were parted by a long-drawn sigh. 
That with his soul had mounted to the sky 
On some wild martial air. 

No more his hand the fierce tattoo shall beat, 

The shrill reveille, or the long roll's call, 
Or sound the charges, when, in smoke and heat 
Of fiery onset, foe with foe shall meet, 
And gallant men shall fall. 

Yet may be in some happy home, that one, 
A mother, reading from the list of dead, 
Shall chance to view the name of her dead son. 
And move her lips to say, " God's will be done 1" 
And bow in grief her head. 

But more than this what tongue shall tell his story ? 

Perhaps his boyish longings were for fame. 
He lived, he died ; and so tnemento tnori. 
Enough if on the page of War and Glory 
Some hand has writ his name. 



The Badge of the Fifteenth Army Corps 
— The troops from the army of the Potomac, sent 
to join the army of the Cumberland, carried with 
them various ornamental habits and customs that 
were new to the Western soldiers. Among them 
was the corps badge, which designated the corps 
to which officers and men were attached. For 
instance, the badge of the Eleventh Corps is a 
crescent, that of the Twelfth a star. The badge 
is made of any material, — gold, silver, or red 
flannel, — and is worn conspicuously on some 
part of the clothing. The Western corps had 
no such badge. How an Irishman explained the 
matter is thus told : A soldier came by the head- 
quarters of Gen. Butterfield, — a tired, weather- 
beaten straggler. He was one of those who 
made Sherman's march from Memphis to Chat- 
tanooga, thence to Ivnoxville, and was now re- 
turning 'in the terrible cold of that returning 
march, thinly clad, one foot covered with a badly 
worn army shoe, the other Avith a piece of raw 
hide bound with strings about a sockless foot — 
both feet cut and bleeding. " Arms at Avill," he 
trudged past the headquarters' guard, intent only 
upon overtaking his regiment. 

" Halt," said a- sentinel with a bright piece, 
clean uniform, and white gloves. " What do you 
belong to ? " 

"Eigbth.Misshoory, sure.'*. 



" What division ? " 

" Morgan L. Smith's, av coorse." 

" What brigade ? " 

"Giles Smith's Second Brigade of the Second 
Division." 

" But what army corps ? " 

" The Fifteenth, you fool. I am one of the 
heroes of Vicksburg. Anything more, Mr. Sen- 
tinel ? " 

" Where is your badge ? " 

" My badge, is it ? What is that ? " 

" Do you see this star on my cap ? That is 
the badge of the Twelfth Corps. That crescent 
on my partner's caj) is the badge of the Eleventh 
Corps." 

" I see now. That's how yez Potomick fellers 
gits home uv dark nights. Ye takes the moon 
and shtars with ye." 

" But what is the badge of your corps ? " 

Making a round about, and slapping his car- 
tridge-box, our soldier replied, " D'ye see that ? 
A cartridge-box, with a U. S. on a brash plate, 
and forty rounds in the cartiidge-box, and sixty 
rounds in our pockets. That's the badge of the 
Fifteenth, that came from Vicksburg to help ye 
fight Chattanoogy." 



• Slave's Prayer. — A Vii-ginia slave, who had 
heard of the President's promise concerning the 
proclamation to be issued on the 1st of January, 
then only a few days in the future, was heard 
praying, and with great earnestness and a deeply 
affected heart, thus : 

" O God Almighty ! keep the engine of the 
rebellion going till New Year's ! Good Lord ! 
pray, doii't let off the steam ; Lord, don't reverse 
the engine ; don't back up ; Lord, don't put on 
the brakes ! But pray, good Lord, put on more 
steam ! Make it go a mile a minute ! Yes, 
Lord, pray make it go sixty miles an hour ! 
(' Amen ! ' ' Do, good Lord ! ' responded the 
brethren and sisters.) Lord, don't let the ex- 
press train of rebellion smash up till the 1st of 
January! Don't let the rebels back down, but 
harden their hearts as hard as Pharaoh's, and 
keep all hands going, till the train reaches the 
Depot of Emancipation ! " 



How THE Veteran makes Himself Com- 
fortable. — An army letter gives the following 
description of the manner in which a veteran 
soldier makes himself comfortable in camp : 

" It is a trite remark that a man never knows 
how much he can do without until he tries it, but 
it is more to my present purpose to say that he 
never knows with how little he can make himself 
comfortable until he makes the experiment. No- 
body possesses this invaluable knowledge so 
much as a veteran. Put a recruit into a forest 
of pine trees, with his shelter tent, and if he have 
nobody but recruits about him, ten to one you 
■will find him under his shelter tent tlii'ee weeks 
from that time. 



52 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



" Not so with the veteran. If he be camped in 
the pine forest, give him an old axe, a boot-leg, 
a mud-puddle, a board or two, and a handful of 
nails, and he builds him a house, and a house, 
too, comfortable and commodious, and not want- 
ing in architectural beauty. First he fells his 
trees, then cuts and notches his logs, and lays 
them together to the requii-ed height. His roof 
he puts on, giving it a great slope, and thatching 
it with the green of the pine trees. 

" He has been careful to leave window spaces, 
and tacking pieces of his shelter tent over these, 
he has provided light, but he keeps out the nip- 
ping air of winter. Then with his board he makes 
the door, and the boot-leg supplying the hinges, 
it soon swings into its place. Then he fills the 
spaces between the logs with soft earth from his 
mud-puddle, and his house is done, except the 
chimney, and the forest and the mud-puddle soon 
provide that, for his chimney is nothing but a 
pile of sticks, plentifully plastered without and 
within with mud. Then with his old axe he man- 
ufactures out of pine logs a full assortment of 
furniture, — bedstead, chairs, table, wardrobe, 
and generally adds a mantel. Then, with a 
bright fire upon his hearth, he is prepared to 
laugh at winter, and generally does." 



A Committee of the Louisiana State Conven- 
tion, appointed to prepare a flag and seal for that 
State, thus expressed their opinion of that Peli- 
can which had so long been the cherished emblem 
of Louisiana : " On consultation, and especially 
with those descended from the ancient colonists 
of the country, the Committee found that what 
has been considered the symbol of Louisiana, 
commands neither their favor nor their affection. 
The pelican is in form unsightly, in habits. filthy, 
in nature cowardly." The Committee also learned 
from Audubon, to their amazement, that the story 
of the pelican's feeding its young with its own 
blood is, in expressive phrase, " gammon." There- 
fore they did not commend this water-foAvl as a 
fit subject for their flag, but rather as one of 
loathing; and contumelv. 



Union in Tennessee. — A traveller, passing 
through one of the counties of Tennessee on 
horseback, stopped at a modest cottage on the 
roadside, and asked for shelter, as it was quite 
dark and raining. The "head of the family" 
came to the door, and accosted the traveller 
with, — 

" What do you want ? " 

" I want to stay all night," was the reply. 

" What are yer ? " 

This interrogatory was not fully understood by 
the traveller, and he asked an explanation. 

" I mean, what's yer politics ? " rejoined 
the former. " Air yer fur this Union, or 
agin it ? " 

This was a poser, as the traveller was not cer- 
tain whether the '-man of the house" was a 
Union man or a secessionist, and he Avas anxious 



to " tie up " for the night ; so he made up liis 
mind, and said, — 

" My friend, I am for the Union." 

" Stranger, you kin kum in." 



TO CANAAN ! 
A SONG OP THE SIX HUNDRED THOUSAND.* 

BY OLIVER WENDELL HOLMES. 

Where are you going, soldiers, 
With banner, gun, and sword ? 
We're marching South to Canaiin 

To battle for the Lord ! 
What Captain leads your armies 

Along the rebel coasts ? 
The Mighty One of Israel, 
His name is Lord of Hosts ! 
To Canatin, to Canaan, 

The Lord has led us forth, 
To blow before the heathen walls 
The trumpets of the North ! 

What flag is this you carry 
Along the sea and shore ? 
The same our grandsiros lifted up, 

The same our fathers bore ! 
In many a battle's tempest 

It shed the crimson rain : 
What God has woven in his loom 
Let no man rend in twain ! 
To Canaiin, to Canaiin, 

The Lord has led us forth, 

To plant upon the rebel towers 

The banners of the North ! 

What troop is this that follows. 

All armed with picks and spades ? 
These are the swarthy bondsmen. 

The iron-skin brigades ! 
They'll pile up Freedom's breastwork, 

They'll scoop out rebels' graves ; 
Who then will be their owner. 
And march them off for slaves ? 
To Canaiin, to Canarm, 

The Lord has led us forth, 
To strike upon the cai:)tive's chain 
The hammers of the North ! 

What song is this you're singing ? 

The same that Israel sung 
When !Moscs led the mighty choir, 

And iliriam's timbrel rung ! 
To Canaiin ! to Canaiin ! 

The priests and maidens cried ; 
To Canaan ! to Canaan ! 
The people's voice replied. 
To Canaan, to Canaiin, 

The Lord has led us forth, 
To thunder through its adder-dens 
The anthems of the North ! 

When Canaan's hosts are scattered. 

And all her walls lie flat, 
What follows next in order ? 

The Lord will see to that ! 

* See Num. i. 45, 46. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



53 



» 



AVe'll break the tyrant's sceptre, 

We'll build the people's throne — 
When half the world is Freedom's, 
Then all the world's our own ! 
To Canaan, to Canaan, 

The Lord has led us forth, 
To sweep the rebel threshing-floors, 
A whirlwind from the North ! 



THE SECRET SERVICE. 

" General Okdeks No. . — Captain Carter, 
— th Indiana Volunteers, is hereby relieved from 
his command indefinitely, and will report at these 
headquarters immediately. 

By order of Major-General Rosecrans. 

Lieut. Col. C. GoDDARD, A. A. G. 

(Current Series.) " 

The above order was read upon dress parade 
to the gallant old — th, in January, 1863. The 
cotton fields and cedar thickets of " Stone River" 
were as yet scarcely dry from the loyal blood 
which had there been given up to freedom's cause. 
The regiment was struck dumb, so to speak, and 
the captain most of all. What could such an 
order mean ? Surely, none deserved censure less 
than Captain Carter. He was the idol of the 
regiment — a perfect specimen of manly strength ; 
bold and fearless in battle, perfect master of the 
" sword " and " gloves," kind and gentle-hearted, 
always found upon the side of the weak. He had 
been frequently spoken of by his superiors for his 
gallantry. These thoughts passed through the 
minds of some after this order was read, but none 
could give a sufficient reason why he should be 
thus relieved ; for, said they, does not the order 
imply disgrace ? But these mutterings were not 
heard at headquarters, and were of no avail. The 
Captain retired to his tent, relieved himself of his 
accoutrements, called his servant Tom, and set 
out for headquarters, with none but his sable 
companion. 

General Rosecrans was quartered in Judge 
Ready's house, and had a private suit of rooms 
on the second floor, with windows opening upon 
a veranda. He was sitting before a bright fire 
on the evening our story opens, in undress uni- 
form, Mith nothing but the buttons to betoken 
rank. An orderly entered and announced Captain 
Carter. The General arose quickly, and advanced 
to meet him, with that easy, smiling look, that 
put the Captain's fears at rest. The General 
took him by the hand, while his countenance as- 
sumed a more thoughtful look, or rather settled 
in repose, and said : 

" This is Captain Carter, of the — thLidiana ? " 

" It is, sir," replied the Captain. 

" You received a peremptory order this evening 
to report forthwith." 

" I did, sir, and have done so." 

" Yes, yes ; take a seat. Captain. I am in want 
of a man of some experience, Captain, who has 
nbt only a ' hand to do and a heart to dare,' but 
also has judgment to guide and direct both. 
General Thomas, after quietly looking through 



his command, has picked on you ; and I have 
such confidence in the ' grizzled old hero ' that I 
have summoned you here for secret service. Are 
you willing to undertake it, with all its risks ? " 

" Anything, General, for our country's good." 

" Very well, sir ; you will remain here to-night. 
Any of your efiects you may need, send for by the 
orderly at the door. During the night I will in- 
form you what your duties will be." 

General Bragg's headquarters were at Tulla- 
homa. The two armies were lying in a semicircle, 
the rebel right resting on the Cumberland at 
Hartsville, above Nashville, their left resting at 
the " shoals " below. 

General Van Dorn commanded the left, with 
headquarters at Spring Hill. Our right rested 
at Franklin, which is nearly on a direct line be- 
tween Spring Hill and Nashville. This much by 
way of explanation. 

One morning in February, 1863, two persons 
were making their way on horseback from Shelby- 
ville to Spring Hill. The fii-st of these was 
dressed in Quaker garb, and bestrode a light-built, 
dapple bay stallion, whose small, sinewy limbs, 
broad chest, and open nostrils betokened both 
speed and bottom. Horse and rider were ill- 
matched, but seemed to have a perfect under- 
standing. 

The other person was a negro, dressed like 
his master, broad brim, white neck-tie and all, 
mounted on a stout roadster. They were fast 
approaching a vidette post ; were shortly halted 
by a cavalryman ; they drew rein and dismounted, 

" Is thee a man of war ? " asked the Quaker. 

" Don't know ; reckon, tho', I mought be. But 
what's your business, Quaker ? " 

" Does thee know a Mr. Van Dorn about 
here ? " 

" Well, I reckon I does ; but he'll mister ye if 
you call him that." 

" Well, I have business with him, and I desire 
admittance into thy camps." 

" All right, old fellow ; wait till I call the cor- 
poral." 

General Van Dorn was examining some maps 
and charts, when an orderly entered and an- 
nounced that a Quaker desired to see him. 

" Admit him," said the General. 

" Is thee Mr. Van Dorn, whom carnal men call 
General ? " 

" What is your business with me, sir ? " asked 
the General, without answering the question. 

" I am sent, friend Van Dorn, by my society, to 
administer comforts and consolation to these men 
of war, and Avould ask permission to bring such 
things as they may need or my means may 
supply." 

" Have you any recommendations ? " 

" Yes, verily ; " and the Quaker produced a 
bundle of papers, and commenced assorting them 
out. " Here is one from friend Quakenbush, and 
here — " 

" Never mind," said the General, while the cor- 
ners of his mouth commenced to jerk ; " here, 
Mr. — " 

" Thurston," suggested the Quaker. 



54 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



" Mr. Thurston, here is a pass through the lines 
at -will for such articles as you may see proper to 
bring. Tliis is all, sir ? " 

" May I ask, friend, how far it is to those un- 
godly men who are persecuting our people with 
tire and sword, whom the carnal men call the 
Yankees ? " 

" Yes, sir. About fourteen miles. See that you 
give them a wide berth, for they have a curious 
way of burning men of your persuasion." 

" Yes, verily will I ; " and with this the Quaker 
retired. 

" Queer character, that," remarked the General 
,to himself ; " but it takes all kinds to make a 
v/orld." 

The Quaker passed out among the camps, 
meeting a smile here, and a rough jest there ; 
but they seemed not to ruffle the placidity of his 
countenance, though the negro's eyes iiashed, 
who followed a few steps in the rear. The 
Quaker seemed to have a good supply of tracts 
and religious papers, which he scattered freely, 
with a word of gentle admonition to the card- 
players, and a hint of the world to come to all. 
He was j^articular in his inquiries for the sick, 
and even visited all the forts and fortifications, 
and made particular inquiries in and about them 
for the sick, writing a letter for one, furnishing 
a stamp to another ; so that at the close of the 
day he had visited all, and made a memorandum 
of what was needed, and was preparing to leave 
camp when a Lieutenant came and accosted him 
v/ith, " I say, stranger, haven't we met before ? " 

" Nay, verily," replied the Quaker, " I go not 
about where carnal men do battle." 

" No ! Well, I must have seen you at some 
place, but I don't recollect where. Likely I'm 
mistaken." 

" Very like, friend ; good day to you." 

" Massa, did ye see dat debbil's eyes brighten 
up towards the last ? Tells ye, sui-e, we'd better 
be trablin." 

" Yes, Sam, I saw it, and my recollection is 
better than his, for I took him prisoner at Stone 
River, though he escaped soon after. We will 
pass out as soon as possible." 

Not long after, the Quaker and his colored 
companion were galloping over the smooth pike. 
As they approached a house, they slackened 
their speed, but when out of sight, they again 
increased it. Thus they pushed on till after 
' dark, Avhen they came to a by-road, into which 
they rode some miles, and finally drew rein at a 
little log-cabin, to which, after reconnoitring a 
little, the negro advanced, and knocked, and a 
voice from the inside bade him enter, which he 
did, followed by his master. 

That night a despatch went to Gen. Bragg, 
which read : 

" Look out for a Quaker, followed by a nigger. 
He is a spy. Arrest him. 

" Gen. Van Dorn." 

The next day a negro rode into Murfreesboro', 
and passed on to Gen. Rosecrans' headquarters, 
and presenting a pass, was admitted to his pri- 



vate apartments, and handed the General a paper 
which read : " 2 overcoats and G hats, 37 shirts, 
3200 tracts, 2000 for the unconverted at Spring 
Hill." 

Gen. Rosecrans was eagerly looking over the 
document M'hen Gen. Thomas was announced. 
The latter was cordially met by Gen. Rosecrans, 
who immediately handed him the paper he had 
just received. 

" This is all cipher to me. General," said Gen. 
Thomas. 

" I suppose so," said the former, who had been 
writing. " Well, here is something more intelli- 
gible : * Two forts of six guns each ; thii'ty-seven 
additional guns ; 3200 troops, 2000 of which are 
cavalry, at Spring Hill.'" 

" Humph ! Some of Capt. Carter's ingenuity," 
said Gen. Thomas. 

" Yes, he is doing his work nobly, so far. I 
only hope no harm may come to him." 

" Well, General," said Thomas, " Col. B , 

of the — th Lidiana, Avas asking me to-day why 
the Captain was relieved of his command ; of 
course I knew nothing about it." 

" That was right," said Rosecrans ; " the efifec- 
tiveness of the ' secret service ' would be greatly 
impaired by having the names of those engaged 
in it made known. I enjoined the utmost secrecy 
upon the Captain, and kept him here that night 
that he might not be questioned too closely by 
his comrades. We will hear from him by ten 
o'clock to-morrow." 

" Where do you reside ? " asked Gen. Bragg. 

" I live near Brandyville, General, and came 
down to see if something can't bo done to keep 
these infernal Yankees from our section. They 
was down there yesterday, and took off over two 
thousand bushels of corn, and nearly all the 
wheat in the country." 

The speaker was a middle-aged man of rather 
good features, but his countenance betokened the 
too free use of Confederate whiskey. 

" What did you say your name was, Colonel ? " 

" Ashcroft, sir." 

" Yes, yes, I have heard of your family. You 
have done nobly for our cause, from report." 

" We have tried to do our duty. General, and 
what little I have left you are welcome to, but I 
don't want the Yankees to get it. I sent down 
by Gen. Wheeler's command, the other day, a 
hundred bushels of meal as a gift." 

" I wish we had more like you," said Bragg. 
" Let me fill your glass again. Colonel. I wish I 
had something better to offer you." 

" Permit me. General, to send to my portman- 
teau for a bottle of wine." 

" Yes, sah." 

" Rare vintage, this. General. It's one of a 
lot I got North before the war." 

" Excellent," says Bragg. " I would like to 
have a supply. By the way. Colonel, did you see 
anything of a Quaker-like personage on the road 
this morning ? " 

" Riding a bay horse, with a nigger follow- 
ing ? " 

" The same." 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



55 



" Why, yes. He came to my plantation last 
night. I insisted on his staying all night, but he 
was in a hurry, and could not stop." 

" He was a Yankee spy," said Bragg. 

" The devil ! and to think I gave the rascal bis 
supper ! " _ • 

" Well, well, never mind, Colonel ; we'll pick 
him up yet. I'm going to make a feint on the 
enemy's flanks to-morrow with my cavalry, and 
we'll probably get him. He has information that 
would be valuable to the enemy. I look for a 
couple of officers back in a few days, that I sent 
up to Franklin to find out the enemy's strength. 
If they bring me a correct report, I'll match Rose- 
crans, with all his low cunning. Besides this. 
Colonel, I'm looking for some Georgia and Ala- 
bama troops up shortly, and if the cowardly 
Dutchman don't run, I'll make another Stone 
River for him." 

" Good for you. General. Don't leave even 
one of the cussed mudsills on our soil. But it's 
getting late, and I must try and get some sup- 
plies before I go back. Will you accommodate 
me with a pass ? " 

" Certainly, and here is a bill of protection for 
your person and jn'operty. No thanks ; good 
day to you." 

" Golly, Massa Cap'n, you's bin talkin' to de 
ole debbil hissef " 

" Hush ! not so loud, Tom. I've got one more 
to visit, and then we'll be off, and take a straight 
shoot up Hoover's Gap." 

" Cap'n, Cap'n ! dey's a regiment ob dese dirty 
rebels just started up de Manchester road, dat's 
going up from Hoober's Gap, for I heard de 
Kernel say so." 

" All right, Tom ; we'll take the Shelbyville 
road, and run the risk of meeting Van Dorn. Go 
out through the ' abatis,' the same way we came 
in with the horses, and I'll meet you in half an 
hour by that old house." 

" Missus, dey's a gentleman dat got a frow off 
his boss out here, and would like to stop awhile 
wid ye, if ye please. Missus." 

" Very well ; I'll send a boy out to help him 
in. — Are you much hurt, sir ? " 
/' . " No, madam, I think not ; my horse got 
''•' frightened at some object in the road, and threw 
me heavily on my right shoulder. A night's 
, rest, madam, will enable me to pursue my jour- 
/ *ney, I think." 
/ Our hero found, upon examination, that there 
were no bones broken, and yet the bruise was 
severe enough to make him covet a night's rest, 
in preference to passing it on the saddle. So 
without more ado, he submitted to his hostess's 
desire to bathe the bruised shoulder, and prepare 
him a comfortable bed by the fire. 

During the night he was awakened by the loud 
clatter of horses' roofs, followed immediately by 
a loud " hilloa." 

During the conversation which occurred out- 
side, he heard the name of Van Dorn mentioned, 
and the thought that they might meet was any- 
thing but comfortable to him just at that time ; 
but he resolved to trust to luck, and if that failed, 



he would try what virtue there was in "right 
angles, horizontals," &c. Presently the door 
opened, and an officer entered, dressed in the 
height of Confederate style, — gilt buttons, gold 
lace, and all, — a glance at wliich showed that he 
bore the rank of Lieutenant-General. The con- 
versation that ensued informed our hero that he 
had the honor of occupying the same room with 
Gen. Hardee. He had as yet feigned sleep. 
He heard the General ask the lady if she knew 
who he was, and her reply was, that she did not. 
Then followed the story of his getting thrown, 
and so on. He was anxious to establish his 
reputation with the General as a sound secesJi, 
and a little ruse occurred to him, which he re- 
solved to practise even to the extent of making 
himself ridiculous, suddenly bawling out, as if 
asleep, — 

" Run, Tom ; the infernal Yankees are coming; 
put all the horses in the back pasture ; take 
away every nigger with you." 

"Ha, ha!" laughed the General; "he's all 
right. I'll bet on him. But you see, madam, 
there is a spy in our lines that we are anxious to 
catch, and he has, so fiir, eluded us, and if we 
meet a stranger, we are anxious to find out his 
standing. I'm satisfied with this one, for a man 
will tell the truth Avhen he's asleep." 

" Your supper's ready, sah." 

" And I'm ready for it," replied the General, 
and left the room. 

Our hero moved, grunted, and finally turned 
over, and found his hostess still in the room, and 
behind her he saw Tom making motions for him 
to come out. 

The lady asked if he felt comfortable, had he 
slept well, &c., to all of which he replied in the 
affirmative ; upon which she left the room, and he 
followed soon after, and found Tom waiting for him. 

" Massa, dese debbils has ' sprised ' us, and 
we'd better be a leabin. I'se got a ' nigh shoot ' 
from de niggahs, dat we can cut across to Man- 
chester and up fru de gap from heah." 

" All right, Tom ; wliere's the horses ? " 

" I'se got um, Massa, out below here." 

"Here's for them, then, Tom; come on 
quickly." 

It is' needless to follow them further ;_ suffice it 
to say they reached our lines the following even- 
ing, and reported to Gen. Rosecrans. 

The following order explains itself : — 

Special Field Order, No. — . 

Capt. Carter (— th Ind. Vols.) is hereby or- 
dered to return to his command, and is recom- 
mended for promotion. By order 

W. S. Rosecrans, Maj.-Gen. 
Lieut.-Col. C. GoDDARD, A. A. G. 



SOLDIERS' AID SOCIETIES. 

To the quiet nooks of home, 
To the public halls so wide, 

The women, all loyal, hurrying come, 
And sit down side by side, 



56 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



To fight for their native land, 

With womanly -weapons girt, 
For dagger a needle, scissors for brand. 

While they sing the song of the shirt. 

O women with sons so dear, 

O tender, loving wives, 
It is not money you work for now, 

But the saving of precious lives. 
'Tis roused for the battle we feel — 

O for a thousand experts. 
Armed with tiny darts of steel. 

To conquer thousands of shirts ! 

Stitch — stitch — stitch 

Under the sheltering roof. 
Come to the rescue, poor and rich, 

Nor stay from the work aloof; 
To the men who are shedding their blood, 

To the brave, devoted band, 
Whose action is honor, whose cause is good, 

We pledge our strong right hand. 

Work — work — work. 

With earnest heart and soul — 
Work — work — work. 

To keep the Union whole. 
And 'tis O for the land of the brave. 

Where treason and cowardice lurk. 
Where there's all to lose or all to save, 

That we're doing this Christian work. 

Brothers are fighting abroad. 

Sisters will help them here. 
Husbands and wives with one accord 

Serving the cause so dear. 
Stand by our colors to-day — 

Keep to the Union true — 
Under our flag while yet we may 

Hurrah for the Red, White, and Blue. 



A Man of Nerve. — A venerable judge re- 
lated the following anecdote : 

The morning following the battle of Yorktown, 
I had the curiosity to attend the wounded. 
Among others whose limbs were so much in- 
jured as to require amputation, was a musician, 
who had received a musket ball in his knee. As 
usual in such a case, preparations wevc made to 
prevent the possibility of his moving. Says the 
sufferer, " Now, what would you be at ? " " My 
lad, I'm going to take off your leg, and it is ne- 
cessary that you should be lashed down." " I'll 
consent to no such thing. You may pluck my 
heart from my bosom, but you'll not confine me. 
Is there a violin in the camp ? if so, bring it to 
me." A violin was furnished, and tuning it, he 
said, " Now, Doctor, begin." And he continued 
to play until the operation, which lasted about 
forty minutes, was completed, without missing a 
note or moving a muscle. 



Adventures of a Despatch Bearer. — The 
following account of the adventures of Lamar 
Fontaine, who acted as a despatch bearer for the 
Southern forces around Vicksburg, was written 
by the father of young Fontaine : 



Lamar is almost continually in the saddle, and 
employed in very hazardous enterprises. His 
last feat of arms was the most daring he has yet 
performed. 

He left my house, under orders from Gen. 
Johnston, to bear a verbal despatch to Gen. Pem- 
berton, in Vicksburg, and to carry a supply of 
percussion caps to our troops in that besieged 
city. I parted with him, hardly hoping ever to 
see him again alive, for I knew that Vicksburg 
was closely invested on all sides. The enemy's 
lines of circumvallation extend from Snyder's 
Bluff, on the Yazoo, to Warrenton, on the Mis- 
sissippi, and the rivers and their opposite shores 
are filled and lined with their forces. 

He was well mounted, but was burdened with 
forty pounds of percussion caps, besides his 
blanket and crutches. He has no use of his 
broken leg, and cannot walk a step without a 
crutch ; and in mounting bis horse he has to lift 
it over the saddle with his right hand. But he 
accomplishes this operation with much dexterity, 
and without assistance. I loaned him a very fine 
sabre, with wooden scabbard, to prevent rattling, 
and a very reliable revolver, which has never 
missed fire when loaded by me. 

The family were called together for prayers, 
and we prayed fervently that the God of our 
fathers would shield him from all danger, and en- 
able him to fulfil his mission to Vicksburg suc- 
cessfully, and give him a safe return to us all. I 
then exhorted him to remember that, if it was the 
will of God for him to live and serve his country, 
all the Yankees owned by Lincoln could not 
kill, him ; but if it was the divine will that he 
should die, he would be in as much danger at 
home as in Vicksburg, and death would certainly 
find him, no matter where he might be. I charged 
him to use his best endeavors to kill every one 
of the jackals who should attempt to stop his 
course, or come within reach of his sword or 
pistol. 

He crossed Big Black River that night, and the 
next day got between their lines and the division 
of their army, which was at Mechanicsburg. He 
hid his horse in a ravine, and ensconced himself 
in a fallen tree, overlooking the road, during that 
day. From his hiding-place he witnessed the re- 
treat of the Yankees, who passed him in consider- 
able haste and confusion. After their columns had 
gone by, and the night had made it safe for him 
to move, he continued his route in the direction 
of Snyder's BluQ'. As he entered the telegraphic 
road from Yazoo City to Vicksburg, he was hailed 
by a picket, but dashed by him. A volley was 
fired at him by the Y'ankees. He escaped un- 
hurt ; but a Minie ball wounded his liorse mor- 
tally. The spirited animal, however, carried him 
safely to the bank of the Y'azoo River, where he 
died, and left him afoot. He lost one of his 
crutches in making his escape. This was jerked 
from him by the limb of a tree, and he had no 
time to pick it up. 

With the assistance of one crutch, he carried 
his baggage, and groped along the Y''azoo, until 
he providentially discovered a small log canoe, 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



57 



tied by a rope, withiii his reach. He pressed 
this into his service, and paddled down the river, 
until he met three Yankee gunboats coming up 
to Yazoo City. He avoided them by running un- 
der some willows overhanging the water, and 
lying concealed until they passed. Soon after- 
wards he floated by Snyder's BluflT, which was 
illuminated, and alive with Yankees and negroes, 
participating in the amusement of a grand ball 
of mixed races. He lay flat in his canoe, which 
was nothing but a hollow log, and could hardly 
be distinguished from a piece of drift-wood, and 
glided safely through the gunboats, transports, 
and barges of the amalgamationists. He reached 
the back-water of the Mississippi before day, and 
in the darkness missed the outlet of the Yazoo, 
and got into what is called " Old River." After 
searching in vain for a pass into the Mississippi, 
day dawned, and he discovered his mistake. He 
was forced to conceal his boat and himself, and 
lie by for another day. He had been two days 
and nights without food, and began to suffer the 
pangs of hunger. 

At night he paddled back into the Yazoo, and 
descended it to the Mississippi, passing forty or 
fifty of the Yankee transports. Only one man 
hailed him, from the stern of a steamboat, and 
asked him where he was going. He replied that 
he was going to his fishing lines. In the bend 
above Vicksburg, he fioated by the mortar fleet, 
lying flat in his canoe. The mortars were in full 
blast, bombarding the city. The next morning 
he tied a wliite handkerchief to his paddle, raised 
himself up in the midst of our picket boats at 
Vicksburg, and gave a loud huzza for Jeff. 
Davis and the Southern Confederacy, amid the 
vivas of our sailors, who gave him a joyful re- 
ception, and assisted him to Gen. Pemiserton's 
headquarters. 

After resting a day and night in the city, he 
started out with a despatch from Gen. Pemberton 
to Gen. Johnston. He- embarked on his same 
canoe, and soon reached the enemy's fleet below 
the city. He avoided their picket-boats on both 
shores, and floated near their gunboats. He 
passed so near one of these, that through an 
open port-hole he could see men playing cards, 
and hear them converse. At Diamond Place he 
landed, and bade adieu to his faithful " dug-out." 
After hobbling through the bottom to the hills, 
he reached the residence of a man wOio had been 
robbed by the savages of all his mules and horses, 
except an old worthless gelding and a half-broken 
colt. He gave him the choice of them, and he 
mounted the colt, but found that he travelled 
badly. Providentially he came upon a very fine 
horse in the bottom, tied by a blind bridle, with- 
out a saddle. As a basket and old bag were 
lying near him, he inferred that a negro had left 
him there, and that a Yankee cam]) was iiot far 
distant. He exchanged bridles, saddled the horse 
and moimted him, after turning loose the colt. 

After riding so as to avoid the supposed posi- 
tion of the Yankees, he encountered one of the 
thieves, who was returning to it from a success- 
ful plundering excursion. He was loaded with 



chickens and a bucket of honey. He commenced 
catechising Lamar in the true Yankee style, who 
concluded it best to satisfy his curiosity by send- 
ing him where he could know all that the devil 
could teach him. With a pistol bullet through his 
forehead, he left him, with his honey and poultry 
lying in the path, to excite the conjectures of his 
fellow-thieves. 

He approached with much caution the next 
settlement. There he hired a guide, for fifty dol- 
lars, to pilot him to Hankerson's ferry on Big 
Black River, which he wished to reach near that 
point, without following any road. The fellow 
he hu-ed proved to be a traitor. When he got 
near the ferry, Lamar sent him ahead to ascertain 
whether any Yankees were in the vicinity. The 
conversation and manners of the man had ex- 
cited his suspicions, and as soon as he left him 
he concealed himself, but remained where he 
could watch his return. He remained much long- 
er than he expected ; but returned and reported 
that the way was open, and that no Yankees were 
near the ferry. After paying him, he took the 
precaution to avoid the ferry, and to approach 
the river above it, instead of following the guide's 
directions. By this he flanked a force of the 
Yankees posted to intercept him ; but as he en- 
tered the road near the river bank, one of them, 
who seemed to be on the right flank of a long 
line of sentinels, suddenly rose up within ten feet 
of him, and ordered him to halt. He replied with 
a pistol shot, which killed the sentinel dead, and, 
wheeling his horse, galloped through the bottom 
up the river ; but the Yankees sent a shower of 
balls after him, two of which wounded his right 
hand, injuring four of his fingers. One grazed 
his right leg, cutting two holes through his pan- 
taloons, and another cut through one side of my 
sword scabbard, spoiling its beauty, but leaving 
a mark which makes me prize it more highly. 
Seven bullets struck the horse, which reeled un- 
der him, but had strength and speed to bear him 
a mile from his pursuers before he fell and died. 
Lamar than divided his clothes and arms into 
packages, and swam Big Black River safely. He 
did not walk far before a patriotic lady supplied 
him with the only horse she had — a stray one, 
which came to her house after the Yankees had 
carried off' all the animals belonging to the place. 
On this he reached Raymond at two o'clock in 
the morning, changed his horse for a fresh one, 
carried his despatch to Jackson that morning, and 
rejoiced us all by an unexpected visit the same 
day. 

A Wedding Party brought to Grief. — 
A correspondent of a Southern paper, after nar- 
rating " the outrages committed by Averill and 
his band," concludes his letter with the following 
amusing yet unfortunate incident : 

" Few tragedies are Avithout their comic and 
grotesque interludes. And Averill's devastating 
march had its farce. On the very top of Price's 
or Eleven Mile Mountain, as it is sometimes 
called, dwells a widow woman, with a considera- 
ble family, including several grandchildren. She 



58 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



seems to defy the elements of the most tempestu- 
ous height I know of. Up to tliis elevated position, 
where everything may be supposed to be pure and 
nice from its thorough ventilation, a romantic jus- 
tice of the peace had carried his affections, and 
fixed them on a fair daughter of the widow. His 
aspirations met with the highest favor, and on the 
very night of Averill's advent their mutual loves 
culminated in a wedding feast, celebrated amidst 
the wild 'shrieking and bowlings of the tempest on 
the mountain. The festivity had progressed to 
the fourth degree with uncommon energy. The 
gentler sex were paying their respects to the sup- 
per table, and some of the more vigorous of the 
mountaineers were employing their time with a 
powerful jig. A famous Boniface from the valley 
below had thrown off coat, jacket, and shoes, and 
was spreading himself. Indeed, the dance prom- 
ised to rival that of Tarn O'Shanter, beheld in 
Kirk Alloway — the locality and surroundings, 
and the tempest, all favored a scene of no small 
dramatic effect. But just then — O, untimely 
event ! — the Yankees obtruded upon the scene, 
and dissipated all its joys, and terminated for the 
night all its physical recreations. They ate up all 
the supper — took some thirty horses, ridden up 
by the guests from the 'valley below' — and 
carried off as prisoners the male portion of the 
guests, including the hero of the dance, and, worst 
of all, the bridegroom besides ! To the inexpres- 
sible mortification of the prisoners, they saw one 
of the ladies of the wedding party kiss a Yankee 
for a cupful of coffee, -which he had offered to any 
one of them who would bestow such a mark of 
favor on him. The prisoners were marched off, 
and detained a day or two before they were per- 
mitted to return, on foot." 

Thus ended the comedy of the terrible moun- 
tain raid of Averill — a warning to wedding par- 
ties on the border to look out for Yankees. 



The Dead brought to Life again. — The 
foUoM-ing remarkable incident occurred in Dodge- 
ville, Wisconsin : 

When the war first broke out, a young man 
who resided in the above village joined a com- 
pany commanded by Captain Tom Allen, which 
was afterwards incorporated in the Second regi- 
ment of Wisconsin Volunteers, and was present 
at the terrible and disastrous battle of Bull Run. 
The intelligence came back to his family at Bodge- 
ville that he was slain upon the battle-field, and 
his body left to be cared for by the enemy. The 
news nearly killed his affectionate mother, and she, 
with the remainder of those relatives who had 
been nearly related to him, Avore mourning for 
him who had poured out his blood and sacrificed 
his young life for his country. This gnawing 
grief had preyed upon these loving hearts for 
many months, until they had learned to view it 
with a species of resignation. What could then 
depict their unspeakable astonishment and joy, 
when he walked into the house, hearty and well ! 

His story is briefly told thus : He had been left 
severely wounded, with many others, upon the 



battle-field. After the engagement was over, and 
his friends had retreated in confusion, a company 
of secessionists came where they were lying, and 
actually bayoneted his wounded companions be- 
fore his eyes. They even went so far as to stab 
the bodies of senseless corpses, lest there be some 
spark of life left in them ! A man came to where 
he was lying on the ground, and raised his ensan- 
guined weapon for the fatal thrust, which he fully 
expected would end his mortal carreer. He closed 
his eyes, fairly sick with the horrid emotion, and 
waited to receive his fate. His enemy hesitated. 
He lowered his musket, and finally raised him 
carefully up, and gave him water from his canteen. 
He was afterwards removed to the hospitals of 
Richmond, where he received careful treatment, 
and at last was exchanged and allowed to return 
home. 

Anecdote of Coadiodore Foote. — He at- 
tended a Presbyterian church. A large congre- 
gation was in attendance, but l^ie preacher did not 
make his appearance. A general impatience be- 
ginning to manifest itself, the Commodore sought 
the elder of the church, and urged him to perform 
the services. The elder refusing, the Commodore, 
on the impulse of the moment, took the pulpit, 
read a chapter in the Bible, prayed, and delivered 
a short discourse from the taxt : " Let not your 
hearts be troubled. Y'e believe in God: believe 
also in me." The congregation was delighted. 
On coming down from the jjulpit, the minister, 
who had arrived just after the prayer, approached 
and tendered his thanks ; but the Commodore 
rebuked him for his tardiness of duty, and re- 
proached him for his neglect to take the pulpit 
immediately on his arrival. This incident is illus- 
trative of the Commodore's energetic, earnest 
character and sincere piety. 



Negro Patriotism. — I sat in my tent-door 
thoughtfully, but very thoughtlessly humming 
" Dixie." 1 had not observed " Charles," a servant, 
or " contraband," here, who sat just within the tent. 

"We stop a-singin' dat song now, massa!" said 
he, interrupting me. 

'• Why ? " I inquired. 

Charles Avas confused for a moment, but I 
pressed the question. 

" Well," he replied hesitatingly, " it don't b'long 
to my perfession, sir ; dat's all, I s'pose. — I don't 
wish 1 was in Dixie, I'se sure ! " continued he. 
" None o' de niggers does ; you may bet your soul 
o' dat ! " 

"Where is Dixie, Charles?" 

" 'S Norfolk — dafs whar 'tis," was the indig- 
nant reply. " Kills de niggers in Dixie, jist like 
sheep, a-working in de batteries ! " 

The idea of our contest is fully appreciated by 
the colored people. The representations at the 
North, that the slaves do not understand the cause 
for which the Federal army are moving upon the 
South, are utterly false. I have seen here and in 
Hampton scores of the fugitives, and conversed 
Avith them ; and I have never foiuid one who did 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



59 



not perfectly understand the issue of the war, and 
hang with terrible anxiety upon its success or 
failure. 

I was particularly struck with this at Hampton, 
when the battle of Great Bethel was progressing. 
They crowded together in little squads about the 
streets, listening to the reports of the cannon in 
the distance, or the accounts of those who came 
in from the field. Many of them were almost in- 
sane with anxiety, and expressed themselves ex- 
travagantly. 

" If the ' Unioners ' get the fight," I said, " what 
will it do for you ? " 

'^ Den weHl he free!" answered all who stood 
near me, almost in one breath. 

" But if they lose the battle ? " 

"O, den it be worser for us dan ebber," they 
said, shaking their heads mournfully, and in their 
simplicity believing that all the issue of the war 
hung upon the result of that day. — Letter from 
Fort Monroe. 

Life in Eastern Tennessee. — A traveller 
in East Tennessee gives the following graphic 
pictures of life in that region : 

" In Dry Valley lived the Methodist preacher 
named Dugan, (of Brownlow notoriety,) weigh- 
ing some two hundred and fifty pounds, that 
these devils incarnate arrested for his loyalty to 
the Government, making him walk some ten 
milfts through the hot sun, and riding in his buggy 
themselves. The poor old man fainted time and 
again on the journey, but there was no relenting 
with them. They told him they would sweat the 
Lincoln fever out of him. They robbed him of 
all he had, and imprisoned him ; but he managed 
in some way to escape, and is now preaching again 
at his old stand. What rendered the crime more 
heinous was the fact that his enemies (some of 
them) were those with whom he had taken sweet 
counsel in the house of God, and with whom he 
had knelt around the altar of prayer. What can 
be more appropriate to this persecuted class of 
men than those lines of Captain Grisham, of the 
10th East Tennessee cavalry : 

< They struggled, fell ; their life-blood stained 

The cruel murderer's hand ; 
They clasped their country's flag, and cried, 

" God and our native land !" 
Let angels spread their wings above ; 

Let flowers forever bloom ; 
Let bays, green bays, spring forth to mark 

The martyr's sacred tomb.' 

" At early dawn we left our kind friend and his 
famUy, and rode on towards Athens. It was a 
lonesome ride, resembling very much some of the 
bluff roads on the Illinois River. We passed only 
one house the whole distance, and that was' a mis- 
erable log house situated in a clump of pines. 
As we rode past the house, we were astonished 
at the number of tow-head children at the wood- 
pile — the tallest of whom was not over three 
feet in height. We commenced counting, two, 
four, six, eight ; and to the question asked the 
oldest, ' Are you all here ? ' ' O no,' says he, ' the 



two little ones are in the house.' They hurrahed 
for Old Abe, and we rode on. We travelled this 
lonesome road a few miles farther, and came at 
last to the crest of the hill, some five hundred feet, 
directly overlooking the valley. There it lay at our 
feet, extending north as far as the eye could reach, 
and at least three miles in width — dotted with 
neat farm-houses, and just below us Mouse Creek 
Station, with its dozen or more neat white cot- 
tages, and one large brick mansion. A couplet 
in that beautiful hj-mn by Heber, as I surveyed 
this beautiful valley, ran through my head con- 
tinually : 

'Where every prospect pleases. 
And only man is vile.' 

" We passed on through this valley, and, night 
overtaking us nine miles south of Loudon, we 
called at a fine farm-house, and requested permis- 
sion to tarry, which was readily granted. To the 
question, ' Are you Union or rebel ? ' the answer 
was, ' Both.' ' Well,' says I, ' that is a new state 
of things, which I do not understand.' This was 
the house of a widow lady, and her story was a 
simple statement of facts, which we listened to 
very attentively. When she had finished her 
story, she drew one long, deep sigh, and retired. 
I pitied the poor woman from the bottom of my 
heart. She said she had two sons in the rebel 
army, and one in the Union. Her son now at 
home had fled to the mountains to avoid con- 
scription. Her two daughters now at home, 
young ladies, eighteen and twenty years of age, 
were divided, one Union and one rebel. For 
herself, she had nothing to say — the divisions in 
her family had made her prematurely gray, (hold- 
ing up a lock of hair,) and the only wish she had 
v,'as, that the war might speedily end in some 
way ; and when I asked the usual question, the 
Union girl stepped into the other room, and re- 
turned with a beautiful silk Union flag. If a 
rebel officer should stay there next week, the rebel 
girl, no doubt, would bring out just as neat a 
rebel flag. Such is life in Eastern Tennessee." 



How Roger A. Prvor was Captured and 
Escaped. — Brig. Gen. Roger A, Pryor, during 
the battle between Gen. Pope and the Confeder- 
ates, near Manasses, in August, 1862, had the 
misfortune to be taken a prisoner, but the cor- 
responding good fortune to escape. 

He had'started off" on foot to call up two or 
three regiments for reenforcements, and on his 
return found his command moved from the posi- 
tion in Avhich he had left it. Thinking it had 
gone ahead, he too went on, wondering all the 
time where his men were, until he suddenly en- 
countered two Yankee soldiers, sitting at the 
foot of a hay-rick. His uniform being covered 
by a Mexican poncho, they did not observe that 
he was not one of their own men ; nor was there 
any mark visible upon his person to indicate that 
he was an oflicer. 

They accordingly familiarly inquired how every- 
thing was going on in front. He replied, " Very 



60 



ANECDOTES,. ^POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



well," and in the conversation which ensued, 
learned that he was a mile and a half within the 
Federal lines. They asked him numerous ques- 
tions, under some of which he began to quake 
and grow uneasy, fearing his inability, good 
lawyer though he is, to coi)e successfully with a 
cross-examination of such a dangerous charac- 
ter. He accordingly began to look about him 
to discover some means of escape. There was 
apparently none. He observed standing near 
him, however, the two muskets of the men, one 
of them with a bayonet, and the other without. 

The colloquy had not proceeded much further 
before one of them, looking at him keenly, asked 
him to what regiment, brigade, and division he 
belonged ; and as Pryor hesitated and stammered 
out his reply, the Yankee sprang to his feet and 
exclaimed : " You are a rebel, and my pris- 
oner." In an instant, the General, who is a pow- 
erful man and as active as a squirrel, seized the 
gun Avith the bayonet, and, before his antagonist 
could turn, ran him through the body twice. The 
other now jumped to his feet, apparently as if 
to escape, but he also received from Pryor a 
lunge that left him helpless on the field. Throw- 
ing down the musket, the General moved rapidly 
away in the direction from whence he came, and 
after dodging Federal stragglers for an hour or 
two, had the satisfaction of finally regaining his 
command. 

Anxious to know the fate of the two men 
whom he had so summarily disposed of, he sent 
one of his aids the next day to examine the hos- 
pitals in that neighborhood, and ascertain, if pos- 
sible, whether any men Avere present wounded 
Avith a bayonet. The aid returned with the in- 
formation that he had found one so injured. 
Whereupon Pryor mounted his horse, and Avent 
in person to see him. The man Avas asleep AA'hen 
he entered the hos])ital, but the surgeon aAvoke 
him, and the General asked if he recognized him. 
" Yes, sir, I do," Avas the reply. " You 're the man 
who stuck me." The Avounded man Avas not less 
surprised Avhen he learned that the author of his 
misery was the redoubtable Roger A. Pryor. 



James Garrabrant, a member of Co. D., 13th 
NcAv Jersey regiment, Avhile fighting, at a battle 
on the Rappahannock, saAv a daguerreotype fall 
from the pocket of a dead rebel. Impelled by 
curiosity, he picked it up and placed it in the 
breast pocket of his blouse. Soon he was struck 
by a bullet and fell. His brother, Avho Avas near 
him, picked him up, supposing him to be killed. 
Upon examination, the ball Avas found to have 
pierced his clothing, gone through the front of 
the daguerreotype, shivered the glass, and in- 
dented deeply the metal plate upon Avhich the 
likeness Avas, Avhich, hoAvever, it failed to pene- 
trate, thus saving the young man's life, as it lay 
right over his heart. The Avooden back of the 
picture Avas shivered to splinters by the concus- 
sion. The bullet Avas shoAvn us Avith the picture, 
fitting neatly into the indentation of the plate. 

There can be no doubt that the force of the 



ball was destroyed by the gradual jdelding of 
the soft copper plate. Had the material been 
more rigid, the ball would probably have gone 
through. The likeness is that of a young and 
not unattractive looking female ; and it may well 
be imagined that our gallant soldier prizes the 
" counterfeit presentment " of the southern dam- 
sel as the saviour of his life. 



Sketches in the Hospitals. — One evening 
I found a lately-emptied bed occupied by a large, 
fair man, with a fine face and the serenest eyes I 
ever met. One of the earlier comers had often 
spoken of a friend who had remained behind, 
that those apparently worse wounded than him- 
self might reach a shelter first. It seemed a 
David and Jonathan sort of friendship. The 
man fretted for his mate, and was never tired of 
praising John, his courage, sobriety, self-denial, 
and unfailing kindliness of heart, ahvays Avinding 
up Avith : " He's an out and out fine feller, ma'am, 
you see if he ain't." I had some curiosity to be- 
hold this piece of excellence, and Avhen he came, 
Avatched him for a night or tAvo before I made 
friends Avith him ; for, to tell the truth, I Avas 
afraid of the stately-looking man, whose bed had 
to be lengthened to accommodate his command- 
ing stature, Avho seldom spoke, uttered no com- 
plaint, asked no sympathy, but tranquilly ob- 
served all that Avent on about him, and as he lay 
high upon his pillows, no picture of dying states- 
man or Avarrior Avas ever fuller of real dignity 
than this Virginia blacksmith. 

A most attractive face he had, framed in broAvn 
hair and beard, comely-featured and full of vigor, 
as yet unsubdued by pain, thoughtful and often 
beautifully mild Avhile Avatching the afflictions of 
others, as if entirely forgetful of his oAvn. His 
mouth Avas firm and grave, with plenty of will 
and courage in its lines, but a smile could make 
it as sAveet as any woman's ; and his eyes were 
child's eyes, looking one fairly in the face, Avith a 
clear, straightforward glance, AAhich promised 
Avell for such as placed .their faith in him. He 
seemed to cling to life as if it were rich in duties 
and delights, and he had learned the secret of 
content. The only time I saw his composure 
disturbed Avas when my surgeon brought another 
to examine John, Avho scrutinized their faces with 
an anxious look, asking of the elder : " Do you 
think I shall pull through, sir ? " "I hope so, 
my man." And as the two passed on, John's 
eyes foUoAved him Avith an intentness which Avoidd 
have Avon a clearer ansAver from them, had they 
seen it. A momentary shadoAV flitted over his 
fece ; then came the usual serenity, as if, in that 
brief eclipse, he had acknoAvledgcd the existence 
of some hard possibility, and, asking nothing, yet 
hoping all things, left the issue in God's hand, 
Avith that submission which is of true piety. 

The next night, as I Avent my rounds Avith Dr. 

P , I happened to ask Avhich man in the 

room probably suffered most, and to my great 
surprise he glanced at John. 

" Every breath he draAvs is like a stab ; for 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



61 



the ball pierced the left lung, broke a rib, and 
did no end of damage here and there ; so the 
poor lad can find neither forgetfuhiess nor ease, 
because he must lie on his wounded back or suf- 
focate. It will be a hard struggle, and a long 
one, for he possesses great vitality ; but even his 
temperate life can't save him. I wish it could." 

"You don't mean he must die, doctor!" 

" Bless you, there is not the slightest hope for 
him, and you'd better tell him so before long. 
Women have a way of doing such things com- 
fortably ; so I leave it to you. He won't last 
more than a day or two, at flxrthest." 

I could have sat down on the spot and cried 
heartily if I had not learned the propriety of 
bottling up one's tears for leisure moments. 
Such an end seemed very hard for such a man, 
when half a 'dozen worn-out, worthless bodies 
round him were gathering up the remnants of 
wasted lives to linger on for years, perhaps bur- 
dens to others, daily reproaches to themselves. 
The army needed men like John, earnest, brave, 
and faithful, fighting for liberty and justice with 
both heart and hand, a true soldier of the Lord. 
I could not give him up so soon, or think with 
any patience of so excellent a natm-e robbed of 
its fulfilment, and blundered into eternity by the 
rashness or stupidity of tliose at whose hands so 
many lives may be required. It was an easy 

thing for Dr. P to say, " Tell him he must 

die," but a cruel, hard thing to do, and by no 
means as " comfortable " as he politely suggested. 
I had not the heart to do it then, and privately 
indulged the hope that some change for the bet- 
ter might take place, in spite of gloomy prophe- 
cies, so rendering my task unnecessary. 

After that night, an hour of each evening that 
remained to him was devoted to his ease or 
pleasure. He could not talk much, for breath 
was precious, and he spoke in whispers, but from 
occasional conversations I gleaned scraps of pri- 
vate history which added to the affection and 
respect I felt for him. Once he asked me to 
write a letter, and as I settled pen and paper, I 
said with an irrepressible glimmer of female curi- 
osity : " Shall it be addressed to mother or wife, 
John?'; 

" Neither, ma'am ; I've got no wife, and will 
write to mother myself when I get better. Did 
you think I was married because of this ? " he 
asked, touching a plain gold ring which he wore, 
and often turned thoughtfully on his finger when 
he lay alone. 

" Partly that, but more from a settled sort of 
look you have, a look young men seldom get 
until they marry." 

" I didn't know that, but I'm not so very 
wrong, ma'am, — thirty in May, — and have been 
what you might call settled this ten years, for 
mother's a widow. I'm the oldest child she 
has, and it wouldn't do for me to marry till Lizzie 
has a home of her own, and Laurie has learned 
his trade ; for we're not rich, and I must be 
father to the children, and husband to the dear 
old woman, if I can." 

" No doubt you are both, John ; yet how came 



you to go to the war, if you felt so ? Wasn't en- 
listing as bad as man-jang ? " 

" No, ma'am, not as I see it ; for one is helping 
my neighbor, the other pleasing myself. I went 
because I couldn't help it. I didn't want the glory 
or the paj-. I wanted the right thing done, and 
the people said the men who were in earnest 
ought to fight. I was in earnest, the Lord knows, 
but I held off as long as I could, not knowing 
which was my duty. Mother saw the case, gave 
me her ring to keep me steady, and said, ' Go. ' I 
went." 

A short story and a simple one ; but the man 
and the mother were portrayed better than pages 
of fine writing could have done it. 

" Do you ever regret that you came, when you 
lie here suff'cring so much ? " 

" Never, ma'am. I haven't helped a great 
deal, but I've shown I was willing to give my 
life, and perhaps I've got to ; but I don't blame 
anybody, and if it was to do over again, I'd do it. 
I'm a little so ry I wasn't wounded in front. It 
looks cowardly to be hit in the back ; but I obeyed 
orders, and it don't matter much in the end, I 
know." 

Poor John ! it did not matter now, except that 
a shot in front might have spared the long agony 
in store for him. He seemed to read the thought 
that troubled me, as he spoke so hopefully when 
there was no hope, for he suddenly added : 

" This is my first battle — do they think it's 
going to be my last ? " 

" I'm afraid they do, John." 

It was the hardest question I had ever been 
called upon to answer ; doubly hard with those 
clear eyes fixed upon mine, forcing a truthful 
answer by their own truth. He seemed a little 
startled at first, pondered over the hateful fact a 
moment, then shook his head with a glance at 
the broad chest and muscular limbs stretched out 
before him. 

" I'm not afraid, but it's difficult to beheve all 
at once. I'm so strong it does not seem possible 
for such a little wound to kill me." 

" Shall I write to your mother now ? " I asked, 
thinking that these sudden tidings might change 
all plans and purposes ; but they did not ; for the 
man received the order from the Divine Com- 
mander to march, with the same unquestioning 
obedience with which the soldier had received 
that of the human one, doubtless remembering 
that the first led him to life, the last to death. 

" No, ma'am : to Laurie, just the same ; he'll 
break it to her best, and I'll add a line to her my- 
self, when you get done." 

So I wrote the letter which he dictated, finding 
it better than any I had sent, for, though here 
and there a little ungrammatical or inelegant, 
each sentence came to me briefly worded, but 
most expressive, full of excellent counsel to the 
boy, tenderly bequeathing " mother and Lizzie " 
to his care, and bidding him good by in words 
the sadder for their simplicity. He added a few 
lines with steady hand, and, as I sealed it, said, 
with a patient sort of sigh, " I hope the answer 
will come in time for me to see it ; " then, turning 



62 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



away his face, laid the flowers against his lips, as 
if he would hide some quiver of emotion at the 
thought of such a sudden sundering of all the dear 
home ties. 

These things had happened two days before. 
Now, John was dying, and the letter had not 
come. I had been summoned to many death 
beds in my life, but tc none that made my heart 
ache as it did then^ since my mother called me to 
watch the departure of a spirit akin to this, in its 
gentleness and patient strength. As I went in, 
John stretched out both hands. 

" I knew you'd come ! I guess I'm mo^^ng on, 
ma'am." 

He was, and so rapidly, that even while he 
spoke, over his fece I saw the gray veil falling 
that no human hand can lift. I sat doM'u by him, 
wiped the drops from his forehead, stirred the 
air about him with the slow wave of a fan, and 
waited to help him die. He stood in sore need 
of help, and I could do so little ; for, as the doc- 
tor had foretold, the strong body rebelled against 
death, and fought every inch of the way, forcing 
him to draw each breath with a spasm, and clench 
his hands Avith an imploring look, as if he asked, 
" How long must I endure this, and be still?" 
For hours he suffered duQibly, without a mo- 
ment's respite or a moment's murmuring. His 
limbs grew cold, his face damp, his lips white, 
and again and again he tore the covering off" his 
breast, as if the lightest weight added to his ag- 
ony ; yet, through it all, his eyes never lost then- 
perfect serenity, and the man's soul seemed to 
sit therein, undaunted by the ills that vexed his 
flesh. 

One by one the men woke, and round the 
room appeared a circle of pale faces and watchful 
eyes, full of awe and pity ; for, though a stranger, 
John was beloved by all. Each man there had 
wondered at his patience, respected his piety, ad- 
mired his fortitude, and now lamented his hard 
death ; for the influence of an vipright nature had 
made itself deeply felt even in one little week. 
Presently Jonathan, who so loved this comely 
David, came creeping from his bed for a last look 
and word. The kind soul was full of trouble, as 
the choke in his voice, the grasp of his hand, be- 
trayed ; but there were no tears, and the fare- 
well of the friends was the more touching for its 
brevity. 

" Old boy, how are you ? " faltered the one. 

" Most through, thank Heaven ! " whispered 
the other. 

" Can I say or do anything for you any- 
wheres ? " 

" Take my things home, and tell them that I 
did my best." 

" I will ! I will ! " 

•' Good by, Ned." 

" Good by, John, good by ! " 

They kissed each other tenderly as women, 
and so parted ; for poor Ned could i>ot stay to 
see his comrade die. For a Uttle while there was 
no sound in the room but the drip of water from 
a pump or two, and John's distressful gasps as 
he slowly breathed his life away. I thought him 



nearly gone, and had laid down the fan, believ- 
ing its help no longer needed, when suddenly he 
rose up in his bed, and cried out with a bitter 
cry that broke the silence, sharply startling every 
one with its agonized appeah " For God's sake, 
give me air ! " 

It was the only cry pain or death had wrung 
from him, the only boon he had asked, and none 
of us could grant it, for all the airs that blow 
were useless now. Dan flung up the window ; 
the first red streak of dawn was warming the 
gray east, a herald of the coming sun. John saw 
it, and with the love of light that lingers in us to 
the end, seemed to read in it a sign of hope ; for 
over his whole face broke that mysterious ex- 
pression, brighter than any smile, which often 
comes to eyes that look their last. He laid him- 
self down gently, and stretching out his strong 
right arm, as if to grasp and bring the blessed 
air to his lips in fuller flow, lapsed into a merci- 
ful unconsciousness, which assured us tliat for him 
suffering was forever past. 

As we stood looking at him, the ward master 
handed me a letter, sajing it had been forgotten 
the night before. It was John's letter, come 
just an hour too late to gladden the eyes that 
had looked and longed for it so eagerly — yet he 
had it ; for after I had cut some brown locks for 
his mother, and taken off" the ring to send her, 
telling how well the talisman had done its work, 
I kissed this good son for her sake, and laid the 
letter in his hand, still folded as when I drew my 
own away. 

A Baby on the Battle-Field. — At the bat- 
tle of the Hatchie, when the conflict was waging 
fiercest, upon advancing, midway between the 
contending forces, we found — what do you 
think? Not a masked battery — not an insidi- 
ous trap, inviting but to destroy — not any terri- 
ble engine of death — but a sweet little blue- 
eyed BABY. Sweet little thing, as I saw it there, 
hugging the cold earth, its only bed — the little 
tear on its cheek, — 

♦'That nature bade it weep, turned 
An ice-drop sparkling in the mornmg beam."-^- 

Unalarmed 'mid the awful confusion of that fear- 
ful battle, with the missiles of death flying thick 
about it and crowding close upon its young ex- 
istence, yet unhurt, it seemed a wonderful verifi- 
cation of the Divine declaration : " Out of the 
mouths of babes and sucklings I will ordain wis- 
dom." That little " child of war," as it lay in its 
miraculous safety, seemed to say to me these 
words of profound instruction : " My helpless- 
ness and innocence appealed to God, and he pre- 
served me in the midst of this wrecking carnage. 
If you will make your plaint to Heaven, God 
will preserve your poor bleeding country." 

Little child of destiny, born 'mid the flash of 
musketry, the thunder of cannon, and the clash 
of arms, I will watch your course through life, 
and witness whether an existence so auspiciously 
begun will pass by the masses unnoticed, and end 
without leaving a name " damned to everlasting 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



63 



fame ! " Who would suppose that in the -wild, 
fierce battle of the Hatchie, when the field was 
strewn with the dead, and the shrieks of the 
W'Ounded rent the heavens with agony, a great 
army would pause in the thickest of the confiict 
to save a harmless, a helpless child J" Yet the 
brave Fourteenth, that never yet has quailed in 
battle, did pause, and an officer of the regiment 
ordered "our little baby" carried to headquar- 
ters and tenderly cared for. 

I remember having read, somewhere in Grecian 
history, a story something like the one I have re- 
lated. A little child was found on the battle- 
field, and by an infuriated soldiery trampled in 
the dust. After the battle the victorious general, 
in an address to his army, said : " But for the 
blood of a little child that mars it, our victory 
would be complete." Thank God, the blood of 
no little child mars our victory. 

The next day after the battle " our babe " was 
brought before the Fourteenth, and unanimously 
adopted " Child of the Regiment." Three or 
four days later, strange as it may seem, a poor, 
heart-stricken, poverty-pinched mother came 
searching the battle-field in quest of her child. 
My dear reader, imagine if you can the wild ex- 
clamations of thanksgiving that burst from that 
poor woman's heart, when informed that her child 
had been rescued, and with a mother's tender- 
ness cared for. I saw the mother receive her 
child, heard her brief prayer for the soldiers who 
saved it, and, with the blessings of a thousand 
men following her and hers, she took away 

" Our little baby — 
Little blue-eyed, laughing baby." 



A New Way to Attack Fort Pickens. — 
A Southern paper put forth the following j)ropo- 
sition : 

" Let General Bragg detail a few thousand of 
his ten thousand to the work of catching snakes, 
and as soon as they have collected several cart- 
loads of these interesting reptiles, let tin or sheet- 
iron shell or canisters be charged with them — 
the enclosure being cylindrical and of size to fit 
the largest mortar,, and so made that it will break 
to pieces, and liberate its contents upon falling 
within the fort. We would warn those who 
charge the shells to put only the same species into 
each, as if the diflerent snakes were mixed they 
would sting each other to death before having a 
chance to operate on Billy Wilson's Zouaves. 
The corners and interstices in each shell might 
be filled up with a few quarts of tarantulas, scor- 
pions, centipedes, and lizards, however, to make 
close Avork, as the snakes would pack loosely." 



on board, but the master managed to procure a 
piece of timber about five feet long and a foot in 
diameter, which, with a little paint, he managed 
so as to make resemble a cannon, covered it 
with a tarpaulin, and mounted it on a pair of 
trucks, and, thus armed, prepared to meet the 
enemy. Arriving at Curlew, they found fifty 
guerrillas drawn up in line, who incontinently de- 
manded their surrender. Those on the boat said 
nothing, but brought up from the hold a number 
of small pieces of limestone sewed up in canvas 
bags to represent ammunition, and cai-efuUy laid 
them alongside the gun. The harmless bit of 
wood was then turned tOAvards the rascals, and the 
tarpaulin was about to be removed, when the 
doughty warriors took to their heels, and ran as 
if the did Nick was after them. At Battery Rock, 
on the Illinois shore, another party, numbering 
about forty, who had crossed over the night pre- 
vious in an old flatboat, essayed the same un- 
dertaking ; but these, too, were put to flight by 
this mighty piece of ordnance. 



A Captain's Strategy. — On the passage of 
the steamer Fitzhugh up the Mississippi River, 
her officers were informed that they would proba- 
bly meet with trouble from a company of guer- 
rillas stationed at Curlew, Kentucky, and were 
advised to be on their guard. There was not a gun 



A Union AVo>un. — The following incident 
is told concerning the independent and success- 
ful stand taken by a woman in New Orleans, on 
behalf of the Union. She and her husband — a 
Mississippi steamboat captain — occupied the 
middle frcnt room of the lowest range of sleep- 
ing apartments in the St. Charles Hotel, at the 
time when the city was to be illuminated in honor 
of secession. She refused to allow the illumi- 
nating candles to be fixed in the windows of her 
room, and the proprietors remonstrated in vain 
— she finally ordering them to leave the room, of 
which she claimed, while its occupant, to have 
entire control. The rest of the story is thus 
told : 

" Determined not to be outdone in a matter of 
such grave importance, the captain, who was not 
in the room during the above proceedings, was 
next found and appealed to. He heard their 
case ; said his wife had reported him correctly on 
the Union question ; nevertheless, he would go 
with them to the room and see if the matter 
could be amicably arranged. The captain's dis- 
position to yield was not to be seconded by his 
better half. The proprietors next proposed to 
vacate the best chamber in her favor, in some 
other part of the house, if that would be satis- 
factory ; but the lady's ' No ! ' was still as per- 
emptory as ever. Her point was gained, and 
the St. Charles was doomed to have a dark front 
chamber. Pleased with this triumph, Mrs. — — 
devised the following manoeuvre to make the 
most of her victorj'. Summoning a servant, 
she sent him out to procure for her an American 
flag, which, at dusk, she suspended from her 
window. When evening came, the streets, ani- 
mated by a merry throng, were illuminated ; but, 
alas ! the St. Charles was disfigured by its sombre 
chamber, when suddenly a succession of lamps, 
suspended on both sides of the flag, revealing 
the Stars and Stripes, were lit up, and the ensign 
of the Union waved from the centre of a hotel 



64 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



illuminated in honor of its overthrow ! The ef- 
fect was, to give the impression that the whole 
house was thus paying homage to the American 
flag ; and what is more significant, is the fact 
that the latter was greeted by the passing crowd 
with vociferous applause. So much for the firm- 
ness of a true Union woman." 



Peter Apple, of Oakland, Marion County, 
Indiana, was recruited for the Eleventh regiment 
of that State, and took part in the attempt to 
storm one of the Vicksburg batteries. The 
rebel fire was so destructive, that the Union 
forces recoiled. Apple, the "raw recruit," 
" didn't see " the backward movement, and kept 
going ahead, until he came right up to one of 
the rebel guns, caught a gunner by the collar, 
and brought him within our lines, saying: "Boys, 
why didn't you come on? Every" fellow might 
have got one." 

Reminiscences of Shiloh, — An eye-Avitness 
gives the following pictures of the battle-field of 
Shiloh : 

" On that peaceful Sunday morning of April 
6, 1862, the sun was rising with splendor. I had 
walked out to enjoy the fresh air, and, returning 
by_my friend Lieut. D's tent, I called upon him. 
Said he, ' H., take a cup of coflfee ; I have found 
some milk.' ' Don't care if I do,' said I. ' I always 
write home on Sunday morning, and like to do 
it over a good cup of coflee.' ' Yes, I mean to 
write to my little wife,' said D. ' I expect to re- 
sign soon. Don't you want a pair of new shoul- 
der-straps, H., and bran new pair of gauntlets ? ' 
I told D. I would take them ; and in a moment 
left his tent, after making him promise to take 
tea with me. 

"But how were things at tea time? D. was 
mangled and dead, lying by the roadside, at the 
hospital by the Landing, with hundreds of oth- 
ers, and I had passed the most momentous day 
of my life — had participated (I am since told 
creditably) in one of the greatest battles, exceed- 
ing in fury, courage, waste, stupendousness, and 
gallantry, the Mildest dreams of my youth. 
Should your happy city, on some bright Sunday 
morning, be sunk, with all its life, by an earth- 
quake, and the cold waves rolling over it in eter- 
nal solitude before night, the change could be no 
more unexpected, nor could it come upon you 
with more bewildering and stunning suddenness 
and awfulness. On the evening of the 5th, the 
18th "Wisconsin infantry arrived, and were as- 
signed to General Prentiss's division, on the 

front. Said Colonel , who had preceded 

them, looking for the General's quarters, ' Here 
they come — the bully boys — they weigh just 
1G6 ])ounds a])iece. Just left home six days ago.' 
The ISth Wisconsin cooked theii- first suppers in 
the field that night at nine o'clock, and wrajjped 
themselves in their Ijlankets, to be awakened by 
the roar of I)attle, and receive, thus early, their 
bloody baptism. Before they had been on the 
field one day, their magnificent corps was deci- 



mated, most of the ofiicers killed — the proud 
and exultant Colonel among the dead. 

" I saw an intelligent looking man wiih his 
whole diaphragm torn off". He was holding up 
nearly all of his viscera with both hands and 
arms. Hi^ face expressed a longing for assist- 
ance and an apprehension of fatality. 

" On going to the field the second day, our 
regiment strode on in line over wounded, dying, 
and dead. My office detaching me from the 
lines, I had an opportunity to notice incidents 
about the field. The regiment halted amidst a 
a gory, ghastly scene. I heard a voice calling, 
' Ho, friend ! ho ! for God's sake, come here.' 
I went to a gory pile of dead human forms in ev- 
ery kind of stiff' contortion ; I saw one arm raised, 
beckoning me. I found there a rebel, covered 
with clotted blood, pillowing his head on the 
dead body of a comrade. Both were red from 
head to foot. The dead man's brains had gushed 
out in a reddish and grayish mass over his face. 
The live one had lain across him all that horrible, 
long night in the storm. The first thing he said 
to me was, ' Give me some water. Send me a 
surgeon — won't you ! O God ! What made 
you come down here to fight us? We never 
would have come up there.' And then he affec- 
tionately put one arm over the form, and laid his 
bloody face against the cold, clammy, bloody face 
of his dead friend. I filled his canteen nearly — 
reserving some for myself — knowing I might be 
in the same sad condition. I told him we liad no 
surgeon in our regiment, and that we would have 
to suff'er, if wounded, the same as he ; that other 
regiments were coming, and to call on them for a 
surgeon ; that they were humane. ' Forward ! ' 
shouted the Colonel ; and ' Forward ! ' was re- 
peated by the officers. I left him. 

" The above recalls to mind one of the hardest 
principles in warfare — where your sympathy and 
humanity are appealed to, and from sense of ex- 
pediency you are forbidden to exercise it. After 
our regiment had been nearly annihilated, and 
were compelled to retreat under a galling fire, a 
boy was supporting his dying brother on one arm, 
and trying to drag him from the field and the ad- 
vancing foe. He looked at me imploringly, and 
said : ' Captain, help him — toon't you ? Do, Cap- 
tain ; he'll live.' I said : ' He's shot through the 
head ; don't you see ? and can't live — he's dying 
now.' ' O, no, he ain't, Captain. Don't leave 
me.' I was forced to reply : ' The rebels won't 
hurt him. Lay him down and come, or both you 
and I will be lost.'' The rush of bullets and the 
yells of the approaching demons hurried me 
away — leaving the young soldier over his dying 
brother. 

" Nearly every rebel's face turned black imme- 
diately after death. Union men's faces retained 
the natural pallor two or three days. 

" I ate my dinner on Monday within six paces 
of a rebel in four pieces. Both legs were blown 
off". His pelvis Avas the third piece, and his head 
and chest were the fourth piece. Those four 
pieces occupied a space of twelve feet square. I 
saw five dead rebels in a row. with their heads 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



65 



knocked off by a round shot. Myself and other 
amateur anatomists, when the I'egiment was rest- 
ing temporarily on arms, would leave to examine 
the internal structure of man. We would ex- 
amine brains, heart, stomach, layers of muscles, 
structure of bones, &c., for there was every form 
of mutilation. At home I used to wince at the 
sight of a wound or of a corpse ; but here, in one 
day, I learned to be among the scenes I am de- 
scribing without emotion — as perfectly cool as I 

am now. My friend. Adjutant , and myself, 

on the second night, looking in the dark for a 
place to lie down, he said, ' Let's lie down 
here. Here's some fellows sleeping.' We slept 
in quiet until dawn revealed that we had passed 
a night among sprawling, stiffened, ghastly 
corpses. 

*' I saw one of our dead soldiers with his 
mouth crammed full of cartridges until the 
cheeks were bulged out. Several protruded from 
his mouth. This was done by the rebels. 

"On the third day most of our time was em- 
ployed in burying the dead. Shallow pits were 
dug, which would soon fill with water. Into 
these we threw our comrades with a heavy splash, 
or a dump against solid bottom. Many a hope- 
ful, promising youth thus indecently ended his 
career. 

" Some of our boys were disposed to kick the 
secesh into these pits. One fell in with a heavy 
dump on his face. The more humane proposed 
to turn him over. ' O, that'll do,' said a Union 
Missourian, ' for when he scratches, he'll scratch 
nearer hell.' This is a hard story, I know, but I 
want you to see real war. 

" I stood in one place in the woods near the 
spot of the engagement of the 57th Illinois, and 
counted eighty-one dead rebels. There I saw one 
tree, seven inches in diameter, with thirty-one 
bullet holes. Such had been death's storm. 
Near the scenes of the last of the fighting, where 
the rebels precipitately retreated, I saw one grave 
containing one hundred and thirty-seven dead 
rebels, and one side of it another grave contain- 
ing forty-one dead Federals. Several other 
trenches were in view from that spot. 

"One dead and uniformed officer lay cov- 
ered with a little housing of rails. On it was a 
fly-leaf of a memorandum-book with the pencil- 
writing : ' Federals, respect my father's corpse.'' 
Many of our boys wanted to cut off his buttons 
and gold cord ; but our Colonel had the body re- 
ligiously guarded. 

" Many of our regiments were paid off just pre- 
viously to the battle, and our dead comrades 
were robbed of hundreds of thousands of dollars. 
The rebels were surprised and abashed at the ap- 
parent wealth of our army. They attired them- 
selves in our uniforms, and rifled from officers' 
trunks tens of thousands of dollars worth of fine 
clothing, toilet articles, and interesting souvenirs 
of every man's trunk. They made themselves 
stupid and drunk over om- fine victuals and 
wines. They seem to have gQne mad with the 
lust of plunder. 

"To show how complete and successful was 
5 



the advance of the enemy, their advance guard 
lay in the woods on the 5th, witnessing our pa- 
rades and reviews. One of our returned paroled 
prisoners, a mule-driver, who was captured two 
days before the battle, has told me that he was 
taken through their whole army, which was 
camped three miles from ours, the night before 
the attack. 

" A resident here told me that on the retreat 
of the rebel army from Shiloh, it was utterly 
routed and demoralized. 

" After the battle was over, v/e, formerly citi- 
zens who had never seen or heard the hiss of 
bullet, gathered the mangled corpj;es of those we 
had known at home and joked with the day be- 
fore — friends who were as full of life, hope, and 
ambition as ourselves — and buried them in blan- 
kets, or sent them home in boxes, with as little 
concern as possible, and went immediately to 
joking and preparing to fight again. What spirit 
or principle was it that in one day gave us all 
the indifference and stoicism of veterans ? 

" Two women, laundresses in the 16th Wis- 
consin, running to the rear when the attack was 
commenced, Avere killed. 

" My poor friend Carson, — the scout, — after 
having fought, and worked, and slaved from the 
beginning of the Avar, unrequited, comparatively, 
and after having passed hundreds of hair-breadth 
escapes, and through this wild battle, Avas killed 
by almost the last shot. A round shot took oft" 
his Avhole face and fore part of his head. Poor 
Carson ! We all remember your patriotism, 
your courage, your devotion. We will cheer, 
all we can, the bereaved and dear ones you 
have left. 

" Surgeons on the field Avould halt officers and 
order them to strip off their white shirts for 
bandages. Many an officer, halted on the field, 
tore off his accoutrements and uniform to pro- 
vide the necessary bandages." 



General Kelley and a Secession Girl. 
— When the General Avas in quest of guerrillas in 
Western Virginia, he captured a young Avoman 
named Sallie Dusky, tAvo brothers of Avhom Avere 
Captains in the rebel army. The General, feel- 
ing confident that the girl knew the hiding-places 
of the guerrillas, had a private conversation Avith 
her, and during the intervicAV, having failed to 
get much satisfaction, he told her, if she would 
make a clean breast of it, he Avould give her the 
chances for a husband of all the young officers in 
his staff. This failed to bring the information, 
and Sallie Avas taken aAvay in charge of Captain 
Baggs. As she moved away from the General's 
presence, she asked the Captain if the General 
Avas really in earnest in making the last proposi- 
tion. Baggs assured her that the General was 
sincere, and that he Avould have lived up to his 
promise. The girl assumed a kind of thought- 
ful manner, and after a short time replied : 
" Well, I believe I'd about as lief have the old 
man (meaning the General himself) as any of 
'em." 



66 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



Origin of "Skedaddle." — A correspond- 
ent says : The word " skedaddle " is not derived 
from tlie Greek verb Skedao, to scatter, as has 
been recently asserted by certain learned etymol- 
ogists. The root of " Skedaddle" is found in 
the Gaelic, Celtic, and the ancient British or 
Welsh language. In Gaelic, " Sgiotadh " is the 
present participle from the verb " Sglot," and 
signifies " scattering" the act of scattering. In the 
Irish, which is, properly speaking, the Gaelic, 
" Sgadad " signifies *^ flight," and " tfile" or " 01" 
all, or entirely — " all flight." In the Welsh we 
have " Ysgudao" or " Ysgudatv," to scud about. 
So, also, in the Scandinavian languages ; in the 
Swedish we have " Skuddo," to throw or put out ; 
" Sccotan" Saxon, to flee or haste away ; in a 
general sense, to be driven, or to flee with haste. 
•* Skedaddle " might be derived more naturally 
from " Skud" or " Scud" and " Daddle" than 
from the Greek "• Skedao." 



A Touching Incident. — The war has given 
birth to many gems of poetry, patriotic, humorous, 
and pathetic, illustrative of the times. The follow- 
ing was suggested by an aff'ecting scene in one of 
the army hospitals. A brave lad of sixteen years, 
belonging to a New England regiment, mortally 
wounded at Fredericksburg, and sent to the Pa- 
tent Office Hospital in Washington, Avas anxiously 
looking for the coming of his mother. As his 
lart hour approached, and his sight grew dim, he 
mistook a sympathetic lady who was wiping the 
cold, clammy perspiration from his forehead, for 
the expected one, and with a smile of joy lighting 
up his pale face, he whispered tenderly, " Is that 
mother ? " " Then," says the writer, " drawing 
her towards him with all his feeble strength, he 
nestled his head in her arms like a sleeping in- 
fant, and thus died Avith the sweet word mother 
on his quivering lips." 

"IS THAT MOTHER?" 

Is that mother bending o'er me. 
As she sang my cradle hymn — 

Kneeling there in tears before me ? 
Say ? — my sight is growing dim. 

Comes she from the old home lowly. 
Out among the northern hills, 

To her pet boy dying slowly 

Of war's battle wounds and ills ? 

Mother ! O, we bravely battled — 
Battled till the day was done ; 

While the leaden hail storm rattled — 
Man to man and gun to gun. 

But we failed — and I'm dying — 
Dj'ing in my boyhood's years, 

There — no weeping — self-denying, 
Noble deaths demand no tears. 

Fold your arms again around me ; 

Press again mj' aching head ; 
Sing the lullaby you sang me — 

Kiss me, mother, ere I'm dead. 



An Incident. — On Sunday, the 29th of July. 
1SG2, a large number of Union officers attended 
the Old School Presbyterian Church of the Rev. 
Dr. W. H. Mitchell, at Florence, xVlabama. So 
many of them were present that they consti- 
tuted a majority of the congregation. After 
the usual opening hymn, the minister asked the 
congregation to unite in prayer, when, to their 
utter astonishment, the reverend traitor prayed 
for Jeff. Davis, for the success of the Confederate 
arms, and for the attainment of the independence 
of the Confederate people. The Union men were 
greatly indignant at this gross insult, but re- 
mained standing until the prayer was concluded, 
when they all left the church. After he had com- 
menced his sermon. Colonel Harlan returned to 
the church, Avalked up to the pulpit, arrested 
the preacher, and delivered him, in complifince 
with the orders of General Thomas, to a detach- 
ment of cavalry, which immediately conveyed 
him as a prisoner to Tuscumbia. 



An Old Bible Captured in Battle. — 
Mr. H. Jallonack, of Syracuse, N. Y., exhibited 
to the editor of the Journal of that city a valua- 
ble relic — a Protestant Bible printed in German 
text two hundred and twenty-five years ago — 
the imprint bearing date 1637. The book was m ■ 
in an excellent state of preservation, the printing * ' 
perfectly legible, the binding sound and substan- 
tial, and the fastening a brass- clasp. The follow- 
ing receipt shows how the volume came into Mr. 
Jallonack's possession : — 

jSTew York, August 21, 1S02. 
Received of Mr. H. Jallonack one hundred 
and fifty dollars for a copy of one of the first 
Protestant Bibles published in the Netherlands, 
1637, with the Proclamation of the King of the 
Netherlands. This was taken from a descendant 
Hollander at the battle before Richmond, in the 
rebel service, by a private of the Irish Brigade. 
Joseph Heime, M. D., 4 Houston Street. 



A rebel soldier, after burying a Federal who 
had been killed during one of those sanguinary 
engagements which terminated in the retreat of 
the Union army from before Richmond, fixed a 
shingle over the grave, bearing this inscription : 

" The Yankee hosts with blood-stained hands 
Came southward to divide our lands. 
This narrow and contracted spot 
Is all that this poor Yankee got ! " 



Incidents of Fort Pickens. — The follow- 
ing is given by an officer on board the United 
States steamer Richmond, after the bombard- 
ment of Fort Pickens : 

I went, by invitation of Lieut. , of the En- 
gineers, to visit the Fort. Took a circuit first 
of the covered way, then of the parapet and ram- 
parts. All around the Fort, inside and out, were 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



67 



marks of the enemy's shot and shell. On the 
glacis, here and there, are deep grooves, ending 
in a large hole, where the shot had plumped into 
it, and where there had been shell which had 
burst. The hole was a great excavation, into 
which you could drive an ox-cart. Where the 
projectiles have struck the standing walls, they 
have clipped off patches of the brick-work (it is 
a brick and not a stone fort) perhaps eight or ten 
feet deep, and, where they struck the corners, 
larger portions have been removed ; but in no 
case has any part of the fortifications received an 
injury tending in the least to weaken it, and this 
after two days' heavy firing. The only man who 
was killed outright during the two days' action, 
was an artilleryman, who was passing into the 
casemates with some bread from the bake-house. 
A shell exploded at the other side of the area, 
and one piece, flying a distance of some two or 
three hundred feet, passed through his body, 
under his arms. He walked a few steps and 
fell dead. There were many almost miraculous 
escapes. A shell was heard coming towards a 
gun on the parapet, and the men dodged under 
their bomb-proofs. The shell hit fair on top of 
the bomb-proof, went through, and dropped into 
a pail of water beside the officer, where it ex- 
ploded. When the men came out again to 
resume their work, all they saw of the officer 
was his heels sticking out of a pile of rubbish. 
After digging him out, they stood amazed to see 
that he was not even hurt. He rose up, shook 
the sand from his hair and clothes, and coolly 
said : " Come, come ! what are you standing 
there gaping at ? Load that gun there." At it 
they went again, as if nothing had happened. 
Another officer, who had charge of a battery of 
mortars. Bad no less than seventeen shells strike 
within ten yards of him. I saw the ground 
l)loughed up in every direction, and yet not a 
man was hurt. About twenty of the men, who 
had been relieved from their guns, Avere sitting 
smoking and watching the firing in a corner pro- 
tected from shot by the walls, when half of a 
huge shell struck and buried itself right in the 
middle of the group, without disturbing them in 
the least. " What's that ? " asked one. " The 
devil knows, and he won't tell," indifferently 
responded another, and went on smoldng. A 
ten-inch columbiad came rolling towards a groupf' 
the fuze whizzing and smoking. " Wonder if 
that'll hit us?" "Guess not; we're too near 
it ! " Crack went the shell ! flying in every direc- 
tion, but fortunately injuring none of them. The 
rebel powder was poor ; as also their shot, ex- 
cept that portion which they succeeded in stealing 
before the rebellion broke out. Their practice, 
however, was said to be good — how could it 
have been otherwise? Uncle Sam taught them 
at his unparalleled school at West Point, but with 
little thought that the teaching would be thus 
employed. 



planted on an eminence commanding a consid- 
erable portion of the country, but completely 
shrouded from view by a dense thicket. Scouts 
were sent out to discover the exact position of 
the rebels, and were but a short distance in ad- 
vance, to give a signal as to the direction to fire, 
if any were discovered. 

One of the rebel commanders, unaware of the 
presence of the nationals, called around him a 
brigade, and commenced addressing them in some- 
thing like the following strain : 

" Sons of the South : We are here to defend 
our homes, our wives and daughters, against the 
horde of Vandals who have come here to possess 
the first and violate the last. Here upon this 
sacred soil, we have assembled to drive back the 
Northern invaders — drive them into the Ten- 
nessee. Will you follow me ? If we cannot hold 
this place we can defend no spot of our Confed- 
eracy. Shall we drive the invaders back, and 
strike to death the men who would desecrate our 
homes ? Is there a man so base among those 
who hear me as to retreat from the contemptible 
foe before us ? I will never blanch before their 
fire, nor " 

At this interesting period the signal was given, 
and six shells fell in the vicinity of the gallant 
officer and his men, who suddenly forgot their 
fiery resolves, and fled in confusion to their breast- 
works. 



Disturbing an Orator. — When the Union 
lines advanced towards Corinth, a battery was 



The "Home Guards." — Eev.Mr. ,aman 

about six feet four in his stockings, and of pro- 
portions worthy a grenadier, and whose heart is 
as stout as his frame, a thorough Union man, and 
in for the war until all treason is thoroughly 
crushed out, was recently conducting a religious 
conference meeting, when a brother arose to 
speak, Avho, after alluding to his hopes and fears 
in a religious point of view, branched out in 
reference to the state of the country, saying that 
so great was his devotion to the Stars and Stripes, 
that he had enlisted ; and, after a few further 
patriotic remarks, begged an interest in the prayers 
of the church, that he might be protected by Di- 
vine Providence on the field of battle, and that 
should he fall a victim to the bullets of the 
enemy, he might be prepared for the change. 

Such a speech at any time would thrill with 
patriotic fervor the brave heart of the worthy 
minister, and he consequently spoke a few words 
of encouragement to the hero, when the wife of 
the enlisting brother volunteered her experience, 
in the course of which, alluding to her husband's 
enlistment, she expressed a wilhngness to give 
liim up, even unto death, in the service of his 
country. 

In a few moments after, the meeting came to 
an end, when the minister, all anxiety for the 
welfare of the patriot volunteer, proceeded to 
make some inquiries in reference to his regiment, 
commencing with the very natural question as to 
its name and number, when he received the star- 
thng reply : 

" I've jined the Home Guards ! " 



68 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



Old Dick, the Drummer. — Dick, a vener- 
able darky in uniform, was arrested at Rich- 
mond for carrying a huge bowie-knife. He was 
on his return home to Danville from a campaign 
against the Yankees, and the Mayor discharged 
him after confiscating the knife. 

lie occupied the position of chief drummer 
for the Eighteenth Virginia regiment, and was 
highly esteemed by the regiment, not only as a 
musician, but as a brave and gallant old man. 
He is a hero of two wars, and in several instances 
rendered good service to the country. When 
the war with Mexico broke out, he enlisted as 
musician for a South Carolina regiment, and fol- 
lowed it thj'ough the war, and was present when 
the glorious Gen. Butler fell. The war being 
successfully terminated, he returned home to his 
usual avocations. Upon the breaking out of the 
rebellion, though old and gray, he was among the 
first to respond to Virginia's call for volunteers, 
and was regularly mustered into service with the 
Eighteenth regiment. 

In the memorable battle of the 21st July, 1861, 
he deserted his drum, and, with musket in hand, 
followed the regiment throughout the battle. 
Several days after the battle, while strolling 
through the woods, he discovered the hiding- 
place of what he thought a Yankee, and on re- 
porting it, went down with several of the regi- 
ment, and captured three of the enemy — one of 
them Col. Wood, of the Fourteenth Brooklyn. 
In every scene of danger or of difficulty. Old 
Dick accompanied the regiment with bowie-knife 
by his side and musket in hand. When on 
])icket duty at Mason's Hill, in sight of the 
enemy, he would go beyond the picket lines to 
get a fair crack at the Yankee pickets. In fine. 
Old Dick is a gentleman and true patriot, and it 
is ^\Tong that his knife, around which clung so 
many proud associations to him, should have 
l)een taken from him. He valued it above all 
things except his musket. It is true, the law 
may have required its confiscation, as setting a 
bad example to darkies in civil life ; but under 
the circumstances, it does seem hard to have sub- 
jected the old man not only to the loss of his 
bowie-knife, but the mortification attendant on a 
suspicion of evil designs. 



Joe Parsons, a Maryland Brave. — A cor- 
respondent, writing from the hospitals of Alex- 
andria, Va., relates the following anecdote : Joe 
enlisted in the First Maryland regiment, and was 
plainly a " rough " originally. As we passed 
along the hall we first saw him crouched near an 
open window, lustily singing, " I'am a bold sol- 
dier boy ; " and observing the broad bandage over 
his eyes, I said : " What 's your name, my good 
fellow ? " " Joe, sir," he answered, " Joe Par- 
sons." "And Avhat is the matter with you?" 
"Blind, sir, blind as a bat." "In battle?" 
" Yes, at Antietam ; both eyes shot out at one 
clip." Poor Joe was in the front, at Antietam 
Creek, and a Minie ball had passed dii'ectly 
through his eyes, across his face, destroying his 



sight forever. He was but twenty years old, but 
he was as happy as a lark ! " It is dreadful," I 
said. " I 'm very thankful I 'm alive, sir. It 
might ha' been worse, yer see," he continued. 
And then he told us his story. 

" I was hit," he said, " and it knocked me 
down. I lay there ail night, and the next day 
the fight was renewed. I could stand the pain, 
yer see, but the balls was flyin' all round, and I 
wanted to get away. I couldn't see nothin', 
though. So I Avaited and listened ; and at last 
I heard a feller groanin' beyond me. ' Hello ! ' 
says I. ' Hello yourself,' says he. ' Who be 
yer ? ' says I — 'a rebel ? ' ' You're a Y'ankee,' 
saj's he. * So I am,' says I; 'what's the mat- 
ter with yer ? ' ' My leg's smashed,' says he. 
' Can't yer walk ? ' ' No.' ' Can yer see ? ' 

* Yes.' ' Well,' says I, ' you're a rebel, but 

will you do me a little favor ? ' 'I will,' says he, 
' ef I ken.' Then I says : ' Well, ole butternut, I 
can't see nothin.' ' My eyes is knocked out ; but 
I ken walk. Come over yere. Let's git out o' 
this. You p'int the way, an' I'll tote yer off the 
field on my back.' 'Bully for you,' says he. 
And so we managed to git together. We shook 
hands on it. I took a wink out o' his canteen, 
and he got on to my shoulders. 

" I did the walkin' for both, an' he did the nav- 
igatin'. An' ef he didn't make me carry him 
straight into a rebel colonel's tent, a mile away, 
I'm a liar ! Hows'ever, the colonel came up, an' 
says he, ' W^har d'yer come from ? who be yer ? ' 
I told him. He said I was done for, and 
couldn't do no more shoot'n ; an' he sent me 
over to our lines. So, after three days, I came 
down here with the wounded boys, where we're 
doin' pretty well, all things considered." " But 
you will never see the light again, m^ poor fel- 
low," I suggested, sympathetically. " That's 
so," he answered, glibly, " but I can't help it, you 
notice. I did my dooty — got shot, pop in the 
eye — an' that's my raisfort'n, not my fault — as 
the old man said of his blind hoss. But — ' I'm 
a bold soldier boy,' " he continued, cheerily re- 
newing his song ; and we left him in his singular 
merriment. Poor, sightless, unlucky, but stout- 
hearted Joe Parsons ! 



Parting Words to the Yankees. — The fol- 
lowing document was found in one of the dwell- 
ings at Yorktown, Va. : 

To the Future Yankee Occupants of this Place ■ 

We have retired to the country for a shoit 
time to recruit our health. We find that with 
your two hundred thousand men you are too 
modest to visit this place, and we give you an 
opportunity to satisfy your curiosity with regard 
to our defences, assuring you that we will call 
upon you soon. 

We hope a few days' residence in a house once 
occupied by men will induce enough courage in 
your gallant hearts to enable you to come within 
at least two miles of white men hereafter. Be 
sure to have on hand a supply of "pork'n beans" 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



69 



when we return ; also, some codfish and " apple 
sass." When we learn to relish such diet we 
may become like you — Puritanical, selfish, 
thieving, God-forgotten, devil-worshipping, devil- 
belonging, African-loving, blue-bellied Yankees. 
Advise father Abraham to keep his Scotch cloak 
on hand, to keep soberer, and your wise Con- 
gress to hunt up two thousand five hundred 
millions of specie to pay the debt you have in- 
curred in winning the contempt of every live 
man. We have on hand a few tools whicli we 
devote to the special duty of loosening the links 
of your steel shirts. Couldn't you get a few 
iron-clad men to do your fighting ? Are you not 
horribly afraid that we will shoot you below the 
shirts ? When are you coming to Richmond ? 
Couldn't you go up the river with us ? There is 
one score which we will yet settle with you to the 
death. Your fiend-like treatment of old men and 
helpless women reads you out of the pale of civ- 
ilized warfare, and if rifles are true and knives 
keen, we will rid some of you of your beastly 
inclinations. 

When you arise as high in the scale of cre- 
ated beings as a Brazilian monkey, we will allow 
you sometimes to associate with our negroes ; 
but until then Southern soil will be too hot for 
the sons of the Pilgrims. The only dealing we 
wiU have with you is, henceforth, war to the 
knife. We despise you as heartily as we can 
whip you easily on any equal field. 

Most heartily at your service, whenever you 
offer a fight. J. Traviso Scott, 

Company A, Sixth Georgia Volunteers. 



An Elegy. — The following lines were written 
by a soldier in the hospital at New Haven, Conn., 
who lost his leg in the battle of Fair Oaks : 

L-E-G ON MY LEG. 
Good leg, thou wast a faithful friend, 

And truly hast thy duty done ; 
I thank thee most that to the end 

Thou didst not let this body rim. 

Strange paradox ! that in the fight 
Where I of thee was thus bereft, 

I lost my left leg for " the Right," 

And yet the right's the one that's left ! 

But while the sturdy stump remains, 

I may be able yet to patch it, 
For even now I've taken pains 

To make an L-E-G to match it. 



The Rebel Retreat from Mill Spring. 
— In the course of a notice of Capt. C. C. Spiller, 
the following particulars of the rebel retreat from 
Mill Spring occur : 

The Noble Ellis was at Gainsboro' ; three inef- 
fectual attempts had been made to take her up 
the river to where our army was. Finally Capt. 
Spiller was ordered to bring the boat; it was 
executed. Before the fight, he asked permission 
to lead his company ; but Gen. Zollicofier or- 
dered him to remain at the river, in charge of 



operations there. The battle was fought, and our 
army driven back to the river, where a success- 
ful and skilful crossing alone could have saved it 
from utter ruin. Spiller was the man for the post 
— the v.'orld could not have furnished a better. 
The crossing began at three o'clock P. M. One 
of the enemy's batteries opened on the boat, and 
the fire was incessant until dark. The steamer 
was run all night. At four o'clock in the morn- 
ing, when two thousand five hundred men were 
yet to cross, the captain and pilot left. It was 
understood that the engineer would leave her the 
next trip, and Spiller sent for Dick Fields, then 
one of his cavalry company, but formerly an en- 
gineer on one of his Tennessee river boats. Spil- 
ler knew Dick — together they had braved dan- 
ger before that on the water. Sure enough, the 
engineer and deck-hands quit the boat, Dick took 
his place, and the boat was manned from the 
company. At daylight the work was done, and 
the last man was over. During the night the 
enemy had placed a Parrott gun in position, and 
at the earliest dawn the firing began. The first 
shell fell short but a few yards ; the third passed 
through the chimney, and exploded over the 
wheel, scattering its fragments in every direc- 
tion. Now that the troops were over, and all the 
horses that could be saved were saved, the torch 
was applied to the Noble Ellis. Spiller's com- 
pany were near by ; they had been ordered to fall 
back out of range of the enemy's fire, but they 
would not ; their captain, whom they loved, was 
at his post, and they would not leave him. As the 
flames spread over the boat, and told that the army 
had crossed, and that all chance of pursuit was gone, 
the gallant Spiller, at the head of his troops, moved 
away to aid the retreating forces. But three of his 
men left him. 

A SOUTHERN SCENE. 

" O MAMMY, have you heard the news ? " 
Thus spake a Southern chUd, 
As in the nurse's aged face 

She upward glanced and smiled. 

" What news you mean, my little one ? 
It must be mighty fine. 
To make ray darlin's face so red, 
Her smmy blue eyes shine." 

" Why, Abr'am Lincoln, don't you know, 
The Yankee President, 
Whose ugly picture once we saw, 
When up to town we went ? 

" Well, he is goin' to free you all, 
And make you rich and grand. 
And you'll be dressed in silk and gold, 
Like the proudest in the land. 

"A gilded coach shall carry you 
Where'er you wish to ride ; 
And, mammy, all your work shall be 
Forever laid aside." 

The eager speaker paused for breath, 

And then the old nurse said, 
While closer to her swarthy cheek 

She pressed the golden head : 



70 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



' ' My little missus, stop and res* — 
You' talkin' mighty fas' ; 
Jes' look up dere, and tell me what 
You see in yonder glass ? 

" Y'ou sees old mammy's wrinkly face, 
As black as any coal ; 
And underneath her handkerchief 
Whole heaps of knotty wool. 

"My darlin's face is red and white, 
Her skin is sofF and fine, 
And on her pretty little head 
De yallar ringlets shine. 

"My chile, who made dis difference 
'Twixt mammy and 'twixt you ? 
Y'ou reads de dear Lord's blessed book, 
And you can tell me true. 

" De dear Lord said it must be so ; 
And, honey, I, for one, 
"Wid tankful heart will always say, 
His holy will be done. 

" I tanks Mas' Linkum all de same, 
But when I wants for free, 
I'll ask de Lord of glory. 

Not poor buckra man like he. 

" And as for gilded carriages, 
Dey's notin' 'tall to see ; 
My massa's coach, what carries him. 
Is good enough for me. 

" And, honey, when your mammy wants 
To change her homespun dress. 
She'll pray, like dear old missus, 
To be clothed with righteousness. 

"My work's been done dis many a day, 
And now I takes my ease, 
A waitin' for de Master's call, 
Jes' when de Master please. 

" And when at las' de time's done come, 
And poor old mammy dies, 
Y'our own dear mother's soff white hand 
Shall close these tired old eyes. 

"De dear Lord Jesus soon will call 
Old mammy home to him. 
And he can wash ray guilty soul 
From ebery sj)Ot of sin. 

" And at his feet I shall lie down. 
Who died and rose for me ; 
And den, and not till den, my chile. 
Your mammy will be free. 

" Come, little missus, say your prayers; 
Let old Mas' Linkum 'lone ; 
The debil knows who b'longs to him, 
And he'll take care of his own." 



The Capture of Smithfield, Va. — The 
rebels having retired from Norfolk, Virginia, in 
May, 1S62, General Mansfield sent his Aid-de- 
Camp, Drake De Kay, to reconnoitre the various 
rivers and creeks setting in from the James River. 

Captain De Kay started with a sail-boat and 
eight men, and examined the Nansemond River 
and Chuckatuck Creek,/ and then proceeded to 



Smithfield Creek. This being narrow and tor- 
tuous, with high banks, he hoisted the rebel flag, 
and ran up some five miles to the town of Smith- 
field. This town is situated on a hill, stretching 
back from the river, contains some one thousand 
two hundred inhabitants, is very prettily laid out, 
has several handsome churches, and fine " old 
family " homesteads. 

The people are all rank secesh — hardly a 
man, woman, or child to be seen in the streets 
who does not scowl at the Yankees. The ne- 
groes, even, did not speak to us, as their masters 
had forbidden it, and beaten them severely for do- 
ing so. The whole negro population would run 
away, were it not that every boat has been bro- 
ken up. 

Upon arriving at the towii the rebel flag was 
pulled down on board the sail-boat, and the 
United States ensign run up, to the horror of the 
citizens, Avho had come down to congratulate the 
(as they supposed) escaped rebel boat. Captain 
De Kay proceeded on shore with his body-guard, 
sent for the Mayor and authorities, who called a 
meeting of the citizens. At this meeting a reso- 
lution was read setting forth " that the citizens 
would surrender as the conquered to the con- 
querors, and that they were and always would 
remain true and loyal citizens of the Confederate 
States of America." 

Thereupon Captain De Kay seized'and impris- 
oned the Mayor, Aldermen, and Committee — no 
resistance being made by their fellow-citizens, 
from the fear of a supposed gunboat outside the 
bar of the creek ! 

The authorities, left to themselves, and wisely 
removed from all excitement, began now to see 
the error of their ways. Visions of Fortress 
Monroe dungeons in the foreground, and hand- 
somely constructed gallows, with patent drops, in 
the bacl^round, worked upon their imaginations, 
so that, one by one, and stoutly contesting point 
after point, they came down at last to Captain 
De Kay's simple propositions, which were : 

1. To surrender the town and all public prop- 
erty to the United States forces unconditionally. 

2. To hoist tlie American flag officially over 
the Town Hall, and to protect it there. 

3. To, each and all, take the oath of allegiance 
to the United States of America. 

To this they came at last, and after the oath 
the Mayor (a bitter secesh) nailed up with his 
own hand the glorious Stars and Stripes. 

Lying opposite the town was a fine schooner, 
the Beauregard, with a full cargo of soft coal for 
theMerrimac. A prize crew (one man) was put 
on board, and some contrabands to Mork her, 
and she was sent to Fortress Monroe — the first 
prize vessel taken on James River. 

Thus Smithfield was captured by eight men. 
The " supposed gunboat in the oifing " never ap- 
peared! 

A Pass for a Rebel. — The following in- 
cident illustrates the character of the secession- 
ists, and the. vigorous policy pursued by General 
McCook in Kentucky : 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



71 



A man named Buz Rowe, living near Bacon 
Creek, was early afflicted with the secession fe- 
ver, and Avhen the rebels occupied that portion 
of Kentucky, the sickness assumed a malignant 
form. It was his practice to lie around a tavern 
at Bacon Creek Station, drink whiskey, swagger, 
blow about Southern rights, and insult Union 
men. When the Union troops advanced to 
Nevin, and the rebels fell back to Green River, 
Buz changed his tune. He was not disposed to 
take up arms in behalf of the cause he repre- 
sented. In fact, to secure peace and safety at 
home, he expressed his willingness to " take the 
oath," 

On being lectured by Union men, he stated 
that he was only going through the form to pre- 
vent being troubled at home, and that when he 
could do good for the rebel cause he would not re- 
gard the obligation in the least. It M'as some time 
before Buz could get a Union man to go to the 
camp with him; but finally, in company with 
such, he called on General McCook, and asked for 
the privilege of taking the oath and obtaining a 
pass. The General knew his man, and addressing 
the Union man who accompanied him, said : 

" Administer the oath to /tim — a ready traitor 
to his country ! What regard do you suppose 
he would have for the solemn obligations of an 
oath ? A man, sir, who would betray his coun- 
try has no respect for his oath." 

Buz turned pale. The truth cut him deep, and 
he began to see that his time had come. 

The General absolutely refused to have the 
oath administered, or to grant a pass. He could 
not get out of camj) without some sort of a doc- 
ument, and he besought the interference of those 
whom he had so greatly abused when they were 
without protection. At last General McCook 
agreed to pass him out of camp, and gave him a 
document which read something in this way : 

" To the guards and pickets : 

" The bearer is a traitor to his country. Pass 
him ; but, in doing so, mark him well, and if 
you see him hereafter prowling about our lines, 
shoot him at once." 

This pass the brawling rebel had to show to 
the whole line of guards and pickets, who all 
marked him. well before they let him pass. 



A Brilliant Exploit. — One of the coolest 
and most extraordinary exploits of the war is 
thus described in a letter by Brigadier-General 
E. B. Brown, dated Springfield, Mo. After a 
preliminary description of an engagement with 
the rebels, eighteen miles from Newtonia, Gen- 
eral Brown proceeds : 

" The General (Schofield) sent Lieutenant 
Blodgett, attended by an orderly, with orders to 
Colonel Hall, Fourth Missouri cavalry, to move 
to the left, and attack in that direction. The 
route of the Lieutenant was across a point of 
woods, in which, while passing, he suddenly found 
himself facing about forty rebels drawn up in ir- 
regular line Without a moment's hesitation, 
"he and the orderly drew, their pistols and charged. 



At the same time, tempering bravery with mercy, 
and not feeling any desire to shed blood need- 
lessly, he drew out his handkerchief, and waved 
it in token of his willingness to surround and 
capture the whole rebel force rather than shoot 
them down. 

" The cool impudence of the act nonplused 
the foe, and perha])s thinking there was a large 
force in the rear, eight of them threw down their 
arms and surrendered, and the balance ' skedad- 
dled.' It is difficult to say which I admired most 
in the Lieutenant, his bravery in making the 
charge against such odds, wlftn to have hesitated 
a moment was certain death, or his presence of 
mind and coolness in ofl'ering them their lives. 
The Orderly, too, deserves more than a passing 
notice. His name is Peter Basnett, and he was 
at one time Sheriff of Brown County, Wis. The 
Lieutenant and Orderly were well matched — 
both quiet and determined men. I am glad of 
having an opportunity of bearing testimony to 
the bravery and soldierly conduct of Lieutenant 
Weils H. Blodgett. I hope the Governor will 
reward him as he deserves." 



An Incident of Mill Spuing. — After the 
battle, when the Minnesota regiment returned to 
its quarters at Camp Hamilton, they marched 
past the Colonel's marquee with banners flying, 
and their splendid band playing " Hail Colum- 
bia." Standing in front of the tent were Dr. 
Cliff, Zollicoffer's Brigade Surgeon, Lieut. Col. 
Carter, of the Twentieth Tennessee (rebel) regi- 
ment, and several Union officers. " Hail Colum- 
bia" affected both the rebel officers to tears — 
they wept like children — and Carter remarked 
that, although compelled to fight against the 
old flag, he loved it still. 



A NATIONAL HYMN. 

BY PARK BENJAMIN. 

Great God ! to whom our nation's woes, 
Our dire distress, our angry foes. 
In all their awful gloom are known. 
We bow to thee, and thee alone. 

We pray thee, mitigate this strife, 
Attended by such w^aste of life, 
Such wounds and anguish, groans and tears, 
That fill our inmost hearts with fears. 

O, darkly now the tempest rolls 
Wide o'er our desolated souls ; 
Yet, beaten downward to the dust, 
In thy forgiveness still wg trust. 

We trust to thy protecting power 
In this, our coimtry's maddest hour, 
And pray that thou wilt spread thy shield 
Above us in the camp and field. 

O God of battles, let thy might 
Protect our armies in the fight — 
Till they shall win the victory. 
And set the hapless bondmen free ; — 



72 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



Till, guided by thy glorious hand. 
Those armies reunite the land, 
And North and South alike shall raise 
To God their peaceful hymns of praise. 



Incident of the Hospital. — I was con- 
versing not long since with a returned volunteer. 

I was in the hospital, as nurse, for a long time, 
said he, and assisted in taking off limbs, and 
dressing all sorts of wounds ; but the hardest 
thing I ever did was to take my thumb off a 
man's leg. 

All ! said I ; how Avas that ? Then he told me. 

It was a young man who had a severe wound 
in the thigh. The ball passed completely through, 
and amputation was necessary. The limb was 
cut oif close up to the body, the arteries taken 
up, and he seemed to be doing well. Subse- 
quently one of the small arteries sloughed off. 
An incision was made, and it was again taken up. 
" It is well it was not the main artery," said the 
surgeon, as he performed the operation ; " he 
might have bled to death before we could have 
taken it up." But Charley got on finely, and was 
a favorite with us all. 

I was passing through the wards one night 
about midnight, when suddenly, as I was passing 

Charley's bed he spoke to me. " 11 , my leg 

is bleeding again." I threw back the clothes, and 
the blood spirted in the air. The main artery 
had opened afresh! 

Fortunately, I knew just what to do ; and in an 
instant I had pressed my thumb on the place, and 
stopped the bleeding. It was so close to tlie 
body that there was barely room for my thumb ; 
Init I succeeded in keeping it there, and rousing 
one of the convalescents, sent him for the sur- 
geon, who came in on the run. " I am so thank- 
ful, H ," said he as he saw me, " that you 

were up and knew what to do, for he must have 
bled to death before I could have got here." 

But on examination of the case he looked ex- 
ceedingly serious, and sent out for other surgeons. 
All came who were within reach, and a consulta- 
tion was held over the poor fellow. One conclu- 
sion was reached by all. There was no place to 
work save the spot where my thumb pressed ; 
they could not work under my thumb, and if I 
moved he would bleed to death before the artery 
could be taken up. There was no way to save his 
life. 

Poor Charley ! He was very calm when they 
told him, and requested that his brother, who was 
in the same hospital, might be called up. He 
came and sat down by the bedside, and for three 
hours I stood, and by the pressure of my thumb, 
kejit up the life in Charley while the brothers 
had their last conversation on earth. It was a 
strange place for me to be in, to feel that I held 
the life of a fellow-mortal in my hands, as it Averc, 
and stranger yet, to feel that an act of mine must 
cause that life to depart. Loving the poor fel- 
low as I did, it was a hard thought, but there 
was no alternative. 

The last words were spoken. Charley had 



arranged all his business affairs, and sent tender 
messages to absent ones, who little dreamed how 
near their loved one stood lo the grave. The 
tears filled my eyes more than once as I listened 
to those parting words. All were said, and he 

turned to me. "Now, H , I guess you had 

better take off your thumb." " O Charley ! 
how can I ? " I said. " But it must be, you 
know," he replied, cheerfully : " I thank you very 
much for your kindness, and now good by." 

He turned away his head. I raised my thumb. 
Once more the crimson life-current gushed forth. 
In three minutes poor Charley was dead. 



A Home Scene. — A member of one of the 
Charleston companies, on leave of absence in the 
city, received a summons to appear at his post 
on Sullivan's Island on one of the nights when 
the air was rife with the most startling rumors 
of the coming of an overwhelming fleet. With 
cheerful promptitude the brave soldier prepared 
to obey the imperative call. He was a husband, 
and the father of a blue-eyed little girl, who had 
just begun to put words together. After the 
preparation for the camp bad been made, the 
soldier nerved himself for the good by. Those 
present thought that the wife felt the parting 
less than the husband. Lively words, flowed fast, 
and her fair face was as bright and calm as a 
morning in May. Her heart seemed to be full 
of gladness. 

She cheered him with pleasant earnestness to 
show himself a man, and ruiming on in a gleeful 
strain, admonished him not to come back if he 
were shot in the back. With incredible forti- 
tude she bade her child tell papa good by, 
and say to him that she would not own him 
her father if he proved to be a coward. The 
echo of the soldier's footfall through the corridor 
had hardly died away, Avhen a ghastly pallor was 
seen spreading over the lady's face. In a voice 
weak and husky she begged a friend to take her 
child, and before she could be supported she fell 
from her chair prostrate on the floor. 

By a tremendous effort the noble woman had 
controlled her feehngs ; but nature could bear no 
longer, and she fainted. The swoon was deep, 
and it was some time before consciousness re- 
turned. At length she opened her eyes lan- 
guidl}^, and looked around upon the sympathizing 
group, and in a tremulous tone inquired " if she 
had fainted before her husband left the room." 



The Feast of Doughnuts. — The ladies of 
Augusta, Me., distributed over fifty bushels of 
doughnuts to the Third Volunteer regiment of 
Maine, previous to their departure for the seat ,| 
of war in 1861. A procession of ladies, headed i 
by music, passed between double lines of troops, 
who presented arms, and were afterwards drawn 
up in hollow square to receive the Avelcome dough- 
nation. 

Never before was seen such an aggregate of 
doughnuts since the world began. The circum- 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



73 



ambient air was redolent of doughnuts. Every 
breeze sighed doughnuts — everybody talked of 
doughnuts. The display of doughnuts beggared 
desci'iption. There was the molasses doughnut 
and the sugar doughnut — the long doughnut and 
the short doughnut — the round doughnut and 
the square doughnut — the rectangular dough- 
nut and the triangular doughnut — the single 
twisted doughnut and the double twisted dough- 
nut — the "light riz" doughnut and the hard- 
kneaded doughnut — the straight solid doughnut 
and the circular doughnut, Avith a hole in the 
centre. There were doughnuts of all imaginary 
kinds, qualities, shapes, and dimensions. It was 
emphatically a feast of doughnuts, if not a flow 
of soul. 

Lieut. Greble at Great Bethel. — As soon 
as the confusion arising from the mistake (the 
cross firing) was over, Gen. Pierce ordered the 
troops to advance. No scouts were thrown out, 
uor were troops aware of the vicinity of the 
enemy's batteries until they came within their 
fire. Lieut. Greble was ordered to unlimber his 
gun. He advanced, fu'ing his gun alternately, 
until he came within two hundred yards of the 
masked battery of the rebels. 

Soon after the firing commenced, he was left 
alone with his original command of eleven men, 
in an open road, the volunteers having retreated 
before the telling fire of the rifled cannon. 

He worked his guns until he had silenced all 
those of the enemy, except one rifled cannon. 

The Zouaves made a demonstration, and only 
desired permission to storm the fort, but no gen- 
eral officer was seen from the commencement of 
the action, and fifteen hundred troops were kept 
lying on the ground for an hour and forty minutes, 
waiting for a commander. 

Lieut. Greble stood the brunt of the action for 
two hours ; he was begged by several officers to 
retreat, but he refused. Lieut. Butler asked him 
at least to take the same care of himself that the 
rest did, and dodge. He replied, " I never dodge, 
and when I hear the notes of the bugle calling a 
retreat, I shall retreat, and not before." The 
enemy made a sortie. Lieut. Greble said to Capt. 
Bartlett, who was standing alongside of him, 
" Now, Charley, I have something to fii-e at, just see 
how I will make them scamper." He immediately 
loaded with grape, and fired, when the enemy at 
once retreated behind their intrenchment. 

Seeing himself left entirely alone, with five 
men at his own gun, he turned to Corporal Peo- 
ples, and said, " All he could do would be useless 
— limber up the gun and take it away." At this 
moment a shot struck him on the left temple. ■ He 
immediately fell, and his only exclamation was, 
" O, my gun ! " The same ball went through the 
body of another man, and took the leg off a third. 

Throughout the firing he had sighted every 
gun himself, and examined the effect of every 
shot with his glass. It was remarked by his own 
men, that every ball was placed in the very spot 
that he aimed for. The men say that he exhibited 
the same coolness that he would on parade. 



The enemy did not come out again until the 
Federal troops had been withdrawn a half hour. 

Lieut. Greble did not spike his gun, but kept 
it charged in preparing to withdraw his com- 
mand. The Sergeant spiked it after the Lieu- 
tenant was killed. 

A Humorous Incident. — One of the Jus- 
tices of the Police Court, in Boston, Mass., who 
had seen much service in the Volunteer Militia, 
was holding court, when a company of Volunteers 
passed the court-house, marching to the immortal 
tune of the " Star Spangled Banner." The spec- 
tators sprang to their feet, responsive to the un- 
derstood order of " Forward, to the door ! " Run- 
ning feet shuffled in the entry. Boom! boom! 
sounded the band. " O, long may it wave I " 
screamed a patriotic urchin outside the window. 
"First Regiment, take the witness stand!" 
thundered the Court, which must have imagined 
itself on the green field, at the head of its com- 
mand. 

The other " Abou-Ben-Adhem." — The fol- 
lowing ingenious and witty parody of a poem 
universally known, is from a feminine pen. The 
tart and somewhat malicious allusions to " Rye " 
refer, we suppose, to President Buchanan's letter 
to some Western friends, acknowledging, with 
thanks, the receipt of some excellent rye whis- 
key : 

James U-TJchanan — may his tribe (decrease — 
Awoke one night from a strange dream of peace, 
And saw, within the curtains of his bed. 
Making his t'other eye to squint with dread — 
Old Jackson, writing in a book of gold. 
Exceeding Rye had made Buchanan bold, 
And to the stern Ex-President he said : 
" Wha — what writ'st thou?" The spirit shook 

his head. 
The while he answered, with the voice of old : 
" The names of those who ne'er their country sold! " 
" And is mine one ? " asked J. B. " Nary .'" cried 
The General, with a frown. Buchanan sighed, 
And groaned, and turned himself upon his bed, 
And took another "nip" of "rye," then said: 
" Well, ere thou lay thy record on the shelf, 
Write me at least as one who sold himself! 
' Democs ' and ' Rye ' so long my spirits were, 
That when the ' Crisis ' came — I wasn't there ! " 
The General wrote, and vanished ; the next night 
He came again, in more appalling plight, 
And showed those names that all true tnen detest, 
And lo ! Buchanan's name led all the rest ! 



Young Hart the Guide. — Rich Mountain 
is famous as the scene where the first decisive 
battle was fought in West Virginia, between Gen. 
McClellan and Gen. Garnett. _ 

Rich Mountain range, as it is sometimes called, 
is in Randolph County, sixty miles from Glen- 
ville, one hundred miles from Parkersburg, and 
twelve miles from Beverly, the county seat of 
Randolph County. It is long, narrov.', and high ; 
and, except the summit, whereon is Mr. Hart's 
farm, it is covered with timber densely, save a 



74 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



narrow strip on one side, which is thickly covered 
with laurel. The Parkersburg and Staunton 
Pike winds round the mountain, and passes, by 
the heads of ravines, directly over its top. The 
soil is black and rich, differing from that of all 
adjacent mountains, and it is from this circum- 
stance that its name is derived. 

The topograpliical formation of the mountain 
top is admirably adapted for the erection of strong 
military defences ; and on this account Gen. Gar- 
nett had selected it as a stronghold for his army. 
He had erected formidable fortifications, render- 
ing an attack fatal to the assailing party, on the 
road leading up the mountain, which was deemed 
the only route by which the enemy could possibly 
reach his position. Gen. McClellan was advan- 
cing with an army of five thousand men from 
Clarksburg, on the Parkersburg and Staunton 
Turnpike, intending to attack Garnett early in 
the morning where his works crossed the road, 
not deeming any other route up the mountain 
practicable. Had he carried his plan into execu- 
tion, subsequent examination showed that no 
earthly power could have saved him and his army 
from certain defeat. The mountain was steep in 
front of the fortifications ; reconnoisance, except 
in force, was impossible ; and McClellan had de- 
termined to risk a battle directly on the road, 
where Garnett, without McClellan's knowledge, 
had rendered his defences impervious to any pow- 
er that man could bring against him. 

Mr. Hart, whose farm is on the mountain, was 
a Union man, knew the ground occupied by Gar- 
nett, and had carefully examined his fortifica- 
tions on the road coming up the mountain. Hear- 
ing that McClellan was advancing, and fearing 
that he might attempt to scale the works at the 
road, he sent his little son, Joseph Hart, in the 
night, to meet McClellan and inform him of the 
situation of affairs on the mountain. Joseph, be- 
ing but a boy, got through the rebel lines with- 
out difficulty, and travelling the rest of the night 
and part of the following day, reached the ad- 
vanced guard of the Union army, informed them 
of the object of his coming, and was taken, under 
guard, to the General's quarters. Young as he 
was, the Federal commander looked upon him 
with suspicion. He questioned him closely. Jo- 
seph related in simple language aU his father had 
told him of Garnett's position, the number of his 
force, the character of his works, and the impos- 
sibility of successfully attacking him on the 
mountain in the direction he proposed. The 
General listened attentively to his simple story, 
occasionally interrupting him with : " Tell the 
truth, my boy." At each interruption Joseph 
earnestly but quietly would reply : " I am tell- 
ing you the truth. General." " But," says the 
latter, " do you know, if you are not, you will be 
shot as a spy ? " "1 am xcilling to be shot if all 
I say is not true," gently responded Joseph. 
" WeD," says the General, after being satisfied 
of the entire honesty of his little visitor, " if I 
cannot go up the mountain by the road, in what 
way am I to go up ? " Joseph, who now saw- 
that he was believed, from the manner of his in- 



terrogator, said there was a way up the otlier 
side, leaving the turnpike just at the foot, and 
going round the base to where the laurel was. 
There was no road there, and the mountain was 
very steep ; but lie had been up there : there were 
but few trees standing, and none fallen down to 
be in the way. The laurel was very thiclc up. the 
side of the mountain, and the top matted togeth- 
er so closely that a flian could walk on the tcps. 
The last statement of Joseph once more awakened 
a slight suspicion of Gen. iNIcClellan, who said 
sharply, " Do you say men can walk on the tops 
of the laurel? " " Yes sir," said Joseph. " Do you 
think my army can go up the mountain, over the 
tops of the laurel ? " " No, sir," promptly answered 
Joseph ; " but / have done so, and a man inirjlit, if 
he would walk slowly and had nothing to caiTy." 
" But, my boy, don't you see, I have a great 
many men, and horses, and cannon to take up, and 
how do you think we could get up over that lau- 
rel? " " The trees are small ; they are so small 
you can cut them down, without making any 
noise, with knives and hatchets ; and they will not 
know on the top of the mountain what you are 
doing or when you are coming," promptly and 
respectfully answered Joseph, who was now really 
to be the leader of the little army that was to de- 
cide the political destiny of "West Vii-ginia. 

The Federal commander was satisfied with 
this ; and although he had marched all day, and 
intended that night to take the easy way up the 
mountain by the road, he immediately changed his 
])lan of attack, and suddenly the army of the 
Union were moving away in the direction pointed 
out by Joseph Hart. When they came to the foot 
of the mountain, they left the smooth and easy 
track of the turnpike, and with difiSiculty wound 
round the broad base of the mountain, through 
ravines and ugly gorges, to the point indicated 
by the little guide. Here the army halted. Mc- 
Clellan and some of his stafi', with Joseph, ])ro- 
ceeded to examine the nature of the ground, and 
the superincumbent laurel covering the mountain 
from its base to its summit. All was precisely 
as Joseph had described it in the chiefs tent on ■ 
the Staunton Pike ; and the quick eye of the hero 
of Rich Mountain saw at a glance the feasibility 
of the attack. It was past midnight when the 
army reached the foot of the mountain. Though 
floating clouds hid the stars, the night was not 
entii'ely dark, and more than a thousand knives 
and hatchets were soon busy clearing away the • 
marvellous laurel. Silence reigned throughout 
the b'nes, save the sharp click of the small blades 
and the rustle of the falling laurel. Before day- 
break the narrow and precipitous way was 
cleared, and the work of ascending commenced. 
The horses were tied at the foot of i!ie mountain. 
The artillery horses were taken' from the car- 
riages. One by one the cannon were taken up 
the rough and steep side of the mountain by 
hand, and left within a short distance of the 
top, in such a situation as to be readily moved 
forward when the moment of attack should ar- 
rive. The main army then commenced the 
march up by companies, many falling down, but 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



75 



suddenly recovering their places. The ascent 
was a slow and tedious one. The way was wind- 
ing and a full mile. But before daybreak all 
was ready, and the Yankee cannon were booming 
upon and over the enemy's works, nearly in his 
rear, at an unexpected moment, and from an en- 
tirely unexpected quarter. They were tliunder 
struck, as well as struck by shell and canister. 
They did the best they could by a feeble resist- 
ance, and fled precipitately down the mountain, 
pursued by the Federals to Cheat River, where 
the brave Garnett M^as killed. Two hundred fell 
on the mountain, and are buried by the side of the 
turnpike, with no other sign of the field of inter- 
ment than a long indentation made by the sink- 
ing down of the earth in the line where the bod- 
ies lie. 

A Courageous Woman. — A good story is 
told of the courageous conduct of the wife of 
Capt. McGilvery, master of the ship Mary Goodell, 
which was captured by a rebel privateer, and sub- 
sequently released, and arrived at Portland. Mrs. 
McGilvery was on the voyage with her husband, 
and when the ship was boarded by the pirates, 
she was asked by them for a supply of small 
stores for their use, as they were rather short. 
She immediately replied that she had nothing 
but arsenic, and would gladly give them a supply, 
but that they could have nothing else from her. 
Seeing the national flag near at hand, they started 
to secure it, when she sprang forM'ard, and grasp- 
ing the flag, threw it into a chest, and placing 
herself over it, declared they should not have it 
unless they took her with it. Finding the lady 
rather too spunky for them, they retired without 
further molestinsr her. 



THE GREAT BELL ROLAND, * 

BY THEODOEE TILTON. 

(Suggested by the President's first call for Volunteers.) 



Toll! Roland, toll! 
In old St. Eavon's tower, 
At midnight hour, 
The great bell Roland spoke ! 
All souls that slept in Ghent awoke ! 
What meant the thunder-stroke ? 
Why trembled wife and maid ? 
Why caught each man his blade ? 
Why echoed every street 
With tramp of thronging feet ? 

All flying to the city's wall I 

It was the warning call 
That Freedom stood in peril of a foe 1 
And even timid hearts grew bold 
Whenever Roland tolled, 
And every hand a sword could hold 1 

So acted men 

Like patriots then 
Three hundred years ago 1 

* The famous bell Roland, of Ghent, was an object 
of great aifection to the people, because it rang to arm 
them when Liberty was in danger. 



Toll ! Roland, toll ! 
Bell never yet was hung. 
Between whose lips there swung 
So grand a tongue ! 

If men be patriots still. 
At thy lirst sound 
True hearts will bound, 
Great souls will thrill ! 
Then toll and strike the test 
Through each man's breast, 
Till loyal hearts shall stand confest, 
And may God's wrath smite all the rest ! 



Toll ! Roland, toll ! 
Not now in old St. Bavon's tower — 
Not now at midnight hour — 
Not now from River Scheldt to Zuyder Zee — ' 

But here, — this side the sea ! — 

Toll here, in broad, bright day ! — 

For not by night awaits 

A noble foe without the gates, 
But perjured friends within betray. 
And do the deed at noon ! 

Toll ! Roland, toll ! 
Thy sound is not too soon ! 
To arms ! Ring out the leader's call ! 
Re-echo it from East to West 
Till every hero's breast 
Shall swell beneath a soldier's crest ! 

Toll ! Roland, toll ! 
Till cottager from cottage wall 
Snatch pouch and powder-horn and gun ! 
The sire bequeathed them to the son 
When only half their work was done ! 

Toll ! Roland, toll ! 
Till swords from scabbards leap ! 

Toll ! Roland, toll ! 
What tears can widows weep 
Less bitter than when brave men fall ! 

Toll ! Roland, toll ! 
In shadowed hut and hall 
Shall lie the soldier's pall. 
And hearts shall break while graves are filled ! 

Amen ! so God hath willed ! 
And may His grace anoint us all ! 



Toll ! Roland, toll ! 
The Dragon on thy tower 
Stands sentry to this hour, 
And Freedom so stands safe in Ghent, 
And merrier bells now ring. 
And in the land's serene content, 
Men shout, " God save the King! " 

Until the skies are rent I 
So let it be 5 
A kingly king is he 
Who keeps his people free ! 

Toll ! Roland, toll ! 
Pcing out across the sea 1 
No longer They, but We, 
Have now stich need of thee ! 

Toll ! Roland, toll ! 
Nor ever may thy throat 
Keep dumb its warning note, 
Till Freedom's perils be outbraved! 

Toll ! Roland, toll ! 



76 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



Till Freedom's flag, wherever waved. 
Shall shadow not a man enslaved ! 

Toll ! Roland, toll ! 
From northern lake to southern strand ! 

Toll ! Roland, toll ! 
Till friend and foe, at thy command, 
Once more shall clasp each other's hand, 
And shout, one- voiced, " God save the land ! 
And love the land that God hath saved ! 

Toll ! Roland, toll ! 



Horses at Bull Run. — One of the guns of 
Sherman's battery was rescued from capture by 
the rebels, and brought ofl' the field by two horses 
that had been shot through by Minie musket- 
balls. When the order, " Forward," was given, 
they resolutely straightened out, and absolutely 
brought off the gun. 

At the commencement of the battle, Lieut. Has- 
brouck, of the West Point battery, was riding a 
little sorrel horse. In a short time he was shot 
three times, and from loss of blood became too 
weak for further service. He was stripped of 
bridle and saddle, and turned loose, as his owner 
supposed, to die. In the heat of the contest 
nothing more was thought of the little sorrel, nor 
was he seen again until the remnant of the bat- 
tery was far towards Washington on the retreat. 
It paused at Centreville, and while renting there, 
Lieut. Hasbrouck was delighted to be joined by 
his faithful horse, which, by a strong instinct, had 
obeyed the bugle call to retreat, and had found 
his true position with the battery, which is more 
than most of the human mass engaged on the 
field could boast of doing. He went safely into 
Washington, recovered of his wounds, ready for 
another fight. 

In'Cidents of the Peninsula. — At the bat- 
tle of Hanover Court House, Va., two sergeants 
met in the woods ; each drew his knife, and the 
two bodies were found together, each with a 
knife buried in it to the hilt. Some men had a 
cool Avay of disposing of prisoners. One, an 
officer of the Massachusetts Ninth, well known 
in Boston as a professor of muscular Christianity, 
better known as " the child of the regiment," 
while rushing through the woods at the head of 
his company, came upon a rebel. Seizing the 
"grayback" by the collar, he threw him over 
his shoulder, with, " Pick him up, somebody." A 
little Yankee, marching down by the side of a 
fence which skirted the woods, came upon a 
strapping secesh, who attempted to seize and pull 
him over the rails ; but the little one had too 
much science. A blow with the butt of a musket 
levelled secesh to the ground, and made him a 
prisoner. 

'Cuteness of a Contraband Scout. — A 
private letter from West Point, Va., narrates an 
exciting adventure which befell a negro scout in 
the employ of the Union forces, and his shrewd- 
ness in escaping from the rebels. His name was 
Claiborne, and he was a full-blooded African, 



with big lips, flat nose, &c. He lived in the vi- 
cinity all his life, and was therefore familiar with 
the country, which rendered him a very valuable 
scout. On Claiboi-ne's last trip, inside the ene- 
my's lines, after scouting around as much as he 
wished, he picked up eight chickens and started 
for camp. His road led past the house of a secesh 
doctor named Roberts, who knew him, and who 
ordered him to stop, which, of course, Claiborne 
had no idea of doing, and kept on, when the doc- 
tor fired on him, and gave chase, shouting at the 
top of his voice. The negro was making good 
time towards camp, Avhen all at once he was con- 
fronted by a whole regiment of rebel soldiers, 
who ordered him to halt. For a moment the 
scout was dumbfounded, and thought his hour 
had come ; but the next he sung out : 

" The Yankees are coming ! the Yankees are 
coming ! " 

" Where ? where ? " inquired the rebels. 

" Just up in front of Dr. Roberts' house, in a 
piece of woods," returned Sambo. " Dr. R. sent 
me down to tell you to come up quick, or they'll 
kill the whole of us." 

" Come in, come into camp," said the sol- 
diers. 

*' No, no," says the 'cute African, " I have got 
to go down and tell the cavalry pickets, and can't 
wait a second." So off he sprang with a bound, 
running for dear life, the rebs, discovering the 
ruse, chasing him for three miks, and he running 
six, when he got safely into camp, but minus his 
chickens, which he dropped at the first fire. 



An Affecting Incident. — An incident is 
related which aff"ords a striking but sad illustra- 
tion of the effects of civil war. The lady in ques- 
tion has resided with an only daughter for many 
years in Alexandria. About nine months since, 
a mutual friend introduced a young gentleman 
of Richmond to the family. The young people 
soon became intimately acquainted, and, quite 
naturally, fell in love. The parents on both sides 
consenting, the parties were betrothed, and the 
marriage day was fixed for the 4th of July, In 
the mean time, however, the Virginians were 
called upon to decide on which side they would 
stand. The ladies declared themselves on the 
side of the Government, but the gentleman joined 
the forces of his State. No opportunity was af- 
forded for the interchange of sentiments between 
the young folks, or anything settled as to their 
future movements. Matters thus rem.ained till 
the 4th of July, when, exactly within an hour of 
the time originally fixed for the marriage, intelli- 
gence was received at the residence of the ladies 
that the young man had been shot by a sentry 
two days before, while attempting to desert and 
join his bride. His betrothed did not shed a 
tear, but, standing erect, smiled, and then re- 
marking to her mother, " I am going to desert 
too," foil to the floor, while the blood bubbled 
from her lips, as her soul passed back to Him 
who gave it. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



77 



A Dkaft at Savannah, Ga. — A correspond- 
ent at Charleston furnished the foUowmg descrip- 
tion of the scene Avhich ensued on the occasion 
of a draft for four hundred men in Savannah, to 
complete a requisition for troops, the requisite 
number not having volunteered. Fifteen hundred 
of the business men and mechanics of the city 
were drawn up in a hollow square on the parade- 
ground, all in a high state of excitement, when 
the following proceedings took place : 

" The Colonel now takes his place in the centre, 
and from the back of a magnificent horse, in a 
few well-timed remarks, calls for volunteers. 
He said it was a shame that a Georgian should 
submit to be drafted, and dishonorable to a citi- 
zen of Savannah to be forced into the service of 
his country. He appealed to their patriotism, 
their pluck, and theu- — pelf. He told them of 
good clothes, good living, and fifty dollars bounty ; 
and on the strength of these considerations, in- 
vited everybody to walk three paces in front. 
Nobody did it. An ugly pause ensued, worse 
than a dead silence between the ticking of a con- 
versation. The Colonel thought he might not 
have been heard or understood, and repeated his 
catalogue of persuasions. At this point one of 
the sides of the square opened, and in marched 
a company of about forty stalwart Irishmen, 
whom their Captain, in a loud and exultant tone, 
announced as the Mitchell Guards. ' We volunteer. 
Colonel, in a body.' The Colonel was delighted. 
He proposed ' three cheers for the Mitchell 
Guards,' and the crowd indulged not inordinately 
in the pulmonary exercise. The requisite num- 
ber did not seem to be forthcoming, however, and 
the Colonel made another little speech, winding 
up with an invitation to the black drummer and 
filer to perambulate the quadrangle and play 
Dixie ; which they did, but they came as they 
■went — solitary and alone ; not the ghost of a 
volunteer being anywhere visible in the Ethio- 
pian wake. The Colonel looked as blanlc as if he 
was getting desperate, and a draft seemed indis- 
pensable. 

As a dernier resort the Colonel directed all 
w'ho had excuses to advance to the centre, and 
submit them for examination. Did you ever see 
a crowd run away from a falling building at a 
fire, or towards a dog-fight, or a street-show ? If 
you have, you can form some idea of the tem- 
pestuous nature of the wave that swept towards 
the little table in the centre of the square, around 
which were gathered the four grave gentlemen 
who were to examine the documents. It was a 
scene, which, as an uninterested outsider, one 
could only hold his sides and laugh at. Hats 
were crushed, ribs punched, corns smashed, and 
clothes torn. Every hand held its magical bit 
of paper, from the begrimed digits of the indi- 
vidual just from a stable or a foundery, to the 
dainty gloved extremity of the dry goods clerk, 
just from his counter. Young and old, rich and 
poor, neat and nasty, Americans, Englishmen, 
Irishmen, Germans, Frenchmen, Italians, Israel- 
ites, and Gentiles, all went to make up the mot- 
ley mass. What a pretty lot of sick, and disa- 



bled individuals there were, to be sure ! Swelled 
arms, limping legs, spine diseases, bad eyes, 
corns, toothaches, constitutional debility in the 
bread-basket, eruptive diseases, deafness, rheu- 
matism, not well generally — these, and a thou- 
sand other complaints, were represented as va- 
riously and heterogeneously as by any procession 
of pilgrims that ever visited the Holy Land. 

" And so the day progressed, nearly ten hours 
being consumed in th» endeavor to secure a 
draft. This afternoon the absentees were gath- 
ered together, and the efi'orts renewed, when, 
strange to say, every man who found the liability 
imminent of his being forced to enlist, protested 
that he was just on the point of doing so, and 
willingly put his name to the roll." 



Southern AVomen. — A gentleman from 
Charleston says that everything there (Jan. 7, 
1861,) betokens active preparations for fight. 
Last Sunday, he says, not a lady was at the 
church he attended. They were all at home 
making cartridges and cylinders, and scraping 
lint. The thousand negroes busy in building 
batteries, so far from inclining to insurrection, 
were grinning from ear to ear at the prospect 
of shooting the Yankees. Extravagant reports 
were current as to the hostile designs of the 
Federal Government, such as that the Macedo- 
nian was on her way with five hundred troops. 



A Model Body-Guakd. — "Brick" Pome- 
roy, of the La Crosse Wisconsin, on being in- 
vited to assist in forming a body-guard for Pres- 
ident Lincoln, after due consideration decided to 
" go in," provided the following basis could be 
adopted and rigidly adhered to throughout the 
war : 

The company shall be entirely composed of 
colonels, who shall draw pay and rations in 
advance. 

Every man shall have a commission, two ser- 
vants, and white kids. 

Each man shall be mounted in a covered bug- 
gy, drawn by two white stallions. 

Under the seat of each buggy shall be a cup- 
board, containing cold chicken, pounded ice, and 
champagne, a la members of Congress and mil- 
itary officers at Bull Eun. 

Each man shall have plenty of cards and red 
chips to play poker with. 

The only side-arms to be opera-glasses, cham- 
pagne glasses, and gold-headed canes. 

The duty of the company shall be to take ob- 
servations of battle, and on no account shall it 
be allowed to approach nearer than ten miles to 
the seat of war. 

Behind each buggy shall be an ambulance, so 
arranged as to be converted into a first-class 
boarding-house in the daytime, and a sumptuous 
sleeping and dressing room at night. 

The regimental band must be composed of 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS, 



pianos and guitars, played by young ladies, who 
shall never play a quickstep except in case of 
retreat. 

Reveille shall not be sounded till late break- 
fast time, and not then if any one of the regiment 
has a headache. 

In case of a forced march into an enemy's 
country, two miles a week shall be the maximum, 
and no marches shall be made except the coun- 
try abound in game, or if any member of the 
regiment object. 

Kid gloves, gold toothpicks, cologne, hair- 
dressing, silk underclothes, cosmetics, and all 
other rations, to be furnished by the Govern- 
ment. 

Each member of the regiment shall be allowed 
a reporter for some New York paper, who shall 
draw a salary of two hundred dollars a week, for 
puffs, from the incidental fund. 

Every member shall be in command, and when 
one is promoted, all are to be. 

Commissions never to be revoked. 



The Fight at Big Bethel. — The follow- 
ing account of the battle of Big Bethel was given 
by a Confederate soldier, who participated in the 
defence : " An engagement lasting four hours 
took place yesterday, June 10, between five regi- 
ments of the troops from Old Point, and 1100 
Confederate troops, consisting of Virginians and 
North Carolinians under Gen. Magruder, at 
Bethel Church, York County. Before telling you 
of the battle, I will give you some chcumstances 
preceding it. About two weeks ago, a party of 
three hundred Yankees came up from Hampton, 
and occupied Bethel Church, which position they 
held a day or two, and then retired, leaving 
written on the walls of the church several inscrip- 
tions, such as ' Death to the Traitors,' ' Down 
with the Rebels,' &c. To nearly all these the 
names of the writers Avere defiantly signed, and 
all of the penmen signed themselves as from New 
York, except one, who was from Boston, Mass., 
U. S. To these excursions into the interior, of 
which this was the boldest. Gen. Magruder de- 
termined to put a stop, and accordingly filled 
the place, after the Yankees left, with a few com- 
panies of his own troops. In addition to this, he 
determined to carry the war into the enemy's 
country, and on Wednesday last, Stanard's bat- 
tery of the Howitzer Battalion was ordered down 
to the church, where it was soon joined by a por- 
tion of Brown's battery of the same corps. The 
North Carolina regiment, under Col. Hill, was 
also there, making in all about 1100 men, 
and seven howitzer guns. On Saturday last the 
first excursion of considerable importance was 
made. A detachment of 200 infantry and a how- 
itzer gun under Major Randolph, and one of 70 
infantry and another howitzer under Major Lane, 
of the Nof th Carolina regiment, started different 
routes to cut off a party which had left Hampton. 
The party was seen and fii-ed at by Major Ran- 
dolph's detachment, but made such fast time that 
they escaped. The troops under Major Lane 



passed within sight of Hampton, and as they 
turned up the road to return to Bethel, encoun- 
tered the Yankees, numbering about 90, who were 
intrenched behind a fence in the field, protected 
by a high bank. Our advance guard fired on 
them, and in another moment the North Caro- 
linians were dashing over the fence in regular 
French (not New York) Zouave style, firing at 
them in real squirrel-hunting style. The Yan- 
kees fled for their lives after firing for about 
tlu-ee minutes without effect, leaving behind 
them three dead and a prisoner. The fellow was 
a stout, ugly fellow, from Troy, N. Y. He said 
he had nothing against the South, but somebody 
must be soldiers, and he thought he had as well 
enlist. None of our men were hurt. This bold 
excursion, under the very guns of the enemy, de- 
termined the authorities at Old Point to put a 
stop to it, and clear us out from Bethel. This 
determination was conveyed to us from persons 
who came from the neighborhood of the enemy. 
On Monday morning, 600 infantry and two guns, 
under Gen. Magruder, left the camp and pro- 
ceeded towards Hampton, but after advancing a 
mile or two, received information that the Y'an- 
kees were coming in large force. We then re- 
tired, and after reaching camp the guns were 
placed in battery, and the infantry took their 
places behind their breastwork. Everybody was 
cool, and all were anxious to give the invaders a 
good reception. About nine o'clock, the glitter- 
ing bayonets of the enemy appeared on the hill 
opposite, and above them waved the Star-span- 
gled Banner. The moment the head of the col- 
umn advanced far enough to show one or two 
companies, the Parrott gun of the Howitzer-Bat- 
tery opened on them, tlirowing a shell right into 
their midst. Their ranks broke in confusion, and 
the column, or as much of it as we could see, re- 
treated behind two small farm-houses. From 
their position a fii-e was opened on us, which was 
replied to by our battery, which commanded the 
route of their approach. Our firing was excel- 
lent, and the shells scattered in all directions 
when they burst. They could hardly approach 
the guns which they Avere fii'ing for the shells 
which came from our battery. Witliin our en- 
campment fell a perfect hail-stoi-m of canister-shot, 
bullets, and balls. Remarkable to say, not one 
of our men was killed inside of our encampment. 
Several horses were slain by the shells and bul- 
lets. Finding that bombardment would not an- 
swer, the enemy, about eleven o'clock, tried to 
carry the position by assault, but met a terrible 
repulse at the hands of the infantry as he tried to 
scale the breastworks. The men disregarded 
sometimes the defences erected for them, and, 
leaping on the embankment, stood and fired at 
the Yankees, cutting them down as they came 
up. One company of the New York 7th Regi- 
ment, under Capt. Winthrop, attempted to take 
the redoubt on the left. The marsh they crossed 
was strewn with their bodies. Their Captain, a 
fine-looking man, reached the fence, and, leaping 
on a log, waved his sword, crying, ' Come on, 
boys ; one charge, and the day is ours ! ' The 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



79 



words were his last, for a Carolina rifle ended 
his life the next moment, and his men fled in ter- 
ror back. At the redoubt on the right, a com- 
pany of about 300 New York Zouaves charged 
one of our guns, but could not stand the fii'e of 
the infantry, and retreated precipitately. During 
these charges the main body of the enemy on the 
hill were attempting to concentrate for a general 
assault, but the shells from the Howitzer Bat- 
tery prevented them. As one regiment would 
give up the effort, another would be marched to 
the position, but with no better success, for a 
shell would scatter them like chaff". The men did 
not seem able to stand fire at all. About one 
o'clock their guns were silenced, and a few mo- 
ments after, their infantry retreated precipitately 
down the road to Hampton. Our cavalry, num- 
bering three companies, went in pursuit, and har- 
assed them down to the edge of Hampton. As 
they retreated many of the wounded fell along 
the road and died, and the whole road to Hamp- 
ton was strewn with haversacks, overcoats, can- 
teens, muskets, &c., which the men had thrown 
off" in their retreat. After the battle, I visited 
the position they held. The houses behind which 
they had been hid had been burned by our troops. 
Around the yard were the dead bodies of the men 
who had been killed by our cannon, mangled in 
the most frightful manner by the shells. The 
uniforms on the bodies were very different, and 
many of them are like those of the Virginia sol- 
diery. A little farther on we came to the point 
to which they had carried some of their wounded, 
who had since died. The gay-looking uniforms 
of the New York Zouaves contrasted greatly with 
the pale, fixed faces of their dead owners. Go- 
ing to the swamp, through which they attempted 
to pass to assault our lines, presented another 
bloody scene. Bodies dotted the black morass 
from one end to the other. I saw one boyish, 
delicate-looking fellow lying on the mud, with a 
bullet-hole through his breast. One hand was 
pressed on the wound, from which his life-blood 
had poured, and the other was clinched in the 
grass that grew near him. Lying on the ground 
was a Testament which had fallen from hi& pock- 
et, dabbled with blood. On opening the cover, I 
found the printed inscription : ' Presented to the 
Defenders of their Country by the Ncav York 
Bible Society.' A United States flag was also 
stamped on the title-page. Among the haver- 
sacks picked up along the route were many let- 
ters from the Northern States, asking if they 
liked the Southern farms, and if the Southern 
barbarians had been whipped out yet. The force 
of the enemy brought against us was 4000, ac- 
cording to the statement of the six prisoners we 
took. Ours was 1100. Their loss in killed and 
wounded must be nearly 200. Our loss is one 
killed and three wounded. The fatal case was 
that of a North Carolinian who volunteered to 
fke one of the houses behind which they were 
stationed. He started from the breastwork to 
accomplish it, but was shot in the head. He 
died this morning in the hospital. The wounded 
are Harry Shook, of Richmond^ of Brown's bat- 



tery, shot in the wrist ; John Werth, of Rich- 
mond, of the same battery, shot in the leg, and 
Lieut. Hudnall, of the same battery, shot in the 
foot. None of the wounds are serious. The 
Louisiana regiment arrived about one hour after 
the fight was over." 



Incident of War. — One of the most inter- 
esting incidents of the battle of Bull Run, says a 
Southern journal, is presented in the case of 
Willie P. Mangum, Jr., son of Ex-Senator Man- 
gum, of North Carolina. This young man was 
attached to Col. Fisher's regiment, and owes the 
preservation of his life to a copy of the Bible 
presented him by his sister. He had the good 
book in his left coat-pocket. It was struck by a 
ball neair the edge, but the book changed the di- 
rection of the bullet, and it glanced off, inflicting 
a severe, but not dangerous flesh wound. The 
book was saturated with blood, but the advice 
written on a fly-leaf by the sister who gave it was 
perfectly legible. 



Old Hannah. — " When I was in Jefferson, in 
the fall of 1862," said Robert Collyer, " I found 
the hospitals in the most fearful condition you 
can imagine. I cannot stop to tell you all the 
scenes I saw ; it is enough to say that one poor 
fellow had lain there sick on the boards, and seen 
five men carried away dead, one after another, 
from his side. He was worn to a skeleton, worn 
through, so that great sores were all over his 
back, and filthy beyond description. 

" One day, a little before my visit, old Hannah, 
a black woman, who had some washing to do for 
a doctor, went down the ward to hunt him up. 
She saw this dying man, and had compassion on 
him, and said, ' O, doctor, let me bring this man 
to my bed, to keep him off the floor.' 

" The doctor said, ' The man is dying ; he will 
be dead to-morrow.' To-morrow came, and- old 
Hannah could not rest. She went to see the 
man, and he was still alive. Then she got some 
help, took her bed, put the man on it, and car- 
ried him boldly to her shanty ; then she washed 
him all over, as a woman washes a baby, and fed 
him with a spoon, and fought death, hand to 
hand, day and night, and beat him back, and 
saved the soldier's life. 

" The day before I went to Jefferson, the man 
had gone on a furlough to his home in Indiana. 
He besought Hannah to go with him, but she 
could not spare time ; there was all that washing 
to do. She went with him to the steamboat, got 
him flxed just to her mind, and then kissed him, 
and the man lifted up his voice, as she left, and 
wept like a child. I say we have grown noble in 
our suffering." 



A Loyal Pigeon. — The following is a true 
and singularly remarkable story of a pigeon cap- 
tured by Mr. Tinker, a teamster of the Forty- 
second New York Volunteers, while the regiment 



80 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



was encamped at Kalorama Heights, Va. Mr. 
Tinker made a pet of him, and kept him in camp 
until they started for Poolesville. Strange to 
say, the pigeon followed on with the train, occa- 
sionally flynig away at a great distance, but al- 
ways returning, and, when weary, would alight 
on some wagon of the train. 

At night he was sure to come home, and, 
watching his opportunity, would select a posi- 
tion, and. quietly go to roost in Tinker's wagon. 

Many of the men in the regiment took a fjincy 
to him, and he soon became a general favorite. 
From Poolesville he followed to Washington, and 
down to the dock, where Tinker took him on 
board the steamer ; so he Avent to Fortress Mon- 
roe, thence to Yorktown, Avhere he was accus- 
tomed to make flights over and beyond the ene- 
my's works, but was always sure to return at 
evening, to roost and receive his food in Tinker's 
wagon. From thence he went all through the 
Peninsular campaign, afterwards to Antietam, 
and Harper's Ferry, witnessing all the battles 
fought by his regiment. 

By this time he had gained so much favor, 
that a friend offered twenty-five dollars to pur- 
chase him ; but Tinker would not sell him at any 
price, and soon after sent him home as a present 
to some friend. It might be interesting to trace 
the future movements of this remarkable speci- 
men of the feathered tribe, but none will doubt 
his instinctive loyalt}^, and attachment to the old 
Tammany regiment. 

Any of the brave Forty-second boys, who read 
this history of their favorite, will attest the truth 
of these statements, and be pleased to see him 
honored by this history of his wanderings. Such 
devotion to the Stars and Stripes is a fair illus- 
tration of the character of the Tammany regi- 
ment in the field, and worthy of imitation by 
those who have more than instinct to guide 
them. 

Southern Ideas of Northern Bravery. 
— The Chinese and the Yankees are exceedingly 
alike, and we have always thought that they were 
much more nearly related than the Japanese and 
the almond-eyed people of the Flowery King- 
dom. 

When a Chinaman prepares for war — measur- 
ing his enemy's courage by his own — he attempts 
to work upon liis fears. He puts on a hideous 
mask, arms himself with a huge shield, upon 
which he paints some unearthly monster; and, 
when thus accoutred, he goes forth in cold sweat 
to encounter the enemy. As soon as he be- 
holds his adversary, he utters a fearful roar, 
broadsides his shield, and if his opponent does 
I not at once take to his heels, John Chinaman al- 
Iways does. 

1 The wars of New England have always been 
conducted upon the Chinese plan. To hear their 
orators, and read their newspapers, one would 
suppose that he was looking at a Chinaman 
clothed with all the pomp and circumstance of 
mask, shield, and stink-pot. The Yankee orators 
are only equalled by the Yankee editors in deeds 



of valor. Let war be breathed, and the first 
swear to a man that they are ready and anxious 
to exterminate creation, whilst the latter, not con- 
tent, like Alexander, to sigh for more worlds to 
conquer, threaten to destroy the laws of gravity, 
and lay violent hands upon the whole planetary 
system. Yet, these war mandarins are all mem- 
bers of the Peace Society, and would no more 
think of resenting a blow on the cheek, the se- 
duction of a wife, or the dishonor of a daugh- 
ter, than they would of fiying. We have not for- 
gotten how all Massachusetts collected in Boston 
Avhen Anthony Burns was to be delivered to his 
Virginia master, and swore that it should not be 
done. A single file of soldiers, however, marched 
the fugitive from State Street to the lower end of 
Long Wharf, through miles of streets packed with 
valorous fanatics, who did nothing but sing old 
Puritan hymns, with a most hideous and barba- 
rous disregard to metre. — Richmond Examiner. 



Incidents of the Fort Donelson Fight. 
— Immediately after the surrender, Capt. T. I. 
Newsham (Gen. Smith's Assistant Adjutant Gen- 
eral) rode up to the headquarters of Gen. Buck- 
ner, where he was introduced to the rebel com- 
mander. Capt. Newsham was mounted on a» 
splendid white charger. Buckner, noticing the 
horse, inquired if he was the individual who rode 
that horse during the battle the day previous. 
Capt. N. replied yes. " Then," said Buckner, 
" you certainly bear a charmed life. You at- 
tracted my attention during the entire day. I 
ordered and saw our most experienced gunners 
fu'e at you six times from a six-pounder rifled 
gun, and noticed other gunners aiming at you 
also." Capt. Newsham informed me that two 
rifled ten-pound solid shots passed close by his 
back, between it and his horse's rump. Several 
passed above his head, the wind of which was 
felt by him. Another passed so near to his face 
that he felt the gust of the concussion of the* 
air. Several others passed between his body and 
his horse's head, and a charge of grape passed 
under his horse without injuring him. The skin 
of his horse, however, was barked in several 
jilaces, but the animal was not disabled. 

When Capt. N. was riding into the fort, he 
discovered a very remarkable looking gun lying 
near the breastworks. Near by was a rebel who had 
it in charge. The Captain told the rebel he would 
take it in charge, when the rebel told him that 
it was the property of his Captain, named Naugh- 
ton. Capt. Newsham replied that it would be 
safer in his hands than in those of the rebels, and 
giving the rebel his name, and telling him he 
would be responsible for it, he rode on. The 
gun refeiTcd to is most remarkable ; it is a 
Turkish arm, the stock of which is of a peculiar 
shape, and very bulky. The bands of the piece 
are of pure silver, inlaid with figured gold and 
ivory. The barrel is of Damascus steel, three- 
quarters of an inch bore, and rifled. The gun is 
said to have cost eleven hundred dollars. The 
owner of it, Capt. Naughton, upon learning who 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



81 



had possession of it, Capt. Newsham having been 
described to him, said that Capt. N. was welcome 
to keep it ; adding, at the same time, that he had 
taken deliberate aim at him with it eleven times, 
and had seldom before been known to miss his mark. 
Quite as much astonishment may be felt at the 
miraculous escape of General Smith, as he never 
for a moment screened himself from the contin- 
uous fire of the rebel cannon and musketry. It 
is said of him, that he was never seen to dodge 
a shot during the entire fight, while all the of- 
ficers around him kept ducking their heads M'hen- 
ever the enemy's cannon belched forth their fearful 
messengers, but rode majestically along his lines 
and among his men, where ball, and shot, and shell 
fell like showers of hail around him, as though 
some revelation had given him assurance of safety. 

At one time, while swinging his sword above his 
head, a ten-pound solid shot passed between his 
arm and head, another passed in such close prox- 
imity to his head as to raise his cap, and a spent 
grapeshot struck him in the stomach. There were 
fourteen mounted men, his staff, and orderlies, at- 
tending upon Gen. Smith, and, strange to relate, 
not one of them was hit, although men were struck 
down by shot and shell between their horses and 
on all sides of them. Gen. Smith showed himself a 
true soldier in sharing the same hardships with his 
men, as on the night of the battle, and preceding 
the surrender, he slept by the side of a log, wrapped 
in his blankets, without any tent to. cover him 
from the inclemency of the weather, his feet 
towards his camp-fire, with the cold so intense 
that his blankets caught fire at his feet and burned 
into his boots before he felt the heat. 

The following is a statement of a very remark- 
able and praiseworthy case of a young man at- 
tached to the Thirty-first regiment of Illinois vol- 
unteers (Colonel John A. Logan). He received 
a musket-shot wound in the right thigh, the ball 
passing through the intervening flesh, and lodg- 
ing in the left thigh. The boy repaired to the rear, 
and applied to the doctor to dress his wound. 
He, however, manifested a peculiar reserve in the 
matter, requesting the doctor to keep his misfor- 
tune a secret from his comrades and officers. 

He then asked the surgeon if he would dress his 
wound at once in order that he might be enabled to 
return to the fight. The snrgeon told him that 
he was not in a condition to admit of his return, 
and that he had better go to the hospital ; but 
the young brave insisted upon going back, ofter- 
ing as an argument in favor of it the fact that he 
had fired twenty-two rounds after receiving his 
wound, and he was confident he could fire as 
many more after his wound should be dressed. 
The surgeon found he could not prevent his re- 
turning to the field ; so he attended to his wants, 
andthe young soldier went oft" to rejoin his com- 
rades in their struggle, and remained, dealing out 
his ammunition to good account until the day 
was over, as if nothing had happened to him. 
Several days after, he returned to the doctor to 
have his wound re-dressed, and continued to pay 
him daily visits in his leisure hours, attending to 
duty in the mean time. 

6 



A case in some particulars not dissimilar to the 
above is related of a boy about eleven years old, 
whose father, a volunteer, had been taken pris- 
oner by the rebels some time before. The boy 
smuggled himself on board one of the transports 
at Cincinnati, laden with troops for this point. 
On the field, the morning of the great fight, he 
joined the Seventy-tiighth Ohio, and being ques- 
tioned by one of the ofiicers, he told him of his 
father having been taken prisoner, and, having 
no mother, he had no one to care for him, and he 
wanted to fight his father's captors. The officer 
tried to get him to turn back, but he was not to 
be denied. So he succeeded in obtaining a mus- 
ket, and went into the thickest of the battle. He 
finally by degrees crept up within a short distance 
of the rebel intrenchments, and posted himself 
behind a tree, from which he kept firing as often 
as he could see a head to fire at. He was soon 
discovered by the enemy's sharpshooters, who 
endeavored to drive him away from his position, 
as he kept picking them off" very frequently. One 
of the rebels, who was outside of the work, got 
sight on the boy with his rifie, but before he got 
his piece oif, the little warrior filled, and down 
went Mr. Rebel. As the rebel had a fine Minie 
rifle, the boy ran out and picked it up, taking 
time to get pouch and balls, together with his 
knapsack, while the bullets were flying on all 
sides of him ; and then he retreated to his wooden 
breastwork, where he renewed his fire, and with a 
little better success.; and, after being in the fight 
all day, he returned to the Seventy-eighth at 
night with his prizes. This story might appear 
incredible for one so young to be the hero, but it 
is vouched for by a number of officers and men 
who saw the boy on the field and in the position 
mentioned, and many saw him shoot the rebel 
referred to, besides several others. 

Another case, very similar to the last, is that of 
one of Birge's sharpshooters, w'hQ succeeded in 
getting witliin speaking distance of the fort, 
where he planted himself behind a stump, and by 
his unerring aim, succeeded in keeping one of 
their guns silent during the whole day. As fast as 
the men appeared to man it, they were let down 
by a shot from his rifle. Every effort was made to 
dislodge him from his death-dealing position, but 
without effect. He kept it until the rebels, find- 
ing it to be certain death to attempt to man the 
gun, completely abandoned it. This case has 
been presented to General Grant, and will doubt- 
less receive, as it should, special mention. 

A surprising case of escape from instantaneous 
death is presented by one of the surgeons who 
was on the field during the day. A private in 
the Eighteenth Illinois regiment was struck in 
the thigh by a twelve-pound round shell, which 
buried itself in the thigh, but did not explode. 
It was cut out on the field by Dr. Davis, sur- 
geon of the Eighteenth Illinois regiment. The 
limb was, of course, terribly shattered, rendering 
amputation necessary. 

An instance of unprecedented endurance and 
patience occurred at the hospital on the right 
wing. The columns having been forced back^ 



82 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



the hospital, which was a little up from the road, 
had come within range of the rebels' fire, and was 
fast becoming an unpleasant position, but no 
damage was done to it. Just about this time, a 
poor fellov/ came sauntering leisurely along, with 
the lower part of his arm dangling from the part 
above the elbow, it having been struck with a 
grape-shot. Meeting the surgeon in the house, 
who was busily attending to other wounded, he 
inquired how long it would be before he could at- 
tend to him, and was told, in a few minutes. 
" All right," said the wounded man, and then 
walked outside and watched the progress of the 
battle for a short time, and then returned and 
waited the surgeon's opportunity to attend to 
liim. The arm was amputated without a mur- 
mur from the unfortunate man. After the stump 
was bound up, the young man put his good hand 
into his pocket and took out a piece of tobacco, 
from which he took a chew, then walking over 
to the fire, he leaned his well arm against the 
mantel-piece, and rested his head against his arm, 
and kept squirting tobacco-juice into the fire, 
whilst his eyes were cast into the flames, all with 
the most astonishing composure, as though he 
was indulging in some pleasant reverie. He re- 
mained in this position for some time, then walked 
ofi", and went out of sight near where the fighting 
was going on. 

A young man came strolling down to the trans- 
port with one arm amputated ; and in the well 
hand he held three chickens, which he had cap- 
tured. A steward of one of the boats stepped up 
to him, and asked him if he wanted to sell the 
chickens. He looked at the chickens for a little 
while, and repUed, " Well, no. I had so much 
trouble in catching the d — d things, I believe I'll 
eat 'em myself; " and off he went with his fowl 
prisoners. 

Orderly-Sergeant Charles A. Bedard, Company 
H. of the immortal Eleventh Illinois, was killed 
in the morning fight of the 15th inst. He was 
a brother of Frank W. Bedard, of the St. Charles 
Hotel, at Cairo. His bravery and coolness on 
the field during a most terrific fu'e from the 
enemy are spoken of in the most praiseworthy 
terms by officers and men. His only attention 
during the severest of the fight appeared to 
be in keeping his men in fine, and preventing 
disorder in the ranks, moving along in the face of 
the foe, watching with jealous care his men in 
charge, as on he pushed, loading, firing, and re- 
loading his piece. 



THE PICKET GUARD. 

BY MRS. HOWLAND. 

" All quiet along the Potomac," they say, 
" Except now and then a stray picket 
Is shot, as he walks on his beat to and fro, 

By a rifleman in the thicket. 
'.Tis nothing — a private or two, now and then, 

"Will not count in the news of the battle ; 
Not an officer lost — only one of the men. 
Moaning out, all alone, the death-rattle." 



All quiet along the Potomac to-night, 

"Where the soldiers lie peacefully dreaming ; 
Their tents, in the rays of the clear autumn moon, 

Or the light of the watch-fires, are gleaming. 
A tremulous sigh, as the gentle night wind 

Through the forest leaves softly is creeping ; 
"While stars up above, with their glittering eyes, 

Keep guard — for the army is sleeping. 

There's only the sound of the lone sentry's tread. 

As he tramps from the rock to the fountain. 
And thinks of the two in the low trundle-bed. 

Far away in the cot on the mountain. 
His musket falls slack — his face, dark and grim, 

Grows gentle with memories tender. 
As he mutters a prayer for the children asleep — 

For their mother — may Heaven defend her ! 

The moon seems to shine just as brightly as then, 

That night, when the love yet unspoken 
Leaped up to his lips — when low, murmured 
vows 

Were pledged to be ever unbroken. 
Then drawing his sleeve roughly over his eyes, 

He dashes off tears that are welling, 
And gathers his gun closer up to its place, 

As if to keep down the heart-swelling. 

He passes the foimtain, the blasted pine tree — 

The footstep is lagging and weary ; 
. Yet onward he goes, through the broad belt of 
light. 
Towards the shades of the forest so dreary. 
Hark ! was it the night- wind that rustled the 
leaves ? 
Was it moonlight so wondrously flashing ? 
It looked like a rifle — " Ha ! Mary, good-by ! " 
And the life-blood is ebbing and plashing. 

All quiet along the Potomac to-night — 
No sound save the rush of the river ; 

While soft falls the dew on the face of the dead — 
The picket's off duty forever. 



The Tone of Bullets. — A soldier, writing 
from one of the camps on the Potomac, thus al- 
luded to the peculiar music made by bullets pass- 
ing through the air : " It is a very good place to 
exercise the mind, with the enemy's picket rat- 
tling close at hand. A musical ear can study 
the diflerent tones of the bullets as they skim 
through the air. I caught the pitch of a large- 
sized Minie yesterday — it was a swell from E 
flat to F, and as it passed into the distance and 
lost its velocity, receded to D — a very pretty 
change. One of the most startling sounds is 
that produced by the Hotchkiss shell. It comes 
like the shriek of a demon, and the bravest old 
soldiers feel like ducking when they hear it. It 
is no more destructive than some other missiles, 
but there is a good deal in mere sound to work 
upon men's fears. i 

" The tremendous scream is caused by a ragged \ 
edge of lead, which is left on the shell. In fa- 'j 
vorable positions of light, the phenomenon can , 
sometimes be seen, as you stand directly behind ] 
a gun, of the clinging of the air to the ball. The ' 
ball seems to gather up the atmosphere, and " 
carry it along, as the earth carries its atmos- 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



83 



phere through space. Men are frequently killed 
by the wind of a cannon-shot. There is a law 
which causes the atmosphere to cling to the 
earth, or which presses upon it with a force, at 
the surface, of fifteen pounds to the square inch ; 
does the same law, or a modification, pertain to 
cannon-balls in flight? I do not remember of 
meeting with a discussion of the subject in any 
published work. It is certainly an interesting 
philosophic question." 



An Incident of Romney. — While the Na- 
tional forces were standing under the enemy's 
fire, on the day of the battle at Romney, Va., 
and the shot and shell were flying in every direc- 
tion around us, a little incideat occurred which is 
worthy of notice. 

Capt. Butterfield, of the Eighth Ohio regi- 
ment, (being one of the ranking Captains,) acted 
as Major upon that occasion, and was obliged to 
ride an old sorrel horse, which had been used as 
a team horse, and requh'ed both spurs and whip, 
which the Captain had provided himself with, the 
latter cut from a tree, and about five feet long. 
It was found that our small six-pound guns would 
not reach the enemy's battery, and Col. Mason 
ordered Capt. B. to bring forward a brass twelve- 
pounder, which was in the rear. Ofi' sped the 
old sorrel and his brave rider, and in a few mo- 
ments up came the gun. Its position was as- 
signed, and made ready for the match, but the 
Cai^tain came dashing back in front of the gun, 
and the smell of powder, or something else, had 
made the old sorrel almost unmanageable, for in 
trying to wheel him from the front of the gun, 
the more the Captain apphed the whip and spur, 
the more the old sorrel would not go. This kept 
the gunners in terrible suspense, for much de- 
pended on that shot. Finally, the Captain find- 
ing his efforts to move his steed fruitless, he 
sang out, at the top of his voice, " Never mind 
the old horse ; blaze away ; " and, sure enough, 
they did bla2e away, and it proved a good shot, 
for it caused the rebels to limber up theu* bat- 
tery, and take to their heels. At that moment, 
orders came to charge, and off dashed the old sor- 
sel, frightened at the discharge of the gun, which 
had scorched his tail, and mingled in the charge. 
He was lost to view until he arrived in the town, 
where he was brought to a halt, and the Captain, 
standing in his stirrups, with his cap flying, 
cheered for the glorious victory that had been 
achieved. 

A dying Soldier prays for the President. 
— Never, until we stood by the grave of the Green 
Mountain boy, did we realize how much stranger 
is truth than fiction. A private was court-mar- 
tialed for sleeping on his post out near Chain 
Bridge, on the Upper Potomac. He was con- 
victed ; his sentence was death ; the finding was 
approved of by the General, and the day fixed 
for his execution. He was a youth of more than 
ordinary intelligence ; he did not beg for pardon, 
but was willing to meet his fate. 



The time drew near ; the stern necessity of 
war required that an example should be made of 
some one ; his was an aggravated case. But the 
case reached the ears of the President ; he re- 
solved to save him ; he signed a pardon and sent 
it out ; the day came. " Suppose," thought the 
President, "my pardon has not reached him." 
The telegraph was called into requisition ; an 
answer did not come promptly. " Bring up my 
carriage," he ordered. It came ; and soon the 
important state papers were dropped, and 
through the hot broiling sun and dusty roads he 
rode to the camp, about ten miles, and saw that 
the soldier was saved ! 

He had, doubtless, forgotten the incident, but 
the soldier did not. When the Third Vermont 
charged upon the rifle-pits, the enemy poured a 
volley upon them. The first man who fell, with 
six bullets in his bodj^, was William Scott, of 
Company K. His comrades caught him up, and 
as his life-blood ebbed away, he raised to heaven, 
amid the din of war, the cries of the dying, and 
the shouts of the enemy, a prayer for the Presi- 
dent, and as he died he remarked to his comrade 
that he had shown he was no coward, and not 
afraid to die. 

He was interred, in the jjresence of his regi- 
ment, in a little grove, about two miles to the 
rear of the rebel fort, in the centre of a group of 
holly and vines ; a few cherry trees, in full bloom, 
are scattered around the edge. In digging his 
grave a skull and bones were found, and metal 
buttons, showing that the identical spot had been 
used in the I'evolutionary war for our fathers 
who fell in the same cause. The chaplain nar- 
rated the circumstance to the boys, who stood 
around with uncovered heads. He prayed for 
the President, and paid the most glowing tribute 
to his noble heart that we ever heard. The tears 
started to their eyes as the clods of earth were 
thrown upon him in his narrow grave, where he 
lay shrouded in his coat and blanket. 

The men separated ; in a few minutes all were 
engaged in something around the camp, as though 
nothing had happened unusual ; but that scene 
will live upon their memories while life lasts ; the 
calm look of Scott's face, the seeming look of 
satisfaction he felt, still lingered ; and could the 
President have seen him, he would have felt that 
his act of mercy had been wisely bestowed. 



Adventures of Two Hoosier Soldiers. — 
A couple of boys, of the Twenty-sixth Indiana 
regiment, Marshall Storey and WiUiam Waters, 
were sent with despatches to Independence, Mo., 
distant from Sedalia ninety miles. They were 
dressed as citizens, without arms or papers that 
would detect them if cajitured or examined. The 
despatches were snugly secreted in their hats and 
boots. Their route was directly through the 
country infested by the bands of jayhawkers un- 
der the famous guerrilla chief Quantrell. The 
boys made their way without molestation, until 
within about twenty miles of Independence, when, 
passing through the brush, they were halted by 



84 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



five shot-gun armed rebels, who ordered them off 
their horses and demanded then- busmess. The 
boys said they were hunting for a horse wliich 
had been stolen by some home-guards, and, as 
they had learned, taken through that part of the 
country. They protested that they were secesh 
of the right stripe, and lived six miles north of 
Booneville. They were, however, searched. Find- 
ing nothing but a few fishing-hooks, which Marsh 
had in his vest-pocket, and which the rebels ap- 
propriated, they were allowed to go on their way. 
riie boys, thinking all safe now, pushed on ; but 
in crossing a neck of woods about five miles far- 
ther on, they were ' again called to a halt by a 
l)and of seven men, armed in the regular jayhawk- 
ing style, who were some fifty yards from them. 
Marsh, Avhose wit is ready on all occasions, whis- 
pered to his companion that he would " play cra- 
zy." Waters should be his brother, taking him 
home from St. Louis. Marsh has a peculiar way 
of drawing one eye down, which makes him look 
rather comical. This, with the slobber running 
d(;wn his dusty whiskers, and his long hair hang- 
ing over his forehead, enabled him to play the 
game successfully. As soon as they came near, 
he jumped off his horse and ran towards them, 
and Waters yelled out : " Don't mind him ; he's 
crazy ; he don't know what he's doing." Marsh 
looked very foolishly at their clothes, guns, 
horses, &c. He became particularly fond of a 
pretty black pon}^, which he concluded he must 
have instead of the poor old horse he had been 
riding, and even got on the pony and started oft'. 
Tins tickled all the rebels except the owner of 
the pony, Avho caught him and jerked him off. 
Marsh, to carry on the joke, gathered a stick of 
v/ood and made fight. This caused the others to 
yell with laughter. Waters came to his rescue, 
i.nd told them not to provoke him, as it made 
liim worse. In the mean time, Waters had been 
searched from head to foot, but with no better 
success than rewarded the first hand. Waters 
tried to get Marsh on his horse ; but no, he must 
have the pony, which he almost fought for. Fi- 
nally, one of the band came forward and assisted 
Waters. Marsh very reluctantly left pony and 
rebels. As soon as they were out of sight, they 
put spurs to their nags, and reached Indepen- 
dence, after a ride, including the two stops, of 
four hours. 



A Patriotic Blacksmith. — Before the de- 
parture of the 14th New York regiment for the 
war, a man, who carried on a blacksmith shop in 
connection with two of his sons, went to the head- 
([uarters, and concluded to enlist. He said that 
liC could leave the blacksmith business in the 
hands of the boys. He couldn't stand it any 
longer, and go he must. He was enlisted. 

Next day down comes the oldest of the boys. 
Tlie blacksmith's business " wasn't very drivin', 
and he guessed John could take care of it." 
■•Well," said the old man, "go it." And the 
oldest son went it. But the following day John 
made his appearance. He felt lonesome, and had 



shut up the shop. The father remonstrated, but 
the boy would enlist, and enlist he did. Now the 
old gentleman had two more sons, who " worked 
the farm " near Flushing, Long Island. The mili- 
tary fever seems to have run in the family ; for no 
sooner had the father and two older brothers en- 
listed, than the younger sons came in for a like 
purpose. The paterfamilias was a man of few 
words, but he said that he " wouldn't stand this 
anyhow." The blacksmith business might go to — 
some other place, but the farm must be looked 
after. So the boys were sent home. Presently one 
of them reappeared. They had concluded that one 
could manage the farm, and had tossed up who 
should go with the Fourteenth, and he had won 
the chance. 

This arrangement was finally agreed to. But 
on the day of departure the last boy of the fam- 
ily was on hand to join, and on foot for march- 
ing. The old man was somewhat puzzled to 
know what arrangement could have been made 
which would allow all of the family to go : but 
the explanation of the boy solved the dif- 
ficulty. " Father," said he, with a confidential 
chuckle in the old man's ear, " I've let the fai'm 
on shares ! " The whole family, father and four 
sons, went with the Fourteenth regiment. 



A Sentimental Young Lady in Northern 
Georgia indited the following to some of her ad- 
mhers in the " Ridgeament : " 

" 'Tis hard for youens to sleep in camp; 

'Tis hard for j'ouens to fight ; 
'Tis hard for youens through snow to tramp ; 
In snow to sleep at night ; 
But harder for weans from youens to part, 
Since youens have stolen weans hearts." 



Incidents in the Battle of Wildcat. 
— The hill upon which it took place is a round, 
lofty elevation, a third of a mile from our camp, 
surrounded by deeply-wooded ravines, and cleared 
for the space of about two acres on top. To take 
and hold this, Col. Colx;rn, with half his regi- 
ment, dashed off through the bushes in a trot 
from the camp, hke boys starting out on a turkey 
hunt. In ten minutes they could be seen on the 
high summit taking places. Very shortly they 
were fired on ; the fact is, it was a scramble be- 
tween Coburn's men and ZoUicoffer's which should 
get on the hill first, approaching from opposite di- 
rections. When the firing had fairly commenced, 
at intervals in the roar could be heard, in the 
camp, the shrill, wild voices of Cobm-n, and Dur- 
ham, his adjutant, crying out, " Give them hell, 
boys ! " " Dose them with cold lead! " " Shoot the 
hounds ! " " Load up, load up, for God's sake ! " 
" Give it to old Gollywhopper ! " Then the boys 
would cheer and yell till the glens re-echoed. 

Capt. Dille, during the fight, in rushing around 
and helping on the cause, ran astride a brier 
bush, the nethermost part of his unmentionables 
was torn, and a flag of white cotton was seen 
flaunting in the air. " One of the boys said, " o'ap- 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



85 



tain, it can't be said of you that you never turned 
tail on the enemy." By the way, the Captain is 
a heroic fellow, and did, as the boys say, " a big 
job of fighting." He has a queer old fellow in 
his company named John INIemherter, a crack 
marksman, with a big goggle, rolling eye. John 
would take his tree, fire, and then move on a lit- 
tle. At one time he was peeping over a stump 
taking aim, when a ball struck the stump a few 
inches from the top at the opposite side, which 
knocked bark and splinters in his eyes. " Bully 
for Jake ! " says John. This is now a cant phrase 
ia the camp. " Bully for Jake " can be heard at 
all hours. 

When Major Ward, of the Seventeenth Ohio, 
came over the liill with a part of the regiment. 
Col. Coburn took him down the hillside in front 
of the Kentuckians in a somewhat exposed 
place. Some one asked the Colonel why he put 
him there. " Well," said he, " I eyed him, and 
he looked like an old bull-dog ; so I put him down 
where he could wool the hounds." The Major, 
you know, never before had a compliment paid to 
his homely, sturdy face, being rather hard-favored. 
Next day some of the boys got the joke on him 
by telling him they had heard his beauty com- 
plimented. He asked for the compliment, got it, 
and dryly remarked, " that it was rather an equiv- 
ocal recommendation of his pretty face." 

Almost every officer fought gun in hand, 
except Cols. Coburn and Woodford, who Avere 
armed with navies. Capt. Hauser, Adj. Dur- 
ham, Capt. Dille, Lieuts. Maze and Scott, more 
than the men themselves, blazed away at the reb- 
els. What could not men do with such exam- 
ples set them. When part of the Kentucky boys 
fled, Capt. Alexander screamed out to the men, 
"Boys, if you are such damned cowards as to 
run, I'll stay and die." Instantly a boy scarce 
sixteen years old turned back, ran up to the Cap- 
tain's side, saying, " Yes, Cap, and I'll stay and 
die with you." He did stay, and others followed 
his example. In the afternoon, when the fighting 
had ceased. General Schoepff came over to the 
hill, and taking Cols. Coburn and Woodford by 
the hand in the presence of the boys, thanked 
them for saving the hiU, for it saved Camp Wild- 
cat, and prevented a retreat of our whole force to 
the other side of the river. Just then a shower 
of balls Avhizzed around, and one knocking the 
dirt in his eyes, the General quietly rubbed it 
out, and looked around as unconcerned as if at 
dress parade. He is a noble-looking, man, a Hun- 
garian patriot, one of Gen. Bem's officers, who 
spent three years in Turkey with him drilling 
their army. 

Just before the enemy made their charges, there 
could be seen two regiments in a neighboring 
field. One of the boys said to Col. Coburn, 
" We'll have to retreat." Another sturdy little 
fellow stepped up and swore he was not of the 
running kind, and he"d stay and fight anyhow. He 
got three cheers ; so the boys concluded to stay, 
and did stay about there all that day and night. 
Such ]3luck makes one man equal to four. Tlie 
boj-s captured an orderly sergeant's book, love 



letters, a diary, &c., giving details up to the hour 
of battle. The utmost confidence in victory was 
expressed. 

Since the battle, some of our boys were out 
looking at a grave of one of the secesh ; he had 
not been well buried, and one hand stuck out. 
"He's reaching for his land warrant," says one. 

When Col. Coburn and Capt. Dille were rally- 
ing the flying Kentuckians, the former foiyrd a 
crowd sheltered behind one stump : he cried out, 
" Pile out, pile out, boys ; it don't take seven- 
teen men to guard a black stump." It was elec- 
tric ; they after this fought like men. 



The Irish Wit always Ready. — It is now 
known that the surrender of Lexington was ren- 
dered a necessity by the want of ammunition, as 
well as by the want of water. A few of the 
companies had one or two rounds left, but the 
majority had fired their last bullet. After the 
surrender, an officer Avas detailed by Price to col- 
lect the ammunition, and place it in safe charge. 
The officer, addressing Adjutant Cosgrove, asked 
him to have the ammunition surrendered. Cos- 
grove called up a dozen men, one after the other, 
and exhibiting the empty cartridge-boxes, said 
to the astonished rebel officer, "I believe, sir, 
M'e gave you all the ammunition we had be- 
fore we had stopped fighting. Had there been 
any more, upon my word, you should have had 
it, sir. But I will inquire, and if by accident 
there is a cartridge left, I will let you know." 
The rebel officer turned away, reflecting upon 
the glorious victory of having captured men who 
had fired their last shot. 

An Irishman, from Battle Creek, Michigan, was 
at Bull Run battle, and was somewhat startled 
when the head of his companion on the left hand 
was knocked off" by a cannon-ball. A few mo- 
ments after, however, a spent ball broke the fin- 
gers of his comrade on the other side. The lat- 
ter threw down his gun and yelled with pain, 
Avhen tlie Irishman rushed to him, exclaiming, 
" Blasht your soul, you ould woman, shtop cryin' ; 
you make more noise about it than the man that 
iosht his head ! " 

A Wife on the Battle-Field. — The fol- 
loM'ing extract from a letter, dated at Corinth, on 
the 6th of October, 1862, vividly portrays the 
fearful emotions and anxious thoughts which tor- 
ture the mind of an observer during the progress 
of battle, and narrates but one of the many har- 
roAAing scenes of war : 

" O, my friend ! how can I tell you of the tor- 
tures that have nearly crazed me, for the last 
three days? Pen is powerless to trace, words 
weak to convey one tithe of the misery I have 
endured. I thought myself_ strong before. I 
have seen so much of suffering that I thought 
my nerves had grown steady, and I could bear 
anything ; but to-day I am weak and trembling, 
like a frightened child. 

" But do not wonder at it. My dear husband 
lies besides me, wounded unto death, perhaps. I 



86 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



have lost all hope of saving him, though I thank 
God for the privilege of being this moment be- 
side him. And, besides this, all around me the 
sufferers lie moaning in agony. There has been 
little time to tend them, poor fellows. True, the 
surgeons are busy all the time, but all the wounded 
have not yet been brought in, and it seems as if 
the time will never come when our brave men shall 
havg been made comfortable as circumstances may 
permit. It is awful to look around me. I can 
see every imaginable form of suffering, and yet 
am helpless to aid them any of consequence. 

" Since night before last I have not left my 
husband's side for a moment, except to get such 
tilings as I required, or to hand some poor fel- 
low a cup of water. Even as I write, my heart 
throbs achingly to hear the deep groans and 

sharp cries about me. F is sleeping, but I 

dare not close my eyes, lest he should die while 
I sleep. And it is to keep awalte, and in a man- 
ner relieve my overburdened heart, that I am 
now writing you under such sad circumstances. 

" On the morning of the thu'd instant the fight 
began. The attack was made on Gen. McAr- 
thur's division, and we could plainly hear the roar 
of the artillery here, as it is about two miles and 
a half distant only from this place. O, the 
fearful agony of that awful, awful day ! I had 

seen F- a moment early in the morning, but 

it was only a moment, when he bade me good- 
by, saying, hurriedly, as he tore himself away : 
' Pray for me, my wife, awd if I fall, God 
protect you ! ' There was something in his look 
and tone which struck a chill to my heart, and 
every moment after I knew the fight had begun, 
I felt as if he had indeed fallen. I cannot tell 
how long it was before I heard that Oglesby's 
brigade was engaged, but it seemed an age to 
me. After that my agony wjas nearly intolerable. 
I never had a thought of fear for myself; I was 

thinking only of F . Then I got the word 

that he had been hotly pursued by the rebels, 
and had fallen back. 

" Late in the afternoon I succeeded in gaining 
a little intelligible information. Poor Gen. Hack- 
leman was shot through the neck, while giving 
a command, and fell mortally wounded. He 
died between ten and eleven o'clock the same 
night, I have since learned. Up to the time of 
receiving the wound he had acted with the great- 
est bravery and enthusiasm, tempered by a cool- 
ness that made every action effective. When 
dusk at last put an end to the first day's conflict, 
1 learned that Gen. Oglesby had been danger- 
ously wounded, but could gain no intelligence of 
my husband. I could not bear the suspense. 
Dark as it was, and hopeless as it seemed to 
search for him then, I started out to the battle- 
field. 

" O, liow shall I describe the search of that 
night ? It looked like madness. It loas mad- 
ness. But all night long I staggered amongst 
bleeding corpses, over dead horses, trampled 
limbs, shattered artillery — everything that goes 
to make up the horrors of a battle-field when the 
conflict is over. They were removing the wounded 



all night. O, think how awful to stumble over 
the dead, and hear the cries of the wounded and 
dying, alone, and in the night-time. I had to 
start off alone, else they would not have let 
me go. 

" As you may suppose, I could not find him, 
either amongst the living or the dead. But the 
next morning, just after sunrise, I came to a lit- 
tle clump of timbers, where a horse had fallen — 
his head shot off, and his body half covering a 
man whom I supposed dead. His face was to 
the ground ; but, as I stooped to look closer, I 
perceived a slight movement of the body, then 
heard a faint moan. I stooped and turned the 
face upward. The head and face were both cov- 
ered with blood, but when I turned it to the 
Hght, I knew it in spite of its disfiguration. O 
God ! the agony of that moment sickened me 
almost to sufibcation. With a strength I thought 
impossible in me, I drew him, crushed and bleed- 
ing, from beneath the carcass of our poor old 
horse, whom we had botli so loved and petted, 
and dipping my handkerchief in a little pool of 
water amongst the bushes, bathed his face, and 
pressed some moisture between his parched, 
swollen lips. He was utterly senseless, and there 
was a di'eadful wound in his head. Both limbs 
were crushed hopelessly beneath his horse. He 
Avas utterly beyond the reach of human skill to 
save, but as soon as possible I had him conveyed 
to the hospital. I have nursed him ever since — 
hopelessly, and with a heart breaking with grief. 
O, how many wives, how many mothers, are 
to-day mourning the dead and dying, even as I 
mourn my dying ! He hus not opened his eyes 
to look at me, or spoken to me, since he fell. O, 
could he but speak to me once before he dies, I 
should give him up with more resignation. But 
to die thus — without a look or word ! O, my 
heart is breaking ! " 

THE GUERRILLAS. 

BY S. TEAKLE WALLIS. 

Awake and to horse, my brothers ! 

For the dawn is glimmering gray, 
And hark ! in the crackling brushwood 

There are feet that tread this way. 

" Who cometh ? " "A friend." " What tidings ? " 

" O God ! I sicken to tell ; 
For the earth seems earth no longer, 

And its sights are sights of hell ! 

" From the far-off conquered cities 

Comes a voice of stifled wail, 
And the shrieks and moans of the houseless 

Ring out like a dirge on the gale. 

" I've seen from the smoking village 

Our mothers and daughters fly ; 
I've seen where the little children 

Sank down in the furrows to die. 

" On the banks of the battle-stained river 

I stood as the moonlight shone, 
And it glared on the face of my brother 

As the sad wave swept liim on. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



87 



'« Where my home was glad are ashes, 
And horrors and shame had been there, 

For I found on the fallen lintel 
This tress of my wife's torn hair ! 

" They are turning the slaves upon us, 
And with more than the fiend's worst art 

Have uncovered the fire of the savage 
That slept in his untaught heart ! 

" The ties to our hearths that bound him, 
They have rent with curses awaj% 

And maddened him, with their madness, 
To be almost as brutal as they. 

<* With halter, and torch, and Bible, 
And hymns to the sound of the drum. 

They preach the gospel of murder. 
And pray for lust's kingdom to come. 

" To saddle ! to saddle ! my brothers ! 

Look up to the rising sun, 
And ask of the God who shines there 

Whether deeds like these shall be done. 

*' Wherever the Vandal cometh 

Press home to his heart with your steel, 

And when at his bosom you cannot. 
Like the serpent, go strike at his heel. 

" Through thicket and wood go hunt him, 

Creep up to his camp-fire side. 
And let ten of his corpses blacken, 

Where one of o.ur brothers hath died. 

< In his fainting foot-sore marches. 

In his flight from the stricken fray, 
In the snare of the lonely ambush. 
The debts we owe him pay. 

«' In God's hand alone is vengeance. 
But he strikes with the hands of men. 

And his blight would wither our manhood 
If we smite not the smiter again. 

" By the graves where our fathers slumber, 
By the shrines where our mothers prayed, 

By our homes, and hopes, and freedom, 
Let every man swear on his blade, 

'• That he will not sheath nor stay it. 

Till from point to hilt it glow 
With the flush of Almighty vengeance 

In the blood of the fdon foe." 

They swore — and the answering sunlight 
Leaped red from their lifted swords, 

And the hate in their hearts made echo 
To the wrath in their burning words. 

There's weeping in all New England, 
And by Schuylkill's banks a knell, 

And the widows there, and the orphans, 
How the oath was kept can tell. 



The Spirit of '76. — While the Senate of 
Maryland were in session in the State House, at 
Annapolis, a number of soldiers entered the ante- 
room, and inquired if the Senate Chamber was 
not the place where Gen. Washington once stood. 
An employee of the House answered that it was, 
and showed one of them, as near as he could, the 



spot where Washington stood when he resigned 
his commission. The young man reverently ap- 
proached the spot, and standing for several min- 
utes apparently fixed to the j)Iace, hastily turned 
and left the chamber, exclaiming, that he could 
stand U_ no longer, for he " felt his Fourth of 
July rising too fast." 



THE CRUISE OF THE ALABAMA. 

Narrated by uer Officers. 

It was the 13th of August, 1862, that we left 
Liverpool in the chartered steamer Bahama, to 
the Western Isles, where we were to meet the 
Alabama, which had gone out before us to re- 
ceive her armament, officers, and crew, for ser- 
vice. Our party consisted chiefly of the former 
officers of the Sumter — the gallant little vessel 
which created so much terror amongst the Yankee 
bottoms on the American coast, and although 
pm-sued by all the Federal fleet, crossed the At- 
lantic in winter with safety, and found a harbor 
refuge under the guns of Gibraltar. There, 
however, she was blockaded, and was sold on 
account of the Confederate States Government. 
She was re-purchased privately, and her hull was 
taken over to England, where she was to be 
refitted, and is now, no doubt, afloat again under 
another name, but still hearing proudly the 
Southern flag. Her officers followed their cap- 
tain, ready to obey his orders, for all admired 
him as a skilful seaman, a good tactician, an 
excellent diplomatist, and a brave man. They 
spent a short time in England, when the Alabama, 
or 290, as she was then named, was pm'chased, 
and Capt. Semmes at once prepared to take 
command of her, under commission from Presi- 
dent Davis, with the object of doing as much 
damage as possible to the enemy's commerce on 
the sea. 

At Porta Praya, in the Island of Terceii'a, 
(Azores,) we found our ship taking in guns, am- 
munition, &c., which had been brought to this 
place by chartered vessels. The Alabama pleased 
us all. She is a fine ship of 1040 tons; the 
length of keel, 210 feet ; breadth of beam, 32 
feet ; depth of hold, 1 7 feet 3 inches ; has two 
engines combined of 300 horse power, and three 
furnaces, each below the water line ; the diameter 
of her propeller is 14 feet, with two blades 3 
feet in width and 2 1 feet pitch ; and is capable of 
running 14 knots. She mounts eight guns — one 
rifled 7-inch Blakeley's patent, and one 8-inch 
shell or solid-shot gun, (pivots,) and six 32- 
pounders of forty-two hundred weight, (broad- 
sides.) Her motto is : Aide toi et Dieu faidera. 
The officers numbered twenty, and the crew at this 
time only eighty — and the terms which the latter 
insisted upon on engaginy called forth the remark 
from Capt. Semmes, that the modern sailor has 
greatly changed in character ; for he laow stickles 
for pay like a sharper, and seems to have lost his 
former love of adventure and recklessness. The 
ordinary seamen get as much as £4 10 jjcr mouth ; 
petty officers, £5 to £6 ; firemen, £7. All the 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



officers held commissions from the Confederate 
States Government, and receive pay according to 
the regular scale, varying from £100 to £800 
per annum. 

On the 24th of August, the command of the 
Alabama was formally handed over by Capt. Bul- 
lock (who had brought her out from Liverpool) 
to Capt. Semmes ; and the " Stars and Bars " 
were flung to the wind amid the cheers of all 
hands. The Captain called all the crew and ex- 
plained to them the risks and dangers they would 
liave to undergo, and the inducement of prize 
money ; furthermore, he said he did not intend 
to rush headlong into battle with a whole fleet 
o£ the enemy, btit that he did not intend to run 
away if he met with any, and that he Avould give 
battle to the last, so that he expected every man 
to do his duty. He did not wish to deceive or 
entice any one to go, and they were free to judge 
for themselves, either to stay in the Alabama or 
return with the Bahama to Liverpool. This 
speech had a good efl'ect, and was loudly cheered, 
and very few left with the Bahama, which then 
parted comi>any with us. 

After leaving Terceira, several days were de- 
voted to putting our ship in order and drilling 
the crew, who were mostly good seamen, but un- 
acquainted with naval discipline. On the 5th 
September Ave caught our first prize, the Ockmul- 
gee, off" the Azores, and continued to cruise in 
that vicinity for about ten days, capturii^g and 
destroying several ships of the enemy. From 
the Azores we proceeded to the Banks of New- 
foundland, and cruised thence in the direction 
of New York, capturing and destroying several 
other valuable ships. Among our seizures were 
the Starlight, on board of which we found some 
despatches for Secretary Seward ; the Tonawanda, 
bound fro'm New York to Liverpool, with seventy- 
five passengers, forty of whom were women ; and 
the T. B. Wales, from Calcutta, with an Ameri- 
can consul and his lady on board. We provided 
for them as well as possible — two of the ward- 
room officers giving up their rooms for them. 
The consul, however, got so troublesome and in- 
termeddling, that Capt. Semmes had to tell him 
that he was only tolerated there on account of 
his lady ; but if he again spoke to the men or 
his crew, he would be put in double irons and 
tied to the gun rack — which threat had its in- 
tended effect on the Yankee. The fate of the 
vessels captured was to be destroyed by fire, and 
the night effect of this spectacle at sea was some- 
times very striking. One of the doomed vessels, 
the Levi Starbuck, was set on fire at six o'clock in 
the evening, and was one of the grandest sights 
ever witnessed by us. After the decks took fire, 
the flame sprang to the rigging, running from yard 
to yard, until it reached the royal truck, leaving 
half the canvas-head burnt away, and forming 
one mass of glittering stars ; in a few minutes 
afterwards the powder charges exploded, tearing 
the vessel into a thousand pieces. 

When within about 250 miles of New York, 
finding we had but four days' coal on board, 
Capt. Semmes bore ofl" for the island of Mar- 



tinique, where he had ordered a coal ship to ren- 
dezvous. On the way we captured and destroyed 
two very valuable shijjs. We reached Martinique 
on the 18th November, where we were received 
with enthusiasm by the inhabitants ; but finding 
that our coal ship had been there a week or ten 
days, and that the object of her visit was well 
known, Capt. Semmes sent her out to sea again, 
appointing a new rendezvous. Jt was well that 
he did so, for she had not been gone twenty-four 
hours when the United States frigate San Jacinto 
arrived. Immediately she was seen, all our hands 
were called to quarters, ready for action, think- 
ing the enemy would put his threat into force, 
of running into us, wherever he found us ; but, 
as usual, it turned out t-o be tleir mode of gain- 
ing a victory. The San Jacinto kept moving in 
and out so long, that the Governor of the island 
boarded her, and ordered her either to come to 
anchor or proceed to sea, three miles clear of 
the land, which she obeyed, and lay to, block- 
ading the port. Capt. Semmes determined to go 
out and fight her ; but was advised against this 
by the French officer, who came on board of us, 
who said she was too heavy, as she carried twelve 
eight-inch broadside guns, and two eleven-inch 
pivots, with a creAv of two hundred and fifty 
men. The Governor said that if we desired to 
take in coals, we must get under the guns of his 
fort, and he would protect us against Admiral 
"Wilkes and his fleet ; but as' the bark with coals 
\fh,s sent ofl" the day before, we concluded it was 
best to go to sea. So at eight o'clock that night 
we got ready for action, and steamed out of 
harbor, without any molestation from the en- 
emy, who was keeping watch and ward a ma- 
rine league ofi". We coaled at the Island of 
Blanquille, on the coast of Venezuela, the new 
rendezvous appointed ; and here we found a 
United States whaling schooner, but forbore to 
capture her, because of the claim of Venezuela to 
the barren little island — a claim as barren as the 
island, for there Avas no settled population on it, 
and, of course, no vestige of goA-ernment. There 
Avere only tAVO or three fishermen's huts on the 
place ; and we put ashore, Avith the brand of 
iniiimy, a seaman named Forest, who had de- 
serted from the Sumter, and Avas captured on 
board one of our prizes ; he was found guilty 
of inciting the crew to munity. 

Desiring to strike a blow at the enemy, the 
Alabama, after coaling, sailed for the east end 
of Cuba, in the track of the California steam- 
ers. On our Avay we captured and destroyed a 
bark from Boston for Aux Cayes ; on the 7th 
of November, after lying off Cape Maise for sev- 
eral days, Ave captured the U. S. steamer Ariel 
— unfortunately outward, instead of homeAvard 
bouixl. She was brcjught to by a shot Avhich struck 
her mizzenmast. She had on board $8000 in '■ 
United States treasury notes, and $1500 in silver ; 
and as there Avas no certificate or other papers on 
board claiming it as neutral property, it Avas 
taken possession of as prize of Avar. There were 
one hundred and foi'ty marines on board, Avith 
i six oflicers, all of Avhom were disarmed and pa- 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



89 



roled, as was also Commander Saston, U. S. A., 
who was on board. As this ship had some 
seven hundred passengers and crew, many of 
whom were Avomen and children, and it was 
alike impossible to take her into a neutral port, 
or to receive the passengers in the Alabama, 
there was no alternative but to release her under 
a ransom bond of $250,000 ; and as we parted 
company, the passengers gave three cheers for 
Capt. Semmes. 

After this the Alabama hove to on the north 
side of Jamaica, to repair some damage which 
had happened to one of our engines, and then 
set out for the Accas Island, Gulf of Mexico, 
where we refilled with coal, and calked and re- 
paired ship. Here some of our men erected on 
the island an epitaph in black, " To the memory 
of Abe Lincoln, who died January, 1861, of 
negro fever of the head," with a card on which 
was written, in Spanish, instructions to those 
who visit the island to forward the board to the 
nearest United States Consul. 

On board the Ariel we found some New York 
papers containing accounts of an intended ex- 
pedition by Gen. Banks, which we concluded was 
destined for Texas, and we presumed would ren- 
dezvous at Galveston. As it was said that the 
expedition was to consist of twenty thousand 
men, we knew a large number of transports 
would be required : many of these vessels would 
have to lie outside- the bar, and we determined 
upon making a night attack upon forty or fifty 
of them, laden with troops, sink and set on fire 
many of them, and escape before our vessel could 
be pursued by a superior force. As it afterwards 
turned out, we found the expedition of Gen. 
Banks took another direction, and landed at New 
Orleans. 

After coaling at Accas, however, the Alabama 
set sail for Galveston, and arrived there on the 
11th Januar}', and before nightfall made out the 
enemy's fleet lying off the bar, consisting of five 
ships of war. One of their steamers we ob- 
served to get under weigh, and come in our di- 
rection. Captain Semmes ordered steam to be 
got up, but kept sail on our vessel as a decoy, to 
entice the enemy's ship suflSciently far from the 
fleet to give battle. We wore ship, and stood 
away from the bar, permitting the enemy to ap- 
proach by slow degrees. When she was suffi- 
ciently near we took in all sail, and wearing 
short round, ran up within hail. It was now 
dark, about nine o'clock. The enemy hailed: 
"What ship is that?" We replied: "Her 
Majesty's steamer Petrel." The reply was,. " I'll 
send a boat on board." 

We now hailed in turn, to know what the en- 
emy was, and when we received the rqply that 
she was the United States steamer Hatteras, we 
again hailed and informed him that we were the 
Confederate steamer Alabama ; and at the same 
time Capt. Semmes directed the First Lieutenant 
to open fire on him. This fire was promptly re- 
turned, and a brisk action ensued, whicli lasted, 
however, only thirteen minutes, as at the end of 
that time the enemy fii'ed an oft'-gun, and showed 



a light ; and on being hailed to know if he sur- 
rendered, he said he did, and was in a sinking 
condition. We immediately despatched boats to 
his assistance, and had just time to rescue the 
cre\y, when the ship went down. The casual- 
ties were slight on both sides, although the ac- 
tion was fought at a distance of one hundred 
and fifty to four hundred yards. Our shot all 
told on his hull, about the water-line, and hence 
the small number of killed and wounded on the 
])art of tlie enemy — two of the former, and 
three of the latter. We had none killed, and 
only one wounded, although the Alabama re- 
ceived several shot-holes, doing no material 
damage. The Hatteras mountetl eight guns, and 
had a crew of eighteen officers and one hundred 
and eight men. The Alabama had also eight 
guns, with a small captured piece, (a twenty-four- 
pounder, too light to be of any service,) and a 
crew of one hundred and ten men, exclusive of 
officers. Four of the Hatteras' guns were thirty- 
two pounders, the same calibre as our broadside 
guns, but our pivot guns were heavier than 
theirs. This was the only disparity between the 
two ships. The U. S. frigate Brooklyn and 
another steamer came out in pursuit soon after 
the action commenced, but missed us in the 
darkness of the night. The Alabama then pro- 
ceeded to Kingston, Jamaica, where the prison- 
ers were landed on the 20th January, and Ave 
repaired damages and coaled, and on the 25th 
proceed again to sea. 

We touched at the Island of St. Domingo, on 
the 28th, to land two enemy's creAvs we had cap- 
tured ; sailed again next day for the Equator, 
and remained for some days at the Island of Fer- 
nando de Noronha. From thence we put into 
Bahia, where Ave landed more prisoners. The 
Government at this place demanded explanations 
of our proceedings at Fernando de Noronha, as 
the American Consul represented that Ave had 
made captures there in Brazilian Avaters ; but as 
Ave clearly shoAved that no vessel had been taken 
within a prescribed distance from the island, the 
authorities were satisfied, and we Avere alloAved 
to remain ten days, refitting. MeauAA'hile, the 
Castor, a coal ship, ostensibly bound for Shanghai, 
entered the port, and Ave commenced coaling 
from her. The American Consul again protested, 
and Avrote to the President of Bahia, stating that 
the Castor had on board guns and sailors for the 
Confederates. The President next day forAvarded 
this complaint to the Enghsh Consul at Bahia, 
inviting him to accompany the custom-house offi- 
cers on board the Castor, to see Avhether the com- 
plaint had any foundation. The Enghsh Consul 
returned the foUoAving reply : 

" The denunciation of the American Consul is 
devoid of foundation. The facts he has put for- 
Avard are quite inexact. The opinion he expresses 
is entirely illusive. The English Consul has been 
on board the Castor; has ascertained that she 
does not carry arms ; that her creAV consists only 
of the men upon the ship's books ; and that the 
only real fact of those alleged is her delivery of 
coal — a proceeding Avhich it is the sole aim of 



90 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



the American Consul to prevent. The Consul is 
ready to be present at the visit proposed by the 
President. The Captain of the Castor is perfectly 
willing to permit such visit, but the Consul, in 
any case, protests against every act assuming the 
character of the right of search or of requisition 
by the Consul of the United States. He (the 
English Consul) entertains grave doubts of the 
American Consul's right, owing to the mere sup- 
ply of coal, to raise any claim against an English 
ship, belonging to a neutral nation, at anchor in 
the harbor of Bahia, a neutral port. The neu- 
trality resulting from the independent exercise of 
its right by a state cannot obstruct commercial 
relations, and a belligerent power is not entitled 
to demand their cessation in a neutral port be- 
tween its opponent and the subjects of a neutral 
nation. Toleration by the President of the prov- 
ince of the supply of coal, by an English ship, to 
the Confederate cruisers in this port, cannot 
(without infringing common sense and interna- 
tional law) be considered a hostile act, contrary 
to the strict neutrality of Brazil." 

The proposed visit on board the Castor took 
place, accompanied by interrogation of Captain 
and crew. The result showed no proof whatever 
of the allegations, although it seemed pretty clear 
that the cargo of coal had no other original des- 
tination than the Confederate privateers. The 
Captain of the Alabama, indeed, admitted the 
fact, plainly declaring that he had a perfect right 
to purchase coal in England, and to provide for 
its discharge taking place out of a neutral ship, 
within a neutral port. Capt. Semmes, at the same 
tiine, requested the President's authorization to 
continue taking in his coal. The President re- 
plied that the coal must be put on shore and sent 
to the market, where Capt. Semmes could buy as 
much as he pleased. He added that his instruc- 
tions forbade him to allow the delivery of any 
kind of goods coming direct from another coun- 
try, where the sale had taken place abroad. Un- 
der these circumstances. Captain Semmes directed 
the coal ship to meet him at Saldanha Bay, Cape 
of Good Hope, — and we left Bahia. On our 
passage to the Cape, we captured the S. Gilden- 
sleeve, the Justina, Jabez Snow, Amazonian, 
Talisman, Conrad, A. F. Schmidt, and Express — 
all valuable prizes except the Justina, which, be- 
ing a Baltimore ship, was ransomed, and a num- 
ber of the crews of the other vessels were trans- 
ferred to her. The Amazonian attempted to 
elude us, but we gave chase, and while five miles 
distant from her, fired our rifle-gun, with a reduced 
charge of 7 lbs. powder and a 100-pound shot, at 
an extreme elevation, which crossed her bows, 
and she soon clewed her courses and hove to. 

The Conrad, which we captured, was a fine 
bark, and we fitted her out as a tender to the Al- 
abama. The vessel was named the Tuscaloosa, 
and commissioned at sea on the 21st June. The 
command was given to Lieut. Lowe, an excellent 
officer, with fifteen men ; she was provided with 
two brass rifled twelve-pounders, pistols, rifles, 
and ammunition, and having provisions for three 
months, was ordered to cruise in the direction of 



the Cape. We then made for Saldanha Bay, 
where we anchored and repaired ship, expecting 
to meet the coal vessel ; but nothing could be 
seen of her, and we supposed she must have met 
with some mishap.* 

From Saldanha Bay we came round to Table 
Bay, and spied the American bark Sea Bride, 
standing into port, outside of all headlands, and 
at a distance from the main land. As we ap- 
proached her, our officers Avere directed by the 
Captain to make observation of the distance ; and 
all agreed that the capture was made from two 
to three miles outside of the marine league. 

The total number of our captures has been 
fifty-six ships, by which we estimate the damage 
to the enemy to be not less than four million dol- 
lars, to say nothing of the indirect results of the 
cruise in the way of loss of freights, high war in- 
surance, and numerous sales of enemy's ships, to 
put them under neutral flags. In no instance, 
however, have we destroyed a ship where the 
proof was complete that the cargo was neutral, 
though there have been some awkward attempts 
on the part of unscrupulous merchants to cover 
property, — but when such were destroyed the 
proof of the fraud was apparent on the pajiers. 

The following is a complete list of her captures : 



Ockmulgee, 

Starlight, 

Ocean Rover, 

Alert, 

Weathergauge, 

Altamaha, 

Benjamin Tucker, 

Courser, 

Virginia, 

Elisha Dunbar, 

Brilliant, 

Emily Farnum, 

Wave Crest, 

Danquerque, 

Manchester, 

Tonawanda, 

Lamplighter, 

Lafayette, 

Crenshaw, 

Lauretta, 

Baron De Castine, 

Levi Starbuck, 

T. B. Wales, 



Chastalaire, 
Palmetto, 
Golden Eagle, 
Olive Jane, 
Washington, 
Betha Thager, 
J. A. Parker, 

Punjaub, 

Morning Star, 

Kingfisher, 

Charles HiU, 

Nora, 

Louisa Hatch, 

Lafliyette, 

Kate Core}', 

Nye, 

Dorcas Price, 

Lelah, 

Union Jack, 

S. Gildensleeve, 

J. Snow, 

Justina, 

Amazonian, 



* If the Castor was the vessel expected, it is very- 
probable that some mishap occurred to her; for by 
late Rio papers we learn that after the Alabama left, 
the Federal steam frigate Mohican put in at Bahia, 
and a report was immediately circulated that she in- 
tended to seize the Castor. The Captain of the Eng- 
lish vessel attempted to leave the port without having 
complied with the forms required by the customs. He 
was brought to by the guns of the forts, and put back, 
and went through the accustomed formalities prepara- 
tory to setting sail anew. Before the Castor was out- 
side the harbor, the Mohican got up steam and went 
in pursuit. Perceiving himself chased, the Captain 
of the Castor determined not to leave the port, but to 
place himself under the protection of Brazilian ships 
until the arrival of an English man-of-war. There- 
upon the Mohican left Bahia to look after the Con- 
federate privateers. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



91 



Martha, Talisman, 

Union, Conrad, 

Ariel, mail steamer, A. F. Schmidt, 

U. S.gunb't Hatteras, Express, 

Golden Rule, Sea Bride. 

The Alabama had the usual quota of wits and 
fun-makers among her crew. An L-ish fiddler 
on board is the life of the forecastle. When the 
men are off duty he sets them dancing to his lighter 
strains, or, dividing them into Northerners and 
Southerners, like a true Irishman, he gets up a 
sham fight to the spirit-stirring strains of a march, 
in which fight the Northerners are, of course, in- 
variably beaten. Another sailor, Frank Towns- 
hend, is no mean poet, as will be seen from the 
verses wliich here follow. He had sung the ex- 
ploits of their beloved ship to his messmates in 
rude and vigorous strains. 

THE FIGHT OF THE "HATTEKAS" AND 
"ALABAMA." 

Off Galveston, the Yankee fleet secure at anchor 
lay, 

Preparing for a heavy fight they were to have next 
day; 

Down came the Alabama, like an eagle o'er the 
wave, 

And soon their gunboat Hatteras had fovmd a wa- 
tery grave. 

'Twas in the month of January ; the day was bright 

and clear ; 
The Alabama she bore down ; no Yankee did we 

fear : 
Their Commodore he spied us ; to take us long he 

burned ; 
So he sent the smartest boat he had, but she never 

back returned ! 

The sun had sunk far in the West when down to 

us she came ; 
Our Captain quickly hailed her, and asked them 

for her name ; 
Then spoke our Frst Lieutenant, — for her name 

had roused his ire, — 
" This is the Alabama — now, Alabamas, fire." 

Then flow a rattling broadside, that made her tim- 
bers shake ; 

And through the holes made in her side the angry 
waves did break ; 

We then blew up her engine, that she could steam 
no more — 

They fired a gun to leeward, and so the fight was 
o'er. 

So thirteen minutes passed away before they gave 

in beat ; 
A boat had left the Yankee's side, and pulled in for 

their fleet ; 
The rest we took on board of us, as prisoners to 

stay ; 
Then stopped and saw their ship go down, and then 

we bore away. 

And now, to give our foes their due, they fought 
with all their might ; 

But yet they could not conquer us, for God de- 
fends the right; 



One at a time the ships they have to fight us they 

may come, 
And rest assured that our good ship from them will 

never run. 



THE " STARS AND BARS." 

See yonder bright flag, as it floats on the breeze ; 
It is feared by its foes, though young on the seas ; 
As a bird on the ocean, 'tis met all alone, 
But a deed of dishonor it never has known. 
In defending its rights, much blood has been shed ; 
As an emblem of this, see its borders all red. 
Then look at the centre, the blue and the white — 
An assurance our cause is true, just, and right. 
O, long may it float o'er the ocean's dark breast, 
Till sun, moon, and stars sink forever to rest ; 
And its gallant defenders forever prove true ; 
With this wish, flag of freedom, I'll bid thee adieu ! 
With this wish, flag of freedom, I'll bid thee adieu ! 



THE SOUTH, BOYS. 

Hark, hark ! there's a sound in the West, 

That's wafted far over the sea ; 
'Tis the voice of the brave, though oppressed, 

That are struggling hard to be free. 
Basely wronged they have been by a brother, 

Who sought to oppress in his might ; 
But the South, boys, the South, boys, forever ! 

'Tis the cause that we all know is right. 

To shake off the yoke of a tyrant, 

Their forefathers fought side by side ; 
And ere they could claim Freedom's Charter, 

Many hundreds of brave men had died ; 
But the Eagle, that then soared so proudly, 

Can now scarcely look on the light ; 
But the South, boys, the South, boys, forever ! 

'Tis the cause that we all know is right. 



A Tableau. — A correspondent describes a 
tableau, given at Murfreesboro', Tenn., for the 
benefit of the soldiers, on the 22d of January, 
1862, as follows : 

" We should not do justice to the tableau, un- 
less we were to describe the first scene. A 
young gentleman, representing King Cotton, sat 
upon a throne resembling a bale of cotton. 
Down on one side of the throne sat a repre- 
sentative of the ebon race, with a basket of cot- 
ton. The king held a cotton cloth as a sceptre, 
and one of his feet rested on a globe. Around 
him stood young ladies dressed in white, with 
scarfs of red and white looped on the shoulder 
with blue. On their heads they Avore appropri- 
ate crowns. These represented the Confederate 
States. Missouri and Kentucky were guarded 
by armed soldiers. 

" While we were gazing on this picture, a dark- 
haired maiden, robed in black, with brow encir- 
cled by a cypress-wreath, and her delicate wrists 
bound with clanking chains, came on and knelt 
before his majesty. He extended his sceptre, 
and she arose. He waved his wand again, and 
an armed soldier appeared with a scarf and 



92 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



crown, like those worn by her sister States. He 
unchained this gentle girl at the bidding of his 
monarch, changed her crown of mourning for one 
of joy and liberty, and threw the Confederate 
flag across her, raised the flag over her, and led 
her forward ; then Kentucky advanced, took her 
by the hand, and led her into the ranks. Need 
we tell you whom this maiden of sable garments 
was intended to represent? We leave that 
to be understood. If your readers cannot di- 
vine, it is owing to our description, and not 
to the scene. The ceremony was performed in 
pantomime. 

" We will gratify the pride of the F. F. V.'s 
by saying that their representative had inscribed 
on her crown, ' Mater Herown.' After this at- 
tempt to praise you, dear Express, you will surely 
pardon us if we tell j'ou that North Carolina wore 
on her brow a white crown, on which was the 
word ' Bethel.' Both of these States were rep- 
resented by their own daughters." 



A Strange Scene for a Sabbath day is pre- 
sented to a visitor, who will stand on one of the 
hills back of Alexandria, and look around him. 
Thousands of camps dot the hillsides, which are 
whitened by whole villages of them as far as the 
eye can extend. Frowning fortifications crown 
every hill, while innumerable roads and paths 
cross from one to the other, intersecting at all 
angles. The valleys are filled with soldiers, who 
are strolling about for wood, water, and various 
other purposes. Here and there horsemen are 
seen galloping from camp to camp. Guards are 
stationed in every direction, pacing regularly to 
and fro, and a strange activity, yet military pre- 
cision, marks the whole. The ruin and desola- 
tion, as well as the " pomp, pride, and circum- 
stance of glorious Avar," are the distinguishing 
features of the whole scene. 

Yonder, amid all this strange sight, is a funeral 
procession. In front, mounted on a splendid 
charger, rides the chaplain. He is followed by a 
full band of music, from which come the sadden- 
ing, yet thrilling and solemn tones of a dirge, 
whose reverberations startle many a warrior from 
h'.s toil, to look on the solemn procession as it 
passes. Following these is the ambulance with 
the remains, escorted by a few companions of the 
deceased. Another soldier has gone to rest, far 
from home and friends. Who is he ? " Only a 
private ! " " Henry Sleeper, Company H, 13th 
New Hampshire, died November 15, 1862," will 
be the simple record on his regimental rolls, and 
on the rude board, placed on the sacred soil 
where sleeps the brave, and then he will be forgot- 
ten. Fond friends in the distant home will weep 
for a time, almost broken-hearted, and then he 
will be remembered only by the wife or mother, 
who Avill, in after years, tell of the loved one who 
lost his life in suppressing the great Southern 
rebellion. Virginia will, indeed, be " sacred soil" 
to many an aching heart all over our land — sa- 
cred as the resting-place of the flower of thou- 
sands of families. — Nov. 1862. 



A Young Patriot. — The following was writ- 
ten by a young Bostonian, who was engaged in 
mercantile business at the place from which he 
dates his letter: 

New York, July 20, 1802. 

My Dear Father and Mother : I wrote you a 
day or two ago on passing events. Now I write 
on the subject that lies nearest my heart. The 
country calls for men, and we must have them ! 
Recruiting lags, and we are in danger of a draft. 
It is now useless to say there are enough men 
without me. It is not the fact. I want to vol- 
unteer ; and had I a hundred lives I Avould now 
place them at the disposal of the Government, 
for it needs all the young men who can be spared, 
and I am one who can. Let me calmly state the 
case to you. Fu'st, if the rebellion succeeds, we 
shall have the disintegration of our country to 
look upon. We shall not have North and South 
alone, but after that, State will separate from 
State, county from county, and then it may be 
every man for himself. Then will commence a 
series of wars none of us could see the end of. 
The stronger State will make war on the weaker, 
and the successful military commander would as- 
sume power. We should have military despot- 
ism and anarchy alternately. If we succeed, all 
will be peace, and we shall enjoy the freedom of 
institutions, and the perfect liberty we have hith- 
erto enjoyed. 

Then you must acknowledge the power to do, 
or not to do, lies with ourselves. We have the 
men, but they must come forward. Money we 
have, and we must use it. The South are terri- 
bly in earnest. The North are fast asleep, com- 
pared with them. We are fighting for life, for 
our old institutions, for nationality, for all we 
hold most dear. The South are endeavoring to 
destroy all these, and to prevent them toe must 
have vien. We must conquer. We can if we 
use our means. If the South conquer, I don't 
want to live in this country any longe*i\ Now I 
acknowledge that a father's and a mother's love 
is one of the greatest blessings a young man can 
enjoy, next to the favor of God himself; but that 
love descends to selfishness when it restrains a 
young man from his manifest duty. The love 
for parents, and fear of their displeasure if they 
disobey them, are what hold many hundi-ed 
young men from joining our noble army. 

Let all such restrictions be removed, and our 
ranks will swell with twice the rapidity they are 
now doing. My duty is to go — yours to let 
me go. The duties of the country at large are 
patience, steadfastness, hope, and prayer. A very 
fine preacher hei"e says : " Pray for your dying 
son, but pray for your country more than ten 
thousand sons." The love of money must be put 
down. What good is money going to do us if 
we have no country to live in ? I don't want a 
living if I have not a country. Hoping, pray- 
ing, trusting, you will accede to my wishes, I 
await an answer. My name is on the militia rolls ; 
so I am subject to draft ; and sooner than have 
me go with drafted men here, I know you will let 
me go in a Massachusetts regiment. I have writ- 



1 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



93 



ten this letter after weeks of deliberation, and 
in no sudden burst of enthusiasm. 



INCIDENTS OF A FIGHT AVITH MOSBY. 

Fairfax Court House, June 2, 1863. — The 

sun glistens on a twelve-pound brass howitzer, 
which, Avith its limber, occupies a position di- 
rectly in front of Gen. Stahl's headquarters. 
The story of the gun is this : Made in the year 
1859, it was used by the Union troops at Ball's 
Blufi', where it fell into the hands of the rebels, 
and since that time has done service in the rebel 
army. After Mosby had been whipped several 
limes by Stahl's cavalry, this gun was furnished 
him to redeem his laurels. On Friday night last, 
Mosby, with about one hundred and seventy-five 
men and the howitzer, camped at Greenwich. 
Early on Saturday they made a hurried march 
toward the Orange and Alexandria Eailroad, 
which they struck about one and a half miles 
this side of Catlett's Station. Here they con- 
cealed themselves in the woods, placed the how- 
itzer in position, and awaited the arrival of the 
train from Alexandria, carrying forage and stores 
to Bealeton. As the cars came opposite the am- 
buscade, a rail, adi-oitly displaced, caused the lo- 
comotive to run off the track. At this moment 
a ball from the gun went through the boiler, and 
another pierced the smoke-stack. The guard 
upon the train were scared by hearing artillery, 
and beat a hasty retreat, lea\dng the train at the 
disposition of the rebels. Had any resistance 
been offered, it is believed that the train could 
have been saved, and all the rebels captured. As 
it was, the guerrillas destroyed the cars, ten in 
number, and then, anticipating a visit from Stahl's 
cavalry, made off in the dii'ection of Auburn. 
Meanwhile, Col. Mann, of the Seventh Michigan 
cavalry, who was in command of the portion of 
Stahl's cavalry at Bristow, hearing the firing, 
started with portions of the Fifth New York, 
First Vermont, and Seventh Michigan, to learn 
the cause. Taking the precaution to send the 
Fifth New York, Capt. A. H. Hasbrouck com- 
manding, across the country to Auburn, to inter- 
cept the retreat, he followed up the railroad until 
the sight of the burning train told that portion 
of the story. Leaving the burning train, CoL 
Mann followed the track of the retreating foe, and 
soon heard the sound of cannon towards Green- 
wich, indicating that Capt. Hasbrouck, with the 
Fifth New York, had either intercepted or come 
up with the enemy. As it afterwards proved, they 
had come upon their rear, and had been fired 
upon from the howitzer. Owing to the nature of 
the ground, the Fifth New York was unable to 
deploy, so as to operate effectively, and the en- 
emy again started on the run, closely followed by 
Capt. Hasbrouck and his command. Col. Mann 
pressed on to reach the scene of the firing. 
Learning the particulars of their escape, he di- 
vided his force, sending Lieut.-Col. Preston, with 
part of the First Vermont cavalry, to reenforce 
the Fifth New York, and with the balance he 



struck across the country, again hoping to inter- 
cept them. 

Finding themselves so hotly pressed, the en- 
emy, when near Grapewood Farm, about two 
miles from Greenwich, took position at the 
head of a short, narrow lane, with high fences 
on either side, placing the howitzer so as to 
command the lane, strongly supported by his 
whole force. The advance of the Fifth New 
York, about twenty-five men, under Lieut. Elmer 
Barker, coming up, the Lieutenant determined to 
charge the gun, fearing, if he halted, the rebels 
w^ould again run away. Gallantly riding up the 
narrow lane, with almost certain death before 
them, these brave men, bi'avely led by Lieut. 
Barker, dashed with a yell towards the gun. 
When within about fifty yards, the rebels opened 
fire with grape upon them. The result was, three 
men were killed and seven wounded. The rebels 
immediately charged, led by Mosby himself. 
Lieut. Barker, twice wounded in the leg, con- 
tinued with his handful of men to contest every 
inch of the ground, and himself crossed sabres 
with Mosby. But numbers told, and several of 
the Fifth New York were made prisoners. This 
gallant fight of Lieut. Barker afforded Col. Pres- 
ton an opportunity to come up with the First 
Vermont. Lieut. Hazleton was in advance, with 
about seventy-five men, and charged bravely up 
the lane, the few boys of the Fifth New York, 
who were left, joining the Vermonters. Again 
and agam the gun dealt destruction through the 
ranks, but nothing could check their impetuosity, 
and the brave fellows rode over the gun, sabring 
the gunners, and captured the piece. Serg. 
Carey, of the First Vermont, was shot dead by 
the side of the gun ; his brother, a corporal in 
the same regiment, although liis arm was shat- 
tered, struck down the gunner as he applied the 
match for the last time. Mosby and his men 
fought desperately to recover the gun, but in 
vain. 

Meanwhile, Col. Preston had charged across 
the fields upon their fiank, and the enemy fled in 
all directions, taking refuge in the thickets, with 
which they are so familiar. One party attempted 
to take away the limber, but it was speedily cap- 
tured and brought in. The long chase in the hot 
sun, the desperate fight, and the jaded condition 
of the horses, prevented further pursuit, which, 
with the enemy so Avidely scattered, and with 
their knowledge of every by-path and thicket, 
would have been almost fruitless. Capt. B. S. 
Haskins, an Englishman, and formerly a Captain 
in the Forty-Fourth royal infantry, who was 
with Mosby, was so badly wounded that he has 
since died. Lieut. Capman, formerly of the reg- 
ular army, who was in charge of the gun, was 
also dangerously wounded and paroled on the 
field, as he could not be removed. Our loss was 
four killed and fifteen wounded. The rebels had 
six killed, twenty wounded, and lost ten prison- 
ers. All the Fifth New York who were taken 
by the rebels were recaptured. 

The result of this fight is more disastrous to 
the rebels than the previous engagements. The 



94 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



Southern Confederacy will not be apt to trust 
Mr. Mosby with other guns if he cannot "take 
better care of them than he has of this one. 
The enemy was beaten by about the same force, 
in a position chosen by themselves, and defended 
by a howitzer. Their killed and wounded out- 
number ours, and the howitzer is ready to be 
turned against them at the earliest opportunity. 
The conduct of officers and men is highly com- 
mended by Col. Mann in his official report to 
Gen. Stahl, and the gallantry of the charge of 
the Fifth New York and the First Vermont is de- 
servins mention. 



SOUTHRONS, HEAR YOUR COUNTRY 
CALL YOU. 

BY AXBERT PIKE. 

Southrons ! hear your country call you ! 
Up ! lest worse than death befall you ! 

To arms ! To arms ! To arms, in Dixie ! 
Lo ! all the beacon-fires are lighted — 
Let all hearts be now united ! 

To arms ! To arms ! To arms, in Dixie ! 
Advance the flag of Dixie ! 
Hurrah ! hurrah ! 
For Dixie's land we take our stand, 
And live or die for Dixie ! 
To arms ! To arms ! 
And conquer peace for Dixie ! 

To arms ! To arms ! 
And conquer peace for Dixie ! 

Hear the Northern thunders mutter 1 
Northern flags in South wind flutter ! 
To arras ! &c. 

Advance the flag of Dixie ! &c. 

Fear no danger ! Shun no labor ! 
Lift up rifle, pike, and sabre ! 

To arms ! &c. 
Shoulder pressing close to shoulder. 
Let the odds make each heart bolder ! 

To arms! &c. 

Advance the flag of Dixie ! &e. 

How the South's great heart rejoices 
At your cannons' ringing voices ! 

To arms ! See. 
For faith betrayed, and pledges broken. 
Wrongs inflicted, insults spoken, 

To arms ! &c. 

Advance the flag of Dixie ! &c. 

Strong as lions, swift as eagles, 

Back to their kennels hunt these beagles ! 

To arms ! &c. 
Cut the unequal words asunder ! 
Let them then each other plimder ! 

To arms ! &c. 

Advance the flag of Dixie ! &c. 

Swear upon your country's altar 
Never to submit or falter ! 

To arms ! &c. 
Till the spoilers are defeated, 
Till the Lord's work is completed, 

To arms ! &c. 
Advance the flag of Dixie ! &c. 



Halt not, till our Federation 

Secures among earth's powers its station ! 

To arms ! &c. 
Then at peace, and crowned with glory, 
Hear your children tell the story ! 

To arms ! &c. 

Advance the flag of Dixie ! &c. 

If the loved ones weep in sadness. 
Victory soon shall bring them gladness. 

To arms ! &c. 
Exultant pride soon banish sorrow ; 
Smiles chase tears away to-morrow. 

To arms ! &c. 

Advance the flag of Dixie ! &c. 



Spaerowgrass' proposition, that the Home 
Guard should not leave home except in case of 
invasion, is equal to the old story of the Bung- 
town Riflemen, an Ohio military company, whose 
by-laws consisted of two sections, namely : 

" Article First. — This company shall be 
known as the Bungtown Riflemen. 

"Article Second. — in case of war this com- 
pany shall immediately disband." 



Incidents of the Wak. — A correspondent 
relates the following incidents : — 

" The Platte Valley steamer was brought to by 
the guns of the St. Louis arsenal, with a load of 
traitors and contrabands. The first shot, a blank 
cartridge, produced no efiect. The next was a shell, 
whichwas made to explode a little Ijeyond the boat ; 
and this also was disregarded. The tliird, a large 
ball, passed just above her deck, between the chim- 
neys and the wheel-house, and had the eff'ect to set 
the bell ringing and the whistle screaming, which 
signals of acquiescence were continued till the 
boat reached the landing. * Why, sir,' said the 
Captain to the gunner, ' did you mean to sink me ? ' 
' Certainly,' was the cool reply ; ' I am ordered 
to fire one harmless shot at least ; I gave you the 
benefit of two, and aimed a third at your engine,* 
but the gun was ranged a little too high. I did 
not want to hit your boilers, and scald you all 
to death ; but the next time I shall sink you at 
the second shot ! ' ' For God's sake, don't 
trouble yourself,' replied the Captain ; ^just send 
a small boy cloini to tap a drum whenever you 
want me, and I'll come to at once.' 

" Major RawHngs tells an anecdote, in the same 
vein, of a prominent lawyer of St. Louis. ' Ma- 
jor,' said he, lately, ' I'm a choleric man, and I 
find it won't do. I'm getting to have a profound 
respect for Minie bullets. Won't you do me 
the favor to get me one ? and whenever I find my 
temper rising against the Dutch, I will put my 
hand in my pocket, and feel a bullet, and that 
will cool me off"! ' The Major got the bullet for 
him, and the effect seems to be equal to the ex- 
pectation. Certainly it is better to have one in 
the pocket than in the body, if the effect on one's 
loyalty is just the same. 

" Some one inquired of Col. Boernstein how 
long he should remain. ' I don't know,' he re- 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



95 



plied with a French shrug of the shoulder ; ' per- 
haps a year ; so long as the Governor chooses to 
stay away. I am Governor now, you see, till he 
comes back ! ' His notions of freedom of speech 
and the press he expressed freely, Uke this : ' All 
people zall speak vot dey tink, write vot dey 
pleazhe, and be free to do any tink dey pleazhe 
— only dey zall speak and write no treaso7i !'" — 
National Intelligencer. 



ONE OF THE ARMY OF MARTYRS. 

The telegraph announces the death of William 
Fuller, of Needham, a private in the 18th regi- 
ment of Massachusetts Volunteers. The tidings 
afflicted me much. I knew that he joined the 
army from deliberate convictions of duty, and 
with the belief that it was to be a war for free- 
dom ; and I earnestly desired that he should live 
to see the glorious result he anticipated. He was 
an ardent republican, and worked zealously for 
Fremont in the campaign of '56. He was a 
working man, and the enslavement of working 
men excited generous indignation in his breast. 
He was among the first three years' men that 
joined the army. Late in September, 1861, when 
he had been some time in Virginia, he wrote to 
me : "I enlisted purely from principle ; to do 
what I could to save the free institutions of the 
country. We are hard at work, making intrench- 
raents and cutting roads through the woods to 
Munson's Hill. We have to endure many priva- 
tions and hardships ; but these I will not dwell 
upon. I am willing to sacrifice the comforts of 
home, and even life itself, if the desired end can 
be accomplished by this war." 

A month later, he wrote: "Before I came 
here, I was often told that I should not think so 
badly of slavery, if I had been in the Slave 
States. But I must say I have not yet seen any 
beauty in the system. When I do, I will inform 
you. While on picket duty, I often meet with 
slaves, and have opportunities of conversing with 
them. I said to one, who came into camp the 
other day, ' How have you been treated, Robert ? ' 
' Pretty well, sar.' ' Have you been well fed and 
clothed ? ' ' Pretty well, till dis year. Massa 
hab no money to spare dis year.' 'Were you 
contented ? ' ' No, sar.' * You say you were pret- 
ty well treated, and pretty well supplied with 
food and clothes ; why wasn't you contented then ? ' 
' Cause I wanted to be free, sar.' ' But what could 
you do to support yourself and your wife and 
children, if you were all free ? ' His face bright- 
ened, and you could see his eyes sparkle, as he 
replied, ' Pd hire a little hut, and hab a little gar- 
den, and keep a pig and a cow, and I'd work out 
by the day, and save money. I coidd save money. 
Pve laid up eight dollars this summer ; but if I 
couldn't lay up a cent, I should like to be free. I 
should feel better.' ' Can you read and write ? ' 
' No, sar. But massa's mighty fraid to have us 
touch a paper ; they say Massa Lincoln is going 
to free all the slaves.' 'Where did you hear 
that ? ' ' We used to hear massa say so, last fall, 



before Massa Lincoln was President.' ' Did you 
ever hear of John Brown ? ' ' Yes, indeed, sar. 
There was great times down here when he come 
to Harper's Ferry. The folks was all skeered to 
death. They went from all round here to see 
him hung.' ' Do you think he was a good man ? ' 
' Yes, sar, a mighty fine man.' 

" All the slaves I have met with talk in much 
the same way. I could fill pages with similar 
conversations. It is a false notion that slaves are 
contented if they are not beaten, and have enough 
to eat. Liberty is just as sweet to them as it is to 
us. I can say, from the bottom of my heart, may 
we never come to any terms with the rebels till 
this blot of slavery is wiped out. I, for one, 
would be willing to stay here ten years, and en- 
dure any amount of hardship, if at the end I 
could see America truly free. If the war could 
only accomplish this object, it seems as if I could 
say, ' Now let thy servant depart in peace.' " 

At the close of November, 1861, he wrote : 
" I have been watching the tide of public opinion, 
and I rejoice to see that the sentiments of Sum- 
ner, Wilson, and Fremont are fast gaining 
ground. Emancipation ! Blessed word ! I have 
prayed for it; I came here to fight for it ; I am 
ready to die for it. When I fii'st came here, they 
said I was as bad as a secessionist ; and when I 
indorsed all Charles Sumner said at Worcester, 
they told me if I had such views I ought to have 
staid at home. But I stood my ground fii-mly, and 
spoke the honest convictions of my heart ; for I 
know that Mr. Sumner is right, and that the right 
will conquer at last. I have sometimes feared it 
might not be in my day ; but I now feel that the 
tide is setting strongly in the right direction. A 
great change has been wrought within a few 
months. I feel a stronger interest in the subject 
than ever, since I have seen the poor slaves and 
talked with them. No one that inquires of them 
can have a doubt that they are longing for their 
freedom. I know that they are expecting us to 
free them, and are ready at a word to help us. 
We have the power to do it ; why do we delay ? 
The day will come when the Stars and Stripes will 
wave over a country truly free ; that it may come 
soon, is the earnest prayer of a poor soldier." 

In Januaay, 1862, he wrote : " The other day, 
in going out to the line of our pickets, which is 
near to the rebels, I passed by a house where a 
fine-looking colored lad, of seventeen, was hold- 
ing a horse. He told me his master was in the 
rebel army. He had taken all his money away 
with him; but his mistress, who was a Union 
woman, made heaps of money by selling victuals 
to the United States soldiers, cooked by his 
mother, who was one of her slaves. He said that 
his mistress had a pass to go to the line of oui- 
pickets whenever she liked, and that she wanted 
to take him with her, to work for a man near our 
outposts. I advised him not to go, lest it should 
prove a trap. When I passed the house a fort- 
night later, I saw the same lad chopping wood, 
with a book peeping from his pocket. I asked 
him what he did with it. He said he wanted 
very much to learn to read, and that a little boy 



96 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



of six years was teaching him. What a picture 
it would make — that poor slave learning his let- 
ters of a little child six years old ! I wish I were 
an artist, that I might paint it. In the course of 
our short conversation, the lad told me he had 
found out why his mistress wanted him to go to 
our outposts to work for a man. She and her 
husband had agreed upon a meeting near the 
lines, and he wanted to take this young slave to 
work for the rebel army. So much for this wo- 
man's pretended Union sentiments ! The trouble 
is, too much confidence is placed in the loyal pro- 
fessions of these people. I am not surprised that 
you are sometimes despondent concerning the 
prospects of the country. I am also. O, Avhat a 
chance is oft'ered us to make this a really free 
country — a fitting home for the oppressed of all 
nations ! Will this glorious opportunity be lost ? 
If so, who will be accountable ? It surely M'ill 
not be the poor soldiers, who, at their country's 
call, have left home and families — all that was 
near and dear to them. I have taken some 
pains to find out the sentiments of those around 
me, and, almost to a man, they say we can never 
have permanent peace till slavery is abolished. 
Here are two hundred thousand men ready to 
go forth, at the toord, to victory or death, and I 
believe they are generally desirous to see. Free- 
dom to All, inscribed upon their banners. I will 
not believe that the glorious opportunity is to 
slip by us. Surely God will not permit it. He 
hears the prayers of the poor slaves, and of those 
M'ho have been working and prajing for them for 
years. I still pray on, and hope on. I want to 
do much ; but how can I do more than I am do- 
ing ? I must perform my duty, and wait for the 
wheels of Government to move. They seem to 
move so slowly, that I long to put my shoulder 
to the wheels and push them along. 

" From appearances, I judge we shall have a 
battle soon. When the time for action comes I 
shall try to do my duty, God helping me. I have 
written my views to you fully, that if it should be 
my lot to fall in battle, you may know with what 
feelings I go into the conflict. The extermination 
of slavery, and freedom for all, tlii'ough the whole 
length and breadth of the land, is the idea that 
nerves my arm. May God give me strength ! 
May victory be ours ! And through our efforts 
may the millions now in bondage be able to pro- 
claim to the world, ' Once we were Slaves, but 
now we are all Free Men ! " ' 

The expected battle was indefinitely postponed, 
as we all know ; and the soldiers waited patiently 
for the slow wheels to move. The last of July, 
1862, six months later, after the seven days' bat- 
tle before Richmond, followed by a retreat of the 
United States army, Mr. Fuller wrote : " We 
have been so hurried that I have had no time to 
collect my thoughts until now. I was at Savage's 
Station on Saturday, after the fight at Gaines' 
Mill. All day I assisted in the care of the 
wounded, some two thousand in number. May 
I never see such dreadful sights again ! And to 
think they had to be left to the mercy of the 



rebels ! O, it was too painful ! But they were all 
patient — not a murmur or complaint. What a 
' lesson it taught me ' ! 

" Now we have a little rest ; and as I sit near 
the banks of James River, my mind is busy with 
reflections concerning the last five months. *I 
need not speak of the great sacrifices of life and 
property, of the recent bloody battles and the 
defeat of our army : you knov/ it all. The thought 
ever present to my mind is, AVhat have we accom- 
plished by all our toil, and hardship, suff'ering, 
and death ? Is freedom any nearer at hand ? Is 
the nation even so strong as it was five months 
ago ? What are our prospects for the future ? 
The men are disheartened. It must be confessed 
that something is wrong somewhere. Who is 
responsible for this defeat? The people ought 
to knoAV. The poor soldiers ought to know. 
Let the truth be made known ! 

" It is my firm conviction that if President 
Lincoln had proclaimed emancipation at the 
beginning of the war, the end would be much 
nearer than it now is, and there would have been 
far less expenditure of blood and treasure. 
Emancipation is a strong word, but it must come 
to that before we can have peace. I know I am 
not competent to advise the President ; but these 
are my honest convictions, confirmed day by day, 
the more I see of this accursed system of slavery, 
which is the cause of all our trouble. I am 
teaching some slaves in our camp ; that is, they 
we7'e slaves, but I pray to God they may never be 
so again." 

The next I heard from Mr. Fuller was that he 
was wounded in the last battle at Bull Run. In 
answer to my inquiries, he informed me, by an- 
other hand, that he had been badly wounded in 
the shoulder, but was doing well. He added, 
"My consolation is, that I have done what I 
could." 

A week afterv.-ards, they told he was dead. I 
thought of him as I last saw him, a healthy, 
young man, full of life and hope. He had few 
advantages for education in his youth, but his 
remarks evinced good intelligence and a generous 
heart. He left a wife and young children and 
went into the army, not from the mere contagion 
of public excitement, but from convictions of 
duty, after deliberate reflection. 

He was " only a private ; " his name is un- 
known to fame ; but I honor his memory, as a 
brave man, a true patriot, and, better still, a 
friend to the whole human race, of all nations 
and colors. It fills • my soul with sadness to 
think of the last words he wrote to me : " Some- 
thing is wrong, somewhere. The poor soldiers 
ought to know." 

Alas, thousands of poor, weary soldiers have 
doubtless gazed on the rivers and hills of Vir- 
ginia, while they asked themselves, despondingly, 
" What has been accomplished by all our priva- 
tions, toils and sufierings ? " Thousands of brave 
young souls have passed away Avith heroic patience, 
saying, " My consolation is, that I have done what 
I could." L. Maria Child. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



97 



LYON. 

Sing, bird, on green Missouri's plain, 

The saddest song of sorrow ; 
Drop tears, O clouds, in gentlest rain 

Ye from the winds can borrow; 
Breathe out, ye winds, your softest sigh, 

Weep, flowers, in dewy splendor, 
For him who knew well how to die. 

But never to surrender. 

Up rose serene the August sun 

Upon that day of glory ; 
Up curled from musket and from gun 

The war-cloud gray and hoary ; 
It gathered like a funeral pall, 

Now broken and now blended. 
Where rang the buffalo's angry call, 

And rank with rank contended. 

Pour thousand men, as brave and true 

As e'er went forth in daring, 
Upon the foe that morning threw 

The strength of their despairing. 
They feared not death — men bless the field 

That patriot soldiers die on — 
Fair freedom's cause was sword and shield, 

And at their head was Lyon ! 

Their leader's troubled soul looked forth 

From eyes of troubled brightness : 
Sad soul ! the burden of the North 

Had pressed out all its lightness. 
He gazed upon the unequal fight, 

His ranks all rent and gory. 
And felt the shadows close like night 

Round his career of glor3% 

" General, come, lead us ! " loud the cry 

From a brave band was ringing — 
•' Lead us, and we will stop, or die, 

That battery's awful singing." 
He spurred to where his heroes stood. 

Twice wounded, — no wound knowing, — 
The fire of battle in his blood 

And on his forehead glowing. 

O, cursed for aye that traitor's hand, 

And cursed that aim so deadly, 
Which smote the bravest of the land, 

And dyed his bosom redly ! 
Serene he lay while past him pressed 

The battle's furious billow. 
As calmly as a babe may rest 

Upon its mother's pillow. 

So Lyon died ! and well may flowert 

His place of bui'ial cover. 
For never had this land of ours 

A more devoted lover. 
Living, his country was his bride ; 

His life he gave her, dying ; 
Life, fortune, love — he nought denied 

To her and to her sighing. 

Kest, Patriot, in thy hillside grave. 

Beside her form who bore thee ! 
Long may the land thou diedst to save 

Her bannered stars wave o'er thee ! 
Upon her history's brightest page, 

And on Fame's glowing porta]> 
She'll write thy grand, heroic page. 

And grave thy name immortal ! 
7 



Befoke the Battle of Bethel. — Just as 
we halted to start to the rear on hearing firing, 
said Adjutant Stevens of the First Vermont, a 
rebel scoundrel came out of a house and deliber- 
ately fired his gun at us. The ball passed so 
close to me that I heard it whiz — on its waj 
going through the coat and pants, and just graz- 
ing the skin of, Orderly Sergeant Sweet, of the 
Woodstock company. The rascal was secured, 
and is a prisoner ; and what was done, by way of 
stern entertainment, to one of the F. F. V.'s, 
you will hear if I ever live to return. I then, as 
the firing to the rear had ceased, with revolver 
in hand, accompanied by Fifer, approached the 
fellow's house, having some expectation of an 
ounce of lead being deposited in my tall body 
without asking my permission. By this time all 
our troops were out of sight in the woods, by a 
turn in the road, and I was alone with Fifer, 
when some negroes came fi'om the house, having 
less fear of two men than of two thousand. On 
inquiry, the slaves told me that Adjutant Whiting, 
whom we had just taken prisoner, was the owner, 
that he belonged to the secession army, and that 
no white folks were in the house, all having left. 
Without the ceremony of ringing, I entered and 
surveyed the premises, and found a most elegantly 
furnished house. I took a hasty survey in search 
of arms, but, finding none, left the house, and 
started to overtake our column. On reaching 
the bend in the road, I took a survey of the rear, 
to " see what I might see," and discovered a 
single soldier coming towards me, and waited for 
him to come up. I found it was Clark, of the 
Bradford company. Before he reached me, I 
observed a horseman coming at full speed towards 
me. On reaching the house, he turned in, which 
induced me to think him a secessionist. I ordered 
Clark to cover him with his rifle, and revolver in 
hand, ordered him to dismount and surrender. 
He cried out, " Who are you ? " Answer, " Ver- 
mont ! " " Then raise your piece, Vermont ; I 
am Col. Duryea, of the Zouaves ; " and so it was. 
His gay-looking red boys'just appeared turning 
the corner of the road, coming towards us. He 
asked me the cause of the firing in the rear, and 
whose premises we were on. I told him he knew 
the first as well as I did, but as to the last, could 
give full information ; that the house belonged 
to one Adjutant Whiting, who, just before, had 
sent a bullet whizzing by me, and shot one of my 
boys, and that my greatest pleasure would be to 
burn the rascal's house in payment. " Your wish 
will be gratified at once," said the Colonel. " I 
am ordered by Gen. Butler to burn every house 
whose occupant or owner fires upon our troops. 
Burn it." He leaped from his horse, and I upon 
the steps, and by that time three Zouaves were 
with me. I ordered them to try the door with 
the butts of their guns — down Avcnt the door, 
and in went we. A well-packed travelling bag 
lay upon a mahogany table. I tore it open with 
the hopes of finding a revolver, but did not. The 
first thing I took out was a white linen coat : I 
laid it on the table, and Col. Duryea put a lighted 
match to it. Other clothing was added to the 



98 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



pile, and soon we had a rousing fire. Before 
leaving, I went into the large parlor in the right 
wing of the house — it was perfectly splendid. 
A large room with a tapestry carpet, a nice piano, 
a fine library of miscellaneous books, rich sofas, 
elegant chairs, with superior needle-work wrought 
bottoms, whatnots in the corners, loaded with 
articles of luxury, taste, and refinement, and 
upon a mahogany centre-table laj' a Bible and a 
lady's portrait. The last two articles I took, and 
have them now in my possession. I also took a 
decanter of most excellent old brandy from the 
sideboard, and left the burning house. By this 
time the Zouave regiment had come up. I joined 
them, and in a short time came up with our rear 
guard, and saw a sight, the like of which I wish 
never to see again — viz.: nine of Col. Town- 
send's Albany regiment stretched on the floor of 
a house, where they had just been carried, and 
eight of them mortally wounded, by our own men. 
O, the sight was dreadful. I cried like a boy, 
and so did many others. I immediately thought 
of my decanter of brandy, took a tin cup from a 
soldier and poured into it the brandy, and filled 
it (the cup) with water from a canteen, and from 
one poor boy to another I passed and poured into 
their pale and quivering lips the invigorating 
fluid, and with my hand wiped the sweat-drops 
of death from their foreheads. O, how gratefully 
the poor fellows looked at me as they saw^ by my 
uniform, that the usually stern officer and com- 
mander had become to them the kind and tender- 
hearted woman, by doing for them woman's holy 
duty. One strong fellow, wounded in the head, 
and bloody as a butcher's floor, soon rallied, and 
was able to converse with me. I asked him if he 
knew the poor fellows around him. He said yes, 
and pointing to one, he said, " That man stood at 
my side — he was my section man — I saw his 
gun fly out of his hands, being struck by a grape 
shot, and a moment after we both tumbled to the 
ground together." I went out and picked up an 
Enfield rifle, nearly cut in two by a ball ; said he, 
" That is his gun." I saw its owner die, and 
brought the gun with me back to my camp, and 
have it in my possession. 



Music of the Port Royal Negroes. — 
The editor of BioigliVs Journal of Music pub- 
lished a letter from Miss Lucy McKira, of Phila- 
delphia, accompanying a specimen of the songs 
in vogue among the negroes about Port Royal. 
Miss Mclvim accompanied her father thither on a 
recent visit, and wrote as follows : 

It is difficult to express the entire character of 
these negro ballads by mere musical notes and 
signs. The odd turns made in the throat, and 
the curious rhythmic effect produced by single 
voices chiming in at different irregular intervals, 
seem almost as impossible to place on score as 
the singing of birds or the tones of an u35olian 
harp. The airs, however, can be reached. They 
are too decided not to be easily understood, and 
their -striking "originality would catch the ear of 



any musician. Besides this, they are valuable as 
an expression of the character and life of the 
race which is playing such a conspicuous part in 
our history. The wild, sad strains tell, as the 
sufferers themselves never could, of crushed 
hopes, keen sorrow, and a dull, daily misery 
which covered them as hopelessly as the fog from 
the rice-swamps. On the other hand, the words 
breathe a trusting faith in rest in the future — 
in " Canaan's fair and happy land," to whicli 
their eyes seem constantly turned. 

A complaint might be made against these songs 
on the score of monotony. It is true there is a 
great deal of repetition of the music, but that is 
to accommodate the leader, who, if he be a good 
one, is always an improvisator. For instance, on 
one occasion, the name of each of our party who 
was present was dexterously introduced. 

As the same songs are sung at every sort of 
work, of course the tempo is not always alike. 
On the water, the oars dip " Poor Rosy " to an 
even andante ; a stout boy and girl at the hom- 
iny-mill will make the same " Poor Rosy " fly, to 
keep up with the whirling stone ; and in the even- 
ing, after the day's work is done, " Heab'n shall 
a be my home " peals up slowly and mournfully 
from the distant quarters. One woman — a re- 
spectable house-servant, who had lost all but one 
of her twenty-two children — said to me : 

" Pshaw ! don't har to dese yar chil'en, missis. 
Dey jest rattles it off; dey don't know how for 
sing it. I likes ' Poor Rosy ' better dan all de 
songs, but it can't be sung widout a full heart 
and a troubled sperrit ! " 

All the songs make good barcarolles. Whit- 
tier "builded better than he knew," when he 
wrote his " Song of the Negro Boatman." It 
seemed wonderfully applicable as we were being 
rowed across Hilton Head Harbor among United 
States gunboats — the Wabasli and the Vermont 
towering on either side. I thought the crew 
must strike uj) : 

" And massa tink it day ob doom, i 
And we ob jubilee." 

Perhaps the grandest singing we heard was at 
the Baptist Church, on St. Helena Island, when a 
congregation of thr^e hundred men and women 
joined in a hymn : 

" Roll, Jordan, roll, Jordan ! 
Roll, Jordan, roll !" 

It swelled forth like a triumphal anthem. That 
same hymn Avas sung by thousands of negroes on 
the Fourth of July last, when they marched in 
procession under the Stars and Stripes, cheering 
them for the flrst time as the " flag of our coun- 
try." A friend, writing from there, says that the 
chorus was indescribably grand — "that the 
whole woods and world seemed joining in that 
rolling sound." 

There is much more in this new and curious 
music of which it is a temptation to Avrite, but 
I must remember that it can speak for itself 
better than any one for it. 



il 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



99 



«« STONEWALL JACKSON'S WAY.' 

Come, stack arms, men ! Pile on the rails, 

Stir up the camp-fire bright ; 
No matter if the canteen fails, 

We'll make a roaring night. 
Here Shenandoah brawls along, 
There burly Blue Ridge echoes strong, 
To swell the brigade's rousing song 

Of »' Stonewall Jackson's way." 

We see him now — the old slouched hat 

Cocked o'er his e5''e askew, 
The shrewd, dry smile, the speech so pat. 

So calm, so blunt, so true. 
The "Blue-Light Elder" knows 'em well ; 
Says he, " That's Banks — he's fond of shell ; 
Lord save his soul ! we'll give him " — Avell, 

That's " Stonewall Jackson's waj'." 

Silence ! ground arms ! kneel, all ! caps off ! 

Old Blue-Light's going to pray. 
Strangle the fool that dares to scoff ! 

Attention ! it's his way. 
Appealing from his native sod. 
In forma pauperis to God — 
" Lay bare thine arm, stretch forth thy rod ! 

Amen ! " That's " Stonewall's way." 

He's in the saddle now. Fall in ! 

Steady, the whole brigade ! 
Hill's at the ford, cut off — we'll win 

His way out, ball and blade ! 
What matter if our shoes are worn ? 
What matter if our feet are torn ? 
" Quick-step ! we're with him before dawn ! " 

That's " Stonewall Jackson's way." 

The sun's bright lances rout the mists 

Of morning, and, by George ! 
Here's Longstreet struggling in the lists, 

Hemmed in an ugly gorge. 
Pope and his Yankees, whipped before, 
" Bay'nets and grape ! " near Stonewall roar ; 
«« Charge, Stuart ! Pay off Ashby's score!" 

Is " Stonewall Jackson's way." 

Ah, maiden, wait, and watch, and yearn ' 
For news of Stonewall's band ! ' a 

Ah, widow, read, with eyes that burn, 
That ring upon thy hand ! 

Ah, wife, sew on, pray on, hope on ! 

Thy life shall not be all forlorn. 

The foe had better ne'er been born 
That gets in <' Stonewall's way." 



Who eaised the Flag at Yorktown ? — To 
the Twenty-second Massachusetts regiment, Col. 
Gove, and to the Twenty-second alone, belongs 
the glory of first planting the American flag on 
the works at Yorktown: of the truth of the 
statement there is and can be no question. The 
following brief account can be relied upon : 

The day before the evacuation, Saturday, May 
3d, the Twenty-second regiment received or- 
ders to march to a position within one thousand 
yards of the enemy's works. Spades were fur- 
nished each man. We were then deployed on a 
line six feet apart, and the order came : " Dig 
for your lives." Considering that we were com- 



pletely exposed to a direct fire in front, and to a 
cross-fire from a water-battery stationed on the 
opposite side of the river, you may readily be- 
lieve we hastened to obey orders. Fortunately, 
the enemy did not at once open fii'e, and our boys 
had a chance to do some little digging before the 
storm of ball and shell commenced ; but long be- 
fore the pits were fully completed, their guns 
were played upon us. Up to twelve o'clock, the 
enemy had fired one hundred and seventy-five 
shell and shot, and though none of our regiment 
were killed or Avounded, there were many narrov/ 
escapes. 

Lieut. Stiles, commanding second company 
sharpshooters, in the absence of Capt. Went- 
worth, barely escaped being struck by a shell. 
In order to be able to give his men due notice 
when to dodge at the flash, he bravely and fear- 
lessly exposed himself. In another case, one of 
the men was entirely buried by a shell striking 
the earth in front of the pit, and had actually to 
be dug out by his comrades. 

During the whole day our boys kept themselves 
busy, while the sharpshooters took every chance 
ofiered. When evening came, we were ordered 
back to camp ; but before we had got fairly set- 
tled, the rebels commenced shelling us again. A 
piece of a shell struck the Adjutant's tent, and 
buried itself a foot and a half in the ground. 
The Adjutant and one of the surgeons were in 
the tent at the time. At twelve o'clock our siege 
guns commenced operations, and the enemy ceased 
firing. The next morning at five o'clock, the 
Twenty-second were ordered to go on picket duty 
in front of the enemy's lines. 

The regiment, having taken their position, soon 
discovered that the Avorks were evacuated, and 
at once marched forward and took possession. 
There being no colors allowed with a regiment 
on picket duty, Col. Gove immediately sent to 
his camp for the American flag, and with his 
own hands planted it on the works at York- 
town. At this time there were no other regi- 
ments, or parts of regiments, present under theii- 
proper ofiicers; there were simply only a few 
stragglers, who followed after the Twenty-sec- 
ond. Col. Gove raised the flag, and was within 
ten feet of the concealed shell, which exploded 
and wounded seven of our men. 



A Talk with a Rebel Picket in Missis- 
SIPPL — A private of the Sixth Ohio regiment 
gave the following lively sketch of campaigning 
life: 

I must record a little adventure, pleasing and 
interesting, I had day before yesterday near 
Corinth. My last spoke about the continued 
firing between pickets. To such an extent was 
it carried, so incessant the firing day and night, 
that nothing short of a battle would alarm the 
camp, whereas a single gun should be the signal 
for the long-roll. But within the last three or 
four days a change for the better has taken place. 

On Monday our regiment was sent to the for- 
tifications. It is the custom for the various 



100 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



battalions to take their turn in staying at the 
breastworks for twenty-four hours, forming a 
sort of reserve picket ; and from each regiment 
so stationed two companies are sent to the out- 
posts. It fell to our lot to go out. The com- 
pany we relieved informed us that the rebels were 
disposed to be friendly ; and with instructions 
from the field-officer not to fire unless fired upon, 
or the enemy attempted to advance, we set to 
work to watch the movements of our neighbors. 
The enemy's pickets were in the edge of a wood 
about two hundred yards from us, and my post 
— one of the best for observation — similarly 
situated in another wood, with a level between 
us. For some time we looked closely without 
being able to see any of them, as they were 
disposed to be shy. We, on the contrary, exposed 
ourselves to their view, which had the effect of 
making them bolder ; and occasionally a rebel 
passed from one tree to another and levelled a 
field-glass at us. 

I waved a handkerchief, which was answered 
from the other side, and tacitly understood to 
mean no firing. An hour later one of our 
Southern friends waved a handkerchief and 
shouted: " Meet me half-way." "All right;" 
and arming myself with a newspaper profusely 
illustrated with pictures incidental to the capture 
of New Orleans, I started out. A rebel surgeon 
of the Third Tennessee was the individual who 
met me. He was dressed in a citizen's suit of 
black, with military buttons, and the rank of 
captain -designated, not by shoulder-straps, but 
by marks on the collar. After shaking hands 
and exchanging the customary salutations, we 
'proceeded to talk about the war. He was at 
Fort Donelson, and made his escape the night 
before the surrender ; spoke of the battle of 
Shiloh, at which he assisted ; said it was theu" 
intention to have made the attack on Saturday 
instead of Sunday, but on account of a misunder- 
standing between their generals the plan failed. 
The number of deserters from his side appeared 
to have a prominent place in his mind, which 
he vainly endeavored to conceal. " Do you 
have many deserters from your ranks ? " he com- 
menced. I told him of only two cases which had 
come under my notice for more than a year, 
taking care to add that they ran home. He 
wanted to know if many of their men came over 
to us. I answered rather equivocally : " A few." 
" How many ? " 

Fearful now that if I told him the great number 
that actually did come to us, the rebel leaders 
would increase their vigilance, I merely said that I 
had seen six, the number I had personally beheld. 
" I guess they go the other way," he rejilied, 
thereby acknowledging they suff'ered much from 
desertion. Mr. Tennessee wanted to know why 
we did not make the attack ; they were anxiously 
waiting for us, and confident of victorj'. I said 
that they could not be more eager for the bat- 
tle, or more sui'e of success, than ourselves ; 
that to us everything appeared to be ready ; 
but we were not supposed to know Gen. Hal- 
leck's plans. 



We talked together some fifteen minutes, both 
of us very wary about giving contraband infor- 
mation. He was a gentlemanly, well-educated 
man, apparently under thirty years of age, and 
from Maury County, Tennessee. I gave him the 
pictorial, and asked for a Memphis paper. He 
had none, but promised to send me over one, 
if he could procure it during the day. Before 
parting, I remarked that it would be well to 
make some agreement about picket firing, and 
learned that they had received orders precisely 
like oui's. 

Gen. Garfield, who had the supervision of the 
outposts, called me in ; so we again shook hands 
and separated, leaving many things unsaid that 
we would hke to have spoken about. Garfield 
questioned me closely as to our conversation, and 
seemed satisfied that it was all right. However, 
being fearful that the rebels might learn something 
from us if such intercourse was allowed, he 
ordered us not to go out again, but to let any 
rebel that wished it to come over all the way. 1 
had reason to regret this very much, as in the 
afternoon my friend, the doctor, came half way 
with the promised paper. We gave him to 
understand that it was against our orders to leave 
the post, and if he would come all the way we 
would do him no harm. He said he had a very 
late paper, but could not be induced to come 
farther than the neutral ground, and returned, 
much to our disappointment. 

After the interview of the morning all appre- 
hension of danger from bullets from either side 
was at an end, and the sentinels on both sides 
paced their beats without so much as thinking 
to seek cover. 



OUR COUNTRY'S CALL. 

BY WILLIAM CULLEN BRYANT, 

Lay down the axe, fling by the spade; 

Leave in its track the toihng plough ; 
The rifle and the bayonet blade 

For arms like yours were fitter now ; 
And let the hands that ply the pen 

Quit the light task, and learn to wield 
The horseman's crooked brand, and rein 

The charger on the battle-field. 

Our country calls ; away ! away ! 

To where the blood-stream blots the green ; 
Strike to defend the gentlest sway 

That Time in all his course has seen. 
See, from a thousand coverts — see 

Spring the armed foes that haunt her track ; 
They rush to smite her down, and we 

]\Iust beat the banded traitors back. 

Ho ! sturdy as the oaks ye cleave, 

And moved as soon to fear and flight, 
Men of the glade and forest ! leave 

Your woodcraft for the field of fight. 
The arms that wield the axe must pour 

An iron tempest on the foe ; 
His serried ranks shall reel before 

The arm that lays the panther low. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



101 



And ye who breast the mountain storm, 

By grassy steep or highland lake, 
Conie, for the land ye love to form 

A bulwark that no foe can break. 
Stand, like your own gray cliflFs that mock 

The whirlwind, stand in her defence : 
The blast as soon shall move the rock 

As rushing squadrons bear ye thence. 

And ye, whose homes are by her grand, 

Swift rivers, rising far away, 
Come from the depth of her green land, 

As mighty in your march as they, 
As terrible as when the rains 

Have swelled them over bank and bourn, 
With sudden floods to drown the plains 

And sweep along the woods uptorn. 

And ye who throng, beside the deep. 

Her ports and hamlets of the strand, 
In number like the waves that leap 

On his long, murmuring marge of sand. 
Come, like that deep, when o'er his brim 

He rises, all his floods to pour. 
And flings the proudest barks that swim, 

A helpless wreck, against his shore. 

Few, few were they whose swords, of old. 

Won the fair land in which we dwell ; 
But we are many, we who hold 

The grim resolve to guard it well. 
Strike, for that broad and goodly land, 

Blow after blow, till men shall see 
That Might and Right move hand in hand, 

And glorious must their triumph be. 



THE CRUISE OF THE FLORIDA. 

Maffit's Account of his Adventures. — 
Arriving in Brest, by way of Quimper and 
Chateaulin, the first thing I heard on getting on 
board the steamer Avhich navigates the picturesque 
little river Eloi'n from the latter place to Brest, 
was the arrival of the Confederate States cruiser 
Florida ; and on crossing the glorious Rade de 
Brest for the mouth of the harbor, I had no 
difficulty in making out this uovir celebrated 
vessel, as she lay at anchor among some of the 
giants of the French navy — a long, low, black, 
rakish-looking craft, not over smart in appearance, 
yet useful, every inch of her — a pygmy among 
these monsters, and yet a formidable pygmy, even 
to the unpractised eye, the Palmetto flag flying 
proudly from her mizzen. We happened to have 
a French Vice-Admiral, a Russian Vice-x\dmiral, 
and a Senator of the Empire on board ; and you 
may imagine there was an infinity of gossip, but 
no reliable information. 

When we landed at the Cale in the harbor, the 
crowd which usually assembles to welcome or 
pester new comers was full of " La Floride " and 
her doings. " EHe a," cried an enthusiastic 
commissionaire to me, " die a, Monsieur, je vous 
assure sur ma parole d'Iionneur,pres deux millions 
de livres sterling a bord, tout en or, je vous 
assure." "Eh! mon Dieu! c'est beaucouj)!" 
cried a smait little mousse from the Turenne. I 



could not help agreeing with the mousse that the 
sum was certainly a great deal. 

That evening (aided by my fellow-traveller, 
Mr. Henry Tapper, Vice-Consul of France in 
Guernsey, and one of the jurats of that island) 
I found some of the officers of the Florida at the 
Hotel de Nantes, (Rue d'Aiguillon.) Lieut. 
Lingard Hoole (a young man, who apparently 
did not number more than 23 years) received us 
courteously, and gave us his card to assure us 
admission on board. He stated, however, that 
his superior officer, Capt. Maffit, was generally to 
be found on board his vessel, and would be glad 
to see us. The frankness, courtesy, and total 
absence of boasting manifested by this young 
officer, impressed us most favorably. 

All next day it blew a gale of Mind in the 
Rade, and we could not find a boat to venture 
out. To-day, however, the weather was most 
propitious, and early morning found us alongside 
of the Florida. AVe sent our cards to Capt. 
Maffit, and were immediately admitted on board, 
the captain himself coming to the top of the 
companion to receive us. Directly Capt. Maffit 
understood that we were British subjects, he 
invited us below into his little cabin, and when I 
told him that there were many people in England 
who regarded his career with great interest, he 
entered very freely into a recital of his adventures. 

I will here subjoin a copy of some notes Avhich 
Capt. Maffit subsequently handed to me, relative 
to the career of the Florida, promising, at the 
same time, a continuation, which has not yet 
arrived. They are as follows : 

" The C. S. steamer Florida, Commander J. N. 
Maffit. This steamer was built in Liverpool, and 
sent to Nassau in April, 1862 ; was put in the 
Admiralty Court ; cleared on the 6th of August, 
when her present commander took charge with 
18 men ; went to sea ; met her tender, and re- 
ceived guns, &c. On the 16th of August the 
yellow fever appeared on board, and Capt. Maffit 
had to perform surgeon's duty, until necessity 
forced the vessel into Cardenas. There she lost 
nearly all her crew, her paymaster, and third 
engineer. She ran the blockade off" Havana, in 
and out, and on the 4th of September appeared 
off Mobile. The entire blockading fleet put after 
her. Capt. Maffit was brought up from a bed of 
sickness (yellow fever) to take her in. For 2 
hours and 48 minutes she was under a close fire. 
All the crew were sent below, and the officers 
only remained on deck, for she had but 1 1 men 
on duty, and her guns were not furnished with 
rammers, quoins, beds, or sights ; in fact, she 
was almost helpless. Three heavy shots struck 
her hull. One shell struck her amidships, and 
passed through, killing one man and wounding 
seven. Her standing rigging was shot away, 
and some 1500 shi-apnel shot struck her hull 
and masts." 

So far the notes which Capt. Maffit has as yet 
found time to send me. Of the Captain himself; 
I may say that he is a slight, middle-sized, well- 
knit man, of about forty-two ; a merry-looking 
man, witli a ready, determined air, full of life 



102 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



and business ; apparently the sort of man who is 
equally ready for a fight or a jollification, and 
whose preference for the latter would by no means 
interfere with his creditable conduct of the former. 
His plainly furnished little state-room looked as 
business-like as a merchant's office. The round 
table in the centre was strewn with books and in- 
numerable manuscripts, and on the shelves were 
formidable looking rows of account books, charts, 
&c. I may observe of the cabm, as of every part 
of the Florida, that none of it appears to have 
been built for ornament — all for use. " You see," 
said the Captain, pointing to the heaps of papers, 
letters on files, account books, &c., which liter- 
ally littered the table, — " you see I've no sinecure 
of it. Since my paymaster died, I've had to be 
my own paymaster. There's a young man named 
Davis (no relation to our President) who does 
paymaster's duty ; but he's not yet quite up to 
the work." 

Capt. Maflit forthwith began an animated re- 
cital of his career and adventures. He is forty- 
two years old, and is the oldest officer on board. 
All the officers were born in the Confederate 
States, and most of them Avere officers in the 
United States Navy before the outbreak of the 
war. The oldest of the officers is not more than 
twenty-three. The men are more mixed. There 
are about one hundred able seamen on board the 
Florida, and about thirteen officers. Four fine 
fellows are from the neighborhood of Brest. 
Capt. Maffit says that he has hardly ever taken a 
prize but what some of the crcM' of the prize have 
come forward to say, " Should like to serve with 
you, sir." Generally speaking, he has to refuse ; 
but sometimes, when he sees a very likely fellow, 
he takes him on. 

Capt. Maffit was a Lieutenant of the United 
States Navy before the outbreak, and in that 
capacity distinguished himself greatly. In 1858, 
he commanded the brig Dolphin, when he cap- 
tured the slaver Echo, with four hundred slaves 
on board, and took her into Charleston. For 
this feat his health was drank at a public dinner 
at Liverpool ; and it is a curious fact, for those 
who maintain that the civil war in America is 
founded upon the slave question, that the com- 
mander of this important Confederate cruiser, 
should be the very man who has distinguished 
himself actively against the slave trade. In 1859, 
Capt. Maffit commanded the United States steam- 
er Crusader, and captured four slavers. 

The Captain had a great deal to say about his 
successful feat at Mobile. In his opinion, it has 
been the greatest naval feat of modern times. 
He dwelt long and warmly upon the incidents of 
the affair, and pointed proudly to the marks of 
shrapnel, which are numerous enough, upon the 
masts and smoke-stacks. The Florida was struck 
with three heavy shots on the occasion, and one 
can easily perceive in the side of the ship Avhere 
the mischief caused by the 1 1-iuch shell has been 
repaired. The Florida made no endeavor to re- 
ply tothe fire which she received, the sea running 
too high to admit of steady aim, and her small 
crew being too much occupied in the management 



of the ship. The Captain showed us a water- 
color sketch (very well di'awn by one of the mid- 
shipmen) of the Florida running the blockade. 
It would not have disgraced a professional artist. 

The only broadside which the Florida has fired 
in anger was against the Ericsson, an armed 
merchantman, which she encountered some forty 
miles from New York. The Ericsson, a very 
large vessel, did not reply, but made the best of 
her way off, and succeeded in escaping. When 
they ventured within forty miles of New York, 
they did not know that the arrival of the Tacony, 
one of their ' outfits,' had put the New Yorkers 
on their guard, and they soon found that there 
were about seventy armed vessels out searching 
for them, and so were glad to retreat. " We 
never seek a fight," said Capt. Maffit, " and we 
don't avoid one. You see, we've only two ves- 
sels against fifteen hundred; so we should stand a 
poor chance. Our object is merely to destroy 
their commerce, so as to bring about a peace. We 
have taken altogether seventy-two prizes, and es- 
timate the value at about fifteen million dollars. 
The Jacob Bell alone was worth two million one 
hundred thousand dollars." The Captain exhib- 
ited a book in which all the prizes were regularly 
entered, and all particulars relating thereto. He 
explained that their mode of procedure was to 
burn and destroy the property of the Northern 
States wherever they found it. I asked if they 
took gold and precious articles, and the reply was, 
" Pretty quick, when Ave get them." 

The papers of the burned prizes are all kept, 
and a valuation is made before the destruction 
of the vessels, in the expectation that when peace 
is restored, the Confederate Government will make 
an appropriation of money equivalent to the claims 
of the cajitors. In consequence of this arrange- 
ment there is very little actual treasure on board the 
Florida ; the officers and crew are working mainly 
on the faith of the future independence and sol- 
vency of the Confederacy. '* Any way," said 
Capt. Maffit, " we have cost the Government very 
little, for we've lived on the enemy ; O, yes, we've 
served them out beautifully." In reply to some 
questions as to the method of capture, the Cap- 
tain said, " We only make war with the United 
States Government, and Ave respect little prop- 
erty. We treat prisoners of Avar with the great- 
est respect. Most of those whom Ave have cap- 
tured have spoken Avell of us. To be sure, Ave 
have met Avith some ungrateful rascals ; but you 
meet Avith those all the Avorld over. The best 
prize Ave took Avas the Anglo-Saxon, Avhich Ave 
took in the English Channel, the other day, in 
mid channel, about sixty miles from Cork. She 
had coal on board, and Ave burned her. 

" The pilot Avas a saucy fellow, and maintained 
that he Avas on his piloting ground. He insisted 
on being landed in an English port ; but Ave could 
not do that. I brought him and tAventy-four men 
hei'e, (to Brest,) and sent them to the English 
Consul. If the pilot has any just claim upon us, 
it Avill be settled by the Confederate Government. 
That's not my business. My business is to take 
care of the ship." 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



103 



When the Florida came into Brest, she had 
been at sea eight months without spending more 
than four entire days in port. Before entering 
the port of Brest, she had not been more than 
twenty-four hours in any one port, although she 
had visited Nassau, Bermuda, Pernambuco, and 
Sierra (Brazil). " Yes, indeed, sii-," said the Cap- 
tain, " two hundred and forty-five days upon 
solid junk, without repairs or provisions." During 
all this time, they have only lost fifteen men, in- 
cluding those who were killed and wounded at 
Mobile, the paymaster, (who died of consumption,) 
and one officer who was accidentally di-owned. 
They have come into Brest to repair the engines, 
which are somewhat out of order, the shaft being 
quite out of line. The Emperor has given orders 
that the Florida is to be admitted into the port 
for all necessary repairs, and is to be supplied 
with everything she may require except munitions 
of war. 

In the course of conversation, Capt. Maffit gave 
me an account of what he called the " outfits " 
of the Florida. These have been three in num- 
ber. The Clarence was captured oft' Pernambuco 
on the 5th of May, and Lieut. Reed was put on 
board with twenty men and one gun. These 
were afterwards changed to the Tacony, a better 
vessel, which was captured shor.tly after, and (to 
borrow Capt. Maffit's expression) " she captured 
right and left." Finally, she took the revenue 
cutter off Portland harbor. The other "fit-out" 
was the Lapwing, on board of which Lieut. Av- 
rett was put to cruise on the equator. He made 
several captures, and has now returned to his 
ship. 

Capt. Maffit showed us over his ship, which 
was in pretty good order, considering the eight 
months' almost interrupted cruise, and he pre- 
sented us both with a photographic picture of 
her, which was taken at Bermuda. The Florida 
mounts only eight guns — six 48-pounders of the 
Blakeley pattern, made at Low Moor, and stern 
and bow chasers. 

On taking our leave, I asked Capt. Maffit 
whether he expected to be intercepted on leaving 
Brest, pointing at the same time to the Goulet, 
the narrow passage which afi'ords the only ingress 
and egress to and from the Rade. " AVell," re- 
plied he, *' I expect there will be seven or eight 
of them out there before long, but I'm not 
afraid. I've run eight blockades already, and 
it'll go hard but I'll run the ninth." 



BATTLE-HYMN OF THE REPUBLIC. 

BY MRS. JULIA WARD HOWE. 

Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the 

Lord: 
He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes 

of wrath are stored ; 
He hath loosed the fateful lightning of his terrible 

swift sword : 

His truth is marching on. 



I have seen him in the watch-fires of a hundred cir- 
cling camps ; 

They have builded him an altar in the evening dews 
and damps ; 

I have read his righteous sentence by the dim and 
flaring lamps : 

His day is marching on. 

I have read a fiery gospel wi-it in burnished rows 

of steel : 
" As ye deal with my contemners, so with you my 

grace shall deal ; 
Let the Hero, born of Avoman, crush the serpent 

with his heel, 

Since God is marching on." 

He has sounded forth the trumpet that shall never 
call retreat ; 

He is sifting out the hearts of men before his judg- 
ment seat ; 

O, be swift, my soul, to answer him ! be jubilant, 
my feet ! 

Our God is marching on. 

In the beauty of the lilies Christ was born across 

the sea. 
With a glory in his bosom that transfigures you 

and me : 
As he died to make men holy, let us die to make 

men free, 

While God is marching on. 



Incidents of Vicksburg. — In the action 
which occurred on the twenty-ninth day of De- 
cember, 1862, but two divisions — those of Mor- 
gan's and Steele's — were generally and closely 
engaged. A portion of Smith's division made 
some advance under a terrible fire, in which the 
gallant Sixth Missouri were most actively en- 
gaged. This regiment crossed the levee, which 
had been occupied by the enemy as an earth- 
work, and was still, after being crossed, com- 
manded by the enemy's cannon. It, however, 
led to an advance upon Smith's line, but Avithout 
any positive advantage to us. From certain 
points on the new line thus made, Vicksburg 
could be seen. Tlie movements of the rebel 
troops in the city, and some portions of Vicks- 
burg, were clearly and fairly in view. It was 
tempting to look straight in upon the beleaguered 
city, and still know that its occupation was im- 
probable, if not impossible. But so it was, and 
the Union troops lay down upon their arms on 
the night of the twenty-ninth with anxious hearts 
and high hopes that something might occur to 
make it practicable. The night of the twenty- 
ninth passed, and the morning dawned Avithout 
any new development being made, except that 
the enemy assumed a threatening position with 
their artillery. It v,^s evidently his intention to 
shell the camp. It having rained incessantly 
during the night, and the men having been ex- 
posed to it all, it was deemed advisable to place 
them in such a position that they would not be 
exposed to the enemy's cannon, and where they 
could examine their ammunition and clean their 
rusted arms, preparatory to further operations. 



104 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



In the mean time, the front was to be held firmly, 
and heavier artillery was to be placed in position 
behind earth-works. The threatening prepara- 
tions in front deterred the enemy from shelling 
the camps, and put him on his guard, for offen- 
sive operations on our part. Wednesday was 
occupied by both armies, in the presence of each 
other, throwing up new Avorks, digging new pits, 
preparing for operations offensive and defensive. 
During tlie afternoon of Tuesday, the cries of our 
wounded could be heard, and an impromptu ef- 
fort was made to recover them by a flag of truce. 
Being irregular, and perhaps not authorized, and 
occasional skirmishes still going on, the flag was 
fired on by the enemy. The wounded and dead 
of Thayer's and Blair's brigades had to lie there 
and await the tedious process of oflicial commu- 
nication. This is one of the most horrible pic- 
tures which a battle-field presents, but frequently 
is unavoidable. It seems to have been so in this 
instance. While a tear here and there was 
dropped for the dying and the dead, still the great 
purpose of the expedition was not accomplished, 
and generally our army looked forward to watch 
future movements. 

Wednesday morning came, and still no change 
from Tuesday. _ The front was kept up by Smith's 
and Morgan's divisions, while Steele's division lay 
along Chickasaw Bayou, ready to meet the enemy 
if they should make a deployment in that direc- 
tioii. Everything was quiet on the line, and this 
being a favorable opportunity, a flag of truce was 
sent to the enemy for the purpose of recovering 
and attending to our dead and wounded. The 
flag was duly recognized, the message was re- 
■ ceived and was answered, allowing us four hours 
to bury our dead. The cessation of hostilities 
consequent to the removal of the dead and 
wounded, gave the sharpshooters and pickets 
an opportunity to converse with each other. The 
conversation was opened by our pickets, by ask- 
ing : " How far is it to Vicksburg ? " 

liebel Picket. — So far that you'll never git 
thar. 
Federal. — Hoav many men you got ? 
Rebel. — Enough to clean you out. 
One rebel, -who seemed to be somewhat of a 
stumper, said that "Banks had been whipped 
out at Port Hudson, that Memphis had been re- 
taken, and that the Yankees would not take 
Vicksburg till hell froze over." A thousand 
questions were asked, and all answered in the 
same defiant way. 

While this interesting parley was going on, 
the wounded and dead were removed. In a very 
short time the field was cleared, and everything 
was again quiet on the lines. 

The camps were soon astir again ; orderlies 
and aids were galloping to and from the various 
division and brigade headquarters; of course it 
could be interpreted to mean nothing else than 
further orders. The critical and trying position 
of our army lent an additional interest to orders. 
They were important, for Steele's division was 
ordered to make a night assault on Haines' 
Bluff, while the other division commanders were 



to hold their fronts firm and advance, if they 
could, while Steele was storming the enemy's 
works at Haines' Bluff. The movement prepara- 
tory to this was, for Steele to mask his division 
from the enemy's lookouts by marching down 
Chickasaw Bayou to the river, put his troops on 
board the transports, and steam quietly up the 
Yazoo, and before daylight debark his troops un- 
der the enemy's guns at Haines' Bluff. In this 
matter the gunboat and mortar fleets were to 
])lay an important ])art. The river was lined 
with torpedoes, and it was necessary to clear it 
out before the transports could go up. This be- 
ing accomplished, they were to take a position 
further up the river from the point of debarka- 
tion, and engage the batteries, while the troops 
should advance to the Bluffs. During the day, 
the boilers of the steamboats designated for the 
hazardous business were protected by baleg of 
hay and otherwise. Pilots and river men were 
shaky, and anxiously inquired what it meant. 
No information was imparted, as the whole plan 
was to be kept strictly secret. 



A Brave Drummer-Boy. — Orion P. Howe, 

of Waukegan, Illinois, drummer-boy to the Fif- 
ty-fifth Volunteers of that State, was appointed 
to fill a vacancy in the Naval School at Newport. 
The following extract from a letter, written by 
Major-General Sherman to Secretary Stanton, 
detailing an incident which transpired during the 
assault upon the rebel works at Vicksburg, on 
May 19th, doubtless secured the boy's promo- 
tion : 

" When the assault at Vicksburg was at its 
height on the 19th of May, and I was in front 
near the road which formed my line of attack, 
this young lad came up to me wounded and 
bleeding, with a good, healthy boy's cry : ' Gen. 
Sherman, send some cartridges to Col. Malm- 
borg ; the men are nearly all out.' ' What is the 
matter, my boy ? ' ' They shot me in the leg, sir, 
but I can go to the hospital. Send the cartridges 
right away.' Even where we stood, the shot fell 
thick, and I told him to go to the rear at once, I 
would attend to the cartridges, and ofl' he limped. 
Just before he disappeared on the hill, he turned 
and called as loud as he could : ' Calibre 54.' I 
have not seen the lad since, and his Colonel, 
Malmborg, on inquiry, gives me his addi'ess as 
above, and says he is a bright, intelligent boy, 
with a fair preliminary education. 

" What ai-rested my attention then was, and 
what renews my memory of the fact now is, that 
one so young, carrying a musket-ball wound 
through his leg, should have found his way to 
me on that fatal spot, and delivered his message, 
not forgetting the very important part even of 
the calibre of his musket, 54, which you know is 
an unusual one. 

" I'll warrant that the boy has in him the ele- 
ments of a man, and I commend him to the Gov- 
ernment as one worthy the fostering care of some 
one of its national institutions." 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



105 



Col. Ellsworth's last Speech. — " Boys, no 
doubt you felt surprised on hearing my orders to 
be in readiness at a moment's notice, but I will 
explain all as far as I am allowed. Yesterday 
forenoon I understood that a movement was to 
be made against Alexandria. Of course, I was 
on the qui vice. I went to see Gen. Mansfield, 
the commander at Washington, and told him that 
I should consider it as a personal aflront if he 
would not allow us to have the right of the line, 
which is our due, as the first volunteer regiment 
sworn in for the war. All that I can tell you is 
to prepare yourselves for a nice little sail, and, 
at the end of it, a skirmish. Go to your tents, 
lie down, and take your rest till two o'clock, when 
the boat will arrive, and we go forward to victory 
or death. When we reach the place of destina- 
tion, act as men ; do nothing to shame the regi- 
ment; show the enemy that you are men, as well 
as soldiers, and that 30U will treat them with 
kindness until they force you to use violence. I 
want to kill them with kindness. Go to your 
tents, and do as I tell you." 



Adventukes in the South. — Lieut. F. 
Perry and private William P. Pugh, of the Third 
West Tennessee cavalry were out on recruiting 
service, and were captured on the 7th of Octo- 
ber, 1863, after a skirmish with Faulkner's and 
Wilson's partisans, near Como, some sixty miles 
from Paducah. Mr. Pugh had previously been 
captured by, and had made his escape from, the 
same parties ; and being a Tennesseean, was sub- 
jected to some severities. His captors declared 
he should not again escape, and exercised unu- 
sual vigilance in conducting their prisoners south- 
ward. 

They were forced to walk from the place of 
capture to Gadsden, Alabama, on the Coosa Riv- 
er, and were conveyed thence by boat to Rome, 
Georgia, where they took cars for Atlanta, and, 
subsequently, for Richmond. Thirty miles east 
of Raleigh, North Carolina, they jumped from 
the cars, made their way to AVashington, where 
they were received inside the Federal lines, and 
thence sent north to join their comrades, who 
still supposed them in Libby Prison. 

They suflered great privations on the march 
from Como to Gadsden, particularly after cross- 
ing the Tennessee River. In the Tuscumbia Val- 
ley they were three days without anything to eat, 
their captors stating that the Yankees had been 
there and destroyed all supplies. At Decatur 
they paid twenty-five cents an ear for corn, 
which was their sole sustenance the greater part 
of the march. They were compelled to make 
forced marches by by-roads, and through an un- 
frequented country, as Sherman was at Tuscum- 
bia, and the rebels anticipated that he would 
turn south, and advance in the direction of 
Gadsden. Several times the prisoners heard his 
cannon, and fondly hoped for rescue. There was 
great scarcity of provisions wherever they went, 
and Confederate money was at an enormous dis- 
count. At Decatur, a woman offered a chicken- 



pie for sale, for which she wanted one dollar in 
silver or greenbacks. She refused to sell it for 
Confederate money, though ten dollars were of- 
fered. At Gadsden, the prisoners found a con- 
siderable number of rebel conscripts, who, when- 
ever their officers and guards were not by, told 
them they were Union men, and would escape on 
the fii-st opportunity. They generally manifested 
their sympathy for the boys by slipping a roll of 
Confederate bills into their hands, and saying 
they were sorry there was not more of it. 

Here the prisoners found Confederate Lieu- 
tenants and other subordinate officers engaged 
in selling pies to Yankee prisoners. These pies 
were made of sweet potatoes, without sugar or 
shortening in the crust, and were peddled in bas- 
kets, after the fashion we see at railroad stations. 
A Colonel of an Alabama regiment, at Gadsden, 
sent a sack of corn, which he tried to sell them 
for greenbacks. Everywhere there was a de- 
mand for Uncle Sam's money, which was hoarded 
as carefully as silver and gold, and kept out of 
circulation. 

At Rome the prisoners saw a considerable 
body of Georgia State militia. They were mostly 
boys under sixteen, and old men over forty-five, 
badly clothed, and poorly disciplined, but well 
armed. Mr. Perry, who was placed on his parole 
of honor, says that at Augusta, Georgia, he saw 
an immense pile of cotton, covering an area of 
perhaps one acre, and piled higher than any build- 
ing in Cincinnati. There were also considerable 
quantities at Atlanta, but none that he saw at 
Rome. 

They were detained at Atlanta some ten days, 
before starting for Richmond. At Columbia, 
South Carolina, they Jbund that Charleston 
money was absolutely valueless ; nobody would 
take it ; the reason being assigned that the city 
might at any day fall into Federal hands, and 
then the currency would be worth nothing. Be- 
tween Atlanta and Raleigh they saw no organ- 
ized bodies of Confederate troops, and very little 
material out of which to make them. The re- 
st)urces of the countrj^, in that respect, seemed to 
have been thoroughly exhausted. 

When they left Raleigh for Richmond, a plan 
of escape was arranged between Messrs. Perry, 
Pugh, and John Carr, of the First ISIissouri Ar- 
tillery, who was formerly chief clerk, at Corinth, 
for Gen. Carr. About three o'clock in the morn- 
ing, being about thirty miles from Ptaleigh, on 
the Weldon road, the three leaped from the caa-, 
and plunged into the forest. They made as near 
south-east as they could, guided by the stars and 
the course of the clouds, concealing themselves 
by day. 

They did not venture near any settlement or 
plantation, till forced to do so by excessive hun- 
ger, and one night ventured to arouse the in- 
mates of a negro cabin, who were very inquisitive, 
and would not commit themselves until satisfied 
they were real Yankees, which was decided by an 
old negro, who felt Mr. Perry's cavalry jacket, 
and declared it was too fine for a rebel's. Then 
they were treated with great hospitality, and 



106 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



feasted on corn bread and " possum," and sub- 
jected to a great deal of questioning. 

Among other things, the patriarch of the cabin 
wanted to know whether they "hab seen Mr. 
Linkum," and under the impression that they 
had left his presence but a short time, affection- 
ately inquired after his health. "An' dere's 
anodder man," said tire darkey, " dey call him 
Mr. Britain — hab you seen him ? " The Yankees 
were puzzled. " Ole massa," said the darkey, ex- 
plaining, "call him Mr. Great Britain, an' says 
he's on his side, an' some saj's he's on yom-n." 
The Yankees " took," said they knew him, and 
that he was Avell ; and having satisfied the curi- 
osity qf their hospitable entertainers and then.- 
own hunger, took up their march for Washington, 

They met no Confederate soldiers until within 
some five miles of Washington, and there they 
narrowly escaped capture, running into their 
pickets twice, and being fired on once, at which 
time they lost sight of Carr, whom they supposed 
to have been killed or captured, and they heard 
no more of him. They arrived at Washington al- 
most naked, foot-sore, and exhausted, having 
been ten days wandering about the country. 



ON BOARD THE CUMBERLAND. 

March 7, 1862. 

BY GEORGE H. BOKER. 

" Stand to your guns, men ! " Morris cried. 

Small need to pass the word ; 
Our men at quarters ranged themselves 

Before the drum was heard. 

And then began the sailors' jests : 

" What thmg is that, I say r " 
"A long-shore meeting-house adrift 

Is standing down the bay ! " 

A frown came over Morris' face ; 

The strange, dark craft he knew ; 
"That is the iron Merrimac, 

Manned by a rebel crew. 

" So shot your guns, and point them straight ; 

Before this da)-^ goes by, 
We'll try of what her metal's made." 

A clieer was our reply. 

" Remember, boys, this flag of ours 

Has seldom left its place ; 
And where it falls, the deck it strikes 

Is covered with disgrace. 

" I ask but this : or sink or swim, 

Or live or nobly die. 
My last sight upon earth may be 

To see that ensign fly ! " 

Meanwhile, the shapeless iron mass 

Came moving o'er the wave, 
As gloomy as a passing hearse, 

As silent as the grave. 

Her ports were closed ; from stem to stern 

No sigii of life appeared. 
We wondered, questioned, strained our eyes, 

Joked — everything but feared. 



She reached our range. Our broadside rang, 

Our heavy pivots roared ; 
And shot and shell, a fire of hell. 

Against her sides we poured. 

God's mercy ! from her sloping roof 

The iron tempest glanced. 
As hail bounds from a cottage-thatch, 

And round her leaped and danced. 

Or when against her dusky hull 

We struck a fair, full blow, 
The mighty, solid iron globes 

Were crumbled up like snow. 

On, on, with fast increasing speed, 

The silent monster came. 
Though all our starboard battery 

Was one long line of flame. 

She heeded not ; no gun she fired ; 

Straight on our bow she bore ; 
Through riving plank and crashing frame 

Her furious way she tore. 

Alas ! our beautiful keen bow. 

That in the fiercest blast 
So gently folded back the seas. 

They hardly felt we passed ! 

Alas ! alas ! my Cumberland, 

That ne'er knew grief before, 
To be so gored, to feel so deep 

The tusk of that sea-boar ! 

Once more she backward drew a space, 

Once more our side she rent ; 
Then, in the wantonness of hate, 

Her broadside through us sent. 

The dead and dying round us lay, 

But our foemen lay abeam ; 
Her open port-holes maddened us ; 

We fired with shout and scream. 

We felt our vessel settling fast, 

We knew our time was brief ; 
"The pumps ! the pumps ! " But they who 
pumped, 

And fought not, wept with grief. 

" O, keep us but an hour afloat ! 

O, give us only time 
To be the instruments of Heaven 

Against the traitors' crime ! " 

From captain down to powder-boy 

No hand was idle then ! 
Two soldiers, but by chance aboard, 

Fought on like sailor-men. 

And when a gun's crew lost a hand. 

Some bold marine stepped out, 
And jerked his braided jacket ofl". 

And hauled the gun about. 

Our forward magazine was drowned ; 

And up from the sick bay 
Crawled out the wounded, red with blood. 

And round us gasping lay. 

Yes, cheering, calling us by name, 

Struggling with failing breath, 
To keep their shipmates at the post 

Where glory strove with death. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



107 



With decks afloat, and powder gone. 

The last broadside we gave 
From the guns' heated iron lips 

Burst out beneath the wave. 

So sponges, rammers, and handspikes — 

As men-of-war' s-men should — 
We placed within their proper racks. 

And at our quarters stood. 

" Up to the spar-deck ! save yourselves ! " 
Cried Selfridge. " Up, my men ! 

God grant that some of you may live 
To fight yon ship again ! " 

AVe turned — we did not like to go ; 

Yet staying seemed but vain, 
Knee-deep in water ; so we left ; 

Some swore, some groaned with pain. 

We reached the deck. There Randall stood : 

" Another turn, men — so ! " 
Calmly he aimed his pivot-gun : 

" Now, Tenny, let her go ! " 

It did our sore hearts good to hear 

The song our pivot sang. 
As rushing on, from wave to wave. 

The whirring bomb-shell sprang. 

Brave Randall leaped upon the gun. 

And waved his cap in sport ; 
•< Well done ! well aimed"! I saw that shell 

Go through an open port." 

It was our last, our deadliest shot ; 

The deck was overflown ; 
The poor ship staggered, lurched to port. 

And gave a living groan, 

Down, down, as headlong through the waves 

Our gallant vessel rushed, 
A thousand gurgling watery sounds 

Around my senses gushed. 

Then I remember little more. 

One look to heaven I gave. 
Where, like an angel's wing, I saw 

Our spotless ensign wave. 

I tried to cheer. I cannot say 

Whether I swam or sank ; 
A blue mist closed around my eyes, 

And everything was blank. 

When I awoke, a soldier lad, 

All dripping from the sea. 
With two great tears upon his cheeks, 

Was bending over me. 

I tried to speak. He understood 

The wish I could not speak. 
He turned me. There, thank God ! the flag 

Still fluttered at the peak ! 

And there, while thread shall hang to thread, 

0, let that ensign fly ! 
The noblest constellation set 

Against our northern sky. 

A sign that we who live may claim 

The peerage of the brave ; 
A monument that needs no scroll 

For those beneath the wave ! 



A YANKEE IN DIXIE. 

BY CORPORAL PURDUM. 

I WILL endeavor to give a short account of what 
I saw and heard while in the hands of the rebels, 
beginning with my capture when I was first in- 
troduced to the inside of the great Southern 
humbug. 

It was on the evening of the 20th of September, 
1863, that myself, in company with a number of 
others from the 33d and other regiments, was 
taken prisoner by a part of Longstreet's corps. 
We were taken a short distance to the rear of 
their fii-st line, and camped for the night. The 
rebs used us very well at first, and were very civil 
and polite. At daylight on Monday morning we 
commenced our pilgrimage south in the direction 
of Ringgold, where we arrived about 2 o'clock 
P. M., and were brought up in front of the Provost 
Marshal, surrounded by his numerous clerks, 
and our names were taken, which business occu- 
pied about two hours. This being done we were 
started forward again, bound for Tunnel Hill 
Station, which place we arrived at about 9 o'clock 
at night, and were turned into a field to remain 
the rest of the night. We were very tired and 
hungry, having marched twenty-two miles and 
had no rations. We lay down to rest ourselves 
and get some sleep, but were called up at 2 o'clock 
to draw some rations, (if it could be called such.) 
They consisted of a little meal and bacon, which 
was so strong the boys said it could almost walk 
alone. After disposing of our meal as best we 
could, some making mush in tin cups, some ash 
cakes, and some who were fortunate enough to 

fet ovens, made something resembling bread, 
'hey then brought us up in line, preparatory to 
taldng our rubber blankets, knapsacks, and can- 
teens from us ; but as soon as the boys found out 
what was to be done, we commenced to tear 
everything to pieces that we could not sell ; so 
they got but few things from us ; and by the 
time they were done the place had the ap- 
pearance of an old deserted camp, as strips of 
blankets, knapsacks, and broken canteens were 
strewn aU over the ground, for we were de- 
termined that the rebs should not be benefited 
by them. Here we expected to get on the cars, 
but were disappointed, and started on foot for 
Dalton, seven miles distant from Tunnel Hill; 
and the road being very dusty, and we not being 
in the best of humor after having our things 
taken from us, we struck out almostjon a double- 
quick in order to tire out the guards, and several 
times we were stopped for them to rest and get 
to their places. 

On this trip I stopped at a house to get some 
bread, and had to pay one dollar for three small 
biscuits; but the money being of but little value, 
I paid it with a good grace, and went on my way, 
rejoicing that my lot was not permanently cast 
in the land of cotton and starvation. On arriving 
at Dalton we again drew rations of floui- and 
meat, and after getting our supper — or rather 
partaking of a mixture of dough, flour, and tainted 
bacon — we were marched through the town, as 



108 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND ESICIDENTS, 



we thought, to get on the cars ; but I guess it was 
done in order that the citizens might satisfy their 
curiosity by seeing the " Yankees," as we were 
taken back to the same place and kept till morn- 
ing. Then they put us on the cars and started 
for Atlanta. On the way we were subject to a 
great many insults, not only from the men, but 
the women. They came out as we passed, and 
threw clubs and stones at us, and did everything 
they could to express their hatred of the " Yan- 
kees ; " but they soon got tired, for the boys were 
not in the humor to be outdone by these so-called 
Southern ladies, and paid them back in their 
own coin, till they would go back into their houses 
or silently look on and wonder at the impudence 
the " Yankees " had to insult them. 

Arriving at Atlanta we were met by crowds of 
men, women, and children, both white and black, 
and of all ages, from old grayheaded men and 
women down to the little urchins that could 
scarcely walk — all gazing with the greatest 
eagerness to get a sight of us, to see if we did 
really look like human beings. Many appeared 
surprised at seeing us, and I could hear them 
saying, " Is them Yankees ? " One old woman 
came running out and asked me if we Avere really 
Yankees. I told her we were, " but as we had 
come from the West, and were younger ones 
than those in the East, our horns had not yet 
appeared." This answer seemed to satisfy her, 
for she went off and said no more about Yankees. 
In every direction we saw the young negroes and 
white children i-unning about hollowing, " Yanks, 
Yanks ! " and the scene was quite amusing to 
behold. 

Leaving the depot we were taken to the rear 
of the town and put in a lot which had the 
appearance of having been used for a hog lot, 
and left to spend the night as best we could, 
which was none the pleasantest, I can assure you. 
The next day we were formed into companies of 
one hundred <each, our names again taken, and 
we marched into the barracks to spend the night. 
Here they took our woollen blankets and pocket 
knives from us, but they got but few of the latter, 
for we concealed them. There we got five days' 
rations of hard bread and meat, which was to last 
us till we got to Richmond. 

After leaving Atlanta we made but few stops 
till we got to Richmond. We passed through 
Augusta, formerly the capital of Georgia. It had 
the appearance of once being a beautiful and 
prosperous city ; it is situated in a fine country 
on the west side of the Savannah River, though 
like all other toMus of the South, it is behind 
the cities of the North about a half century in 
CIVILIZATION. The next place of any importance 
we came to was Columbia, the capital of South 
Carolina, which is near the centre of the State, 
but in a very poor country and among hills, so 
that a person, to view the place, must go through 
it. Leaving this specimen of Southern cities, we 
Avent south till we came to Branchville, forty-five 
miles from Charleston. Here we struck the 
Raleigh and North Carolina Railroad, and were 
soon in North Carolina. Arriving at Raleigh, 
the capital, we went into camp for a while. 



There are a great many Union people in Raleigh, 
but they have to be very cautious, as they are 
closely watched by the military authorities. North 
Carolina is a better country than either South 
Carolina or Georgia ; it looks more like the 
North ; but in South Carolina the soil is the 
poorest that I have seen in any place. In some 
parts of the State they have tried to raise grain, 
but it has been almost a complete failure. What 
little corn I saw was very poor, it being so thin 
over the field that I could almost count the stalks 
as we passed in the cars. Their farming imple- 
ments are of a very poor quality. They break 
up their ground with a small plough with one 
horse or mule attached. What grain they raise 
is not enough for home consumption, let alone to 
supply an army with bread and meat. The 
principal timber through the South is pine, which 
grows in great abundance. On arriving in sight 
of Richmond, we got off the cars and were taken 
to Bell Island on the morning of the 31st of 
September, being just ten days on the way ; the 
distance we travelled over being 850 miles. The 
island is situated in James River, at the foot of 
the falls, and opposite the upper part of the city. 
That part of the island we were on is a very low 
sand bar, over which the chilly air comes from 
the river, and almost every night and morning we 
were enveloped in a dense fog. Here we were 
exposed to all kinds of weather, without any 
shelter from the cold rains and chilly winds. 
Our rations here consisted of a small piece of 
bread and a few mouthfuls of meat or soup, over 
which we Avould hold a consultation to determine 
what it was made of, and came to the conclusion 
that it was intended for bean soup, although the 
greater portion of the ingredients were sand and 
bugs. But we must eat it or do without anything, 
and as the bugs were well cooked and the sand well 
settled to the bottom of the vessel, we man- 
aged to eat it without any great inconvenience. 
In this way we lived for five days, when we 
were taken over into the city, and took up lodgings 
in a large tobacco warehouse, opposite Libby 
Prison, and in the lower part of the city. In this 
building they crowded eleven hundred of us. I 
was fortunate enough to get up in the third story, 
and it was much more comfortable than either of 
the others. We were so crowded that we had 
scarcely room to lie down without getting on top 
of each other. Here I remained about forty days. 
We were not allowed to go out of the house 
except to get rations. In this way I managed to 
get out twice Avhile there. When first put in we 
got about one half rations, which I thought was 
doing well ; but it soon got less, until we were 
scarcely able to keep from starving. On the day 
after we were put in the prison the Provost Mar- 
shal came in and took our names for the third 
time since being captured, and told us that if 
all those who had any greenbacks would give 
them up to him, he would return them when we 
went away. All who did not give them up would 
be searched, and if any money was found it would 
be confiscated. By this means a great many of 
the boys were induced to give up their money, 
thinking that we should go away in a few days, 



.ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



109 



and then they would get it back again. But some 
were not to be fooled in that way, but were 
determined to keep their money if possible ; so 
they went to work to conceal it, which was done 
in various ways, some by sewing it in their clothes, 
others by putting it in their tobacco, and some 
would take the buttons of their blouses apart, 
put a bill in, and tlien fix it together to look as if 
it had never been touched. In this last-mentioned 
way I kept ten dollars, and gave two to the 
Marshal. After getting all they could in this 
way, they commenced to search us, but finding 
that they were not getting enough to pay them 
for the trouble, they soon quit it, and issued us 
some rations, as we had not had any for thirty- 
six hours, and were getting pretty hungry ! The 
guards were strictly forbidden to sell anything 
to us, but they would do almost anything to get 
our greenbacks, and at night would smuggle in 
bread to those who had any money ; and in this 
way I managed to get bread for four of us for sev- 
eral days by being economical. For a one dollar 
greenback we could get eight or ten loaves of 
bread, but for one of Confederate money, some- 
times we could get two loaves. Others would not 
have it at all, said they had their pockets full of 
it. After Me had been there about two weeks 
some of the men came so near starving that they 
would trade off their clothes for bread — their 
shoes and socks, and some even traded their 
shirts, and any little thing they could find ; and 
some days the door Avould present the appearance 
of a toy shop. There were handkerchiefs, pocket 
knives, finger rings, combs, buttons, spoons, 
knives and forks, and everything a soldier could 
find about his person was offered for bread. 
"Bj'ead!" ^' Bread!" was the cry, and indeed it 
was a sorrowful sight to see men of ajl grades of 
society, from the college professor down to the 
ignorant and unlettered, all brought to the verge of 
Starvation by the inhuman barbarity of their cap- 
tors. In passing around the room I could see men 
once stout and hearty made helpless as infants, 
their cheeks of a pale death color, their eyes sun- 
ken and the light that once sparkled in them gone, 
and their skeleton-like forms all saying plainly 
that unless soon aided their time was short for 
this world. The sight was enough to draw pity 
from the hardest of hearts, unless they were so 
steeped in crime that nothing could affect them. 
The anguish and suffering here endured can never 
be told. Future history will fail in its endeavors 
to picture the noble heroism here displayed by 
men when they were suffering all the misery 
possible for man to endure, yet true to their 
country's cause, and would rather die than sacrifice 
their honor and patriotism, by tm-ning traitor to 
their country. Almost every day there were 
from eight to ten taken to the hospital, there to 
linger on for weeks, and perhaps months, before 
receiving any benefit by the change, if indeed 
they ever recovered. 

But there was still another evil to contend 
against ; and that was the vermin, which got so 
numerous that we could in no way rid ourselves 
of them J and when a person once got down and 



was unable to help himself, there was danger of his 
actually being Jailed hy the lice. It makes me 
shudder now while I think of it. What a terrible 
condition we were then in ! but how much worse 
must it have become by this time, as it has been 
near six weeks since I left ! But I will not dwell 
longer on so horrible a scene. After having used 
what little money I had, and trading my knife 
and haversack for bread, and seeing v/hat there 
was in store for me if I remained longer in that 
place, I resolved to effect my escape or die in the 
attempt, as it was death any how if I remained 
there. I mentioned it to my comrades, but they 
did not approve of it. But not minding what 
they said, and finding a young fellow from Penn- 
sylvania who was as anxious to get away as my- 
self, we went to work to contrive some means of 
escape, which was no easy job, for we were 
closely guarded on all sides. The house we 
were in is a four-story building ; and by going on 
the upper floor we could get a view of a good 
part of the city, and there we marked out the 
course we would pursue if successful in getting out. 
We were to go directly east for about four or five 
miles, and then incline more to the south, so as to 
come to our lines at Williamsburg, Va. We tried 
several plans, but could not succeed. One was 
to tear off some plank at the rear of the building 
where they had been nailed up to the window, 
then lay them over on to the fence near by, and 
get into a lot. We worked at it several nights 
until we were detected, and had to abandon it. 
But not in the least discouraged we went at 
something else. After examining the house aU 
through we could find no place but what was closely 
guarded. So we came to the conclusion that the 
only way left Avas to go out at the door past the 
guard ; and as there had been several of the 
rebs in cleaning up the house, or rather having 
it done, we thought it a good time. Without 
saying anything to the boys as to what m'c were 
about to undertake for fear we might not be 
successful, as they had been making sport at our 
not having succeeded before, we went down to 
the lower floor to get ready for the trial of our 
new plan. Whichever got out first was to go to 
a small hiU, about three squares from the prison, 
and wait for the other. Just about dusk, I got a 
rebel suit from one of our boys, without much 
trouble. My partner had got his a few days be- 
fore. After rigging ourselves in rebel costume, I 
told my comrade that we would wait till after the 
relief came on at seven o'clock before going out, 
and in the mean time look around for a little 
sport. 

Well, we walked round through the house, and 
all the boys took us to be rebels, which was just 
what we wanted. One of them took me to one side, 
and M-anted me to try to get him out of the pris- 
on; he said that he had been conscripted, and 
did not want to fight against the South, had nev- 
er been in a battle, nor fired a gun at the South- 
ern people. I told him that I would see about it, 
and left him. Some of the boys wanted us to 
bring them in some bread. I told them that the 
guard would not let us trade with them, but I 



110 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



would try to get some if he would let me bring it 
in. Seven o'clock came, and I started out, passed 
the &st guard without saying a word, came to 
the one on the street ; he halted me, and asked 
where I belonged ; I told him I was Police vSer- 
geant, and had been in having the prisoners clean 
up the house. He did not like to let me pass, 
but I finally got off, and went directly to the 
place agreed upon for us to meet. Getting up 
on the bank, I concealed myself where I could see 
down the street. 

When my partner started, the guard would not 
let him pass ; so he had to go back into the house. 
Eut he was determined on being out, so he got 
the boys to attract the guard's attention at the 
window, and he went back to where some boards 
had been taken off, and where the guard had 
been stationed, and crawled out and got away 
safe. He came directly to where I had been wait- 
ing an hour and a half, and was nearly frozen. I 
will not attempt to describe our feelings at once 
more finding ourselves free, at least for the pres- 
ent. But we still had dangers to encounter, be- 
ing in a strange country, without a guide, and 
our enemies all around us. But we were resolved 
to push ahead as best we could ; so shaping our 
course in an eastern direction, we struck out, 
guided by the stars. We crossed the fields and 
woods till we came to the fortifications, which 
were not very formidable. These we passed very 
cautiously. Coming to a house we tried to rouse 
the inmates, which we supposed to be negroes, 
but we could not get them to answer us, and we 
'Started on. We soon came to a road which ran 
in the right direction, and we followed it till about 
two o'clock; when we got so tired, and being so 
weak, that Ave had to stop and rest. Going into 
an old stable, we lay down ; but it was too cold 
for us there. So we got up and went to a house 
close by, and found an old crippled negro by her- 
self. AV'e went in and warmed, and remained till 
daylight. Then we found we had travelled ten 
miles during the night, and were on the right road. 
This we followed all day, occasionally meeting some 
citizens and some few soldiers. But being dressed 
in rebel clothes, they did not molest us. At noon, 
we stopped at a small cabin to get something to 
eat, and found a woman whose husband was in the 
army. Here we got some bread and milk, and 
learned a great deal about the road. We came 
to the Chickahominy River, twenty miles from 
Richmond. This we crossed on some logs where 
the long bridges had been, but were destroyed at 
the time McClellan advanced on Richmond. 

Soon after crossing the river we met a man 
whom at first sight we took to be a rebel soldier ; 
but we were mistaken. He came up and began 
to question us pretty closely. He asked where 
we belonged ; we told him, in Richmond, to the 
19th Virginia Battalion, which was guarding pris- 
oners at Richmond. He then wanted to know 
where we were going. We said, " Home on fur- 
lough." He looked at us a while, and began to 
laugh, saying, we need not try to fool him ; that 
we were escaped prisoners, trying to get to the 



Federal lines. This we stoutly denied. So, find- 
ing that he could get nothing from us, he told us 
that we had better turn back to Richmond, that 
M-e never could get past the pickets. We told 
him that when our furlough was out we would go 
back, and not before. So he rode off and left us. 
We did not stop long to consider what we should 
do, but started off as fast as we could walk for 
about five miles, when we found a negro. From 
him we found out where the pickets were sta- 
tioned, and how to get around them. He also 
told us where to find a free negro's house, and 
as we were pretty tired, we concluded to go and 
stay all night. He put us in the house that the 
owner had left in his charge, made us a good fire, 
and got some corn bread for us to eat. We got 
a pretty good rest, and daylight found us again 
on the road. We had gone but a short distance, 
when, just ahead of us, we saw a squad of cav- 
alry coming. There was no time to lose ; so, 
bounding into the woods, we ran as fast as we 
could for about half a mile ; but finding they were 
not following us, we ceased running. After that 
we did not venture on the road, but kept in the 
woods all the time, occasionally going to a ne- 
gro cabin to find the way ; and we always found 
them willing to aid us in any way that they 
could. Night coming on, and as we could not 
well travel in the woods after night, we looked 
around for a place to stop. We found a large 
house near by, and 'concealing ourselves in the 
bushes, we watched to see if there were any 
white folks living in it, but could not see any ; 
so, after it got dark, we went to it, and found no 
one but a negro and his family. They gave us 
some sweet potatoes for supper, and some blan- 
kets to keep us warm, and Ave did very Avell that 
night. We Avere out bright and early the next 
morning. We had to be more cautious noAv, as 
Ave Avere among the scouts. The negroes showed 
us by-paths through the Avoods, Avhich we fcjlloAved 
all day. We saAv several scouts, but managed to 
evade them. 

Our road was very rough, and Ave made slow 
progress. We missed our Avay, and travelled 
about three miles before finding it out, then had 
to go back and start anew. We bad to go through 
woods and across SAvamps almost impassable. 
We finally came to the place Ave had been told to 
go ; got permission to stay OA-er night, a first rate 
supper and good bed. Upon inquiry Ave found 
that Ave AA'ere Avithin seven miles of the Union 
pickets, and that there was no more danger, so 
Ave felt at home. In the morning, after partaking 
of a good breakfast, our host went Avith us about 
tAvo miles, and set us on the main road. We 
here thanked him for his assistance, and bade him 
good bj'. 

We Avent forward with light hearts that morn- 
ing, thinking that we were soon to be in the 
midst of friends. We soon came in sight of the 
pickets posted on a hill. They saw us coming, 
and came out to meet us, thinking we Avere rebel 
deserters. We soon told our stoiy, and Avere 
warmly received and well provided for. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



Ill 



THE NEW BALLAD OF LORD LOVELL.* 

Loiii> LovELL he sat in St. Charles's Hotel, 

In St. Charles's Hotel sat he, 
As fine a case of a Southern swell 

As ever you'd wish to see — see — see. 
As ever you'd wish to see. 

Lord Lovell the town had vowed to defend ; 

A- waving his sword on high, 
He swore that his last ounce of powder he'd 
spend, 

And in the last ditch he'd die. 

He swore by black and he swore by blue. 

He swore by the stars and bars, 
That never he'd fly from a Yankee crew 

While he was a son of Mars. 

He had fiftj-- thousand gallant men, 

Fifty thousand men had he, 
Who had all sworn with him that they'd never 
surren- 

Der to any tarnation Yankee. 

He had forts that no Yankee alive could take ; 

He had iron-clad boats a score. 
And batteries all around the Lake 

And along the river-shore. 

Sir Farragut came with a mighty fleet, 

With a mighty fleet came he, 
And Lord Lovell instanter began to retreat 

Before the first boat he could see. 

His fifty thousand gallant men 

Dwindled down to thousands six . 
They heard a distant cannon, and then 

Commenced a-cutting their sticks. 

" O ! tarry, Lord Lovell ! " Sir Farragut cried, 
" O ! tarry, Lord Lovell ! " said he ; 

" I rather think not," Lord Lovell replied, 
" For I'm in a great hurry. 

" I like the drinks at St. Charles's Hotel, 
But I never could bear strong Porter, 

Especially when its served on the shell. 
Or mixed in an iron mortar." 

" I reckon you're right," Sir Farragut said, 

<<I reckon you're right," said he, 
«• For if my Porter should fly to your head, 

A terrible smash there'd be." 

O ! a wonder it was to see them run, 

A wonderful thing to see ; 
And the Yankees sailed up without shooting a gun, 

And captured their great citie. 

Lord Lovell kept running all day and night. 

Lord Lovell a-running kept he, 
For he swore he couldn't abide the sight 

Of the gim of a live Yankee. 

When Lord Lovell's life was brought to a close 
By a sharp-shooting Yankee gunner, 

From his head there sprouted a red, red nose. 
From his feet — a Scarlet Runner. 

* Mansfield Lovell, who commanded the rebel forces 
at New Orleans, and who, on the approach of the na- 
tional fleet and army to that place, " led his forces out 
of the town." 



Capture of New Orleans — What Ju- 
dith SAW. — Allow me to describe how I spent 
the day, at the time of the first arrival of the 
Federal fleet at this city. The first day that the 
fleet arrived, I and my sister, and a great many 
others, were wending our way to the levee. On 
our way we met a gentleman acquaintance of ours, 
who asked us if we were going to get some sugar. 
I felt quite indignant ; but as I was in an amiable 
mood then, I forgave him with all my heart, as I 
had no wish to be angry only M-ith those hateful 
secessionists, who were destroying all the sugar 
and cotton, and burning the ships and steamboats 
that had been left standing. If I had had the 
power over those that proposed it, I would have 
taken them all, women and men, and placed 
them in the burning ships, and there let them re- 
main until secession and secessionists were con- 
sumed by the flames. I would have shown them 
no mercy. " Be merciful unto him that showeth 
mercy." The next persons we met were a lady 
and gentleman — the lady appearing to be quite 
delighted at the sight of the cotton and ships 
burning. There were a great many others who 
had come to see the fleet — some with joyful 
hearts, once aguin to behold that time-honored 
flag, as it was unfurled to the breeze ; others 
came for curiosity, and others with feelings of 
hate burning in their hearts, because they knew 
they were conquered, or would be in a short time. 
They foolishly depended upon some traitors to 
drive out the enemy when they came ; but the 
cowards made good their escape when they heard 
that the fleet had arrived, leaving their dupes to 
take care of themselves the best way they could, 
telling them how vain is the help' of man in an 
unjust cause. We were often stopped in our 
progress by the burning of the wharves and piles 
of cotton. We had gone a good distance, when 
right before us lay piles of cotton burning. We 
had our choice, either to return back the way we 
came, or jump across the cotton-piles. At last 
we came to the conclusion that we would do the 
jumping ; so we selected a pile that we thought 
had been well burned out, and my sister made 
the first leap ; and as soon as she was over she ex- 
claimed, "O my ! but that Avas hot! " and told me 
that I had better find some other place to jump ; 
but I wanted to have some experience in jump- 
ing cotton-piles ; so over I went. When I was 
over I exclaimed with my sister — " O my ! 
but that was hot ! " and looking round to see 
what could have caused such heat, we saw the 
piles of cotton that we had jumped across burn- 
ing. What appeared to have been all ashes to 
us, we found out by experience was a little 
too hot to be only ashes. We shook our dresses 
well, so as to make sure that there were no 
sparks on them, and went on our way rejoicing ; 
but we made up our minds that the next time 
we jumped cotton-piles, we would look before 
we leaped. 

In looking at the ship burning, there was a 
young lady standing before us, who seemed quite 
unconscious about her dress burning, until told 
by us. Then there was another old lady, who 



y 



112 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



was so absorbed in looking at the fleet, that she 
did not take notice of where she stood ; and, be- 
ing at the edge of the wharf, where it had been 
burned, the jjlank gave waj^ and she was precipi- 
tated into the river. Fortunately, she caught 
hold of another portion of the wharf, and two 
men assisted her out. No harm was done, but 
she was pretty much scared. Nothing of impor- 
tance happened to us, until we noticed that one 
of the gunboats was coming towards our side of 
the river, (for the fleet was in the middle of the 
river.) I and my sister ran to see where it would 
land, so that we could get a good view. It land- 
ed near the St. Mary's Market ; so we took our 
position before t^he gunboat. As we were running 
along, three Avoraen, who were behind us, made 
some remarks, one of which I overheard : she 
said that all persons who seemed glad to see the 
Yankees ought to be punished. I turned round 
and told them if they did not like it, why did they 
not remain at home. They looked at me, as 
much as to say I Avas not worth answering, and 
we passed on. While we were standing before 
the gunboat, we waved our handkerchiefs towards 
the men on the boat, when one of the officers 
lifted his cap and bowed. This attracted the at- 
tention of the three women, who had come up to 
us, when the eldest of them touched my sister on 
the shoulder, and said, " Do you mean to say that 
you are waving your handkerchief at them ? " 
pointing to the men on the gunboat. My sister 
said it was none of her business, and I said : 
" Certainly." Then she said : " You had better 
go to them." I said I would if the boat came 
near enough, so that I could get in. The two 
younger ones called us rebels, and giving us a 
disdainful look, passed out of sight. You may 
be assured I was quite surprised on being ad- 
dressed so unexpectedly ; but for all that, we 
were ready to answer them or any other person. 
While the gunboat was leaving the wharf, we 
still continued waving our pocket handkerchiefs 
and bidding them good by. A man said to my 
sister : " Give me the handkerchief, and I will wave 
it for you." My sister thanked him, and said she 
could wave it herself. She knew it was his in- 
tention to throw it into the river. As we came 
farther on, we noticed two young girls, one of 
them waving a small Confederate flag, and calling 
out to them — " Go back, you dirty Yankee dev- 
ils ; go back where you came from." I asked, 
" Where are the dirty (not Yankee, but) seces- 
sion devils ? " and echo answered, there ; and 
looking around I saw that it was those two young 
girls, the one still holding the flag and calling 
them names, and the other one assisting her. 
At last we left them, and returned home about 
six in the evening. We passed through An- 
nunciation Square, which but a short while ago 
had been filled with tents and traitors, but 
now vacant. Only hei'e and there could be seen 
some poor woman picking up some wood and 
bottles that were left by the brave defenders 
of the Confederacy, in their hurry to escape 
from the conquerors. From thence we passed 
up home. 



Contraband Negroes. — Gen. Ashley, mem- 
ber of Congress from Ohio, gave the' follow- 
ing account of the reception of the " contraband " 
slaves at Fortress Monroe : 

" You will have heard, by the time this reaches 
you, of the manner in which Gen. Butler disposed 
of Col. Mallory, who came into the fort under a 
flag of truce, to claim three of his loyal slaves, 
Avho had fled from his kind and hospitable roof, , 
and taken shelter in Fortress Monroe among 
strangers. Who will say that Gen. Butler, so far 
as he went, was not right? This Col. Mallory 
had met Gen. Butler in the Charleston and Bal- 
timore Conventions, and with that impudence and 
assumption characteristic of the oligarchy, he 
comes into Gen. Butler's camp, and, though en- 
gaged in open treason against the Government, 
demands that he shall enforce the Fugitive Slave 
law upon the soil of Virginia with United States 
soldiers, and return him his happy and contented 
slaves. 

"Gen. Butler says, 'You hold that negro 
slaves are property, and that Virginia is no longer 
a part of the United States ? ' 

" The Colonel answered, * I do, sir.' 

" Gen. Butler then said, ' You are a lawyer, 
sir, and I want to know if you claim that the 
Fugitive Slave act of the United States is binding 
on a foreign nation ; and if a foreign nation uses 
this kind of property to destroy the lives and 
property of citizens of the United States, if that ■ 
species of property ought not to be regarded as ' 
contraband ? ' 

" This was too much for the Colonel, and he 
knocked under and withdrew. 

" This was but the beginning at Fort Monroe, 
and is but the beginning of a question which 
this Administration must meet and determine, 
viz., 'What shall be done with the slaves who 
refuse to fight against the Government of tiie 
United States, and escape fi-om the traitors, and 
come into our camps for protection ? ' If the 
Administration meets this question as it ought, 
well ; if not, it will prove its overthrow. It is a 
question of more magnitude and importance than 
the rebellion itself; and Avoe to the public man 
or the party who proves false to the demands of 
humanity and justice. 

" On Sunday, eight more stout, able-bodied 
men came in. Gen. Butler said to me, ' As you 
went to see John Brown hung, and have some 
claim to control Virginia volunteers, I authorize 
you to see who and what those colored men 
are, and decide what is to be done with them.' 
He added, ' You had better examine them sepa- 
rately, and take down in writing the material part 
of tlieir answers.' 

" Before doing so, I went out to the fence 
where the slaves were standing, surrounded by 
about two hundred volunteers. I asked the 
colored men a few questions, and was about to 
go into the house to call them in separately, 
as suggested by the General, when one of the slaves 
said, ' Massa, what's you gwine to do wid us ? ' 

" I told him that I did not know, but that we 
would not hurt them. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



113 



"'O, we knows dat,' quickly responded an- 
other? *we knows you's our friends. What we 
wants to know is, whether j-ou's gwine to send 
us back.' 

"I answered that I had no authority over 
them, and no power to do anj'thing, but that my 
opinion was ' it would be some time before their 
masters would see them again.' I said this in a 
low, conversational tone of voice, without noticing 
that all the volunteers were eagerly listening ; 
but no sooner had the words fallen from my lips, 
than a hundred voices shouted, • Good ! good ! ' 
and some in laughter and some in tears clapped 
their hands and gave three rousing cheers, Avliich 
brought out the officers and General, who sup- 
posed I had been making a speech to the troops. 

" This Uttle incident tells me more plainly 
than ever, that what I said last winter in the 
House is true, when I declared that 'the logic 
of events told me unmistakably that slavery 
must die.' 

" If I had the time, and you the space, I would 
give in their own words the material portion of 
the answers of the most intelligent slaves. There 
is one thing certain ; every slave in the United 
States understands this rebellion, its causes and 
consequences, far better than ever I supposed. 
I asked one old man, who said he was a Methodist 
class-leader, to tell me franklj' whether this 
matter was well understood by all the slaves, and 
he answered me that it was, and that he had 
* prayed for it for many, many long years.' 

" He said that their masters and all talked 
about it, and he added, * Lor' bless you, honey — 
we don give it up last September dat de North's 
too much for us ; ' meaning, of course, that Mr. 
Lincoln's election was conceded even there by 
the slave masters, and was understood and hoped 
for by all the slaves. I asked the same man 
how many more would probably come into the 
fort. He said, ' A good many ; and if we's 
not sent back, you'll see 'em 'fore to-morrow 
night.' 

" I asked why so, and he said, * Dey'll under- 
stan, if we's not sent back, dat we're 'mong our 
friends ; for if de slaveholder sees us, we gets 
sent right back.' And sure enough, on Monday 
about forty or fifty more, of all ages, colors, and 
sexes, came into camp, and the guard was bound 
to arrest them." 

CARTE DE VISITE. 

•' 'TwAs a terrible fight," the soldier said ; 

" Our Colonel was one of the first to fall, 
■ Shot dead on the field by a rifle-ball — 
A braver heart than his never bled." 

A group for the painter's art were they : 
The soldier with scarred and sunburnt face, 
A fair-haired girl, full of youth and grace, 

And her aged mother, wrinkled and gray. 

These three in porch, where the simlight came 
Through the tangled leaves of the jasmine- vine, 
Spilling itself like a golden wine. 

And flecking the doorAvay with rings of flame. 
8 



The soldier had stopped to rest by the way, 
For the air was sultry with summer-heat ; 
The road was like ashes under the feet, 

And a weary distance before him lay. 

"Yes, a terrible fight ; our ensign was shot 
As the order to charge was given the men, 
When one from the ranks seized our colors, and 
then 

He, too, fell dead on the self-same spot. 

" A handsome boy was this last : his hair 
Clustered in curls round his noble brow ; 
I can almost fancy I see him now. 

With the scarlet stain on his face so fair." 

" What was his name ? — have you never heard ? — 
Where was he from, this youth who fell ? 
And your regiment, stranger, which was it ? tell !" 

" Our regiment ? It was the Twenty-third." 

The color fled from the young girl's cheek, 
Leaving it white as the face of the dead ; 
The mother lifted her eyes and said : 

" Pity my daughter — in mercy speak ! " 

' • I never knew aught of this gallant youth," 
The soldier answered; "not even his name. 
Or from what part of our State he came : 

As God is above, I speak the truth ! 

" But when we buried our dead that night, 
I took from his breast this picture — see ! 
It is as like him as like can be : 

Hold it this way, towards the light." 

One glance, and a look, half-sad, half-wild, 
Passed over her face, which grew more pale, 
Then a passionate, hopeless, heart-broken wail, 

And the mother bent low o'er the prostrate child. 



EXPEKIENCES OF CaPT. WiLKINS. — Capt. 

Wilkins, of Gen. Williams' staff", who was cap- 
tured at the battle of Chancellorsville, gave the 
following account of his experience with the 
Confederates. At the time the Eleventh corps 
was routed he was despatched with important 
orders from his chief : 

" On galloping to convey the orders referred 
to, Capt. Wilkins found that two regiments had 
already gained their positions. He communicated 
the orders to their Colonels, and passed on to 
convey them also to Gen. Kuger, commanding 
the Third brigade, who was considerably nearer 
the enemy. Soon after leaving the embankments 
he passed a double line of skirmishers, and saw, 
to his astonishment, that they wore gray coats. 
Up to this moment he had no idea the enemy were 
so near. It was now about eight o'clock in the 
evening, and owing to the darkness and the fact 
of his riding with such speed directly towards 
them, the skirmishers evidently mistook hira for 
one of their own officers, and allowed him to 
pass. At this moment he saw the distinguishing 
flag of the First brigade of Williams' division 
(every brigade in the Army of the Potomac 
carries a distinguishing flag of bright colors) to 
the left, and still farther on. He rode towards it, 
expecting to deliver the orders to the commander 



114 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



of the brigade. On reaching it he discovered 
that it had just been captured by a Georgia regi- 
ment, and was then in the possession of the 
enemy, by whom he was surrounded. He threw 
himself upon the neck of his horse, and endeav- 
ored to escape by leaping the abatis ; but he 
found that the rebels were on every side of him. 
His horse was shot under him, a blow from a 
musket dislocated his knee, and he was dragged 
to the ground in a nearly insensible condition. 

He was placed in charge of a guard, Avho took 
him a short distance to the rear and to the plank 
road, where he met Gen. Jackson and staff. Jack- 
son had at this time formed a column of attack 
on the plank road, Avith the design of flanking 
our army and obtaining possession of United 
States Ford. The column consisted of upwards 
of 15,000 men, massed in columns of sections, 
having three batteries of artiller}' on the flank. 
Jackson was sitting on his horse, at the head of 
the column, surrounded by his staff". He wore a 
new suit of gray uniform, and Avas a spare man, 
with a Aveather-beaten face, and a bright, grayish- 
blue ej^e. He hid a peculiarly sad and gloomy 
expression of countenance, as though he already 
saw a premonition of his fate. It Avas but fifteen 
minutes later that he Avas mortally wounded. As 
they came into his presence the guard announced, 
' A captured Yankee officer.' Capt. Wilkins asked 
if it was Maj.-Gen. Thomas J. Jackson. On being 
ansAvered in the affirmative, he raised his hat. 
Gen. Jackson said : ' A regular army officer, I 
suppose ; your officers do not usually salute ours.' 
Capt. Wilkins replied : ' No, I am not ; I salute 
you out of respect to you as a gallant officer.' 
He then asked his name and rank. On being 
told, he further inquired Avhat corps and com- 
manders were opposed in front. Capt. Wilkins 
replied that as an officer, he could not return a 
truthful ansAver to such questions. Jackson then 
turned to the guard and ordered them to search 
him. He then had in the breast-pocket of his 
coat Hooker's confidential orders to corps com- 
manders, giving a plan in part of the campaign, 
the countersigns of the field for a Aveek in ad- 
vance, and the field returns, giving the effective 
strength of the TAvelfth corps on the preceding 
day. 

Fortunately, before the guard could carry the 
orders into execution, a terrific raking fii-e was 
opened on Jackson's column by twenty pieces of 
artillery, commanded by Capt. Best, from an 
eminence on the plank road. The first eight or 
ten shots flcAv over the heads of the column. 
The men and gunners dismounted, leaving then- 
horses and guns. Our artillery soon got the 
range with more precision, and the shell and 
round shot ricocheted and i)loughed through 
this dense mass of the enemy Avith terrific effect. 
Shells Avere continually bursting, and the screams 
and groans of the Avounded and dying could be 
heard on every side. As an instance of the 
terrible effect of this fire, one of the guard was 
struck by a solid shot just below the hips, sweep- 
ing off" both his legs. A battery came dashing 
up ; but when they gotinto the vortex of the fire, 



the gunners fled, deserting their guns, and could 
not be made to man them. An officer, splendidly 
mounted and equipped, attempted in a most 
gallant manner to rally them. A ball struck him 
on the neck, completely severing his head from 
his body, and leaving his spinal column standing. 
His body rolled to the ground, and the horse 
galloped to the rear. One of the shells struck a 
caisson full of artillery ammunition, Avhich, ex- 
ploding, ascended in a crater of variously colored 
flame, and shoAvered down on the heads of the 
men beloAV a mass of fragments of shot and shell. 
The loss inflicted by this fire must have been 
terrible, placing considerably over one thousand 
men liors du combat, and effectually breaking up 
the contemplated attack of the column. 

An officer of Jackson's staffs subsequently stated 
that it Avas about fifteen minutes after this that 
Gen. Jackson Avith staff" advanced to the front to 
reconnoitre our position, having accomplished 
which he returned by a different path towards his 
own men, Avho, mistaking his approach for that 
of a party of our cavalry, fired upon him, killing 
and Avounding four of his staff", and Avounding 
Jackson once in the right arm and tAvicc in the 
left arm and hand. 

While Capt. Wilkins was being taken to the 
rear he devoted his attention to disposing of the 
important papers which he had on his person. He 
dared not take them from his pocket to attempt 
to tear them up, but cautiously placed his hand 
in his pocket, and worked the papers into a ball, 
and as they Avere passing along, got them into 
his bosom, and finally into his arm-pit under his 
arm, Avhere he carried them all that night. The 
next morning the guard halted to get their 
breakfasts, and a soldier Avas trying to kindle a 
fire to cook some coff"ee Avhich they had taken 
from our men. The Avood Avas damp, and the 
fire refused to burn. The soldier sAvore at it 
until his patience gave out, A\'hen Capt. Wilkins 
asked him if he Avould not like some kindlings, 
and handed him the important papers. The 
soldier took them, and, not dreaming of their 
importance, used them to kindle the fire." 



TRUMPET SONG. 

OLIVER WENDELL HOLMES. 

The battle-drum's loud rattle is rending the air r 
The troopers all are mounted, their sabres are bare ; 
The guns ai-e unlimbered, the bayonets shine ; 
Hark ! hark ! 'tis the trumpet-call ! Avhcel into 
line ! 

Ta, ra ! ta, ta, ta I 
Trum, trum ! tra, ra, ra, ra ! 
Beat drums and bloAV trumpets ! 
Hurrah, boys, hurrah ! 

March onAvard, soldiers, onward ; the strife is begun ; 
Loud bellowing rolls the boom of the black- throated 

gun; 
The rifles are cracking, the torn banners toss, 
The sabres are clashing, the bayonets cross, 
Ta, ra, &c. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



115 



Down with the leaguing liars, the traitors to their 

trust, 
Who trampled the fair charter of Freedom in dust ; 
They falter — they waver — they scatter — they 

run — 
The field is our own, and the battle is won ! 
Ta, ra, &c. 

God save our mighty people and prosper our cause ! 
We're fighting for our nation, oiir land, and our 

laws ! 
Though tyrants may hate us, their threats we defy, 
And drum-beat and trumpet shall peal our reply ! 
Ta, ra ! ta, ta, ta ! 
Beat drums and blow trumpets ! 
Trum, trum, tra, ra, ra, ra ! 
Hurrah, boj's, hurrah ! 



Lieut. McNeill's Exploit. — After the sur- 
prise and capture of New Creek, Va., by Gen. 
Rosser, Maj.-Gen. Crook, of the Yankee army, 
was assigned to the command of the department 
in which that station is embraced. Maj.-Gen. 
Kelley, who previously commanded the depart- 
ment, still remained in Cumberland, having his 
headquarters at one of the hotels in the town. 
Gen. Crook established his headquarters in the 
same town, at the other principal hotel. As 
soon as this state of affairs became known to 
Lieut. Jesse C. McNeill, upon whom has devolved 
the command of McNeill's Rangers since the 
death of his father, the lamented old Captain, he 
resolved to risk an attempt to surprise and bring 
off those two Generals. 

Ha\ing posted himself thoroughly in regard to 
the situation of affairs in and around Cumber- 
land, the night of Monday, 20th inst., he, with 
sixty trusty men, crossed Knobby Mountain to 
the North Branch of the Potomac. Reaching 
this stream, at a point below the first picket post 
that overlooked the selected route of ingress into 
Cumberland, he crossed, and in a few minutes the 
Yankees on duty were relieved. " Your counter- 
sign," demanded Lieut. McNeill, to a burly Dutch- 
man, with such accompaniments as seemed to im- 
press the fellow with the notion that to divulge 
it was a matter of self-preservation. " Bool's 
Kaah," (meaning "Bull's Gap,") was the quick 
response. 

Then on briskly down the coimty road towards 
town, near five miles distant, he moved. As the 
little band struck what is known as the old pike, 
soon, " Halt ! who comes there ?" rings out on the 
air. "Friends, with countersign," is the response. 
" Dismount, one, advance, and give the counter- 
sign," is the picket's next order to the Lieuten- 
ant. 

Having lately had his ankle crushed, the Lieu- 
tenant was not in a condition to obey ; and so 
urging his horse forward, he quickly heard from 
the astonished picket, " Don't shoot ; I surren- 
der." 

On they rushed, and the reserves were gath- 
ered in. The first picket captured was cavalry, 
the next infantry. The former were brought 
along ; the latter were disarmed, their guns 



smashed, and they were paroled to remain where 
they were until morning ; were told that the town 
was surrounded, and it would be impossible for 
them to escape. 

Entering town on the west side, they passed 
another picket on the right bank of the North 
Branch. By this picket they were not halted. 
Crossing Will's Creek, (which flows through the 
town,) at the Iron Bridge, coolly and deliberately 
up Baltimore Street they ride, some whistling, 
some laughing and talking, as if they were Yan- 
kees, at home among friends. 

To and fro, on the street, by the gas-light, are 
seen Avalking Yankee guards. " Helloa, boys ! 
whose command is that ? " "Scouts from Ntiv 
Creek," is the response. 

Presently here they are, between two and three 
o'clock in the morning, in front of the St. Nicho- 
las Hotel, Kelley's headquarters. Down spring, 
quietly and calmly, the men who, by previous ar- 
rangement, are to visit Kelley's room. They en- 
ter the hall, and having procured a light, they 
enter the General's room. The General, aroused 
by the knock, resting on one elbow, " You know 
me. General, I suppose," says Joseph W. Kuy- 
kendall, who had charge of this party. " I do," 

said the General. " You are ," giving his 

name. " General, you had me once ; it is my 
honor to have you now. You are a prisoner." 
" But," says the General, " whom am I surren- 
dering to ? " " To me, sir," was the emphatic 
response. " No place or time for ceremony ; so 
you will dress quickly." The order was obeyed. 

While this was going on at the St. Nicholas, 
another scene was transpiring at the Revere 
House. Thither went promptly a portion of the 
men, as per arrangement, under Lieut. Welton. 
Reaching it they halt — five men, in charge of 
Joseph L. Vandiver, dismount, and " Halt ! " is 
the greeting of the sentinel, standing in front of 
the entrance. " Friends, with countersign, bear- 
ing important despatches for Gen. Crook," is 
Vandiver's answer. " Advance, one," &c. In a 
moment, Vandiver had the sentinel's gun, and 
ordered him to stand aside under guard. The 
door is rapped at — a voice from within asks, 
" Who is you ? I don't know j-ou." " Open the 
door ; I must see Gen. Crook." The door is 
opened, and there stands a small darkey. " Is 
Gen. Crook in?" "Yes, sir." "Show me his 
room." " I'm afeerd to ; but I will, if you don't 
tell on me.''" Crook's room is reached ; a rap 
given, " Come in." In obedience to the invita- 
tion, a tall and stalwart form, M'ith light in one 
hand, and pistol undisplayed in the other, stands 
erect, cool and deliberate, before the General. 
" Gen. Crook, I presume," says Vandiver. " I 
am, sir." " I am Gen. Rosser, sir ; you are in 
my power ; you have two minutes to dress in." 
Then the General rubbed his eyes, as if he thought 
he dreamed. " Come, General, there are your 
clothes ; you can either put them on, or go as 
you are." The General quickly arose and dressed 

The prisoner and his captors make theii" exit 
to their vigilant comrades without. The Gen- 
eral is made to mount behind Vandiver. Off 



116 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



\ 



they start, soon rejoin the St. Nicholas party with 
their prize, and then they all commence to " evac- 
uate " the city quietly, coolly, and in good order. 
Reaching Will's Creek Bridge, they turned to the 
left, and proceeded down the tow-path. 

On the opposite side of the canal, encamped 
on the hills around the town, are many of Crook's 
and Kelley's soldiers, who dream not of the sur- 
prise the morning shall bring them ; the senti- 
nels too, as unconscious as their slumbering com- 
rades of the proximity of a foe. A few are 
awake, and with curiosity aroused by the sound 
of horsemen moving, as it were, in midnight re- 
view before them, inquire, " Whose command ? " 
" Scouts going out," is the careless response. 
At length, they are about five miles below the 
town, where they intend to recross to " Old Vir- 
ginia." A "Halt" greets the advance. "Friends, 
with countersign." The picket gives the usual 
command. " Bull's Gap," says McNeill ; " no 
time to dismomnt ; are in a hurry ; the enemy 
are reported close ; we are sent out by Gen. 
Crook to watch his movements." " Go on, then ; 
cold night, boys, to be out." " Yes, pretty 
cold." " Give the Johnnies h^, boys." " O, 
yes, we are the boys to do that ; " are some of 
the words interchanged, as McNeill and his boys 
file past the unsuspecting Yankees. A moment 
or two more, and McNeill is in Virginia ! 

" McGregor is on his native heath, 
With McGregor's clan around him." 

On he pushes briskly, Avithout any report of 
Yankees pursuing in the rear, to which a strict 
watch is kept. Romney, twenty-seven miles 
from Cumberland, is reached ; the rear-guard re- 
port about sixty Yankees in sight, with some of 
whom they exchanged a few shots, but the Yan- 
kees exhibited no disposition to push on very 
fast. At about two o'clock in the day, McNeill 
is seen near Moorefield, moving up the South 
Branch of the Potomac, while up the pike, on the 
opposite side, move the Yankees, about two hun- 
dred strong, their horses the worse for having gal- 
loped from New Creek Station, some thirty-five 
miles off, from which point they started about 
eight o'clock in the morning, as we afterwards 
leai-ned. Tuesday night, McNeill camped on the 
South Fork of the South Branch, with his pris- 
oners all safe, but, like their captors, all tired. 
The next morning, five hundred Yankee cavalry 
entered Moorefield ; a large force was also relia- 
bly reported to Lieut. McNeill, going up Lost 
River, to intercept him ; but they didn't, as the 
Generals reached this city Sunday morning, about 
two o'clock, in charge of Lieut. J. S. Welton, who 
rendered prompt, active, and efficient service in 
effecting the capture. 

It is proper to say, that the entrance into Gen. 
Kelley's room was through his Adjutant-Gener- 
al's apartment. An eye was kept to this gentle- 
man, and he was brought off with four head- 
quarter colors. His name is Major Melvin. 

To_ have entered Cumberland, a city of eight 
or nine thousand inhabitants, (a majority of 
whom ai-e bitterly hostile,) with, according to our 



best information, seven or eight thousand troops 
encamped in and around, is very strong evidence 
that Lieut. Jesse C. McNeill is a chip of the old 
block, a worthy son of his gallant old sire, Capt. 
John Hanson McNeill, who, and his eldest son, 
have already laid their lives u])on their country's 
altar. 

. Gen. Early, immediately on the receipt of the 
news of his exploit, advanced the gallant young 
officer to the rank of Captain in McNeill's Ran- 
gers. 

ROLL CALL. 

BY N. G. SHEPHERD. 

<' Corporal Green ! " the Orderly cried; 
" Here ! " was the answer, loud and clear, 
From the lips of a soldier, who stood near ; 

And <' Here ! " was the word the next replied. 

" Cyrus Drew ! " — then a silence fell — 
This time no answer followed the call ; 
Only his rear man had seen him fall, 

Killed or wounded, he could not tell. 

There they stood, in the falling light. 

These men of battle, with grave, dark looks, 
As plain to be read as open books, 

While slowly gathered the shades of night. 

The fern on the hill-sides was splashed with blood, 
And down in the corn, where the poppies grew, 
Were redder stains than the poppies knew, 

And crimson-dyed as the river's flood. 

For the foe had crossed from the other side. 
That day, in the face of a murderous fire, 
That swept them down in its terrible ire ; 

And their life-blood went to color the tide. 

" Herbert Cline ! " At the call there came 
Two stalwart soldiers into the line. 
Bearing between them this Herbert Cline, 

Wounded and bleeding, to answer his name. 

"Ezra Kerr ! " — and a voice answered, " Here ! " 
"Hiram Kerr! " but no man replied : 
They were brothers, these two : the sad wind 
sighed. 

And a shudder crept through the cornfiold near. 

" Ephraim Deane ! " — then a soldier spoke ; 
" Deane carried our regiment's colors," he said, 
" When our ensign was shot ; I left him dead. 

Just after the enemy wavered and broke. 

"Close to the road-side his body lies ; 

I paused a moment, and gave him to drmk ; 

He murmured his mother's name, I think. 
And Death came with it and closed his eyes." 

'Twas a victory — yes ; but it cost us dear ; 
For that company's roll, when called at night, 
Of a hundred men who went into the fight. 

Numbered but twenty that answered, " Here! " 



The ScnooLS of Fernandina. — A corre- 
spondent writing from Fernandina, Fla., says : — 
The colored schools, which have been in success- 
ful operation here, closed for a vacation of two 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



117 



months. The progress made by the pupils more 
than equals the expectations of the most sanguine 
friends of the race. The children have evinced an 
aptitude to learn, and a capacity fully equal to 
white children at the North, and in all the better 
characteristics they are in no way behind them. 
.... None who have witnessed the grateful 
expressions of fathers and mothers, and the daily 
tributes of flowers, and other evidences of affec- 
tion of the children for their teachers, will ever 
question the natural susceptibility of this people 
to cultivation, and a prompt response to the or- 
dinary appliances which make mankind respec- 
table. Corporeal punishment has been so rare 
that I question whether, during the entire term, 
among three hundred children, there have been 
more than half a dozen cases ; and I have never 
seen uneducated children anywhere exhibit more 
sensibility to the dishonor of a banishment from 
school, or other similar infliction, than these chil- 
dren of slavery. 

Some of the girls ancl boys had committed 
pieces, which were properly spoken ; and one 
little ebony, only eight years old, showed extraor- 
dinary aptness at declamation in a little piece 
he had learned. True, he was in rags, and his 
skin was coal-black, but a more intelligent and 
happy face I never saw. If permitted, that boy 
will yet shame many a " pale-face " by his supe- 
rior intellectual power. 

At the close of the exercises, a little book or 
primer was presented to each scholar as a present 
for their attendance and good conduct ; and it 
was pleasing to see with what eagerness and 
satisfaction each received this first testimonial 
of scholarship. Nearly three hundred presents 
were distributed, which were furnished principally 
through the libei'ality of Hon. Joseph Hoxie, of 
New York, who had visited the schools a few 
months since, and whose judicious selections were 
universally commended, and his generosity fully 
appreciated. These children will never forget 
this occasion. 

Among the songs by the school, interspersed 
throughout the exercises, — and every child sings 
in these schools, — was the following, which, aside 
from its intrinsic merit and aff"ecting pathos, was 
particularly interesting from the fact that just 
before the rebellion, a congregation of slaves 
attending a public baptism on Sunday, at Savan- 
nah, were arrested, imprisoned, and punished 
with thirty-nine lashes each, for singing the song 
of spiritual freedom — now a crime, since slavery 
has become a " divine institution." 

SLAVE SONG. 

My mother ! how long ! Mothers ! how long ! 
mothers ! how long ! 
Will sinners suffer here ? 
Chorus. — It won't be long ! It won't be long ! It 
won't be long I 
That sinners '11 suffer here ! 

We'll walk de golden streets ! we'll walk de golden 
streets ! we'll walk de golden streets ! 
Where pleasures never die ! 
Chobus. — It won't be long ! &c. 



My brother ! do sing ! my brother ! do sing ! my 
brother ! do sing ! 
De praises ob de Lord ! 
Chorus. — It won't be long ! &c. 

We'll soon be free ! we'll soon be fi'ee ! we'll soon 
be free ! 
De Lord will call us home ! 
Chorus. — My brother! do sing ! my brother ! do 
sing ! my brother ! do sing ! 
De praises ob de Lord I 

And these verses, so expressive and pathetic, 
are added to almost indefinitely, in the same style, 
by the interested singers. Now, where this and 
the hundred kindred songs sung by the slaves 
came from, or who amidst the darkness of slavery 
inditeth them, I cannot of course say ; but it is 
easy to determine the source of the inspiration. 
In patient faith and enduring hope these " songs 
of Zion " have been sung by generations of these 
bondmen, as the only relief for bleeding hearts 
and lacerated bodies ; and now God comes in 
judgment to requite the nation for the wrongs in- 
flicted upon his oppressed and suffering poor. 

Another interesting and significant event con- 
nected with the people here, occurred on Monday. 
The women called a meeting at the church, to 
consider the propriety of presenting Col. Little- 
field's regiment, now enlisting here, a stand of 
colors. Like the great dinner and celebration on 
the Fourth, all was arranged by the colored wo- 
men, and fifty dollars were contributed on the 
spot, by these poor fugitives, from the hard earn- 
ings of their brief freedom — contributed to pur- 
chase an American flag to be borne by their col- 
ored brethren — the flag which had been to them 
till now the emblem of oppression ! They cher- 
ish no feelings of malignity for the wrongs which 
have been inflicted, but hail the new era of free- 
dom with joy, and rally to the country's standard 
with pride and satisfaction, now that the country 
is prepared to respect their humanity and protect 
their rights. Among the contributors was one 
slave woman, who has five sons and a husband 
in the army, while she remains at home to care 
for younger children. 

Ned Simons, an old negro belonging to the 
Dungenness estate of Gen. Nathan Greene, on 
Cumberland Island, and who was left by the 
rebel inheritor. Nightingale, on his evacuation of 
the place, died here last week, at the house of the 
lady teachers of the schools, who have kindly 
cared for him since theii* arrival here. Ned was 
over one hundred years old, and remembered 
Gen. Washington well, and was one of the num- 
ber who assisted in carrying him through the 
streets of Savannah on his last visit to that j)lace. 
Old Ned took a lively interest in the affairs of the 
nation, and rejoiced in the prospect of the free- 
dom of his race. He was deeply interested in 
the cause of education, and, though partially 
blind with age, he desired himself to learn to 
read. On being asked why he wished to learn, 
when he could not expect to live much longer, he 
replied, " As the tree falls, so it will lay ; " his 
attainments on earth would contribute to higher 
attainments on high ; and the ladies yielded to 



118 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



his request, and during the last months of his 
life, he, with much labor and effort, acquired a 
knowledge of his letters and sjUables. Poor old 
Ned ! After a long life of unrequited toil and 
slavery, he has " gone where the good negroes 
go ; " where no slave-driver will ever follow ; 
where he can sing " de praises ob de Lord " in 
freedom and safety. 



Incident of Fredericksburg. — While the 
Union cavalry were on the retreat, one of the 
men heard tlie clattering of a horse's hoofs close 
in his rear, and supposing he was pursued by a 
rebel, put spurs to his horse and increased his 
pace, without looking behind him. After travel- 
ling at a rapid rate for some distance, our man 
turned his head, and discovered that the pursuing 
horse was riderless. The sudden shock of satis- 
faction was so great that he fell from his horse, 
and both horses went cantering over the fields 
without riders, and the Union cavalryman took 
possession of his unexpected prize. 



A Spartan Girl. — A young daughter of 
Baltimore wrote thus to a schoolmate and friend 
in Charleston : 

Baltuioue, May IC, 1801. 

You must pardon me for intruding upon you 
an expression of my Southern sentiments. I so 
often think and speak of you with the rest of j-our 
friends, and I envy your living in the bosom of a 
home which we are denied. You cannot see as 
vrell as we how miserably our happiness, our lib- 
erty, our homes, have been sold by traitors, who 
would risk all this to be pampered minions of an 
Abe Lincoln and his party. 

I can scarcely control myself while I am writ- 
ing you. I am boiling over Avith indignation. I 
once prayed for peace ; but now, next to begging 
the blessing of God, I pray — "Hurrah for Jeff 
Davis and the Southern Confederacy ! " and, wo- 
man as I am, if I knew the way, I Avould walk 
out of Maryland, until my foot rested upon more 
Southern soil. You are happy indeed, and have 
nothing to contend with in comparison with us 
poor Baltimorians, or, I should have said, Mary- 
landers ; for here there are hearts that beat as 
warm to the South, as ever throbbed at the guns 
of Charleston. AVe are not conquered, and never 
will he ; and God grant that before long the flag 
of secession may wave over our city and State. 
Then we can run to the embraces of friends Avhom 
we love, though we know them not. It is suf- 
ficient we arc all for the same cause — Southern 
rights. 

It would amuse you exceedingly if you could 
hear the women talk. Some ofi'er themselves as 
escorts to the gentlemen, who find it difficult to 
get out of the city ; others are almost ready to 
hang old Hicks, and, but for the men, I believe 
they would ; others, and I among the number, 
are ready to shoulder our muskets to defend the 
just and holy cause of the South, in case the 
men fail. 



In the event of Maryland doing anything that 
would seem hostile to the South, do you, and 
beg your friends to, keep one sympathizing 
thought for those who are with you in spirit ; for 

" 'Tis home where'er the heart is." 

How I would love to be able to talk to you 
about old and new times ! 



Incidents of Bull Run. — In the thickest 
of the contest, a secession Colonel of cavalry was 
knocked out of his saddle by a ball from one of 
our riflemen. *' There goes old Baker, of the 
Georgia First ! " shouted one of our boys, in 
hearing of his chaplain. " Who ? " queried the 
parson. " Col. Baker, of the rebel ranks, has 
just gone to his long home." "Ah, well," re- 
plied the cliaplain, quietly, " the longer I live, the 
less cause I have to find fault with the inscruta- 
ble acts of Divine ProvMence." An unlucky pri- 
vate in one of the New Y'^ork regiments was 
wounded in this fight, and his father arrived at 
the hospital just as the surgeon was removing 
the ball from the back of his shoulder. The boy 
lay with his face downwards on the pallet. " Ah, 
my poor son," said the father, mournfully, " I'm 
very sorry for you. But it's a bad place to be 
hit in — thus, in the hack." The sufferer turned 
over, bared his breast, and pointing to the open- 
ing above the armpit, exclaimed, " Father, here's 
where the ball went in ! " 

One of the Zouaves was struck by a cannon 
shot, which tore through his thigh, close to his 
body, nearly severing the limb from the trunk. 
As he fell, he drew his photograph from his 
breast, and said to his nearest comrade, " Take 
this to my wife. Tell her I died like a soldier, 
fi^ithful to my country's cause, and the good old 
flag. Good by ! " and he died where he fell. 

An artillery-man lay on the ground, nearly ex- 
hausted from loss of blood, and too wealt to get 
out of the way of the tramping troops and horses 
that flitted about him. A mounted horseman came 
towards him, when he raised the bleeding stumps 
of both his arms, and cried out, "Don't tread on 
me, Cap'n ! See! both hands are gone." The 
trooper leaped over him, a shell broke near by, 
and the crashing fragments put the sufferer quick- 
ly out of his misery. 

A rebel — one of the Georgia regiments — lay 
with a fearful shot-wound in his side, which tore 
out several of his ribs. The life-blood of the 
poor fellow was fast oozing out, when one of our 
troops came dashing forward, from out of the 
melee, and fell, sharply wounded, close' beside 
him. The Georgian recognized liis uniform, 
though he was fatally hurt, and feebly held out 
his hand. " We came into this battle," he said, 
" enemies. Let us die friends. Farewell." He 
spoke no more, but his companion in disas- 
ter took the extended hand, and escaped to re- 
late this touching fact. 

One of our riflemen had his piece carried away 
by a ball, which struck it out of his hands just 
as his company was in the act of advancing to 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



119 



storm one of the smaller rebel batteries. Un- 
harmed, he sprang forward, and threw himself 
down on his face, under the enemy's guns. A 
Zouave lay there, wounded and bleeding, out of 
the way of the murderous fire. " Lay close — 
lay close, old boy," said the latter to the new 
comer ; " the boys '11 take this old furnace 'n 
a minute, and then we'll git up an' give the 
rebels fits ag'in." Three minutes afterwards 
the battery was carried, and the two soldiers were 
in the thickest of the fight again. 

A member of the Second Connecticut regiment 
wrote as follows : 

While at a halt it Avas my lot to witness a very 
painful scene. I captured a prisoner, (a Ger- 
man,) belonging to the Eighth South Carolina 
regiment, and took him to Major Colburn for in- 
structions as to how to dispose of him. The pris- 
oner requested one privilege as his last, which 
the Major very humanely granted. He said his 
brother lay a short distance off, in a dying condi- 
tion, and he wished to see him. I bade him lead 
the way, and I foUoM'ed. 

He took me to an old log hut but a few rods 
from where our regiment Avas halted. On the 
north side, in the shade, we found the wounded 
man. The prisoner spoke to him — he opened 
his eyes — the film of death had already over- 
spread them, and the tide of life was fast ebbing. 
He was covered with blood, and the swarms of 
flies and mosquitoes, which were fattening upon 
his lii'e's blood, indicated that he had lain there 
for some time. They clasped hands together, 
muttered a fe\^' words in the German language, 
supplicating the Throne of Grace for their fami- 
lies at home, kissed, and bade each other a final 
adieu ; the prisoner remarking, as I took him by 
the arm to lead him away, for the column was 
. moving, " Brother, you are dying, and I am a 
prisoner." The man was shot Avitli a musket ball 
in the back, just over the hip ; from which fact I 
inferred that he was on the retreat when the 
deadly ball overtook him. 



0, gracious God ! not gainless is the loss ; 
A glorious sunbeam gilds thy sternest frown ; 
And icJiile his country/ staggers with the cross, 
He rises icith the crown ! 



JACKSON. 



BY HARRY TLASH. 



Not 'midst the lightning of the stormy fight, 
Not in the rush upon the Vandal foe, 
Did kingly Death, with his resistless might. 
Lay the Great Leader low. 

His warrior soul its earthly shacldes broke 
hi the full sunshine of a peaceful town ; 
When all the storm was hushed, the trusty oak 
That propped our cause went down. 

Though his alone the blood that flecks the ground. 
Recording all his grand, heroic deeds. 
Freedom herself is writhing with the wound, 
And all the country bleeds. 

He entered not the nation's Promised Land 
At the red belching of the cannon's mouth, 
But broke the House of Bondage with his hand. 
The Moses of the South ! 



Incidents of the Battle of Pea-Ridge. 
— One of the Ninth Missouri was so em-aged, on 
the second day of the battle, at seeing his brother, 
a member of the same regiment, horribly butch- 
ered and scalped, that he swore vengeance against 
the Indians, and for the remainder of the day de- 
voted his attention entirely to them, concealing 
himself behind trees, and fighting in their fash- 
ion. An excellent marksman, he would often 
creep along the ground to obtain a better range ; 
and then Avoe to the savage Avho exposed any 
part of his body. When he had shot an Indian, 
he would shout with delicious joy: " There goes 

another red-skin to . Hurrah for the Stars 

and Stripes, and all Indians ! " Though 

ever following the wily foe, and though fii-ed upon 
again and again, he received not a scratch ; and 
on his return to camp, after nightfall, bore with 
him nine scalps of aboriginal warriors, slain by 
his own hand to avenge his brother's death. 

A German soldier, in the Thirt3'-fifth Illinois, 
met with two very narroAv escapes in fifteen min- 
utes, while Gen. Carr's division Avas contending 
so vigorously against the enemy in Cross-Timber 
HolloAV. He Avore earrings for the benefit of his 
eyes, and a musket-ball cut one of them in two, 
(the broken segments still remaining,) and passed 
into the shoulder of the Second Lieutenant of the 
company. Ten minutes after, during a tempo- 
rary lull in the strife, Avhile the German Avas re- 
lating the story of his escape, a bullet Avhistled 
by, carrying the other ring with it, and abrading 
the skin of his ear, Avithout doing further harm. 
Such are the vagaries of fate, and the mysteri- 
ous shiftings on the battle-field between lite and 
death. 

One of the Texas soldiers Avas advancing Avith 
his bayonet upon a Lieutenant of the Ninth loAVa, 
Avhose sword had been broken. The officer saAv 
his intention, avoided the thrust, fell down at his 
foeman's feet, caught hold of his legs, threw him 
heavily to the ground, and before he could rise, 
drcAV a long knife from his adversary's belt, and 
buried it in his bosom. The Texan, Avith dying 
grasp, seized the Lieutenant by the hair, and 
sank flown lifeless, bathing the brown leaves with 
his blood. So firm Avas the hold of the nerveless 
hand, that it Avas necessary to cut the hair from 
the head of the officer before he could be freed 
from the corpse of the foe. 

Presentiments on the battle-field often prove 
prophetic. Here is an instance : While Col. Os- 
terhaus Avas gallantly attacking the centre of the 
enemy, on the second day, a Sergeant of the 
TAvelfth Missouri requested the Captain of his 
company to send his wife's portrait, wliich he 
had taken from his bosom, to her address in St. 
Louis, Avith his dying declaration that he thought 
of her in his last moments. " What is that for ? " 
asked the Captain. "You are not Avounded — are 



120 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



you?" " No," answered the Sergeant; "but I 
know I shall be killed to-day. I have been in 
battle before, but I never felt as I do now. A mo- 
ment ago I became convinced my time had come ; 
but how, I cannot tell. Will you gratify my re- 
quest ? Remember, I speak to you as a dying 
man." " Certainly, my brave fellow ; but you will 
live to a good old age with your wife. Do not 
grow melancholy over a fancy or a dream." " You 
will see," was the response. The picture changed 
hands. The Sergeant stepped forward to the 
front of the column, and the Captain perceived 
him no more. At the camp-fire that evening the 
officer inquired for the Sergeant. He was not 
present. He had been killed three hours before 
by a grape-shot from one of the enemy's batte- 
ries. 

While the fight was raging about Miser's farm- 
house, on the ridge, on Friday morning, a sol- 
dier, belonging to the Twenty-fifth Missouri, and 
a member of a Mississippi company, became 
separated from their commands, and found each 
other chmbing the same fence. The rebel had 
one of those long knives made of a file, which 
the South has so extensively paraded, but so 
rarely used, and the Missourian had one also, 
having picked it up on the field. The rebel 
challenged his enemy to a fair, open combat with 
the knife, intending to bully him, no doubt ; and 
the challenge was promptly accepted. The two 
removed their coats, rolled up their sleeves, and 
began. The Mississippian had more skill, but 
his opponent more strength, and consequently 
the latter could not strike his enemy, while he re- 
ceived several cuts on the head and breast. 

The blood began trickling down the Unionist's 
face, and, running into his eyes, almost blinded 
him. The Union man became desperate, for he 
saw the secessionist was unhurt. He made a 
feint ; the rebel leaned forward to arrest the 
blow, but employing too much energy, he could 
not recover himself at once. The Missourian 
perceived his advantage, and knew he could not 
lose it. In five seconds more it Avould be too 
late. His enemy, glaring at him like a wild beast, 
was on the eve of striking again. Another feint ; 
another dodge on the rebel's part ; and then the 
blade of the Missourian, hurled through the air, 
fell with tremendous force upon the Mississippi- 
an's neck. The blood spirted from the throat, 
and the head fell over, almost entirely severed 
from the body. Ghastly sight ! too ghastly even 
for the doer of the deed ! He fainted at the 
spectacle, weakened by the loss of his own blood, 
and was soon after butchered by a Seminole, who 
saw him sink to the earth. 

On Saturday morning, a body of three or four 
hundred Indians was discovered on the north side 
of Sugar Creek, below the curve of a hill, firing 
from thick clusters of post-oaks into three or four 
companies of Arkansas soldiers, marching in 
McCuUoch's division towards the upper part of 
the ridge. The Major of the battalion, seeing 
this, hallooed out to them that they were firing 
upon their own friends, and placed his white hand- 
kerchief on his sword, and waved it in the air. 



The Indians either did not see, or did not care 
for, the flag of truce, but poured two volleys into 
the Arkansans, lulling, among others, the Major 
himself. The presumption then was, that the 
Cherokees had turned traitors ; and the secession 
soldiers were immediately ordered to charge upon 
them. They did so, and for an hour a terrible 
fight ensued among the oaks between them and 
their late savage allies, in which it is stated some 
two hundred and fifty were killed and wounded 
on both sides. The Indians suff'ered severely, as 
they were driven from their hiding-2>laces, and 
shot and butchered without mercy. A person 
who witnessed this part of the fight says it was 
the most bloody and desperate that occui'red on 
the field, being conducted with the most reckless 
and brutal energy by the two parties, of whom it 
would be difficult to say which was the most bar- 
barous. On the dead savages were found, in 
some instances, two or three scalps fastened to 
their belts by thongs of leather. 



An Energetic Woman. — A correspondent 
writing from Jasper county, Mississippi, gave the 
following : 

INIrs. Simmons, a widow lady of Jasper county, 
Mississippi, made, during one year of the war, 
(1863), 300 bushels of corn, 100 bushels of 
potatoes, with peas and pinders enough to fatten 
her hogs. She did the ploughing herself, and 
did it with an old wind-broken pony. Her two 
little daughters, aged twelve and fourteen years, 
did the hoeing. She also made 100 pounds of 
tobacco. After her crop was finished, she did 
weaving enough to buy her salt, and a pair of 
cards, and had some money left. 



Incidents of Bull Run. — A Southern writer, 
in recounting the incidents of the battle of Bull 
Run, says : 

Our regiment by this time had come in reach 
of the enemy's cannon. The balls fell before and 
behind us, but no damage was done. We now 
threw our knapsacks away to engage in a hand- 
to-hand fight. We ran to the point at which the 
fire seemed to be most severe. Advancing in 
front of the cannon, we got within musket-shot 
of our enemy, and fell to the ground, having a 
slight mound to protect us. Had we been stand- 
ing, scarcely one would have been left. Twice 
did the cannon-balls throw dirt upon me, and 
musket-balls whistled by the hundred within a 
few inches of my head. Several of our regiment 
(18th Virginia) were killed, but the exact number 
I know not. Young Hatchett was wounded, but 
not seriously, the ball entering his leg. Men 
would raise their heads a few inches from the 
ground to peep, and several times wei"e shot in 
that position. Men fell on my right and left. 
We remained about ten minutes receiving the 
enemy's fire, and were not allowed to return fire, 
The command to fire came at last. We rose and 
fired with deadly effect upon our foes. We rushed 
forward to the top of the hill, and fii-ed again ; 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



121 



also a third time. Now, for the first time, the foe 
began to retire in a run, and in great disorder, I 
think that a great majority of the regiment upon 
which we fired were killed. No boasting, — God 
forbid ! to him all praise is due. At our approach 
the enemy left an excellent rifled battery, manned 
by regulars, in our hands. They fought until all 
their horses were killed, and nearly every man. 
We were now left victors of the field, and started 
in pursuit of the foe. We followed them a mile 
or so, and were then brought back within a mile 
of Manassas, marching at night a distance of six 
or seven miles. The fight lasted eight hours — 
from nine to five. I cannot describe the horrors 
of the fight. Noise and confusion of many kinds 
prevailed — the firing of cannon, the discharge 
of musketry, the whizzing of balls, the bursting 
of bombs, the roar of artillery, the tramp of 
horses, the advance of infantry, the shouts of the 
conquering, the groans of the dying, the shrieks 
of the wounded, large numbers of the dead lying 
upon the ground, the carrying of the wounded by 
scores, and all enveloped in a dark cloud of 
smoke, — all go to make one vast spectacle of hor- 
rors such as I never wish to see again, or hear. 
Many were the dead and wounded over which I 
was forced to pass, both of our men and of our 
foes. O, how I wanted to aid them, but could 
not ! The fight was desperate. The enemy- 
succeeded in carrying oflF hundreds of their dead, 
but left many behind. Our cavalry, who pursued 
them in the direction of Centreville, report the 
road strewn with dead and wounded. 

Our enemies are not cowards. Many men 
were found with bayonets in them, some side by 
side, each with his bayonet in the other. Our 
enemy is said to have run generally when we 
advanced with the bayonet. Certainly this was 
the worst of the fight. Gen. Beauregard, who 
commanded in person, told us that he would 
depend principally upon the bayonet. Gen. B. 
cheered us as we advanced, and our loud cheers in 
return were said to have frightened the enemy. 



The Boy Soldier. — When the Tenth Indiana 
was recruited in the fall of 1861, they took for 
their drummer a little fellow, named Johnny 
McLaughlin, whose parents reside at Lafayette, 
Indiana. He was then a little over ten years of 
age, and beat his tattoo at the head of the regi- 
ment for several months of active service. 

At Donelson and at Shiloh, when the drum- 
beats were drowned in the deeper roar of battle, 
Jonnny laid down his sticks, and taking the mus- 
ket and cartridge box from a dead soldier, went 
out to the front, and fought as bravely as the 
stoutest soldier in the regiment. Escaping unhurt 
in each of these engagements, he was enamoured 
of soldier life, and sought a transfer from the 
infantry to Col. Jacob's Kentucky cavalry. Being 
favorably impressed with the spirit and zeal of 
the young warrior. Col. Jacob put him into his 
best company, and mounted him on a good horse. 
At the engagement at Richmond, which soon 
followed, in the summer of 1862, he fought with 



as much coolness and skill as any of his company, 
handling his sabre, revolver, and revolving rifle 
with the address of a veteran. 

In October following, he was in another battle, 
at Perryville, where he received his first wound, 
a ball passing through the leg above the knee. 

In this engagement Col. Jacob, with a part 
of his command, was temporarily separated from 
the greater part of the regiment, and while thus 
cut off was attacked by a largely superior force 
of the enemy, led by a Major. Col. Jacob was 
deliberating for a moment on the demand to sur- 
render, when the little hero drew his pistol and 
shot the Major in the mouth, kiUing him instantly. 
A few moments of confusion and delay followed 
in the rebel regiment, during which Col. Jacob 
and his men escaped. 

A few weeks after, he was engaged in a skirmish 
with some of John Morgan's men, who were 
raiding through Kentucky, and the fighting was 
severe. 

Johnny was set upon by a strapping fellow, 
who gave him a pi'etty severe cut on the leg with 
his sabre, and knocked him off his horse. A 
moment after, another rebel seized him by the 
collar, and exclaimed : " We've got one d — d little 
Yankee, anyhow." The little Yankee did not see 
it in that light, however, and quickly drawing his 
pistol, shot his captor dead, and a moment after 
the rebels were routed, and he escaped capture. 

As he was going back to Indiana on furlough 
to give his wound time to heal, he was stopped 
at one point by a provost guard, and his pass 
demanded, 

"0," said he, " the Colonel didn't give me one, but 
just told me to go along with the rest. But," 
added the little soldier, showing his wound, " here's 
a pass the rebs gave me ; ain't that good enough for 
a little fellow like me ? " The guard thought it 
was. 

His wound proved quite serious, and, much to 
his surprise, and against his wishes, he received 
his discharge in consequence of this and his 
extreme youthfulness. Not relishing civil life as 
long as the hostilities lasted, he applied at a 
recruiting office, but the condition of his leg ex- 
cluded him. 

Nothing daunted, however, he sought ani 
obtained an interview with the President, who on 
hearing the story of the boyish veteran, gave a 
special order for his enlistment. 

He had now made up his mind to follow the 
life of a soldier, and joined the regiflar army of 
the United States as a bugler in the cavalry ser- 
vice, and makes as fine-looking, neat, and obedi- 
ent a little dragoon as there is in the army. 



Joan of Arc in the West. — At a flag- 
raising at North Plato, Kane County, Illinois, 
after the Stars and Stripes had been duly hoisted, 
the assembly adjourned to the village church, 
where some speeches were made by patriotic 
gentlemen, and an opportunity Avas offered for 
young men to come forward and enlist, the 
company at Plato not being quite full. Not a 



j..ft»,.^ 



122 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



man went up ! This aroused the patriotism as 
well as the " dander " of the village schoolmis- 
tress, who, Avith many other ladies, was present, 
and she walked boldly forward to the secretary's 
desk, and headed the muster-roll with a name 
rendered illustrious as having been affixed to the 
Declaration of Inde])endence, with the prenomen 
Mary. She was followed by another lady, and 
lo, and behold ! the Plato company was not long 
in filling its ranks ! The muster-roll, bearing the 
names of the spirited young vivandieres, has been 
sent to headquarters, and the company accepted 
by the " powers that be." After that day four 
flag-raisings came ofi" in that portion of Kane 
county, and "Mary" and "May" — the soldier 
girls — in uniforms of white, red, and blue, at- 
tended all of them, at the request of the officers, 
marching, as pioneers, at the head of their com- 
pany. The Captain said he could not get along 
without them ; and after the flag had been sent 
up, he allowed them to fire each three guns in 
honor of the Union, the Stars and Stripes. 
Much of the success of the recruiting service, and 
the patriotic fire in old Kane, was attributed to 
the gallant conduct and bright eyes of these 
young ladies. 



THE CONFEDERATE PRIMER. 

At Nashville's fall 
We sinned all. 

At Number Ten 
We sinned again. 

Thy purse to mend, 
Old Floyd attend. 

Abe Lincoln bold 
Our ports doth hold. 

Jeff Davis tells a lie, 
And so must you and I. 

Isham did mourn 
His case forlorn. 

Brave Pillow's flight 
Is out of sight. 

Buell doth play 
' And after slay. 

Yon oak Avill be the gallows-tree 
Of Richmond's fallen majesty. 



A Literary Soldier. — Adam Badeau, a lit- 
erary man and journalist of New York, volun- 
teered, at Port Pioyal, lo act in any capacity which 
might prove useful, when Gen. Sherman contem- 
plated an ad\ance upon Savannah, in Januai-y, 
1862. He was immediately appointed volunteer 
Aid on Gen. Sherman's staff, and served in this 
capacity, without either rank or pay, till Gen. 
Sherman was relieved. The preparations for the 
siege of Fort Pulaski having then been com- 
pleted, he volunteered and served as Aid to Gen. 



Gillmore, who commanded the United States 
forces during the bombardment of that work. 
He, with Gen. Gillmore, was the first to enter 
Fort Pulaski, being sent forward to meet the 
rebel officer who approached on Gen. Gillmore's 
landing, after the fiag of the fort Avas struck. 
The rebel was Capt. Simms, late editor of the 
Savannah Itepublkan. Capt. Simms' first words 
were civil : " I trust, sir, you will pardon the de- 
lay that has occurred in receiving you ; we thought 
you would land at the other wharf." After this, 
Capt. Simms Avished to conduct Mr. Badeau to 
the commandant of the fort, but Badeau requested 
Simms rather to go to Gen. Gillmore. This was 
acceded to., and after a few words of parley, the 
three, accompanied also by Col. Rust of a Elaine 
regiment, entered the fort; they were received at 
the portcullis by Col. Olmstead, the commandant, 
who conducted them first to his quarters, and af- 
terwards to inspect the works, pointing out the 
havoc which had been made by the National bat- 
teries. In an interview of an hour's duration 
between the two commanders, tiie terms of the 
capitulation were arranged. Gen. Gillmore and 
Col. Kust returned to Tybee Island, and Mr. Ba- 
deau was left to introduce a second party of Na- 
tional officers sent to receive the swords of the 
rebels. The ceremony of surrender took place 
in one of the casemates (used by Col. Olmstead 
for his own quarters) at about dark. Five Na- 
tional officers, besides Badeau, Avere present : 
Maj. Halpine, Adj. -Gen. for Gen. Hunter, Capt. 
S. H. Pelouze, Capt. Ely, Lieut. O'Eorke, 
and Lieut. IrAvin of the Wabash. Each rebel, as 
he laid his SAVord on the table, announced his 
name and rank. The Colonel said, " I yield my 
SAVord, but I trust I have not disgraced it ;" oth- 
ers made remarks less felicitous. After the cer- 
emony, the National officers Avere invited to 
supper by these prisoners, and then returned to 
Tybee Island. Badeau, hoAvever, remained all 
night in Fort Pulaski, sleeping in the room Avith 
three rebel officers, and even sharing the bed of 
one of the hospitable prisoners. No Union troops 
arrived in the fort until about midnight, so that 
his sojourn among those Avho had so lately been 
his enemies, had a dash of romance about it. He 
Avas treated, hoAvever, Avith the greatest courtesy, 
the rebels apologizing for the fare he Avas offered 
by saying : " You see to what you have reduced 
us." Hominy, molasses, hard bread, and pork 
Avere served for supper and breakfast ; and for 
variety, sweet oil Avas used instead of molasses. 
The conversation was animated, and often touched 
on politics. 

Immediately afterwards, Mr. Badeau was rec- 
ommended to the President, by Gen. Hunter, for 
a captaincj-, and made bearer of despatches to 
the Government, announcing the fall of Pulaski. 
He had also the honor of being mentioned in Gen, 
Gillmore's formal report of the operations. The 
President accordingly at once aj)pointed him an 
additional Aid to Maj.-Gen. Halleck, Avith the rank 
of Captain in the regular army. 

Capt. Badeau was assigned to duly Avith his 
old chief, Brig.-Gen. Sherman, served under him 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



123 



during the siege of Corinth, and in the subsequent 
pursuit of Beauregard in Mississippi. He was after- 
wards ordered to the Department of the Gulf, but 
now (1865) occupies a position on the staff of 
Lieut.-Gen. Grant. __^__ 

MiNNESOTIANS AT FREDERICKSBURG. — The 
following incident in the terrible battle at Fred- 
ericksburg was related by Col. Morgan : Maj.- 
Gen. How'ard, who commanded the extreme right, 
ordered a strong line of pickets to be formed, as 
a line of battle, by Col. Morgan, in command of 
heavy detachments from five regiments, with the 
Minnesota First, as usual, on the extreme right, 
and most exposed place. The morning dawned 
— the rebels opened with shot and shell, plough- 
ing up the ground and covering the line with 
heaps of earth. It was a very hot place, and 
three of the regiments broke, and run like sheep. 
Gens. Howard and Sully (Sully, their old Colonel, 
whom they loved dearly) were watching them. 
" There," said Maj.-Gen. Howard, — " there, they 
don't stand fire — see them run." " Not a bit 
of it," says Gen. Sully ; " my old Minnesota don't 
run." Gen. Howard fixed his glass on them. 

" No — no — no, sir ; they — your old regiment 
don't flinch a hair — they don't run." Sully, rais- 
ing himself up to his full height, exclaimed, in his 

soft language, " Who in ever supposed they 

would run ? They are not of the running breed." 
Gen. How'ard complimented them as the most reli- 
able, the bravest regiment in the division, if not 
in the army. 

Anecdote of Stonewall Jackson. — At a 
council of generals early in the wai% one remarked 

that Major was wounded, and would not be 

able to perform a duty that it was proposed to 
assign him. "Wounded!" said Jackson. "K 
it really is so, I think it must have been by an 
accidental discharge of his duty." 



A Soldier with the PcIght Spirit. — Henry 
W. Camp, Adjutant of the Tenth Connecticut vol- 
unteers, was made prisoner by the rebels at Morris 
Island, oft' Charleston, in July, 1863. After ten 
months' confinement in the jails of Charleston, 
Columbia, and Ptichmond, he reached his home in 
Hartford on the 7th of May, being released on 
parole. In five days the news reached him of 
his exchange ; and though he had a leave of twenty 
days, he started at once for his regiment in But- 
ler's department, above Norfolk, on the James. 
On reaching Bermuda Hundreds he learned that 
the Tenth Connecticut had gone to the front, and 
was then probably engaged with the enemy. 
Pressing forward as speedUy as possible, he met 
the retreating column of the Eighteenth corps fall- 
ing back from the attack of Beauregard. They told 
him that the road by which he could reach his 
regiment was already in possession of the en- 
emy, and that an attempt to proceed under the 
circumstances would only throw him again into a 
rebel prison. Nothing daunted, however, he kept 
on, and about ten o'clock in the morning reached 



his regiment just as it was coming out of one 
brisk skirmish, and was about advancing to an- 
other attack. 

Within fifteen minutes he was at his place, un- 
der fire, and bearing himself gallantly, as always. 

His conduct excited the warmest admiration 
on the part of* the regiment. Notwithstanding 
the engrossing excitement of the battle, officers 
and men hailed his return with cheer upon cheer 
in the very face of the enemy, and with the Minie 
balls flying thickly around them. 

Col. Plaisted, comman^ling the brigade, joined 
in the greeting given to the beloved o'fficer whose 
conduct was so praiseworthy, and even Gen. Terry, 
the division commander, swung his hat in the 
general cheering, and rode forward to welcome in 
person the returning adjutant to his old command. 

How much richer in true honor and pleasure 
that manly greeting by the regiment in battle 
line and under fire, than all the flattery and delight 
that a prolonged furlough in his native city could 
have afforded him ! . '\/^ 

Spirit of the Women of Virginia. — A 
lady of Clarke County, Virginia, whose husband 
had been during two years in Yankee prisons, and 
in exile from his home, and whose son (an only 
child, in his 18th year) was then in some North- 
ern Bastile, as a prisoner of war, wrote to her 
husband as follows : " If it were possible, I should 
like yo.u to be at home ; but I do not want you 
or O. ever to give up the struggle for liberty and 
our rights. If your salary fails to pay your 
board, go at something else for the Confederacy ; 
I will try and contrive a way to clothe you. I 
would love to be with you ; but do not expect it 
now, in these times. I wish O. was at home — 
I mean in his company ; but I would rather he 
would be held a. prisoner for the war, than have 
liim at home dodging his duty, as some do. I 
am proud to tliink every man in my little family 
is in the army. If I have but two, they are at 
their post of duty." 

How Gen. Banks' x\rmy was saved. — 
Charley H. Greenleaf, of the Fifth N^w York 
cavalry, made the following statement in a let- 
ter to his parents : " You have probably heard 
of the three days' fighting from Strasburg and 
Front Royal to Martinsburg. Our company 
and company B were ordered to Front Royal, in 
the mountains, twelve miles from Strasburg, 
last Friday, and when we got within two miles 
of our destination we heard cannonading. The 
Major ordered the baggage to stop, and our two 
companies dashed on, and found several com- . 
panics of our infantry and two pieces of artillery 
engaged with several thousand of the enemy. ■* 
Just as t\-e arrived on the field, Col. Parem, who 
had command of our forces, rode up to me, and 
ordered me to take one man and the two fastest 
horses in our company, and ride for dear life to 
Gen. Banks' headquarters in Strasburg for re- 
enforcements. The direct road to Strasburg 
was occupied by the enemy ; so I was obliged to ** 
ride round by another, seventeen miles. I 






itv^ 






ii 



r^ '^aav* 






fj 



'i ■-N^*^*-^ *»^i 4 



Wife ». P^^*.^^ 



124 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCmENTS. 



rode the seventeen miles in fifty-five minutes. 
Gen. Banks didn't seem to think it very serious, 
but ordered one regiment of infantry and two 
pieces of artillery off. I asked Gen. Banks for 
a fresh horse to rejoin my company, and he gave 
me the best horse that I ever rode, and I started 
back. I came out on the Front Royal turnpike, 
about two miles this side of where I left our 
men. Saw two men standing in the road, and 
their horses standing by the fence. I supposed 
thej' Avere our pickets. They didn't halt me ; so 
I asked them if they were pickets. They said, 
"No." Says I, " Who are you ? " " We are part 
of Gen. Jackson's staff." 1 supposed that they 
were only joking. I laughed, and asked them 
where Jackson was. They said he was in the 
advance. I left them and rode to Front Royal, 
till I overtook a soldier, and asked him what regi- 
ment he belonged to. He said he belonged to 
the Eighth Louisiana. I asked how large a force 
they had, and the reply was, " Twenty thousand." 
I turned back and drew my revolver, expecting 
either a desperate fight or a Southern jail ; but 
the officers in the road didn't stop me, and I was 
lucky enough not to meet any of their pickets. 
But if it was not a narrow escape, then I don't 
know what is. When I got out of the enemy's 
lines I rode as fast as the horse could carry me 
to Gen. Banks, and reported what I had seen 
and heard. He said I had saved the army. In 
less than an hour the whole army was in motion 
towards Winchester. After I left Front Royal 
to take the first despatch to Strasburg, our two 
companies of cavalry, who w-ere covering the 
retreat of infantry and baggage, were attacked 
on three sides by about 3000 of the enemy's cav- 
alry. Our boys fought like devils, till nearly 
half of them Avere killed or wounded, and then 
retreated to Winchester. Capt. Wliite, William 
Watson, Henry Appleby, and nine or ten men 
of our company, are killed or taken. William 
Marshall is all right, except a slight sabre wound 
in the shoulder. We had a battle at Winchester, 
got licked, and retreated. Our company and 
company E were ordered to cover a Parrott gun 
battery and bring up the rear. We rode all the 
way from Winchester to Martinsburg with can- 
non shot and shell flying around us faster than it 
did at Bull Run. We crossed the Potomac last 
night. It Avas so dark that Ave couldn't find the 
ford, and had to swim our horses across. We 
have got our batteries in position on this side, 
and the rear of the army is crossing." (7") 



In St.4tu Quo. — " Joe," said a soldier to a 
comrade, Avho Avas reading the morning paper, 
" Avhere the devil 's Statu Quo ? I see this paper 
says our army 's in Statu Quo." 

" Dunno ! " replied Joe — " reckon she must 
be the east fork of the Chickamorgy ! " 



Bravery of Capt. W. N. Green. — Among 
the interesting incidents of the battle of Chan- 
cellorsviUe, that of the capture of the colors of 



the Twelfth regiment Georgia Volunteers, dur- 
ing the battle of Sunday, May 3, 1863, by Capt. 
WilHam N. Green, commanding the color com- 
pany of the One Hundred and Second regiment 
N. Y. S. v., is worthy of commemoration. 

After several days' severe fighting betAveen the 
United States forces, under Gen. Hooker, and the 
Confederate forces, under Gen. Lee, the morning 
of Sunday, May 3, 1863, found the One Hun- 
di-ed and Second regiment N. Y. S. V., forming 
a portion of the TAvelfth Army Corps, lying in 
the trenches on the extreme left of the Federal 
forces. 

The battle commenced at five A. M., and the 
One Hundred and Second were for several hours 
subjected to a heavy fire from a battery of the 
rebels, situated on their right flank ; at ten A. M., 
the enemy's infantry attacked the brigade of 
Avhich the One Hundred and Second N. Y. S. V. 
Avas a ])art, and succeeded in driving the regi- 
ment, Avhich Avas on the right of the One Hun- 
dred and Second, away in confusion ; advancing 
up the 'trenches, the enemy charged the One 
Hundred and Second, and Avere repulsed. Soon 
after, the One Huncbed and Second was charged 
upon by the Twelfth regiment Georgia Volunteers, 
and immediately the men of each regiment were 
engaged in hand-to-hand conflicts. 

The company of the One Hundred and Second 
N. Y. S. v., Avhich Capt. Green commanded, was 
especially singled out by the enemy for a fierce 
struggle, as they had charge of the National col- 
ors ; the Captain commanding the Twelfth regi- 
ment Georgia Volunteers rushed forAvard at the 
head of his men, and made a jump right at Capt. 
Green, calling out to him, " Surrender ! " to Avhich 
Capt. Green replied, "Not yet ; " then seizing the 
rebel Captain by the throat Avith his left hand, he 
fiung him violently to the ground, by tripping 
him up, and Avrenched his sword from his grasp. 
Capt. Green Avas then seized from behind by an 
ambulance-sergeant of the rebels, Avho, putting 
his knee in the middle of his back, flung him on 
the ground. Capt. >Green sprung to his feet, and 
putting both SAVords (liis own and the rebel Cap- 
tain's) into liis left hand, he knocked the ambu- 
lance-sergeant doAvn with his right hand. 

Capt. Green then sprang forward some six 
feet, and grasped Avith his right hand the flag- 
stafT of the rebel battle-flag, which the color-ser- 
geant was holding, and said to the color-bearer, 
" Give me that flag," at the same time pulling 
the flag-staff aAvay from the Sergeant ; he then 
tore the flag from the flag-stafl', r>.nd flung the 
staff over the parapet, putting the flag inside the 
breast of his fatigue-jacket. Capt. Green then 
went to two rebel privates, Avho were a feAv feet off", 
and commanded them to give up their muskets, 
which they did. Taking the muskets, he gave 
them to some of his own company to carry off, 
and taking the equipments of the tAVO privates, 
he flung them into a puddle of water near by ; 
then going to the rebel Captain, he pulled him 
up oft" of the ground, and putting him, together 
with the ambulance-sergeant, the color-sergeant, 
and the two privates, under charge of tAVO of hia 



ANECDOTES, POETRY^ AND INCIDENTS. 



125 



company, sent them to the rear, to be placed in 
custody under the provost guard. 

Thus, ill the short space of five minutes, Capt. 
Green disarmed one Captain, one ambulance-ser- 
geant, and two privates of the Twelfth Georgia 
volunteers, besides taking their color-sergeant, 
■with his colors, and sending the whole of them, 
five in number, as prisoners, under guard, to the 
rear. 

The rebel flag was one of the Confederate bat- 
tle-flags, made of coarse red serge cloth, about 
four and a half feet square, having a blue 
Saint Andrew's cross running from each corner ; 
three white stars were in each limb of the cross, 
and one star in the centre, making thirteen stars 
in aU. The flag was sent to Gen. Hooker by his 
order : the sword was presented to Capt. Green 
by his brigade commander, for his good conduct 
dluxingthe battle. 



I 



BATTLE ANTHEM. 

BY JOHN NEAL. 

Up, Christian warrior, up ! I hear 
The trumpet of the North 

Sounding the charge ! 
Eathers and sons ! — to horse ! 
riing the old standard forth, 
Blazing and large ! 

And now I hear the heavy tramp 
Of nations on the march. 

Silent as death ! 
A slowly-gathering host. 

Like clouds o'er yonder arch, 
Holding their breath ! 

Our great blue sky is overcast ; 
And stars are dropping out, 
Through smoke and flame. 
Hail-stones, and coals of fire ! 
Now comes the battle-shout ! 
Jehovah's name ! 

And now the rebel pomp ! To prayer ! 
Look to your stirrups, men I 

Yonder rides death ! 
Now with a whirlwind sweep ! 
Empty their saddles, when 
Hot comes their breath ! 

As through the midnight forest tears, 
With trumpeting and fire, 

A thunder-blast. 
So, reapers ! tear your way 
Through yonder camp, until you hear, 
" It is enough ! Put up thy sword I 
O angel of the Lord ! 
My wrath is past ! " 



An Incident of the Wildekness. — The 
following account of the exploits and sufferings 
of Maj. William B. Darlington, of the Eighteenth 
Pennsylvania cavalry, gives some idea of the 
hazards, as weU as the glories, of war : 

On the 5th of May, 1864, the day preced- 
ing the great engagements of the 6th and 7th, 



there was heavy skirmishing by the cavalry of the 
two armies, that of the enemy being commanded 
by Wade Hampton. Maj. Darlington, with his 
regiment, was ordered to hold a certain position 
in Gen. Wilson's line, for forty-five minutes, while 
the remainder of the force was retiring to more 
advantageous ground. He obeyed the order, 
with a grace, of five minutes, and then, attempt- 
ing to retire, found his line of retreat commanded 
by an entire bi'igade of rebel cavalry commanded 
by Rosser. The Major drew up his men in the 
proper formation and charged. 

This was met by a counter-charge on the part 
of the enemy, and hard fighting followed, the 
greater part of the Union force, however, accom- 
plishing their purpose. 

But, when leading the first charge, Maj. Dar- 
lington received a ball in the right leg, which 
shattered the thigh bone, and brought him to the 
ground. Here he lay, the enemy and his own 
men charging backward and forward over him ; 
but, strange to say, he received no other injury. 

On that battle-field he lay for three days and 
nights, without food or attendance of any kind. 
As this part of the field was left in the temporary 
possession of the enemy, after the battle which 
raged on the two following days, he was found and 
carried to Hampton's headquarters, where the 
amputation of his leg was performed by the chief 
surgeon of the division. 

The operation was performed with skill, and 
he received as good treatment as the limited re- 
sources of the rebels would permit. He was then 
conveyed to a farm-house, some three miles from 
the scene of the action, and there he lay five 
weeks, slowly recovering. 

When Sheridan made his famous raid, in the 
latter part of June, Maj. Darlington was found 
at the farm-house, and being laid in an ambu- 
lance, kept with the column for eight days, until 
he reached West Point. Gen. Sheridan and his 
men showed him the utmost kindness, especially 
in providing for him palatable and nutritious 
food, of which he was greatly in need. 

He had been officially reported as killed ; and 
few constitutions could have survived the loss of 
blood, the hardship and exposure, followed by 
amputation, from which he was now rapidly re- 
covering. 

A Narrow Escape. — An army correspond- 
ent gives the following narrative of the manner 
in which a Confederate soldier in Mississippi 
escaped the clutches of the Yankees: "While 
dwelling upon the subject of ladies, and the pu- 
rifying inffuence of ladies' society, I will take oc- 
casion to mention, for the benefit of the fastidi- 
ous, an adventure of two nice and accomplished 
young ladies, together with a young gentleman 
well versed in gallantry. Not long since, won 
cher M., of this brigade, while in the vicinity of 
the Federal encampments, took occasion to put up 
for the night at the house of an old acquaint- 
ance, where he had often called to enjoy a pleas- 
ant repast with the young ladies. During the 
night, the Federals, learning his whereabouts, ap- 



126 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



proached the house, creating a bluster everj'- 
where, save in our young hero's apartment. He 
soundly slept, and continued to sleep, as if on 
' beds of roses,' unconscious of approaching 
danger, until the young ladies, panic-stricken on 
his account, rushed, en dishahille, into his room, 
and awoke him from his slumbers. 

" But the Federals had advanced too far for him 
to make his escape in the front, and there was no 
window or door in the rear. How then was his 
escape to be cfi'ected ? Reader, the young ladies 
instituted a plan unprecedented in the history of 
military operations. When the old lady discov- 
ered he could not escape by running, she rushed 
in, crying, ' Girls ! we must do something — the 
Federals are already in the passage.' No sooner 
said than done. The young ladies leaped in bed 
with our young hero, one on each side, completely 
concealing his liead, and thereby causing the 
search of the Federals to be fruitless. They 
looked into every nook, and under every bed in 
the house, not excepting the one occupied by the 
hero ; but the young Confederate scout was no- 
where to be found. How much better than to 
have sufi'ercd him to be murdered or imprisoned 
for years in a felon's cell ! So we say ; but the 
mystery to us is, why they did not think of look- 
ing in the bed, as well as under it." 



HEROISM OF MISS SCHWARTZ. 

IlEADQUAKTEUS DISTRICT OF CENTRAL MO., ) 

Jefferson City, August 0, 1803. J 

General Orders No. 42, — On the night of 
the 6th instant, a party of bushwhackers, some 
three in number, visited the house of a Mr. 
Schwartz, about twelve miles from Jefferson City, 
in Cole County, and on demanding admittance 
they were refused by Miss Schwartz, a young 
lady of fifteen. They replied they would come 
in, at the same time trying to break down the 
door. While this was going on, the other in- 
mates of the house, namely, Mr. Schwartz, John 
Wise, Capt. Golden, Government horse-dealer, 
and a young man in his employ, all left, taking 
with them (as they supposed) all the arms and 
ammunition. In their hasty retreat they left be- 
hind a revolver, which ISIiss Schwartz appropri- 
ated to her own use. She went to the door, and 
on opening it presented the pistol to the leader 
of the gang, telling them to " come on if they 
wanted to, and that some of them should fall, or 
she would." They threatened to kill her if -she 
did not leave the door. She replied : " The 
first one who takes one step towards this door 
dies, for this is the home of my parents, and my 
brothers and sisters, and I am able to and shall 
defend it." Seeing that she was determined in 
her purpose, after holding a consultation to- 
gether, they left. 

Here is an instance of true courage ; a young 
girl of fifteen years of age, after all the inmates 
of the house, even her father, had fled, leaving 
her alone to her fate, with a courage worthy of a 
Joan of Arc, boldly defended her native home 



against three bloodthirsty and cowardly ruffians, 
and by her coolness and heroic daring, succeeded 
in turning them from their hellish designs. 

It is with feelings of no ordinary pride and 
pleasure the Commanding General announces 
tills act to the citizens and soldiers in his district. 
On the other hand, those miserable cowards who 
deserted this brave gu'l in the hour of danger, 
flying from the house, leaving her to her fate, are 
unworthy the name of men, deserve the scorn and 
contempt of the community at large, and whose 
society should be shunned by every one who has 
the least spark of honor or bravery within them. 
By order of Brig.-Gen. Brown. 



RuFUS Brockway. — A correspondent of a 
Wisconsin paper had his attention arrested by the 
appearance of a rather oldish man among a com- 
pany of recruits for the Seventeenth (Irish) Wis- 
consin regiment, who were on board the cars, on 
the- way to camp, who gave his name, as follows : 

" My name is Rufus Brockway, and I am in 
the seventieth year of my age. I am a Yankee, 
from the State of New Hampshire ; was a volun- 
teer in the last war with England for nearly three 
yeai-s. I have served under Gens. Izard, McNeil, 
and Macomb, being transferred from one com- 
mand to another, as the circumstances then re- 
quired. I was at the battle of Plattsburg, at 
the battle of French Creek in Canada, and at the 
battle of Chateaugay, on the 14th day of Octo- 
ber, 1813, and was present at the surrender of 
McDonough. 

" I was now a farmer, in the town of Beaver 
Dam, Dodge County, and, with my son, the owner 
of three hundred acres of land ; my son was a 
volunteer in the Federal army at the battle of 
Bull Run, had his nose badly barked, and his 
hips broken in, and disabled for life, by a charge 
of the rebel cavaky, and now I am going to see if 
the rebels can bark the old man's nose. 

" I tell you," said the old man, " if England 
pitches in, you'll see a great many old men like 
me turning out ; but the greatest of my fears is, 
that I shall not be permitted to take an active part 
in the present war." 

A Soldier in one of the Union hospitals, who 
had lost one of his arms, was rejoicing over the 
fact. Said he : " My grandfather lost a leg in 
the Revolutionary war, and our family have been 
bragging over it ever since. That story is an old 
one, and now I am going to be the hero of the 
family." 

Incident of Libertytown, Md. — Early in 
the spring of 1862, four young men of the city of 
Frederick went to the good old town of Liberty, 
and while passing the Stai's and Stripes floating 
from a pole at the west end of the town, took oc- 
casion to curse that time-honored emblem, and 
say something about taking it down. Hearing, 
hoAvever, that they would be called to account for 
their rebellious acts, they loaded their pistols be- 
fore leaving the hotel, and said what they would 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



127 



do if attacked. Now comes the " fun." About 
five o'clock the carriage is seen coming up the 
hill, and when nearly opposite the flag, two of the 
citizens walked out into the middle of the street 
and gave the command, ^^Halt" which was 
promptly obeyed. The next command was : 
" Salute that flag." After an excuse or two about 
a " bad cold," and " how salute it, " they gave a 
weak " cheer." The answer was : " That won't 
do : a little louder ! " and the second time their 
voices were raised considerably ; but, " Louder 
yet," was commanded ; and the third time they 
gave a mighty good prbof of strong lungs. They 
were then ordered to curse secessionism, and they 
did so ; after which they were allowed to pass on, 
wiser, if not better men. 



Camp Anecdotes. — A soldier writing home 
from Fort Slocum, near Washington, gave the 
foUoAving anecdotes of life in camp : While in 
Florida we had an Irishman named Murphy, who 
was very much afflicted with the prevalent camp 
malady known as " Spring Fever." In order to 
escape duty, he reported himself to his Orderly 
Sergeant as sick, and in due time was taken to 
the doctor. Being asked the nature of his dis- 
ease, he complained of a very heavy lightness in 
the head. "Why," replied the doctor, "that is 
a paradox ; " and giving him a light dose of " ip- 
ecac," he returned him to duty. Mick left the 
tent in high dudgeon, exclaiming, " The devil take 
a doctor who will put a man on duty with a par- 
adox in his head." 

Another fellow, by the name of G , tried 

to play the " old soldier " on the same doctor, 
and also got a dose of " ipecac." He did not 
get far from the tent before he began to " heave 
Jonah." Cursing the doctor, he went back and 
said he wanted some other medicine, as the fii-st 
did not stay on his stomach. The doctor gave 
him another dose of the same, slightly colored, 

and G- went off perfectly satisfied. He did 

not get far before he realized that he had another 
Jonah. About this time he " appreciated," and 
was content to do duty. 

The other evening, one of our bold Lieutenants 
went up to a " pizen shop " on the hill, and was 
returning to camp with a little heavier load than 
the regulations require, when he lost his way, and 
came through a field but lately cleared. Just as 
the sentry gave the usual challenge — " Who 
comes there ? " — Charley struck his shin against 
a fallen tree, and feeling more expressive than 
poetical, he cried out lustily, " The devU." <' Cor- 
poral of the guard, post number six, double- 
quick," called out the sentry, adding, " Mine Got 
in Himmel, here comes ter tivel ! " 

Wliile on Staten Island, previous to embarking 
for the South, one of the captains was severely 
injured by a block of wood falling from one of 
the third tier of casemates and striking him on 
the head. The next morning, a New Jersey 
Dutchman, one of his company, called to inquire 
4fter his health. " Good morning. Captain," says 
the Dutchman ; " how are you getting along ? " 



Being assured that the Captain was out of dan- 
ger, the Dutchman said : " I heard something 
droj), and I thought it was a Lieutenant had fallen 
from the top of the fort, and was knocked all to 
pieces ; and I didn't think it worth Avhile to pick 
the pieces up till the coroner came." 

One of our Lieutenants, who boasts of eighteen 
years' service in the "reg'lar army," has been 
very much troubled by the privates coming into 
his quarters. To put a stop to this, he has dis- 
played a large notice in front of his tent. It is, 
as near as I can copy it, verbaiim et literatim, as 
follows : 

Notis 

No 1 aloud in here excep on bisnes, 

By order of 

*Lt. H F 

Ferst leutenant. 

A few days ago one of our boys played a rather 
small game to get on guard as " supernumerary " 
— Avho only have to stand on post while any of 
the men may have to leave for some necessary 
reason ; at other times he can stay in the guard 
tents out of the storm. The rest of the boys did 
not like it much, and agreed among themselves 
to repay him. As soon, therefore, as their " re- 
lief" came on, one of them called out, " Corporal 
of the guard ; post number three wants to be re- 
lieved," and the supernumerary had to take his 
place. As soon as number three returned and 
took his place, number five called to be reheved ; 
and so they kept the poor fellow travelling from 
one post to another all night. Since then he has 
gone by the name of " Supernumerary." 



A SONG. 

BY FITZGKEENE HALLECK. 

Habk ! a bugle's echo comes ; 

Hark ! a fife is singing ; 
Hark ! the roll of far off drums 

Through the air is ringing ! 

Nearer the bugle's echo comes. 

Nearer the fife is singing, 
Near and more near the roll of drums 

Through the air is ringing. 

War ! it is thy music proud'. 
Wakening the brave-hearted ; 

Memories — hopes — a glorious crowd, 
At its call have started. 

■ Memories of our sires of old. 

Who, oppression-driven, 
High their rainbow flag unrolled 

To the sun and sky of heaven. 

Memories of the true and brave. 

Who, at Honor's bidding, 
Stepped, their country's life to save, 

To war as to their wedding. 

Memories of many a battle plain, 
Where their life-blood flowing. 

Made green the grass, and gold the grain, 
Above their grave-mounds growing. 



128 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



Hopes — that the children of their prayers, 

With them in valor vying, 
May do as noble deeds as theirs, 

In living and in dying, — 

And make, for children yet to come. 

The land of their bequeathing 
The imperial and the peerless home 

Of happiest beings breathmg. 

For this the warrior-path we tread. 

The battle-path of duty. 
And change, for field and forest bed. 

Our bowers of love and beauty. 

Music ! bid thy minstrels play 

No tunes (5f grief or sorrow, 
Xet them cheer the living brave to-day ; 

They may wail the dead to-morrow. 



A Patriotic Boy. — The following is one of 
the most remarkable letters we ever read from a 
boy. The writer was only fifteen years old, and 
his appeals to his mother for liberty to join the 
army are most striking. No one, whose whole 
soul was not fully in the matter, could make 
such ardent appeals. One sentence M'ill be no- 
ticed by parents — the one in which he says that 
nothing, save the dissent of his mother, could 
keep him away from the field of strife. His 
mother's assent Avas finally obtained, though she 
hesitated for some time, as her boy was in a fa- 
vorable situation, with excellent prospects for the 
future. He left for the South in the Eighth regi- 
ment Connecticut volunteers, in the capacity of 
a drummer boy. Here is his letter : 

TTateubury, May, 1861. 

Dear Mother ; I have not written you for some 
time, as I have had nothing to write. I want to 
ask a very important question. May I go to the 
war ? I do not expect to go as a volunteer, but 
as an ofiicer's servant. When I say " ofiicer's 
servant," I don't mean that I shall be at the beck 
and call of the whole company, but I shall ar- 
range the tent, and go on errands for the officer, 
and for him alone. My heart is in the work. If 
I assist an officer, there can be another man in 
the ranks. I shall be in little or no danger, be- 
cause I shall not probably stand in the ranks. 
But what if I am in danger ? I shall not die un- 
til my time comes ; and if I am appointed to die 
in the " service of my country," I shall be there, 
and no earthly power can keep me away. What 
if I do die in my country's service ? Who is Jiot 
willing to die in battle, if, by so doing, he can 
perpetuate the freedom and liberty of this Na- 
tion through all time ? Gen. Scott says that more 
die at home, out of the same number that go to 
war, than are killed in battle. Be patriotic, 
mother, and let me go ; don't think that enough 
will go without me ; no such thing should enter 
your mind ; but have true patriotism, and be 
willing to sacrifice all you have, if need be, to let 
the " Star-spangled Banner in triumph wave 
o'er the land of the free and the home of the 
brave." 



Mother, I cannot be happy to stay where I am, 
at this time of my country's peril. Please write, 
and tell me I may go, when I can get an oppor- 
tunity. If you say no, I fear I shall go mad. 
Mother, I should do that. My heart goes as fast 
as my pen, and if you should say no ! I should not 
be worth a cent to anybody. 

I never was so uneasy in my life as at present, 
and it should be the last thing I should think of 
— that is, to give up going to war at this " glori- 
ous period." Mother, don't fear for me iu any 
way. I shall keep right side up with care, and 
abstain from the use of all intoxicating liquors, 
profane language, and tobacco in every form. I 
will keejD a journal of daily occurrences, and 
send to you in the form of letters, which please 
keep with great care. Nothing would, or will, 
keep me away from war, neither argument, per- 
suasion, or force, nor anything but a dislike to 
disobey you. Please don't procrastinate, but say 
" you will," " it's right," and " go ahead." I 
ought to be in the garden at Avork, but it has 
" no charms for me." My mind is so worked up 
that I'd rather take a flogging that would make me 
raw all over, than give up the liopes and desires 
I have so long cherished. It is not for any pe- 
cuniary benefit which I may derive, for I only 
spoke of that to let you see I could provide for 
myself when once installed into the army ; but 
there is a deeper feeling which stirs up my whole 
frame, that tells me " go and prosper." I have 
only six cents in my pocket-book ; it will take 
thi-ee to pay for this letter, and three to pay for 
a letter to cousin ; so if you want me to write 
again, please send a stamp. I do not think it 
necessary to write any more until I am in the 
army. Please don't put me off. Write all the 
news, and don't miss a maU. 



A GOOD Anecdote is told of a lad on one of 
the Union gunboats. The vessel was just going 
into action, and our soldier was upon his knees, 
when an officer sneeringly asked him if he was 
afraid ? 

" No, I was praying," was the response. 

" Well, what were you praying for ? " 

" Praying," said the soldier, "that the enemy's 
bullets may be distributed the same way as the 
prize money is, pi-incipally among the officers." 



Gen. Lander and the Bible. — One day a 
staff" officer caught him with a Bible in his hand, 
and said : 

" General, do you ever search the Scriptures ? " 
Gen. Lander replied: "My mother gave me a 
Bible, which I have always carried with me. Once 
in the Rocky Mountains I had only fifteen pounds 
of flour. We used to collect grasshoppers at four 
o'clock in the day, to catch some fish for our sup- 
per at night. It was during the Mormon war, 
and my men desired to turn back. I was then 
searching for a route for the wagon road. ' I will 
turn back if the Bible says so,' said I, ' and we 




^ag-^VAHBitctoe 



C OM . J O H N YIO D G E ft S . 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



129 



will take it as an inspiration.' I opened the book 
at the following passage : 

" ' Go on, and search the mountain, and the 
gates of the city shall not be shut against you.' " 

All concurred in the definite statement of the 
passage, and the heroic explorer once more led 
his men into the wild country of the Indians. 



Incident qf Antietam. — At the battle of 
Antietam, as one of the regiments was for the 
second time going into the conflict, a soldier 
staggered. It was from no wound, but in the 
group of dying and dead, through which they 
were passing, he saw his father, of another regi- 
ment, lying dead. There, too, was a wounded 
man who knew them both, who pointed to the 
father's corpse, and then upwards, saying only, 
"It is all right with him." Onward went the 
son, by his father's corpse, to do his duty in the 
line, which, with bayonets fixed, advanced upon 
the enemy. When the battle was over, he came 
back, and with other help, buried his father. 
From his person he took the only thing he had, a 
Bible, given to the father years before, when he 
was an apprentice. 

Homesick in the Hospital. — A correspond- 
ent, writing from the general hospital at Nashville, 
Tenn., says : " Perhaps the greatest fault military 
surgeons are apt to fall into, is to be too military 
in their treatment of their patients. A soldier, 
when he enters a hospital as a patient, is no 
longer a soldier, but a patient, and should be 
treated as such, and not as a soldier. In civil 
life, we all know how tenderly the sick are treated, 
and in the great majority of cases, how benefi- 
cent to them is our medication. And, ordinarily, 
too, when a man is stricken down, even, Avith a 
formidable disease, there are good constitutional 
efforts in his system to carry him through his 
illness. This is seldom the case with our hospi- 
tal patients. In their sickness we have gener- 
ally to contend with a broken-down or exhausted 
constitution, and often the babe in the cradle is 
not entitled to more tender and skilful treatment 
to save its flickering life, than the now sick and 
broken-down soldier. Through want of a uni- 
form understanding on the part of our military, 
and even some of our medical officers on this 
very point, many lives are sacrificed. There is in 
this city the ' convalescent camp.' I don't be- 
lieve our convalescent soldiers have any fear of 
any more dreadful doom than to be consigned to 
this place. When they get well of their diseases, 
they beg hard for some other destination than 
this camp. They will cheerfully go front, or to 
their regiments, or any other place, than the 
dreaded ' convalescent camp.' I think the rea- 
son for the odium this place has for the convales- 
cent soldier, is the one above stated. They are 
treated as soldiers, and not as convalescents. 

" Soon after I got into this hospital, a very sick 
boy was brought into my ward from the ' conva- 
lescent camp.' He had been prematurely sent to 
that place when recovering from pneumonia. It 
9 



was apprehended that the rebels Avere going to 
make a raid on Nashville. This boy, with other 
convalescent soldiers, was put on duty by lying 
in the trenches for one night. Here was a very 
feeble patient, with but one healthy lung, to act as 
soldier. The exposure brought on pneumonia of 
the well lung. In this critical condition he was 
brought into my ward. Soon after, a most touch- 
ing nostalgic delirium set in. He wanted to go 
home. He taxed his delirious mind in all con- 
ceivable ways, to consummate the object in view. 
He begged, coaxed, reasoned, and at times would 
■wildly cry out, ' I will go home.' A short time be- 
fore he died, he sprang out of his bunk, and with a 
sheet around him, ran through the ward, crying, 
' I'll go now, and no power on earth shall stay 
me.' The attendants put him back in bed, and 
not many hours after his heavenly Father took 
his spirit from earth, Ave Avill humbly hope, to 
that pure and blissful state, ' Avhere the Avicked 
cease from troubling and the Aveary are at rest.' 

" On one inspection occasion, a Sergeant, Avho 
had been wounded in the head, Avas pointed out 
to the surgeon in charge, as being considered 
Avell enough for the 'convalescent camp.' 'Don't 
send him,' says the doctor, Avith noble considera- 
tion for the patient, and, Avith a smile, added, 
' They are in the habit there of cutting off almost 
everything that is Avounded ; if you send the man 
there, they may conclude to cut his head off'.' To 
save the gallant soldier's head, it Avas decided not 
to send him to the ' convalescent camp.' Another 
case of homesickness I am reminded of. A poor 
boy, from the front, Avas brought into this Avard, 
Avith the camp dysentery. A more attenuated 
living being I had never seen. Home, Avith him, 
too, Avas the absorbing subject of his thoughts. 
' I Avant to see my mother,' Avas his constant ut- 
terance. Often he wept like a child to go home. 
I put him off from time to time, endeavoring to 
feed and stimulate him, to bring him into a condi- 
tion fit to be sent home. One morning, coming 
into the Avard, I found his bed empty. ' What ! 
poor Jimmy dead ? ' I asked of the Avard master. 
'No,' he ansAvered, ' Jimmy started for home, under 
the care of our female nurse.' Hei'e Avas a case 
Avhere a resolute and conscientious Avoman vol- 
untarily took charge of a helpless boy, to take 
him to his home, a thousand miles aAvay, solely be- 
cause she felt that she could thereby save his life. 
She succeeded in getting him home alive, and we 
have heard he is now getting along well. 

" Homesickness is one of the most frequent, 
difficult, and annoying complications Ave have in 
the treatment of hos'pital patients. When a sol- 
dier gets sick, he Avishes himself at home. It is 
well for the surgeon to gratify this feeling, Avhen 
the patient is in a fit condition to go. And Avhen 
the case is such that it is not for the patient's 
benefit to leave the hosi)ital, and he cannot con- 
trol himself to submit to circumstances, he is, in 
a medical point of vieAv, exceedingly difficult to 
manage. It is thus that nostalgia has helped t& 
send many a lamented soldier to his grave. 

" Great is the variety of Avounds in a military 
hospital. One remarkable fact connected Avitli 



130 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



wounds is, that a man's life is not alway jeopar- 
dized in proportion to the number of wounds he 
may have received. One from a sh'ght wound 
may die. Another may be fearfully mutilated, 
and yet get well. After the battle of Chicka- 
mauga, we received two patients in this hospital, 
who afforded a striking illustration of this. I 
asked one of them where he was wounded. 'All 
over,' he answered. I directed the nurse to di- 
vest him of his clothes, and found his word pretty 
much verified. This warrior was perforated by 
more than half a dozen balls, and yet he got 
well. Another one had a slight wound on the 
left knee, caused by a buckshot. The little mis- 
sile Mas extracted, and after he had suffered most 
severely for two months he died." 



A Faithful Dog. — The widow of Lieut. 
PhefF, of Illinois, was enabled to find her hus- 
band's grave, at Pittsburg Landing, by seeing a 
dog which had accompanied the Lieutenant to 
the war. The dog approached her with the most 
intense manifestations of joy, and immediately 
indicated to her, as Avell as he was able, his de- 
sire that she should follow him. She did so, and 
he led the way to a distant part of the field, and 
stopped before a single grave. She caused it to 
be opened, and there found the body of her dead 
husband. It appears from the statements of 
some of the soldiers, that when Lieut. Pheff fell, 
his dog was by his side, and thus remained, lick- 
ing his wounds, until he was taken from the field 
and buried. He then took his station by the 
grave, and nothing could induce him to abandon 
it, but for a sufficient length of time each day 
to satisfy his hunger, until, by some means, he 
Avas made aware of the presence of his mistress. 
Thus he watched for twelve days by the grave of 
his slain master. 

DECEMBER IN VIRGINIA. 
Contraband loquitur. 

De leaves hab blown away, 

De trees am black an bare, 
De day an>cold an damp, 

De rain am in de air. 
De wailin win's hab struck 

De strings ob Nature's lyre ; 
De brooks am swollen deep, 

De roads am mud an mire. 
De horses yank de team, 

De wheels am stiekin thar ; 
De Yankee massa yell — 

De Lord ! how he do swar ! 
De oafs dat he do take, 

De nigger disremember ; 
De Dutch, De Deuce, De Debbil, 
De — all tings dat am ebil — 
De-oember 1 



Freedmen's Bureaus. — An ancient colored 
woman appeared at the office of the Freedmen's 
Bureau, at Chattanooga, Tenn., and asked if that 
was the place where they kept the freedmen's 



bureaus. The clerk was momentarily nonplused, 
but instantly recovering his gravity, blandly re- 
plied in the affirmative. Dinah, with an air of 
mystery, and speaking in a confidential M-hisper, 
said : " I have come for my bureau ; now give me 
a pretty large one, with a glass top ; I have a 
wash-stand at home, but it is too small to put my 
fixins' in." 

A Wonderful Old Soldier. — The Thirtj-- 
seventh regiment of Iowa, doing duty in St. Louis, 
in 1862, was a regiment of exempts — few, if 
any, of its members being under forty-five years 
of age, and many of them over eighty. " Take 
them all together," says a correspondent, " they 
are a band of hardy veterans, whom the exigencies 
of the situation have fired with a zealous patri- 
otism well worthy of imitation by younger men. 
But the most remarkable member of this regi- 
ment is a private of company H, named Curtis 
King, whose history and description are truly 
curious. He is over eighty-one years of age, six 
feet tv/o inches in height, of brawny and stalwart 
frame, baring his bosom to the cold winds of win- 
ter Avithout endangering his health, and moving 
in his round of duties v.'ith the celerity of a jouth 
of eighteen. Owing to his great age, and the 
f.ict of his being blind of an eye, he found great 
difficulty, when the regiment was forming, in 
getting permission to enlist, two or three com- 
panies refusing to take him ; but he was at length 
successful, and since the regiment has been on 
duty he has proved one of the most efficient men 
in it. He is, and has been from his youth, a 
Democrat of the old Jackson school, and even now 
indulges industrious invective against the Abo- 
litionists. He was born in Culpejjper County, 
Va., and claims to be a lineal descendant of Po- 
cahontas ; and this statement is verified by his 
physiognomy, which betrays the characteristics of 
an Indian. He has been twice married, (first when 
only nineteen years of age,) and is th'. father of 
twenty-one children, one of which was, two weeks 
since, only fifteen months old when it died. He 
claims to be able to repeat every word of the 
Bible from the beginning of Genesis to the end 
of Revelation, and can neither read nor ivrite — 
a daughter having read the book to him, his 
wonderful memory allowing him to retain it after 
committing it to memory. The daughter com- 
menced her reading to him at five years of age, 
he being then twenty-six. In 1815 he emigrated 
to Ohio, resided there some twenty-five years, 
and then removed to Wapello County, Iowa, 
where his home now is, and where he enlisted. 
Mr. King's family is somewhat celebrated for 
longevity, his mother having lived to the age of 
103, and one grandfather to lOo years. 

The history of this country is familiar to hira, 
and his citations of historical points and the con- 
nection with them of great men who flourished 
during the latter part of the last century, are 
wonderfully accurate — remembering, as he does, 
Washington, Jeflerson, Randolph, and the Ad- 
amses, &c. He has often seen Washington, and 
remarked as a characteristic of the " Father of his 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



131 



Country," that he never saw him smile ; that he 
seemed to have little syinpathj- in the enjoyments 
of other men. The father of Mr. King was a 
soldier of the Revolution. 

About twenty of Mr. K.'s grandsons and some 
four or five great-grandsons are now in the United 
States service, and the old man indulges a laudable 
pride in the fact that not one of his family is dis- 
loyal. Eleven of his grandsons responded to the 
first call of the President for volunteers. One of 
his daughters, who resides in Ohio, weighs 325 
pounds. He himself never took a dose of medi- 
cine from a doctor, nor did any one of his family 
while they remained under his control, he being 
what is called a " root doctor," and having done the 
phj-sicking for his own people by the use of herb 
and root teas ; his " practice," too, was successful. 

The opinion of this aged veteran upon the war, 
though he gives it in a somewhat homely and 
antique figure of speech, is not to be ignored as 
devoid of good foundation. When asked his 
ideas as to the result of the struggle, he replied : 
" Well, I think the longest pole will knock the 
persimmon. It may take a long time ; but the 
North has got the most men and the most money, 
and it is bound to come out first best in the end. 
And," he continued, " if the young men will do 
as I intend to do, the rebellion will be put down, 
for I am in for the war, or as long as I last." The 
cheerful and contented disposition of this old 
man might well be taken for an example by 
younger soldiers, to say nothing of his strict ob- 
servance of discipline, or the efficiency and value 
of such men to the service. 



Negko Schools at Newbern. — "I have 
just visited a negro school," said a letter writer. 
" I never had such hard work to control my risibles 
in my life. There sat along the sides of the 
room, all in one class, little girls of five years, 
and men of forty — each equally advanced in 
their studies. Of course their curiosity was 
excited to see the stranger. So, occasionally they 
looked up, which called forth from the old man 
in charge, the admonition, " Confine yersels to 
yer buks. Sam, keep yer eyes on yer knowl- 
edge buks.' Miss Susan, stop dat, or I'll give yer 
de cowskin 'cross yer legs," and other equally 
gentle corrections. I heard them read ; and as 
they were standing up in rows, without regard to 
height or age, reading in concert, interspersed 
with the old man's scowls over his big brass 
spectacles, and his threatenings with the cowskin, 
I could not resist any involuntary smile." 



TwiXKLEY Twinkle. — A Avar correspondent 
of a New Orleans paper wrote thus from Jack- 
son, Tenn. : 

" An officer of my acquaintance, who is inor- 
dinately fond of ' Iritters,' just dropped into a 
dweUing at Jackson a day or two since, where 
this delicacy was smoking hot upon the table, 
and very politely asked to share the meal with 
the landlady. She graciously complied, and 



asked him to be seated. ' Will you take the 
" twinkley twinkle," or on the " dab " ? ' My friend 
was entirely ignorant of the meaning of these 
terms, but at a venture chose the former. He 
was soon enlightened. The ancient female dipped 
her not over clean fingers into a tumbler of mo- 
lasses standing beside her, and allowing the 
drippings to fall on the delicacy, presented it to 
him as ' twinkley twinkle.' ' On the dab,' was a 
spoonful of treacle upon the centre of the fritter." 



Gen. Rosecrans indulges occasionally in a 
vritticism. A lady called upon him for the pur- 
pose of procuring a pass, which was declined very 
politely. Tears came to the lady's eyes as she 
remarked that her uncle was very ill, and might 
not recover. " Very sorry, indeed, madam," re- 
plied the General. " My uncle has been indis- 
posed for some time. As soon as Uncle Sam 
recovers a little, you shall have a pass to go 
where you please." 

Anecdote of Gen. Butler. — It will be re- 
membered that the little Count Mejan once 
frantically appealed to the Emperor Napoleon to 
send an armed force to protect the grog-shop- 
keepers of New Orleans from an " unconstitu- 
tional " tax Gen. Butler had levied upon them. 
The Emperor was so puzzled to know what his 
consul had to do with the American Constitution, 
and on what principles he made himself the 
champion of whiskey-venders in an American 
city, that he called the Count home to explain. 

It will be seen, from what follows, that Gen. 
Butler's tyranny did not stop at taxing grog- 
shops. It seems that after the expulsion of the 
rebels and their allies, the Thugs, from New 
Orleans, the dead walls of that city were sud- 
denly covered with conspicuous bills containing 
the following sentence : 

" Get your shirts at Moody's, 207 Canal Street." 

A planter, a secessionist, came to town some 
months after Butler had taken the reins in his 
hands, and marvelled much at the cleanliness and 
good order he found prevailing ; also he was sur- 
prised at this notice, which everywhere stared him 
in the face. 

" Get your shirts at Moody's ? " said he to an 
acquaintance he met in the street ; " what does 
this mean? I see it everywhere posted up. 
AVhat does it mean ? " 

"O," was the reply, "that is another of the 
outrageous acts of this fellow Butler. This is 
one of the orders of which you hear so much. 
Don't you see P he has ordered us to get our 
shirts at Moody's, and we have to do so. It is, 
of course, suspected that he is a silent partner in 
the concern, and pockets the profits." 

The poor planter listened with eyes and mouth 
open and rejjlied : 

" I don't need any shirts just now, and it's a 
great piece of tyranny ; but this Butler enforces 
his orders so savagely that it is better to give in at 
once," and accordingly he went to "Moody's " and 
purchased half a dozen shirts, — on compulsion. 



132 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



BEYOND THE POTOMAC. 

BY PAUL H. HATNE. 

They slept on the fields which their valor had win, 
Eut arose with the first early blush of the sun, 
For they knew that a great deed remained to be done. 
When they passed o'er tiae River ! 

They rose with the sun, and caught life from his 

light — 
Those giants of courage, those Anaks in fight — 
And they laughed out aloud in the joy of their might. 
Marching swift for the River ! 

On ! on ! like the rushing of storms through the 

hills — 
On ! on ! with a tramp that is firm as their wills — 
And the one heart of thousands grows buoyant and 

thrills 
At the thought of the River ! 

O, the sheen of their swords! the fierce gleam of 

their eyes ! 
It seemed as on earth a new sunlight would rise, 
And king-like flash up to the sun in the skies, 
O'er the path to the River. 

But their banners, shot-scarred, and all darkened 

with gore. 
On a strong wind of morning streamed wildly before. 
Like the wings of death-angels swept fast to the 

shors. 

The green shore of the River. 

As they march — from the hill-side, the hamlet, the 

stream — 
Gaunt throngs, whom the foeman had manacled, 

teem. 
Like men just aroused from some terrible dream, 
To pass o'er the River. 

They behold the broad banners, blood-darkened, 

yet fair, 
And a moment dissolves the last spell of despair. 
While a peal as of victory swells on the air. 
Rolling out to the River. 

And that crj', with a thousand strange echoings 

spread, 
Till the ashes of heroes seemed stirred in their bed. 
And the deep voice of passion surged up from the 

dead — 

Ay ! press on to the River ! 

On! on! like the rushing ofstorms through the hills, 
On ! on ! with a tramp that is firm as their wills. 
And the one heart of thousands grows buoyant and 
thrills 

As they pause by the River. 

Then the wan face of Maryland, haggard and worn. 
At that sight lost the touch of its aspect forlorn. 
And she turned on the foeman, full statured in scorn. 
Pointing stern to the River. 

And Potomac flowed calm, scarcely heaving her 

breast. 
With her low-lying billows all bright in the West, 
For the hand of the Lord lulled the waters to rest 
Of the fair rolling River. 



Passed ! passed ! the glad thousands march, safe 

through the tide. 
(Hark, Despot ! and hear the wild knell of your 

pride. 
Ringing weird-like and wild, pealing up from the 

side 

Of the calm flowing River !) 

'Neath a blow swift and mighty the Tvrant shall 

fall ; 
Vain ! vain ! to his God swells a desolate call. 
For his grave has been hollowed, and woven his 

pall, 

Since they passed o'er the River ! 



Value of Free ScnooLS. — Gen. Negley 
sent out a foraging expedition from Nashville, 
with orders to the commander to visit every habi- 
tation, mill, barn, and out-house, and seize upon 
everything fit for consumption by man and beast. 
During the expedition a squad made a break for 
a free school-liouse. 

" Don't disturb anything there ! " cried one of 
the officers. " If there had been a few more such 
institutions in the South, there would have been 
no rebellion." 

Brother against Brother. — A writer in 
Philadelphia relates the following : " In one of 
our beautiful suburban cemeteries was employed 
a venerable man. For a number of yeai's past 
he has prepared the last resting-place for those 
called from among us. Though poor, he raised 
four gallant boys, giving to each of them a mod- 
erate education and a good trade. The two elder 
went five years ago to New Orleans, where pros- 
perity attended their industry. 

The two younger brothers remained with their 
father. George and Frederick were their names. 
The latter is but seventeen years of age. When 
the war broke out, both left their employments 
and enlisted. The elder brothers had constantly 
written liome, and frequent presents accompanied 
their letters. At the battle of Fredericksburg, in 
the very front of the line, at the church upon the 
rifle pits at the back of the town, were the two 
boys Frederick and George. A sortie was made 
by the rebel riflemen upon the retreating Federals, 
and among those who dropped were the two boys, 
the youngest sons of the old gravedigger. A 
minie ball had pierced the bodies of each. 

The rebel soldiers, whose weapons had done the 
deed, were clad in rags of linsey. They ran with 
alacrity to secure the clothing, the canteens, and 
perhaps the money, of the men whom they had 
laid low. The foremost one reached the body of 
his dead enemy, turned it over — for the face was 
downward — and to his horror beheld the corpse 
of his youngest brother, his woollen shirt stained 
with a stream of blood that oozed from a bullet 
hole above the heart. Our informant, a chaplain 
of the army, could tell us nothing of the other 
rebel brother. But this one made his way into 
the Union lines, and is now in tlie hospital at 
Alexandria a hopeless maniac. We learn that in 
their childhood this voungling of the flock had 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



133 



been the especial charge of the eldest brother. 
When he left for New Orleans it was in the ex- 
pectation of entering business to which he could 
bring uj) the boy. That boy he lived to shoot 
down with his own hands. Unless the remaining 
rebel brother survive, the family are now extinct. 
The father died of a broken heart, and was buried 
last Sunday. This is a simple statement of fact. 
It is doubtless one of ten thousand never to be 
written." 

Adventures in Virginia. — A correspon- 
dent writing from the camp of the Fourth Vir- 
ginia brigade, on the 11th of November, 1863, 
relates the following : " Instances of courage 
and daring on the part of private soldiers in our 
army are of no rare occurrence, and consequently 
are often passed by unnoticed and unrewarded. 
But the bold acts of some will impress themselves 
upon the notice of the officers in command, and 
elicit their admiration. Such was the case with four 
privates who received the credit which they merited 
for the part they acted in the late affair on the Rap- 
pahannock. When the enemy had taken our re- 
doubts beyond the river, orders were given to burn 
the pontoon bridge ; it was fii-ed, but failed to burn, 
and before combustible material could be gath- 
ered to fire it again, the enemy had reached the 
north side, and placed a heavy guard there to 
fire upon any party attempting to destroy it. The 
bridge remained unburned until about 12 o'clock 
at night, when volunteers were called for to re- 
new the effort to fire it; at the same time, all 
were told that the M'ork was a dangerous one, 
and none were desired to undertake it, except 
those who were perfectly willing. Four privates 
of Gen. Pegram's brigade (formerly Gen. Smith's) 
volunteered, and successfully fired and destroyed 
the bridge. They were not fired ujjon, but the 
danger was encountered, and their quiet and cool 
demeanor was all that jn^evented them from being 
discovered. Had the enemy heard the least 
noise, the bridge would have been swept by a 
volley of musketry. The names of the privates 
are Peter Berton, company E, 18th Virginia ; 
Thomas Berton, company E, 18th Virginia ; James 
F. Fristoe, company G, 49th Virginia ; and San- 
dy Cooper, company A, 49th Virginia — Lieut. 
Buck, 18th Virginia, commanding. In connec- 
tion with the above, I would mention an inci- 
dent that occurred at Culpepper Court House, 
in which a lady acted the part of a heroine. In 
September last, when the Yankee army advanced 
on that town, it was the scene of quite a brisk 
fight — especially was the artillery firing heavy. 
During the fight, one of our wounded heroes, who 
was between the fire of friend and foe, was seen 
by a lady, whose tender sympathies were deeply 
aroused in his behalf; and having resolved to save 
him, she rushed from her house, regardless of her 
own safety, between the combatants, amidst shot 
and shell, raised him, bleeding, from the dust, 
and had almost succeeded in gaining a place of 
safety, when (our forces having fallen back) a Yan- 
kee officer rode up, and being struck by her pat- 
riotism, dismounted, and assisted her in carrying 
her wounded countryman into the house. Well 



was it for the suff"ering hero, that his dangerous 
position was witnessed by Miss Belle Norris, 
whose courage was equal to her patriotism ; for, 
in a few moments, being unable to move, he 
would have been crushed by the enemy's cavalry, 
charging over the road. Long may she — one of 
the many patriotic ladies of the town of Culpep- 
per — live to receive the heartfelt thanks of grate- 
ful soldiers for the many acts of kindness they 
have received at her hands. Miles. 



An Exciting Adventure. — Corporals Ham- 
ilton and Vaneraan, of the 1st Virginia infantry, 
stationed at North Mountain, on the Baltimore 
and Ohio Railroad, got permission to visit some 
friends, in the Virginia regiments encamped about 
Winchester. They started from Martinsburg in a 
stage coach. The coach contained five gentlemen 
and three ladies, among them Gen. Cluseret's 
Adjutant-General, a Lieutenant on Gen. Mihoy's 
staff, and a Mr. Greer, from Wheeling. Shortly 
after leaving Martinsburg, the coach was upset, 
and the whole party were piled up in a miscel- 
laneous heap on the road-side. The coach was 
soon righted, and after proceeding a few miles 
farther, two of the ladies got out. When near 
Bunker Hill, the coach was stopped by a gang 
of rebel cavahy, dressed in the uniform of Fed- 
eral soldiers. The rebels cursed the occupants 
of the coach, and told them to get down and 
surrender, or they would blow out their brains, 
and of course the passengers surrendered. The 
rebels ransacked the trunks and valises. They 
permitted Mr. Greer and the young lady to go 
unharmed, but ordered the rest to unhitch the 
coach horses ; and while this was being done, the 
Lieutenant of Gen. Milroy's staff' crawled in, and 
concealed himself between the body of the coach 
and the coupling pole. The rest of the prisoners 
were hurried off' in the direction of Front Royal. 
The stage horses, not being " used to much feed," 
were very thin and angular, and the boys thought 
it a very severe " rail rido " into Dixie. Upon 
reaching a small town called Middlebourne, the 
prisoners and their captors were charged upon by 
a body of Union cavalry, under command of the 
Lieutenant who had concealed himself under the 
coach. The rebels were completely routed. About 
fifty shots were exchanged. The Major com- 
manding the rebels was wounded, as was the 
Lieutenant commanding the rescuing party. Two 
or three of the rebels were killed, and more than 
half of them were captured and taken to Win- 
chester with the released prisoners. 

The Lieutenant. v>-ho had concealed himself un- 
der the coach, as soon as the rebels were out of 
sight, borrowed a horse from a farmer, and start- 
ed post haste for Winchester. Gen. Milroy im- 
mediately despatched thirty of the 1st New York 
cavalry towards Middlebourne in command of his 
Lieutenant, and fifteen to the point of departure 
from the main pil:e. The detachment sent to Mid- 
dlebourne. got there before the rebels, and lay in 
wait for thcui with the above result. The two Cor- 
porals returned to their regiment at North Moun- 
tain. 



134 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



Discovering a Friend. — During the autumn 
of 1862, a general rally -was made by the -women 
of Princeton, Iowa, and vicinity, to prepare a 
large amount of bandages, lint, &c., for the use 
of wounded soldiers. Among the donations 
made, were several rolls of bandages pifjppared by 
Mrs. Field, into -which she placed a card bearing 
her name and address. A few days ago, she re- 
ceived a letter from a Lieutenant at Fayetteville, 
Ark., stating that after the dreadful battle of 
Prairie Grove, as he -was assisting to dress the 
wound of Willie F. B. Culbertson, of this place, 
and who has since died, and Avas unrolling the 
bandage, a card di-opped out, -which Willie at once 
recognized, with delight, to be from an acquaint- 
ance of his o-wn town. It was a strange circum- 
stance, that a gift, after jjassing so far, and through 
so many hands, should at last be used on one 
of the donor's own neighbors ; but it may be only 
one of the thousands of instances in which the 
noble women of the North shall see, after this 
struggle is closed, the fruit of their labors, like 
" bread cast upon the Avaters," after many days. 
The kindness that the brave defenders of our 
nation has and will receive from then* mothers, 
wives, sisters, and friends at home, is, no doubt, 
received with grateful hearts while living, and 
will not be forgotten, though they be, like Willie, 
" far bej'ond the rolling river," where the strife 
of battle is never known. 



Sergeant John Murkland. — When the 
gallant Capt. Simonds, of the Fifteenth INIassa- 
chusetts regiment, fell at the battle of Antie- 
tam, Lieul.-Col. Kimball took the dying man's 
sword off', and, handing to Serg. Murkland, said : 
" I want you to take this sword, and lead this 
company; will you do it P " He answered gal- 
lantly, " I will do so — anywhere you may order." 
This noble answer, made in the face of death and 
danger, won for him a Captain's commission. 



Sergeant Plunkett. — In the battle of Fred- 
ericksburg, the color-bearer of the Twenty-first 
Massachusetts regiment fell mortally wounded, 
when Serg. Plunkett seized the standard, bore it 
to the front, and there held his ground until both 
arms were shot away by a shell. He was car- 
ried to the hospital, and subsequently was taken 
to Washington, the whole regiment turning out 
to escort him to the station. So brave a man de- 
served so marked an honor. 



A Mohammedan Colonel. — A well-known 
Colonel in the Union service, who had been in- 
jured several times in various actions during the 
war, received, at the battle of Fort Fisher, a 
wound v/hich was considered fatal. As usual in 
such cases, the chaplain approached him, and was 
about offering words of consolation, when the 
wounded Colonel interrupted him with, " Pass 
on. I'm a Mohammedan." 



An Observing Negro. — A fine-looking ne- 
gro went into the Union lines on the Potomac, 
and reported himself for work. 

" Where are you from?" asked the officer on 
duty. 

'• Culpepper Court House, sar." 

" What's the news down there ? " 

" Nothing, massa, 'cept dar's a man down dar 
lost a mighty good and valuable nigger dis 
morning, and I reckon ho dun lose more afore 
niffht." 



General Hayes' Latest Thouguts. — It 
may be interesting to knov/ the state of Gen. 
Hayes' thoughts and feelings just before entering 
upon that desperate conflict in the Wilderness, 
where he lost his life. In a letter written upon 
the morning on which the march commenced, he 
says : 

" This morning was beautiful, for 

'Lightly and brightly shone the sun, 
As if the morn was a jocund one.' 

" Although we were anticipating to march at 
eight o'clock, it might have been an appropriate 
harbinger of the day of the regeneration of 
mankind ; but it only brought to remembrance, 
through the throats of many" bugles, that duty 
enjoined upon each one, perhaps, before the set- 
ting sun, to lay down a life for his country." 



A soldier in the field f.ent the following ap- 
peal to the boys to volunt:'cr : 

I've left my home and all my friends. 
And crpssed the mountains craggy, 

To tight the foe and traitor bands, 
And left my own dear jMaggic. 

Bvit now old Jeff is doomed to fall ; 

The traitor dogs do yelp ; 
But why leave us to do it all ? 

Why don't you come and help? 



A Startling Episode. — The following ac- 
count of a very strange adventure was given by 
a letter writer under whose observation it oc- 
curred : 

During the month of August, in 1861, while 
our Iowa regiment was stationed at Holla, in 
Missouri, our company was detached from the 
regiment, and sent to guard the railroad bridge 
at the Mozeille ^lills, M'hich, it Avas rumored, the 
guerrillas of that neighborhood Avere ]n-eparing 
to destroy. 

AVe had been upon the ground but a feAV days, 
when there appeared in camp, caily one morn- 
ing, a very old, dccrejiit mule, which made direct 
for the door of a stable that adjoined the Cap- 
tain's quarters, from which it appeared he had 
recently been stolen by a guerrilla and carried 
aAA'ay, as a pack animal. Upon approaching the 
mule, a letter Avas discovered, secured to the 
throat-latch of the bridle, Avliich, being addressed 
to the Captain, Avas immediately handed into his 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



135 



quarters. Upon opening the letter, its contents 
(written in the delicate handwriting of a female) 
consisted of the following singular announce- 
ment : " The Temple of Jerusalem was destroyed 
on the first Friday before the full moon." The 
Captain professed to understand it, and said : 
" 'Ihe guerrillas will attack the bridge to-night," 
and immediately ordered the company to be mus- 
tered, and informed them of the imminence of 
an attack, which might be looked for at any mo- 
ment. Ammunition w-as ordered to be distrib- 
uted, the guards were doubled, pickets thrown 
out, and every precaution taken to guard against 
surprise. At the close of the day a drizzling 
rain set in, which continued until the next morn- 
ing, causing the night to be intensely dark. 

Three picket stations had been thrown out into 
the country about half a mile from the opposite 
end of the bridge, Avhere the main guard was 
posted behind a pile of railroad ties. It was our 
lot to be one of the six that composed the mid- 
night guard at this station. We had been upon 
our post about an hour, Avhen one of the men ob- 
served, " I hear footsteps." We listened, and 
presently heard the footsteps of several persons 
approaching us, apparently with great caution, 
through a dense undergrowth that skirted the 
opposite side of the road. The darkness of the 
night was so great that w^e could not see them 
even when they were within forty feet of us ; but 
we could distinctly hear one of them observe, in 
a petulant, but suppressed tone, " Jim, hold up 
that gun of yours ; that's twice you've stuck that 
bayonet in me." At this moment we opened 
upon them with all our guns. There w^as no gun 
fired in return, but we could distinctly hear them 
for some time rushing with receding steps through 
the tliicket, in the direction of a cornfield, in 
which stood a log cabin, occupied by a woman 
and two children, the husband and father of 
whom was a Union soldier in one of the Mis- 
souri regiments. The firing of our guns, which 
overshot the enemy, had aroused the entire com- 
mand, and brought in the picket guard, when the 
log cabin alluded (o was discovered to be on fire. 
Believing it to be the incendiary work of these 
guerrillas, the Captain immediately ordered a com- 
mand of twenty men to double-quick through to 
the house, and endeavor to rescue the family if 
in danger. Upon reaching the vicinity of the 
opening that surrounded the cabin, we discovered 
that a quantity of hay had been placed against 
the door and fii'ed ; and near the building a party 
of eight or nine guerrillas, armed with guns, were 
grouped together, apparently listening to some 
speaker. Our party, which had divided at the 
edge of the cornfield, with the view of surround- 
ing the cabin, now rushed in upon them, and suc- 
ceeded in capturing three of their number. 

We had arrived too late to render any assist- 
ance to the inmates of the cabin, which had al- 
ready sunk down into a smouldering heap, be- 
neath which the mother and her children had 
perished. After securing our prisoners with a 
portion of a clothes line, hanging from a branch 
of a tree, they were conducted to camp, where j 



the Captain immediately summoned a drum-head 
court-martial to try them upon the charge of 
murder, assuring them that if they were found 
guilty they would be shot at sunrise, as a warn- 
ing to their guerrilla comrades. One of the 
party, a. short, thick fellow, with a bushy head of 
red hair, and bloated expression of countenance, 
when asked by the court-martial " if he had any- 
thing to say," sneeringly turned away, refusing to 
make any ansAver. The second prisoner, a tall, 
slender person, of dark complexion, with one eye 
concealed beneath a handherchief that was tied 
diagonally around his head, while his face was 
scratched and scarred with fresh wounds, appar- 
ently the result of some bacchanalian brawl 
with his comrades, observed, " This shooting a 
feller, arter he's a ])risoner, for fighting for the 
freedom of Missouri, and ag'in the abolitioners, 
ain't accorden to law." Here a member of the 
court-martial asked him " if the murdering of a 
helpless woman and her children, at the midnight 
hour, by burning them to death while sleeping, 
was fighting for the freedom of Missouri." The 
fellow turned away from this question with a de- 
jected look, muttering that " her husband was a 
damned abolitioner." The third person was a 
young man, or boy, apparently about sixteen 
years old. From his dialect, and the nationality 
of expression on his countenance, it was easy to 
discern that he was of Irish descent. He was 
well dressed, and appeared to be greatly dis- 
tressed at his situation as a prisoner. He ob- 
served, with much alarm expressed on his coun- 
tenance, that he was an Irish boy, and that he 
had been in the United States but ten weeks, 
and had taken no part in the war ; that the man 
who had burned the house had called upon him 
that evening, and asked him to join them in a 
coon hunt, and it was not until they were fired 
upon at the bridge, that he was aware of the char- 
acter and object of the party. He would have 
left them then, but the night was dark, and he 
did not know the way home. 

Here one of the court arose, and informed him 
that his story partook of the character of all 
guerrilla pleas of innocence, and that it availed 
him nothing. He had been caught with others 
in the very act of committing this cruel and un- 
feeling murder, and it only remained for him 
to say that the court found all of them guilty of 
murder, and sentenced them to be shot at nine 
o'clock the next morning. 

The prisoners were then ordered to the guard- 
house — a log dAvelling — and placed in the cel- 
lar beneath the building. The remainder of the 
night was devoted to the making of the coffins 
and the digging of a grave of sufficient dimen- 
sions to hold them side by side. When the 
morning returned, the rain had ceased — the 
clouds had passed away, and soon the sun arose 
with a warm and genial glow. All nature seemed 
refreshed with the murky shower of the night — 
while all around, the blades of grass, the lilac 
bushes, and forest leaves, drooped u'.ider the 
sparkling rain-drops that glittered on their folds ; 
and the birds carolled wild and loud their morn- 



136 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



ing matins. All felt that it was a day to live, 
and not to die in. The drum was beat at early 
dawn, musterini? the company under arms, to 
witness the punishment ; and a detail of twelve 
men Avas made, as executioners, under the com- 
mand of a corporal. As the time drew near for 
the execution, it was discovered that two of the 
prisoners had made their escape by forcing a pas- 
sage through the partition wall of the cellar, into 
the cellar of an adjoining house. 

The boy, however, was still a prisoner, and all 
were determined that he should be made an ex- 
ample of. Accordingly, about eight o'clock, he 
■was brought out, to be conducted to the place of 
execution. Upon seeing the soldiers drawn up 
to receive him, he commenced wringing his hands, 
crying and calling to the Captain, saying, " O, 
Ca])tain, I am not guilty. Do not let them kill 
me. Don't, Captain; you can save me. I will 
give yeu my watch — my sister will give you 
money. O God! O Holy Mother! O Captain, 
speak to them quick ; they are taking me away ! " 
With a soldier upon, each side of him, he was 
now led by the arms towards the place of execu- 
tion, still calling upon the Captain to save him. 
When he discovered the colhn and grave that 
had been prepared for him, he gave a wild, fran- 
tic scream, and then for the first time seemed to 
realize that in a few minutes he would be no 
more among the living ; for in a moment after he 
became calm, when, turning to the officer of the 
guard, he requested him to ask the Captain if he 
would give him time to write to his mother in 
Ireland. The Captain, who was standing uppn 
one side of the hollow square of soldiers that sur- 
rounded the prisoner, hearing his request, imme- 
diately answered, " Yes ; let him have writing 
matei'ials," — which were immediately brought, 
when he kneeled down, placing the paper upon 
the coffin lid, and as his pendashedoft' the words, 
" Dear Mother," tears fell upon the paper, Avhich, 
in brushing away with his coat sleeve, erased the 
words he had written ; when, springing to his 
feet, he commenced wringing his hands, saying : 
" I cannot write, I cannot write ; O soldier, will 
you write for me ? " addressing the Corporal of 
the guard. 

At that moment, there arose upon the stillness 
of the scene the wild, piercing scream of a fe- 
male, as she burst through the ranks of the sol- 
diers, and swept out upon the hollow square, in 
the direction of the prisoner. It was an Irish 
girl, apparently about eighteen years old, without 
bonnet or shoes, her dress bespotted with mud, 
and her long, dark hair streaming in the wind, as 
she rushed forward with a wild, heart-rending 
scream, saying, " He is my brother ; he is my 
brother." In a moment she had crossed the 
square, and clasping her brother in her arms, she 
continued, with an agonizing scream, "O soldiers! 
O Holy Mother ! gentlemen ! for the love of 
Jesus, do not kill him. He is innocent — he is 
my brother ! " I never wish to look upon a scene 
like that again ; and many a hardy hunter, from 
Iowa's border, while gazing on it, felt the invol- 
untary tear course down his manly cheek. But 



we were surrounded by murderers and assassins. 
The hand that had received pay from the soldier 
for a draught of water had been known to strike 
him in the back with a dagger as he turned away ; 
and our officers had determined to make an ex- 
ample of the first murderer that fell into our 
hands. The girl at length was ordered to be re- 
moved. When two soldiers advanced and un- 
loosed lier grasp upon her brother, her screams, 
her appeals to all for mercy, -were terrible. They 
had dragged her but a short distance from him, 
when, looking back, and seeing a black handker- 
chief already tied over his eyes, with one wUd, 
frantic scream, she flung the soldiers from her, 
and, bounding back to her brother, tore the 
handkerchief from his eyes, and again enfolded 
him in her arms. As the soldiers were* again 
removing her, the coat sleeve of one of them was 
torn during the struggles, and her eye fell upon 
a breast-pin that he had fastened upon his shirt 
sleeve, perhaps for concealment and safety. In 
an instant all her physical powers were relaxed, 
and in a calm, subdued, and confident tone of 
voice, she observed, as she pointed to the pin, 
" Soldiers, let me make one more effort for my 
brother." The soldiers, startled at the strange- 
ness of her manner, unloosed their grasp upon 
her, and in a moment she bounded away to her 
brother, shielding his body again with her per- 
son at the very moment that the guns were de- 
scending to receive the word " fire." Turning 
her back to her brother, and facing the file of 
soldiers, she stood forth a stately woman. There 
was no scream, no tear, no agonizing expression, 
but, calm and erect, she swept the field with her 
eye, and tlien advancing three steps, she gave the 
grand haiHng signal of the Master Mason. None 
but Masons among those soldiers observed it, and 
there were many of them in that command, who 
now stood mute with astonishment at the strange 
and mysterious spectacle before them. There was 
a grouping of the officers for a few minutes, when 
the Captain came forward, and in a loud voice 
said, that " owing to the distress and interfer- 
ence of the young woman, the execution would 
be postponed until nine o'clock next day." The 
guard was then ordered to be doubled, and a 
strict Avatch kept over the prisoner during the 
night. 

Notwithstanding this precaution, it was dis- 
covered in tiie morning, that both the boy and 
his sister had made their escape ; in what way 
they accomplished it has been a nystery with the 
company from that time to this. During the 
early ])art of the evening, there was a meeting of 
the Masonic members of the company at the Cap- 
tain's quarters, where the girl was examined, and 
found to have ])assed all the degrees in Masonry, 
to that of a Ma.ster Mason. Where or how she 
had acquired these degrees she declined to say. 



Incident of Foiit Wagner. — A corre- 
spondent of the Southern Preshyterian, in a nar- 
rative of the " last days of Battery Wagner," 
thus writes : 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



137 



In one case, a squad of six men was ordered 
to repair a parapet, which the enemy had cut 
down, and were still at work upon. They started 
out, and almost instantly a shell burst among 
them, killing one and wounding four; the re- 
maining man picked up his sand-bag, and walked 
up to the breach without a moment's hesitation. 
The next squad was called, and went up to the 
work in just the same manner. A ten-inch co- 
lumbiad, loaded, was dismounted by the enemy's 
shot, fell over, and pointed directly at a maga- 
zine, its carriage took fire, and the officers who 
ran up to it, tried in vain to extinguish the fire, 
by shovelling sand upon it. They called for vol- 
unteers, but the cannonade was too furious. 
Many shrank ; it was not a command, but an in- 
vitation. At last, one gallant fellow rushed up, 
joined the officers in their work, got the fire un- 
der, and came down, thank God, in perfect safety. 



The Belgian Muskets. — An Illinois Colo- 
nel felt it his duty to praise these double-acting 
arms. Said he, " In platoon firing with the Bel- 
gian musket, I can tell what I cannot with any 
other arm, and that is, how many pieces have 
been fired." 

" How can you tell that? " 

" O, / coimt the men on the ground. It never 
deceives me. It is ' fire and fall back,' flat. 

" One of these Belgian muskets will kick like 
a mule, and burst with the greatest facility. Sev- 
eral soldiers in our Illinois regiments have been 
killed in this waj-. The bayonet, too, is a nov- 
elty — a soft-iron affair, apparently designed to coil 
round the enemy, as it is introduced, thus taking 
him prisoner." 

Gratitude on the Battle-Field. — In the 
teiTible engagement at Fort Donelson, an Orderly 
Sergeant, seeing a rebel point a rifle at the Cap- 
tam of his company, threw himself before his 
beloved officer, received the bullet in his breast, 
and fell dead in the arms of the man he had saved. 
The brave fellow had been reared and very gen- 
erously treated by the Captain's father, and had 
declared, when enlisting, that he would be happy 
to die to save the life of his benefactor's son. 
The affection shoMTi each other by Damon and 
Pythias did not exceed that of this nameless sol- 
dier. 

The Rev. Dr. Moore, of Richmond, Va., de- 
livered a lecture in that city on the origin and 
meaning of words, in which many curious facts 
were developed, among which were that the word 
Davis means, " God with us," and that Lincoln, 
when subjected to etymological analysis, means, 
" On the verge of a precipice." 



Incidents of Ball's Bluff. — A soldier, who 
was in this battle, relates the following incidents : 

A young man, named Greenhall, of the Cali- 
fornia regiment, missing, secreted himself, with 
three comrades, in some underbrush. Greenhall 



was an excellent marksman, and picked off 
seven of the enemy who had got between him 
and the river. One of them, he thinks, was an 
officer. The rest then briefly vacated the spot, 
and, with his comrades, Greenhall managed to 
make his way back to our lines. 

The number of those killed while recrossing 
in the boats must have been quite large. In one 
of the boats, a Philadelphian, name unknown, 
and two men of the Tammany regiment, were 
pulling at the oars. They were compelled to 
stand upright, and their shoulders were used as 
rests by their comrades, who kept up a continu- 
ous fire. Singular to say, the boat had reached 
the middle of the stream before one of the oars- 
men was struck. They finally fell simultaneous- 
ly. Their places were instantly supplied; the 
boat, however, turned with the current, drifted, 
as they thought, out of danger. In less than fif- 
teen minutes, however, a terrific fire was poured 
into it from the skulking enemy, and, filling 
slowly, it began to sink. The scene then pre- 
sented was fearful beyond conception. A shriek 
of horror M^ent up from the crew. Men clutched 
each other in despair, and Avent down together. 
Voices that strove to shout for help were drowned 
in the rushing waters, and died away in gurgles. 

Among the rebels was one prominent individ- 
ual, who wore a red handkerchief tied round his 
head, but was utterly hatless, coatless, and reck- 
less, standing out in advance of his line. He 
loaded, and deliberately fired at our men for 
nearly an hour before he was struck down. He 
was shot by a member of the Tammany regi- 
ment, who, almost at the same moment, was 
pierced by a rebel musket ball. 

Another rebel was observed to be ensconced 
on the top of a tree, and seldom fired without 
inflicting a death-wound. Capt. Keff'er, of com- 
pany K, directed one of his men to shoot him. 
An instant after, the rebel fell from his perch, 
and went ci'ashing like a log through branch and 
foliage. Several other adjacent trees were ob- 
served to be vacated before much time had 
elapsed. 

After the battle, one of our men was found 
stark dead in the hollow of a log ! The manner 
of his death is supposed to have been as folloAvs : 
At the commencement of the battle, while a gen- 
eral confusion prevailed, he probably crept into 
the log (which lay near the bank) for the pur- 
pose of " picking ojl the enemy." This sheltei 
Avas very mucli decayed and Avorm-eaten, and was 
speedily pierced by a rifle-ball. When dragged 
out, his musket was found to have been recently 
discharged. The rifle-ball had entered his breast, 
and passed through the left lung. 

In the panic that ensued upon the discoA'ery 
that the rebels had been reenforced, and could 
not be driven from their cover, many scenes, that 
might haA'e seemed ludicrous in many other junc- 
tures, occurred upon the hill-side. It Avas not un- 
common for frantic men to leap the Avhole dis- 
tance of the bluff, and plant their feet on their 
comrades' backs. A lusty loyalist, Avho had 
pounced upon a prisoner, slipped at the top of 



138 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



the bluff, but still keeping a desperate hold upon 
his prej', the two rolled to the bottom in a firm 
embrace ! 

There was in tlie California regiment a gray- 
haired private from our city. He had fought 
hard all day, and had been twice wounded, the 
last shot carrying away his trigger-finger. He 
stood upon the banks of the stream, divesting 
himself of his surplus clothing, when a burly fel- 
low, belonging to a New York regiment, leaped 
upon him, knocking the breath out of the old 
man's body. In the hurry and excitement conse- 
quent upon the fight. Unionists and rebels fi-e- 
quently fell into each other's lines, and began to 
fire at their own columns. In this way several 
of our soldiers were captured. 

A man named Stokes, who Avas among the 
list of prisoners, seeing no chance of escape, lay 
down in an open field among a number of the 
dead, as though he were really hors de combat. 
At length a rebel sharpshooter, stumbling upon 
his body, selected it as an excellent one for a 
foot-rest. Poor Stokes was in tribulation, but 
held his peace. At length, the rebel, having 
made a very successful shot, sprang up and 
danced around for joy, well nigh kneading his 
footstool into a jelly ! " Stop ! for God's sake ! " 
shouted Stokes. The sharpshooter drew back, 
perfectly thunderstruck ; then, divining the true 
state of afi'airs, he shouted out, " You sneaking 
Yankee cuss, git up here ! " The ejaculation 
brought a score of rebels to the s^wt, and Stokes, 
when last seen, was going ofl" under a guaixl, with 
a very crest-fallen face. 

The most deadly contest of the day occurred 
between a member of the Massachusetts Fif- 
teenth and Eighth Virginia regiments. The lat- 
ter, as is well known, were at the time retreat- 
ing, with the Fifteenth hotly pursuing. The 
rebel rear was brought up by a most determined 
fellow, who turned repeatedly, and discharged his 
musket in our ranks. Animated by the same 
personal daring, a Union soldier rushed beyond 
the head of his column, firing continually. After 
the pursuit had continued for some distance, it 
being feared that our men were to be drawn into 
a trap, they were ordered to retire. The order 
was obeyed by all save the volunteer, who had 
led the advance, and before many minutes, he 
was seen struggling with the laggard Virginian, 
whose own column had gone ahead. Three bar- 
rels of a revolver were discharged at the rebel 
without seeming eff'ect, and the Virginian, rush- 
ing upon his assailant with a huge knife, was 
abo . t to stab him. His knee was on the other's 
breust, and the loyalist had shut his eyes. The 
knife, however, fell from the other's grasp, and 
he reeled over, lifeless. All three of the pistol 
shots had actually taken efi"ect upon him, yet 
such was his overmastering brute ferocity, that 
for some instants his Avounds were without effect. 
It is related of Sewall Randall, of company D, 
California regiment, that the night before the en- 
gagement he had a singular dream. Next morn- 
ing, so vivid was the impression left on his mem- 
ory, that he related it to a companion, and add- 



ed a belief that it was an unfavorable omen. 
Neither ridicule nor reason could move him 
from this strange conviction; and when the ad- 
vance had been made, he went into action 
as though he had received his death-warrant. 
He had crossed the river, but had barely reached 
the top of the opposite blufi", when he fell, shot 
through the side. He lingered for some time in 
great agony, but before death his pain was some- 
what abated. 

TiiE Dying Soldier. — It was the evening 
after a great battle. All day long the din of 
strife had echoed far, and thickly strewn lay the 
shattered forms of those so lately erect and ex- 
ultant in the flush and strength of manhood. 
Among the many who bowed to the conqueror 
Death that night was a youth in the freshness of 
mature life. The strong limbs lay listless, and 
the dark hair was matted with gore on the pale, 
broad forehead. His eyes were closed. As one 
who ministered to the suff'erer bent over him, he 
at first thought him dead ; but the white hps 
moved, and slowly, m weak tones, he repeated : 

" Now I lay me down to sleep ; 
I pray the Lord my soul to keep ; 
If I should die before I wake, 
I pray the Lord my soul to take ; 
And this I ask for Jesus' sake." 

As he finished, he opened his eyes, and meet- 
ing the pitying gaze of a brother soldier, he ex- 
claimed, " My mother taught me that when I was 
a little boy, and I have said it every night since 
I can remember. Before the morning dawns, I 
believe God will take my soul for ' Jesus' sake ; ' 
but before I die I want to send a message to my 
mother." 

He was carried to a temporary hospital, and a 
letter was written to his mother, which he dic- 
tated, full of Christian faith and filial love. He 
was calm and peaceful. Just as the sun arose 
his spirit went home, his last articulate words 
being : 

" I pray the Lord my soul to take ; 
And this I ask for Jesus' sake." 



B- 



So died William 
setts volunteers. The 
the prayer of manhood. 



, of the Massachu- 

prayer of childhood was 



He learned it at his 
mother's knee, in his far distant Northern home, 
and he whispered it in dying, Avhen his young 
life ebbed away on a Southern battle-field. It 
was his nightly petition in life, and the angel who 
bore his spirit home to heaven, bore the sweet 
prayer his soul loved so well. 

God bless the saintly words, alike loved and 
repeated by high and low, rich ami poor, wise 
and ignorant, old and young, only second to oui ; 
Lord's prayer in beauty and simplicity. Happy 
the soul that can repeat it with the holy fervor of 
our dying soldier. 

Belmont after the Fight. — John Seaton, 
Captain of company B, in the Twenty-second Il- 
linois regiment, relates the following incidents : 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



139 



" The day after the battle, Col. Hart was in 
command of the party that went down with a 
flag of truce to bury the dead, and take up the 
wounded that still lay on the battle-field. Of 
my company, there went Lieut. Morgan, Corpo- 
ral B. J3. (jould, privates T. C. Young, J. W. 
Young, and Phil. Sackett. They relate some 
verj- affecting scenes they witnessed upon the 
battle-field, one of which was the finding of the 
body of Lieut.-Col. Wentz by his wife. There 
lay the corpse on that blood-stained field, ghastly 
in the embrace of death. She stands gazing at 
it fixedly, and motionless as though rooted to 
the spot ; presently her eyes fill with tears, and 
she breaks out in a low, agonizing cry : ' Poor — 
poor — soul — is it gone ? ' and falls prostrate 
upon his body. Then it was that stout and hard- 
featured men wept. Every rebel ofiicer took out 
his pocket handkerchief to wipe away the tears 
that came trickling down their cheeks. One of 
them remarked, ' I'd give ten thousand dollars to 
recall that man to life.' And the ' boys ' say they 
believe he meant it. They found many poor fellows 
badly wounded that had lain there since the battle. 
The rebels had been around during the night, and 
given them water, and other necessaries, and had 
taken a great many into the hospitals. 

" I believe we did meet the flower of the 
Southern army, for they fought bravely, and their 
arms were all superior to ours. Every piece I 
sa\v was rifled, and had all the latest improve- 
ments ; and there were a great many Sharp's six- 
shooting rifies. Their officers' uniforms were 
splendid and gorgeous, but the men's clothes 
v.ere nearly all of a brownish gray, coarse, home- 
spun jeans. In the early part of the fight, two 
men of company C brought a long, lean jDris- 
oner to me. He was about six feet two inches, 
and belonged to the Second Tennessee regiment. 
He was very much scared. I asked him how 
many men v.e were fighting ; he raised his hands 
above his head, and spoke in that peculiar style 
so much in vogue in the rural districts of Slave 
States, Avhere they see so much of the ' nigger.' 
' To God, stranger, I can't tell ; this ground was 
jist kivered with men this mornin' ; SM-ar me in, 
stranger ; I'll take the oath right now ; I'll fight 
for you ; only please don't kill me." I told him 
he should not be hurt, if he behaved himself, and 
tied him, commanding him to lie down and re- 
main there till I came back, and then left him. 
I saw him no more that daj', but some one else 
brought liim along before night. 



The Negeo Sergeant of Paducah. — A 
negro Sergeant in charge of the fort at Paducah, 
where the Confederates, under Col. Thompson, 
tried to'storm it, was conspicuous for his gallantry. 
He did not always use militaiy terms, but his 
words answered as well. " Hurry, boys ! load 
afore the smoke clears," — and before the advanc- 
ing column of the enemy had gained many steps, 
a terrific discharge of spherical case or other shot 
staggered them back, and thus the horrid butchery 
visited on Fort Pillow Avas averted from Paducah. 



SPRING AT THE CAPITAL. 

EY MRS. PAUL AKERS. 

The poplar drops beside the way 
Its tasselled plumes of silver gray ; 
The chestnut pouts its great brown buds, impa- 
tient for the laggard May. 

The honeysuckles lace the wall ; 
The hyacinths grow fair and tall ; 
And mellow sun, and pleasant wind, and odorous 
bees are over all. 

Down-looking in this snow-w^hite bud, 
HoAV distant seems the war's red flood I 
How far remote the streaming wounds, the sicken- 
ing scent of human blood ! 

Nor Nature does not recognize 
This strife that rends the earth and skies ; 
No war-dreams vex the winter sleep of clover-heads 
and daisy eyes. 

She holds her even way the same, 
Though navies sink or cities flame ; 
A snow-drop is a snow-drop still, despite the na- 
tion's joy or shame. 

When blood her grassy altar -wets, 
She sends the pitying violets 
To heal the outrage with their bloom, and cover it 
with soft regrets. 

O crocuses, with rain- wet eyes, 
O tender-lipped anemones, 
What do you know of agony, and death, and blood- 
won victories ! 

No shudder breaks your sunshine trance, 
Though near you rolls, with slow advance, 
Clouding your shining leaves with dust, the an- 
guish-laden ambulance. 

Yonder a white encampment hums ; 
The clash of martial music comes ; 
And now your startled stems are all a-tremble with 
the jar of drums. 

Whether it lessen or increase, 
Or whether trumpets shout or cease, 
Still deep within your tranquil hearts the happy 
bees are humming, "Peace ! " 

O flowers, the soul that faints or grieves, 
New comfort from your lips receives ; 
Sweet confidence and patient faith are hidden in 
your healing leaves. 

Help us to trust, still on and on, 
That this dark night will soon be gone, 
And that these battle-stains are but the blood-red 
trouble of the dawn — 

Dawn of a broader, whiter day 
Than ever blessed us with its ray — 
A dawn beneath whose purer light all guilt and 
wrong shall fade awa}\ 

"* Then shall our nation break its bands, 
And silencing the envious lands. 
Stand in the searching light rmshamed, with spot- 
less robe, and clean, white hands. 



140 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



Capt. Reid, of the Fifteenth Iowa regiment, 
relates the following incident df the march from 
Vicksburg to Meridian : " An amusing cii'cum- 
stance occurred at Jackson, which I heard related, 
but did not witness, but wished, when I heard of 
it, I had had a dead-head ticket to the show. A 
house was on fire, and an elderly lady wished to 
save from the wreck a large old-fashioned mirror, 
which was up stairs. Being unable to manage it 
herself, she called upon a soldier, who kindly con- 
sented to assist her ; and going up, shouldered 
the mirror, and with it on his back, had nearly 
reached the bottom of the long flight of stairs, 
when, seeing a chicken, of which a party were in 
pursuit, he became so excited, and so far forgot 
himself and the precious burden with which he 
was loaded, that he gave one long bound for the 
chicken, dashing the mirror on the floor, and 
breaking it into a thousand pieces. The lady 
stood still, and raising up both hands, gazed at 
the young scapegrace as he ran in mute wonder 
and astonishment. Poor woman ! Like the milk- 
maid in Webster's old spelling book, her castles 
built in the air vanished like a noonday dream." 



A Shell burst near an L'ishman in the trench- 
es, when, surveying the fragments, he exclaimed : 
" Be jabers ! them's the fellows to teckle yer 

ear ! " 

An Incident at Gettysburg. — A surgeon 
of the Virginia army relates the following inci- 
dent : " As I was pushing my way through a crowd 
of idle spectators, at the Second Corps hospital, 
Gettysburg, one of our wounded, from a North 
Carolina regiment, called to me in a feeble voice. 
I went to him, and he said : ' You are a Confed- 
erate surgeon — are you not ? ' I answered him, 
' Yes ; what can I do for you ? ' He caught me 
nervously by the arm ; and in a manner very strik- 
ing and very eloquent, he uttered : ' What do 
you think, doctor ? I am wounded and dying in 
defence of my country, and these people are tr)-- 
ing to persuade me to take the oath of allegiance 
to theirs ! ' 

"The crowd around him scattered as if a bomb 
had fallen into their midst, whilst I, overcome by 
the fervent eloquence of his words, could only 
bow in silence over the gallant fellow, upon whose 
brow the damp shadow of death was akeady gath- 



Cruelties of the War. — Before the rebel- 
lion, there resided in Carter County, Tennessee, 
two families named Hetherley and Tipton, who 
were on the most intimate and friendly terms. 
When the troubles came upon the country, the 
male members of the ITetherley family organ- 
ized a Federal company for home protection, 
while the Tipton boys espoused the rebel cause, 
and joined the Confederate army in Virginia. 
After an absence of a year, the elder Tipton re- 
turned to his native county with a Lieutenant's 
commission, and a squad of soldiers, and imme- 
diately set to work to clear the neighborhood of 



all the Unionists. Tipton was brutal and unscru- 
pulous in the course he pursued towards his former 
friends. Learning that one of the Hetherleys was 
lurking in the vicinity, and faiHng, after a thorough 
search, to discover his whereabouts, he took Heth- 
erley's widowed mother from her house in the 
night, carried her to an adjoining wood, and put- 
ting a rope around her neck, threatened that if 
she did not instantly reveal her son's hiding-i:)lace, 
he would hang her. This she refused to do, and 
Tipton, as good as his word, had her suspended 
to a tree until life Avas nearly extinct. When she 
came to, he assured her that unless she told 
where her son was concealed, he would surely 
kill her. But the old lady v.'as not to be intimi- 
dated, and again and again was she strung up, 
when Tipton, convinced that he could not wring 
her secret from her, left her lying on the ground 
more dead than alive. Hetherley heard of the 
outrage perpetrated upon his mother, and sent 
word to Tipton to look out, for the avenger was 
on his track. That very night, as Tipton was 
making preparations to leave the country, he was 
surprised at his father's house by Hetherley's 
company, and taken to the mountains. Here he 
was compelled to pay the penalty of death for his 
cruelties. Hetherley, maddened at the cruelties 
inflicted upon his helpless old mother, had him 
stripped and bound, made him kneel upon a cof- 
fin and take the oath of allegiance to the Federal 
Government, and then compelled the negro ser- 
vant to blow his brains out with a revolver. 



A Girl Worth Haying. — " One of our fair 
countrywomen," says a correspondent, " the daugh- 
ter of a rich and independent farmer of Rocking- 
ham, was married, the other day, to a gentleman 
who may congratulate himself upon having secured 
a prize worth having. She was what we should 
call ' an independent girl,' sure enough. Her bridal 
outfit was all made with her own hands, from her 
beautiful straw hat down to the handsome gaiters 
upon her feet ! Her own delicate hands spmi and 
wove the material of which her wedding dress 
and travelling cloak were made ; so that she had 
nothing upon her person, when she was married, 
which was not made by herself! Nor was she 
compelled by necessity or poverty to make this 
exhibition of her independence. She did it for 
the purpose of showing to the world how inde- 
pendent Southern girls are. If this noble girl 
were not wedded, we should be tempted to pub- 
lish her name in this connection, so that our 
bachelor readers might see who of our girls are 
most to be desired. If she were yet single, and 
we were to publish her name, her pa's house 
would be at once thronged with gallant gentlemen 
seeking the hand of a woman of such priceless 
value." — Puclimond Sentinel. 



The Captain and the Chapxain. — A cor- 
respondent with the army of the Cumberland 
tells the following : — 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



141 



On the morning of our arrival at Strawberry 
Plains, a Captain on Gen. Sheridan's staff de- 
scried a man dressed in a semi-military garb, com- 
mon to sutlers and other army followers, riding 
leisurely along in a dilapidated carriage, drawn 
by a span of mules. The most remarkable fea- 
ture about the individual in the carriage, was a 
Bardolphian proboscis of magnificent proportions 
and gorgeous colors, at once suggestive of luscious 
tods and invigorating cordials. The Captain, 
fatigued and thirsty, taking his cue from the oth- 
er's illuminated frontispiece, rode close beside 
him, and asked, in a confidential tone, if he 
couldn't give him a " suck." " No, sir," was the 
reply ; " I am not a wet nurse." " O, but I mean 
a drink of whiskey ; the fact is, I'm devilish dry." 
" No, sii", I cannot ; I never use intoxicating bev- 
erages of any description ; therefore, have none." 
" But," persisted the Captain, " have you no 
friends or acquaintances that you could recom- 
mend me to. I'm hankering mightily after a 
nip." " No, sir ; I do not frequent the society of 
intemperate men." " Well," said the Captain, 
looking hard at him of the fieiy visage and rum- 
blossomed nose, " perhaps we have both mistaken 
your calling ; are you not a sutler ? " " Sutler ? 
no, sir," returned the now exasperated occupant 
of the carriage. " I am a follower of the Lord 
Jesus Christ ; the chaplain of the • Ohio cav- 
alry, and a ." The Captain stopped not to 

hear more, but putting spurs to his horse, left in 
a twinkling. 

Scouts, and Spies. — There is a description 
of invaluable service, says Benj. F. Taylor in his 
entertaining letters, requiring the coolest courage, 
and the clearest head and the quickest wit of any 
soldierly duty, but which, from its nature, seldom 
appears in prmt. I refer, of course, to the achieve- 
ments of the scout. He passes the enemy's lines, 
sits at his camp fu'e, penetrates even into the 
presence of the commanding General; he seems 
a Tennesseean, a Georgian, an Irishman, a German 

— anything indeed but what he really is ; if he 
falls, no friendly heart can ever know where ; 
his grave is nameless. I might name a soldier 
from Illinois who has thus gained information of 
the greatest moment, and whose dangers and 
daring would make a chapter of romance. 

Women not invai'iably any " better than they 
sliould be " have always been employed to per- 
suade information out of unsuspecting, but not 
unsuspected persons, and they bring a degree of 
tact and shrewdness into play that hirsute hu- 
man'ty can never hope to equal. Many a wasp has 
been caught with their honey of hypocrisy. Take 
an illustration : A subordinate Federal officer in a 
certain city within this department had been long 
suspected of disloyalty, but no proof to waiTant 
his arrest could be obtained, and so, as a dernier 
resort, a woman was set at him. She smiled her 
way into his confidence, and became" his " next 
best friend ; " but finding that ears were of no use, 

— for he could not be induced to say one word of 
matters pertaining to his office, — she changed her 
plan of attack, and turned a couple of curious, j 



and, as I am told, beautiful eyes upon him, Nort 
unfrequently he would ride out of town into the 
country, be absent three or four hours, and return. 
For all the hours of the twenty-four, but just 
these, she could account. Within them, then, lay 
the mischief, if mischief there was ; and she be- 
gan to watch if he made any preparations for 
these excursions. None. He loaded his old- 
fashioned pistol, drew on his gloves, lighted a 
cigar, bade her a loving good by — " only that, 
and nothing more." Was he deep and she dull ? 
Time would show. At last, she observed that he 
put an unusual charge into the pistol, one day, 
and all at once she grew curious in pistols. Would 
he show her some day how to charge a pistol, 
how to fire a pistol, how to be a dead shot ? And 
just at that minute she was athirst, and would he 
bring her a lemonade ?' She was left toying with the 
weapon, and he went for the drink as requested. 
The instant the door closed behind him, she drew 
the charge, for she knew as much of pistols as he, 
and substituted another. She was not a minute 
too soon, for back he came, took the pistol, and 
rode away. No sooner had he gone than she set 
about an examination of the charge, and it proved 
to be plans and details of Federal forces and 
movements, snugly roUed together. The mis- 
chief was in the pistol, then, though none but a 
woman would have thought of it ; and so it was 
that he carried information to his rebel friends 
with rural proclivities. The woman's purpose 
was gained, and when the officer returned, his 
" next best friend " had vanished like an Arab or a 
vision, and he had hardly time to turn about before 
he was under arrest. Admuing the adroitness of 
the achievement, we cannot help regretting that 
a woman performed it. The memory of a man's 
mother is sacred, and he feels that whoever wears 
her form unworthily, and debases woman's grace- 
ful gifts, profanes it. 

A Frightened Contraband. — An army cor- 
respondent on the Rappahannock related the fol- 
lowing : 

An amusing incident occurred in camp a night 
or two since. A portly young contraband, from 
Charleston, S. C, who escaped from his rebel 
master at Antietam, and was for a while quartered 
subsequently in Washington, was engaged by one 
of our junior staff officers as his body servant, 
and brought down here to his quarters to attend 
him. It chanced that the officer had served his 
country gallantly at Sharpsburg, where he lost a 
leg, below the knee, the absence of which had 
been made up by an artificial limb, which the 
Captain wore with so easy a grace that few per- 
sons who met him suspected his misfortune — 
his sable attendant being among the blissfully 
ignorant as to the existence of the fact. 

The Captain had been " out to dine," and re- 
turned in excellent spirits to his tent. Upon 
retiring, he called his darky servant to assist him 
in pulling off his riding boots. 

♦' Now, Jimmy, look sharp," said the Captain. 
" I'm a little — ic — flimsy, Jimmy, t'night. Look 
sharp, an' — ic — pull steady." 



142 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



" Ise allers keerful, Cap'n," says Jimmy, draw- 
ing off one long, Avet boot, with considerable 
difficulty, and standing it aside. 

" Now, mind your eye, Jim ! The other — 
ic — a little tight ; " and black Jimmy chuckled 
and showed his shining ivories, as he reflected, 
perhaps, that his master was quite as " tight " as 
he deemed his boot to be. 

"Easy, now — that's it. Pull away!" con- 
tinued the Captain, good-naturedly, and enjoying 
tho prospective joke, while he loosened the straps 
aljout his waist which held his cork leg up — 
"noiii you've got it! Yip — there you are! O 
Lord! O Lord! OLordl" screamed the Cap- 
tain, as contraband, cork leg, riding boot, and 
ligatures tumbled across the tent in a heap, and 
the one-legged officer fell back on his pallet, con- 
vulsed M'ith spasmodic laughter. At this moment 
the door opened and a Lieutenant entered. 

" G'way funi me, g'way fum me — lemmy be ! 
lemmy be ! I ain't done nuffin," yelled the con- 
traband, lustily, and rushing to the door, really 
supposing he had jjulled his master's leg clean 
off. " Lemmy go ! I didn't do nuffin — g'way ! 
g'way ! " And Jimmy put for the woods in 
his desjieration, since which he hasn't been seen 
or heard from, though his Captain has diligently 
sought for him far and near. 



An Incident. — The following occurred while 
arrangements for an exchange of prisoners were 
being completed near the Union lines at Decatur, 
Ala. : Sergeant Miller of the Ninth Illinois in- 
fantry, who had been taken prisoner during the 
fight at Moulton, and who had been exchanged 
one week before, was along with the squad of 
national troops who had gone out to effect the 
exchange. When txken prisoner, a rebel soldier 
demanded of him his pocket-book and " green- 
backs." He had, of course, to surrender it. 
Before he was exchanged, he had made the remark 
in the presence of several rebels, that he would 
shoot the man who took his pocket-book the fu'st 
time he could get his eyes upon him. When we met 
that soldier was there. He immediately recog- 
nized Sergeant Miller, took him aside, and gave 
him his pocket-book and money, with the excep- 
tion of five dollars, Avhich he had loaned to some 
one. Tliis he promised to get and send in to him 
the Irst chance. 

An Escape from Richmomd. -r- John Bray, 
of the First New Jersey cavalry, thus describes 
his escape from Richmond captivity: 

" On Sunday morning I made my final attempt 
to escape. Arranging necessary preliminaries with 
a comrade, I passed down stairs with the detail 
sent for provisions, wearing my blanket, and 
keeping as much as possible under cover of those 
whom I was about to leave. Reaching the yard, 
which was filled with rebel soldiers, I suddenly, 
upon a favorable opportunity, slipped the blanket 
from my shoulders to those of my chum, ajid 
stepping quickly into the throng, stood, to all 
appearance, a rebel, having precisely their uni- 



form, and looking as dirty and ragged as the 
worst among them. But I was not yet free. 
The point now was to get out of the yard. To 
do this it was necessary to pass the sentinels at 
the gates, all of which were thus guarded. My 
wits, however, difficult as I knew my enterprise to 
be, did not desert me. With an air of uncon- 
cern, whistling the " Bonnie Blue Flag," I saun- 
tered towards the nearest gate, paused a moment 
as I neared it to laugh with the rest at some joke 
of one of the guard ; then, abstractedly, and 
with deliberate pace, as if passing in and out had 
been such a customary affair with me as to make 
any formal recognition of the sentinels unneces- 
sary, I passed out. That my heart throbbed 
painfully under my waistcoat, and that I expected 
every moment to hear the dread summons, 
" Halt ! " you need not be told. An age of feel- 
ing was crowded into that moment. But I passed 
out unchallenged. Whether it was that my non- 
chalant air put the sentinels off their guard, or 
that they were for the moment absorbed in the 
joke at which all the soldiers were laugloing, I 
cannot tell ; nor does it matter. I was free ; the 
whole world was before me ; and my whole being 
was aglow with that thought. I had still dangers, 
it was true, to encounter, but the worst was past, 
and I felt equal to any that might lie before." 



Loyal Tennessee Women. — It is a singular 
and remarkable circumstance that loyal sentiment 
in the South is found inseparably connected with 
a broken and mountainous surface. 

The low and fertile bottoms were everywhere 
committed to slavery, and hence to disunion. 
Nowhere was this more aptly illustrated than in 
Tennessee. 

East Tennessee was loyal by an overwhelming 
majority. There was a strong Union sentiment 
in Northern Georgia and Northern Alabama. So 
also in Western Tennessee, as there is a line of 
high and sharp hills just west of the Tennessee 
River, there may be found a decided attachment 
to the old flag. 

Wherever in such communities there is genu- 
, ine loyalty, its displays have been magnanimous 
and decided ; and the traditions of those com- 
munities abound in incidents of fidelity and de- 
votion, under circumstances where such displays 
were by no means sentimental or free from danger. 

The following incident will show the devotion 
and loyalty of two plain women living in an ob- 
scure county of Tennessee : — 

The Twenty-seventh Iowa regiment had taken 
cars at Corinth, and were travelling in the dii-ecs- 
tion of Jackson, It was the summer of 1862, 
when Jackson contained the headquarters of Gen. 
Grant. The train started, and was proceeding at 
a high rate of speed, every square foot where a 
man could sit or stand being covered with a 
soldier. 

Just before reaching a railroad bridge the en- 
gineer saw a couple of lanterns being waved in 
the distance directly on the track. He stopped 
the locomotive, and sent men ahead to ascertain 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



143 



the cause of the alarm. They found the lanterns 
held by two women, who explained how a crew 
of guerrillas in that vicinity had been informed' 
that a train thus loaded with Union soldiers was 
expected, and had fired the bridge at eight o'clock 
that evening, and allowed the main timbers to 
burn so that the bridge would break under the 
weight of the train, and then put out the fire. 
These noble women had heard of the act, and 
walked ten miles through the mud at midnight, 
carrying their lanterns, and taking their station 
on the track, where they had patiently waited for 
hours, with the determination of thwarting the 
dastardly plan of the villains. The officers of the 
regiment, thus saved from a terrible accident 
through the heroism of these women, begged of 
them to accept some present as a proof of their 
gratitude ; but they would have nothing, saying 
they did it for their country, and Avanted no pay. 
A party of soldiers was detailed to escort them 
to their homes. How far is such conduct above 
all human praise or the rewards that man can 
bestow ! 

Incidents of Webb's Cross-Roads. — While 
the body of Zollicoffer lay upon the ground in 
front of a Minnesota tent, surrounded by soldiers, 
an excited officer rode up, exclaiming to the men : 
" What in h — 1 are you doing here ? Why are 
you not at the stretchers, bringing in the 
wounded ? " " This is Zollicoffer," said a sol- 
dier. " I know that," replied the officer ; " he is 
dead, and could not have been sent to h — 1 by a 
better man, for Col. Fr_v shot him j leave him, 
and go to your work." 

When the two Parrott guns were planted on 
the hill at Brown's house, overlooking the ene- 
my's camp, the peculiar whir-r-r of the shells was 
new to our astonished darky, who, with hat off 
and eyes protruding, exclaimed to his sable com- 
panion : " Gosh, mighty, Sam, don't dat go howl- 
in' trou de wilderness? " 

In nearly a direct line with the course we had 
marched from the battle-field to the rebel works, 
is a bold elevation about three fourths of a mile 
this side of said works, on which one of our bat- 
teries was immediately planted, and commenced 
throwing shot and shell into their camp. Several 
regiments had lain down upon the ground to rest 
from the fatigue of their march ; and as the rebels 
answered but feebly with two guns, their shot 
passed over the heads of our men. As the inter- 
vals grew longer and longer, watching the shot 
became a matter of amusement with them. — 
" Secesh ball ! Secesh ball ! " they would cry out, 
while half a dozen would start and run after it, 
others calling out: "Run harder, or you won't 
overtake it." While this amusement was going 
on, a rabbit sprang out of a bush between the 
lines, when the cry, " Secesh ball ! Secesh ball ! " 
arose, and the boys took after it with better suc- 
cess, for they caught it. 

Upon the high ground last referred to, the reb- 
els made a brief stand half an hour before we 
reached it, but were driven off by a few shots 
from Stannard's battery. One of these six-pound 
shots struck a poplar tree, about two feet in diam- 



eter, directly in the centre, and some twenty feet 
from the General, passing entirely through the 
tree, tearing off splinters eight or ten feet long, 
and passing on " trou de wilderness." Another 
shot struck a tree seven or eight inches in diame- 
ter, directly beside the other, but lower down, cut- 
ting it off nearly as square as though it had been 
done with a saw. 

Being among the first who entered the rebel 
fortifications, I discovered a barrel, which proved 
to contain apple-brandy. Pulling out the corn- 
cob from the bung-hole, I turned it up and filled 
a canteen. While doing this, one of Bob Mc- 
Cook's skirmishers came in, and says : " Vat you 
gets there ? " I replied that it appeared to be 
pretty fair apple-brandy ; upon which the Dutch- 
man ran to the door, callftig out, furiously : 
" Hans ! Heinrich ! schnapps ! See ! come arous ! " 
Upon which a dozen Dutchmen came in, and the 
brandy which was not spilled upon the ground 
was soon transferred to their canteens. I said : 
" Boys, you had better look out ; this is a doctor's 
shop, and there may be strychnine in that bran- 
dy." They paused a moment to look at each 
other, when one of them exclaimed, " Py Got, 
Hans, I tells you vat I do ; I trinks some, and if 
it don't kill me, den you trinks ; " upon which he 
took a long and hearty pull at his canteen, and 
smacking his lips a moment, said, "All right, 
Hans ! go ahead '. " 

DIRGE FOR A SOLDIER. 

IN MEMORY OF GEN. PHILIP KEAKNY. 
BY GEORGE H. BOKER. 

Close his eyes ; his work is done ! 
What to him is friend or foeman. 
Rise of moon, or set of sun, 

Hand of man, or kiss of woman ? 
Lay him low, lay him low, . 
In the clover or the snow ! 
"What cares he ? he cannot know : 
Lay him low ! 

As man may, he fought his fight. 

Proved his truth by his endeavor ; 
Let him sleep in solemn night, 
Sleep forever and forever. 

Lay him low, lay him low. 
In the clover or the snow ! 
What cares he ? he cannot know : 
Lay him low ! 

Fold him in his country's stars, 

Roll the drum and fire the volley ! 
What to him are all our wars, 
What but death bemocking folly ? 
Lay him low, lay him low, 
In the clover or the snow ! 
What cares he ? he cannot know : 
Lay him low ! 

Leave him to God's watching eye, 

Trust him to the hand that made him. 
Mortal love weeps idly by : 

God alone has power to aid him. 
Lay him low, lay him low, 
In the clover or the snow ! 
What cares he ? he cannot know : 
Lay him low ! ' 



144 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



The Bedford Boy "Alex." — At the bat- 
tle of Winchester a young soldier was detailed 
for duty in guarding army property. He stood 
to his post until about the time his regiment 
made its famous charge, when he " made a 
break" for that regiment, joined it, and helped 
in the two desperate charges that decided the 
day. The young soldier was brought before a 
court-martial, and he came up with tears stream- 
ing down his face, and between sobs said : " You 
may shoot me if you must, but 'dad' told me, 
on leaving home, that when there was any fight- 
ing going on I must be in the thickest, and I 
was. Now, if you want your * stuff' guarded 
when there is a fight, somebody besides me must 
do it." The boy " Alex," of Bedford, was let off 
on that plea, and sifter ever proved one of the 
best soldiers in his regiment. 



The Life and Death of a Patriot Sol- 
dier. — A surgeon in one of the military hos- 
pitals at Alexandria, writes in a private note : 

"Our wounded men bear their sufferings no- 
bly ; I have hardly heard a word of complaint 
from one of them. A soldier from the ' stern 
and rock-bound coast ' of Maine — a victim of 
the slaughter at Fredericksburg — lay in this hos- 
pital, his life ebbing away from a fatal wound. 
He had a father, brothers, sisters, a wife, a little 
boy of two or three years of age, on whom his 
heart seemed set. Half an hour before he ceased 
to breathe, I stood by his side, holding his hand. 
He- was in the full exercise of his intellectual 
faculties, and was aware that he had but a very 
brief time to live. He was asked if he had any 
message to leave for his dear ones at home, whom 
he loved so well. ' Tell them,' said he, ' liow I 
died — they Jaiow lioio 1 lived I ' " 



Calling on President Lincoln. — An officer 
under the Government called at the Executive 
]\Iansion, accompanied by a clerical friend. " Mr. 
President," said he, " allow me to present to you 

my friend, the Rev. M. F., of . Mr. F. has 

expressed a desire to see you, and have some 
conversation with you, and I am happy to be the 
means of introducing him." The President shook 
hands with Mr. F., and desiring him to be seated, 
took a seat himself. Then, — his countenance 
having assumed aja expression of patient waiting, 
— he said, " I am now ready to hear Avhat you 
have to say." " O, bless you, sir," said Mr. F., 
" I have nothing special to say. I merely called 
to pay my respects to you, and, as one of the 
million, to assure you of my hearty sympathy and 
support." " My dear sir," said the President, 
rising promptly, his face showing instant relief, 
and Avith both hands grasping that of his visitor, 
" I am very glad to see you ; I am very glad to 
see you, indeed. I thought you had come to 
preach to me ! " 

A Tennessee Hero. — There are many names 
in Tennessee, and particularly in the eastern por- 



tion of that State, which the loyal people will not 
let die. They will be read and thought of in the 
far future as the present generation look back at 
the demigods of the Revolution. A letter fi-om 
Cincinnati, of recent date, gives some account of 
one of those noble-hearted Tennesseeans ; and as 
the story came from the lips of a dying man, it is 
probably truthful. The writer states that among 
the rebel prisoners at Camp Dennison, Ohio, was 
one named Neil, who, when asked how he came 
to be a rebel, stated that the secessionists scared 
him into it. 

He had been a postmaster in Van Buren Coun- 
ty, Tennessee, and a Union man. The rebels held 
three elections in that county, but got hardly a 
solitary vote in Neil's precinct. Enraged at this, 
they imported a force of soldiers, and began to 
lynch unarmed Unionists. This style of proce- 
dure made some converts, but it was withstood. 
Among the victims Neil spoke of — and as he 
knew that he was dying, he reminded his hearers 
of his obligation to speak the simple truth — 
was the martyr patriot whose history he thus re- 
cited : 

There was in Van Buren County an old Meth- 
odist 2)reacher of a great deal of ability, named 
Cavender. He was from the first a most deter- 
mined Union man; and as his influence in the 
county was great, they determined to make an 
example of him, and get him out of the way. So 
they took him out of his house, put a rope around 
his neck, set him upon a horse, and led him into 
a forest. They then told him that unless he 
would publicly renounce his Unionism, they would 
hang him. Cavender replied, " God gave me my 
breath to bear witness to his truth ; and when I 
must turn it to the work of lies and crime, it is 
well enough to yield it up to Him who gave it." 

They then asked him if he had any parting re- 
quest. He said " he had no hope that they would 
attend to anything he might ask." They said 
they would. He then desired that they would 
take his body to his daughter, with the request 
that she would lay it beside the remains of his 
wife. They then said, " It's time to go to your 
prayers." He replied, " I am not one of the sort 
who has to wait until a rope is round his neck to 
pray." Then they said, " Come, old man, no 
nonsense ; if you don't swear to stand by the 
Confederacy, you'll have to hang," at the same 
time tying the rope to a branch. 

The old man said, " Hang away." One then 
gave a blow witli a will to the horse upon which 
Cavender sat ; the horse sjjrang forward, and the 
faithful servant of God and his country passed 
into eternity. You will remember that tliey said 
they would fulfil his last request. Well, they tore 
the flesh off his bones and threw it to the hogs ; 
his heart was cut out, and lay in a public place 
till it rotted. Can it be wondered if few are 
strong enough to resist their only legitimate argu- 
ments for rebellion ? 



A Lieutenant was promenading in full uni- 
form one day, and approaching a volunteer on 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



145 



sentry, who challenged him with, " Halt ! Who 
comes there ? " The Lieutenant, with contempt 
in every lineament of his face, expressed his ire 
with an indignant, " Ass ! " The sentry's reply, 
apt and quick, came, " Advance, ass, and give the 
countersign." 

" A Griswold for an Alabama." — There is 
a beautiful thought in the address of the ladies 
of England in reply to Mrs. Stowe : " You have 
sent us the Griswold for the Alabama." Not " a 
Roland for an Oliver," not tit for tat, but good 
for evil. Let it pass into a saying in our moth- 
er tongue, " A Griswold for an Alabama," when 
good is returned for evil.* 



Emma Sansom of Cherokee. — The follow- 
ing is the story of her exploit, as related by Gen. 
FoiTest to a party of his friends at Chattanooga : 

Our readers have doubtless seen one or two 
short versions of the romantic part played by the 
above-named indomitable girl, in the great raid 
of Gen. Forrest from Murfi-eesboro', Tenn., to 
Rome, Ga., in pursuit of Streight's cavaliy ; but 
never the story as related by the General himself 
The romantic and heroic conduct of Miss San- 
som will long live in the memory of the survivors 
of this war ; and we are pleased in this connec- 
tion to add, by late action of the Legislature of 
our State, she has been granted a valuable dona- 
tion of land, as a token of appreciation for the 
undaunted bravery and fearless patriotism she 
evinced on the occasion referred to. The editor 
of the Southern Confederacy remembers the sto- 
ry, as related by Gen. Forrest, shortly after the 
capture of Streight and his command, and says : 

He had been pursuing the enemy all day, and 
was close upon their heels, when the pursuit was 
effectually checked by the destruction, by the en- 
emy, of a bridge over a deep creek, which, for the 
time, separated pursuer and pursued. The coun- 
try was exceedingly wild and rugged, and the 
banks of the creek too steep for passage on horse- 
back. Gen. Forrest rode up to a modest little 
farm-house ou the road-side, and seeing a young 
maiden standing upon the little stoop in front of 
the dwelling, he accosted her, and inquired if 
there was any ford or passage for his men across 
the creek, above or below the destroyed bridge. 
The young girl proceeded to direct him with ani- 
mated gesture, and cheeks flushed with excitement, 
and almost breathless in her eagerness to aid the 
noble cause of the gallant Confederate General. 

It was a scene for a painter — the Southern 
girl, her cheeks glowing, and her bright eyes 
flashing ; while her mother, attracted by the col- 
loquy, stood holding the door, and gazing upon 
the cavalcade over her venerable spectacles, the 
cavalry chieftain resting his legs carelessly over 
the saddle pommel, his staff drawn up around 
him, and his weather-worn veterans scattered in 
groups about the road, and some of them actually 

* During the war the ship George Grisv.old was 
sent to England with a cargo for her starving poor. 
10 



nodding in their saddles from excessive fatigue. 
After some further inquiry. Gen. Forrest asked 
the young lady if she would not mount behind 
him, and show him the way to the ford. She 
hesitated, and turned her mother an inquiring 
look. The mother, with a delicacy becoming a 
prudent parent, rather seemed to object to her 
going with the soldiers. "Mother," she said, 
" I am not afraid to trust myself with as brave a 
man as Gen. Forrest." 

" But, my dear, folks- will talk about you." 
" Let them talk," responded the heroic girl ; " I 
must go." And with that she lightly sprang upon 
the roots of a fallen tree. Forrest drew his met- 
tled charger near her ; she grasped the hero fear- 
lessly about the waist, and sprang up behind him ; 
and away they went — over brake and bramble, 
through the glade, and on towards the ford. The 
route was a difficult one, even for as experienced 
a rider as Forrest ; but his fair young companion 
and guide held her seat, like an experienced horse- 
woman, and without the slightest evidence of fear. 
At length they drew near to the ford. Upon the 
high ridge above, the quick eye of Forrest de- 
scried the Yankee sharpshooters, dodging fi'om 
tree to tree ; and pretty soon an angry minie 
whistled by his ear. 

" What was that. Gen. Forrest ? " asked the 
maiden. 

" Bullets," he replied ; " are you afraid ? " She 
replied in the negative, and they proceeded"on. 
At length it became necessary, from the density 
of the undergrowth and snags, to dismount ; and 
Forrest hitched his horse, and the girl preceded 
him, leading the way herself — remarking that 
the Yankees would not fire upon her ; and they 
might fire, if he went first. To this Forrest ob- 
jected, not wishing to screen himself behind the 
brave" girl ; and taking the lead himself, the two 
proceeded on to the ford, under the fire of the 
Yankee rear-guard. Having discovered the route, 
he returned, brought up his axe-men, and cleared 
out a road, and safely crossed his whole column. 

Upon taking leave of his fair young guide, the 
General asked if there was anything he might do 
for her, in return for her invaluable services. 
She told him that the Yankees on ahead had her 
brother prisoner, and if Gen. Forrest would only 
release him, she should be more than repaid. 
The General took out his watch, and examined 
it. It was just five minutes to eleven. " To- 
morrow," he said, " at five minutes to eleven 
o'clock, your brother shall be returned to you." 
And so the sequel proved. Streight, with his 
whole command, was captured at ten the next 
morning. Young Sansom was released, and de- 
spatched on the fleetest horse in the command, to 
return to his heroic sister, whose courage and 
presence of mind had contributed so much to the 
success of one of the most remarkable cavalry 
pursuits and captures known in the world's his- 
tory. 

Sergeant Carney. — The story of this heroic 
preserver of the American flag, in the assault on 
Fort Wagner, in July, 1863, is as follows : 



146 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



When the Sergeant arrived to within about one 
hundred yards of the fort, — he was with the first 
battalion, which was in the advance of the storm- 
ing cohnnn, — he received the regimental colors, 
and pressed forward to the front rank, near the 
Colonel, who was leading the men over the ditch. 
He says, as they ascended the wall of the fort, the 
ranks were full ; but as soon as they reached the 
top, " they melted away " before the enemy's fire, 
" almost instantly." He received a severe wound 
in the thigh, but fell only upon his knee. He 
planted the flag upon the parapet, lay down on 
the outer slope, that he might get as much shel- 
ter as possible, and there remained for over half 
an hour, till the Second brigade came up. He 
kept the colors flying until the second conflict 
was ended. When our forces retired, he fol- 
lowed, creeping on one knee, still holding up the 
flag. It was thus that Sergeant Carney came from 
the field — having held the emblem of liberty 
over the walls of Fort Wagner during the san- 
guinary conflict of the two brigades — and hav- 
ing received two very severe wounds, one in the 
thigh, and one in the head. Still he refused to 
give up his sacred trust until he found an oflUcer 
of his regiment. 

When he entered the field hospital, where his 
wounded comrades were being brought in, they 
cheered him and the colors. Though nearly ex- 
hausted with the loss of blood, he said, " Boys, 
the old flag never touched the ground." 



A Daring Exploit. — During a scout of the 
Tenth Michigan cavalry, in Piatt Valley, Tenn., 
a detachment of the First Tennessee Confeder- 
ate cavalry was discovered. Having ascertained 
their number, company D dismounted, and ad- 
vanced as skirmishers, firing several volleys. 
The enemy were followed about four miles, when 
the pursuit was given up. Before the main body 
of the enemy had been discovered, John M. Gib- 
son, company A, was acting as one of the ad- 
vance videttes on foot. A horseman rode into 
the road, a few rods in advance of him, in our 
uniform, and, riding up, drew a revolver, and 
informed John he was a prisoner. " Give up 
your gun." " Well," says John, " I suppose. I will 
have to do it," and, in bringing his repeater from 
his shoulder, he threw a ball into the barrel, 
cocked his piece, and shot his captor through the 
heart, took his horse, and saddle, and revolver, 
and took them to the company. 



A " Pressed " Texan. — A soldier belonging 
to the army of Gen. Dick Taylor, who was cap- 
tured after the battle at Pleasant Hill, La., on 
being carried into the national camp, stated that 
he was born in Indiana. 

" How did you come to be in a Texas regi- 
ment ? " 

" Pressed in." 

" AVhy didn't you run away before you were 
conscripted ? " 

" Tried to, but they caught me. They hunted 



me with dogs, sir. When I was put into the 
ranks, I told them I M'ould do my common duty, 
and that I would never kill a Union soldier. Be- 
fore I was taken to-day, I was sent out to skir- 
mish on the left, and I know where every ball I 
fired struck — in the trees, sir — and all the 
while the Sixteenth Indiana boys, born in my own 

State, were firing at me like . Three of their 

bullets came so near me, that I thought each 
time I was to be a dead man. But now, I thank 
the Lord, I'm all right. You couldn't give me a 
little coff'ee, could you ? " 

Mrs. Browning has immortalized a similar in- 
cident in verse ; but her young Italian, forced 
into the Austrian service, A\'as no more of a hero 
than the homely Hoosier who played his part so 
well at " Crump's Corner." 



Worship of the Negroes. — A correspond- 
ent at Port Eoyal, S. C, gives an interesting ac- 
count of the religious meetings of negroes, in 
which singing is the favorite exercise. They 
have a great variety of sacred songs, Avhich they 
sing and shout at the top of their voices, and 
never grow weary. A favorite melody is, "Roll, 
Jordan, roll : " 

" Little children sitting on the tree of life, 
To hear when Jordan roll ; 
O, roll, Jordan, roll ; roll, Jordan, roll ; 
We march the angel marcli ; 0, march the angel 

march ; 
On ! my soul is rising heavenward, to hear when 
Jordan roll. 
O my brother ! sitting on the tree of life, 

To hear when Jordan roll, &c. 
Sister Mary sitting on the tree of life. 
To hear when Jordan roll, &c." 

The verses vary only in the recitative. If Mr. 
Jones is a visitor, he will hear, " Mr. Jones is 
sitting on the tree of life." All of the persons 
present are introduced to the tree of life — Nan- 
cy, James, and Sancho. There is no pause ; be- 
fore the last roll is ended, the one giving the 
recitative places another brother or sister on the 
tree, and then Jordan rolls again. It is a con- 
tinuous refrain, till all have had their turn upon 
the tree. 

A weird plantation refrain, in a minor key, is, 
" Down in the Lonesome Valley." This has also 
a recitative and chorus : 

" My sister, don't you want to get religion ? 
Go down in the lonesome valley, 
Go down in the lonesome valley, 
Go down in the lonesome valley, my Lord, 
To meet my Jesus there." 

As the song goes on the enthusiasm rise.s. 
They sing louder and stronger. The one giving 
the recitative leads off with more vigor, and the 
chorus rolls with an increasing volume. They 
beat time at first with their feet, then with their 
hands. William cannot sit still. Ho rises, 'be- 
gins a shuffle with his feet, jerking his arms. 
Ann, a short, thick-set, pure-blooded black wo- 
man, wearing a checked gingham dress, and an 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



147 



apron which was once a window curtain, can no 
longer keep her seat. She claps her hands, makes 
a short, quick jerk of her body on the unaccented 
part of the measui-e, keeping exact time. Cath- 
arine and Sancho catch the inspiration. We 
push the centre table aside to give them room. 
They go round in a circle, singing, shuffling, 
jerking, shouting louder and louder. Those upon 
the seats respond more vigorously, keeping time 
with feet and hands. William seems in a trance; 
his eyes are fixed, yet he goes on into^a double 
shuffle. Every joint in his body seems to be 
hung on wires. Feet, legs, arms, head, body, 
jerk like a dancing dandy Jack. Sancho enters 
into the praise with his whole heart, clasping his 
hands, looking upward and outward upon the 
crowd as if they were his children, and he a pa- 
triarch. His countenance beams with joy. He 
is all but carried away with the excitement of the 
moment. So it goes on till nature is exhausted. 
When the meeting breaks up, the singers go 
through the ceremony of shaking hands all round, 
keeping time to the tune, " There's a meeting 
here to-night." 

The Battle at Paducaii. — When the re- 
fusal of Col. Hicks was communicated to Gen. 
Forrest, a general charge was ordered, and away 
the whole line dashed upon the works. The fort 
is a small, low earth-work, surrounded by a shal- 
low ditch. The fierce onslaught was met by a 
sheet of flame from the fort, which made many 
of the assailants bite the dust, but it stayed them 
not — on they came, yelling like demons, many 
of them crossing the ditch, and were killed upon 
the walls of the fort, before, broken and repulsed, 
the thinned ranks of the enemy sullenly retired. 

The sharpshooters in the houses which com- 
manded the fort kept up an incsssant fire upon 
the garrison, while the volleys from the main 
body were almost continual. Four or five times 
during the afternoon and evening was the attack 
renewed, and each time successfully repulsed, 
until the whole ground between the fort and the 
town was covered with the slain and wounded. 
The artillery of the fort was by no means idle 
during this time, but was dividing its attention 
between the attacking party and the houses 
which contained the sharpshooters, whom they 
finally dislodged, and destroyed the buildings to 
prevent their again being made hiding-places for 
rebel soldiers. The final charge was made at 
seven o'clock, after which Forrest retired beyond 
gun-shot, and took refuge in the city among the 
buildings. 

A number of citizens went into the fort, and 
fought bravely during the whole engagement. 
One took his family to a place of safety, when he 
took his place with the soldiers behind the ram- 
parts. In the early part of the action, a ball se- 
verely wounded him in the arm, but he refused 
to give up so long as a rebel was in sight, and 
continued to fight until the enemy retired. After 
the second repulse, one of the Kentucky cavalry- 
men rushed out of the fort, and found the body of 
his brother, who had been killed in the first chai-ge. 



Many of the citizens could not cross the river 
before the battle commenced. Of these, several 
ladies sought refuge under the bluff, out of range 
of shot. A rebel sharpshooter, knowing that the 
Federals would not harm the ladies, sought ref- 
uge in the crowd, and from behind his new-fash- 
ioned breastwork, opened fire upon one of the 
gun-boats. This was borne as long as possible, 
until a shot was sent into the bank a few feet 
above their heads, when the women ran shriek- 
ing for other shelter, and Mr. Reb. did the tallest 
running on record. 

In Broadway, a crowd of women collected ; be- 
hind them stood a rank of rebels, who kept up 
an incessant fire upon the boats. Several shells 
were sent over their heads, but the women stood 
their ground, protecting the scoundrels behind 
them. Finally a shot fell in their midst, kill- 
ing one young woman, and wounding several 
rebels. 

Little respect was paid to a man's sentiments 
— sympathizers' stores suffered about equally 
with Union men's. Immense booty was obtained 
and carried off — the amount of loss can hardly 
be estimated. There is one instance, however, 
which occurred, in which they showed some little 
regard for a friend — nearly every horse and mule 
in the city was taken, except a few belonging to 
the Government — it was believed that those be- 
longed to a strong rebel sympathizer, and on that 
account the horses were not taken. 

Fu-ing from the gun-boats and the fort and 
the rebel artUlery continued at intervals until 
near midnight on Friday, after which all -became 
quiet, and scarce a shot was heard till after the 
retreat of Forrest, which occurred on Saturday, 
between two and three o'clock in the afternoon. 
The enemy retired towards Mayfield, tearing up 
the railroad track in his rear. A large number 
of houses were set on fire, both by shells and by 
the rebels. The first destroyed wei'e some build- 
ings occupied by the Government, — set in flames 
by the rebels, — others followed in quick succes- 
sion, until probably fifteen or twenty houses of 
various descriptions were burned to the ground. 

When the battle was over, it was found that 
the ammunition, both in the fort and on the gun- 
boats, was nearly expended. Little or no pro- 
vision was in the fort, and the men sadly wanted 
food after their arduous labors. As soon as the 
news of the battle reached this city, reenforce- 
ments were despatched to Paducah, as well as 
ammunition and provisions. When the pro- 
visions arrived. Col. Hicks sent a full supply to 
the suffering citizens, and had it distributed 
among the hungry crowd of women and children 
on the Illinois shore. 

The rebel Brig.-Gen. Thompson was shot 
through the head, while on his horse near the 
fort, during the fight. After falling to the ground, 
a shell struck him in the abdomen, and blew him 
to pieces. His spinal column was found several 
feet from his mangled body. 

Towards evening the ammunition in the fort 
became well nigh exhausted. A¥hen this was 
discovered, Col. Hicks ordered that, should am- 



148 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



munition run out, the works should be defended 
with the bayonet as long as a man remained 
alive. 

Foraging. — A member of a Wisconsin regi- 
ment related the following : Our boys sometimes 
come great tricks over the secesh planters for 
the purpose of securing a prize from their hen- 
roosts, garden, &c. The biggest tiling of the 
season, in this line of business, happened a few 
weeks since. Some of the boys had been roving 
around the country on a kind of"reconnoissance," 
and among other matters of interest, they discov- 
ered, in the garden of a certain farm-house, three 
or four bee-hives, containing a large amount of 
most delicious honey. On consultation, it was 
determined that that honey should be " confis- 
cated," and contribute to sweeten the sugary 
teeth of the brave sons of Mars who captured it. 
Their plans were laid, and the expedition was to 
come off on a certain night. The night proved 
favorable to their design — so dark that nothing 
but a " stack of black cats " could excel it in the 
intenseness of its darkness. The party of ten or 
twelve started from camp, and after a number 
of amusing adventures, reached their destina- 
tion. But all the danger was yet to come. The 
house was protected by two guards. To over- 
come this difficulty, they had to resort to strategy. 
They placed guards of theu' own at each door, 
and notified the occupants of the house that they 
were under arrest on some terrible chai'ge, and 
at the same time admonished them to keep quiet, 
and to stay within doors, and that an officer would 
soon be around to make the search. In the mean 
time the balance of the party were scampering 
off with their prizes, — all made secure, — the 
self-constituted guard withdrew, and it was not 
till the next morning that the frightened rebels 
found out the sad havoc that had been made 
amongst theii* potatoes, hone}> and barn-yard 
fowls by the " rascally Yankees." 



«EIN PESTE BURG 1ST UNSER GOTT.' 
(^Luther's Hymn.') 

BY JOHN G. WHITTIER. 

We wait beneath the furnace blast 

The pangs of transformation ; 
Not painlessly doth God recast 
And mould anew the nation. 
Hot burns the fire 
Where wrongs expire ; 
Nor spares the hand 
That from the land 
Uproots the ancient evil. 

The hand-breadth cloud the sages feared 

Its bloody rain is dropping ; 
The poison plant the fathers spared 
All else is overtopping. 

East, West, Soufh, North, 
It curses the earth : 
All justice dies. 
And fraud and lies 
Live only in its shadoAV. 



What gives the wheat field blades of steel ? 

What points the rebel cannon ? 
What sets the roaring rabble's heel 
On the old star-spangled pennon ? 
What breaks the oath 
Of the men of the South ? 
What whets the knife 
For the Union's life ? — 
Hark to the answer : — Slavery ! 

Then waste no blows on lesser foes. 

In strife unworthy freemen. 
God lifts to-day the veil, and shows 
The features of the demon ! 
O North and South, 
Its victims both, 
Can ye not cry, 
" Let Slavery die ! " 
And Union find in freedom ? 

What though the cast-out spirit tear 

The nation in his going ? 
We who have shared the guilt, must share 
The pang of his o'erthrowing ! 
Whate'er the loss, 
Whate'er the cross, 
Shall they complain 
Of present pain, 
Who trust in God's hereafter ? 

For who that leans on His right arm 

Was ever yet forsaken ? 
What righteous cause can suSer harm, 
If He its part has taken ? 
Though Avild and loud, 
And dark the cloud, 
Behind its folds 
His hand upholds 
The calm sky of to-morrow ! 

Above the maddening cry for blood, 

Above the wild war-drumming. 
Let Freedom's voice be heard, with good 
The evil overcoming. 

Give prayer and purse 
To stay The Curse, 
Whose wrong we share, 
Whose shame we bear, 
Whose end shall gladden heaven ! 

In vain the bells of war shall ring 

Of triumphs and revenges, 
AVhile still is spared the evil thing 
That severs and estranges. 
But blest the ear 
That yet shall hear 
The jubilant bell 
That rings the knell 
Of Slavery forever ! 

Then let the selfish lip be dumb, 

And hushed the breath of sighing ; 
Before the joy of peace must come 
The pains of purifying. 
God give us grace, 
Each in his place 
To bear his lot, 
And, murmuring not, 
Endure, and wait, and labor ! 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



149 



The Escape from the Libby. — The follow- 
ing is the account given by the Union officers, 
who succeeded in reaching the Federal lines, after 
their escape from Richmond, in February, 1864 : 

Over two months previous to the consumma- 
tion of their plan, the officers confined in Libby 
Prison conceived the idea of effecting their own 
exchange ; and after the matter had been seri- 
ously discussed by some seven or eight of them, 
they undertook to dig for a distance towards a 
sewer running into the basin. This they proposed 
' doing by commencing at a point in the cellar, near 
a chimney. This cellar was immediately under 
the hospital, and was the receptacle for refuse 
straw, thrown from the beds when they were 
changed, and for other refuse matter. Above the 
hospital was a room for officers, and above that 
yet another room. The chimney ran through all 
these rooms ; and the prisoners who were in the 
secret, improvised a rope, and night after night 
let working parties down, who successfully pros- 
ecuted their excavating operations. 

The dirt was hid under the straw and other 
refuse matter in the cellar, and it was trampled 
down so as not to present too great a bulk. 
When the working party had got to a considera- 
ble distance under ground, it was found difficult to 
haul the dirt back by hand, and a spittoon, which 
had been furnished by the officers in one of the 
rooms, was made to serve the purpose of a cart. 
A string was attached to it, and it Avas run in the 
tunnel, and as soon as filled was drawn out, and 
the dirt deposited under the straw. But, after 
hard work, and digging, with finger-nails, knives, 
and chisels, a number of feet, the working party 
found themselves stopped by piles driven into the 
ground. These were at least a foot in diameter. 
But they were not discouraged. Penknives, or 
any other articles that would cut, were called for ; 
and, after chipping, chipping, chipping for a long 
time, the piles were severed, and the tunnellers 
commenced again, and in a few moments reached 
the sewer. 

But here an unexpected obstacle met their far- 
ther progress. The stench from the sewers and 
the flow of filthy water was so great that one of 
the party fainted, and was dragged out more dead 
than alive, and the project in that direction had to 
be abandoned. The failure was communicated to 
a few others besides those who had first thought 
of escape, and then a party of seventeen, after 
viewing the premises and surroundings, concluded 
to tunnel under Carey Street. On the opposite 
side of this street from the prison was a sort of 
carriage-house, or out-house, and the project was 
to dig under the street and emerge from under or 
near the house. There was a high fence around 
it, and the guard Avas outside of this fence. The 
prisoners then commenced to dig at the other side 
of the cliimney ; and after a few handfuls of dirt 
had been remdved, they found themselves stopped 
by a stone wall, which proved afterwards to be 
three feet thick. The party were by no means 
daunted, and with penknives and pocket-knives 
they commenced operations upon the stone and 
mortar. 



After nineteen days' and nights* hard work, they 
again struck the earth beyond the wall and pushed 
their work forward. Here, too, (after they had 
got some distance under ground,) the friendly 
spittoon was brought into requisition, and the 
dirt was hauled out in small quantities. After 
digging for some days, the question arose wheth- 
er they had not reached the point aimed at ; and 
in order, if possible, to test the matter, Capt. Gal- 
lagher, of the Second Ohio regiment, pretended 
that he had a box in the carriage-house over the 
way, and desired to search it out. This carriage- 
house, it is proper to state, was used as a recep- 
tacle for boxes and goods sent to prisoners from 
the North, and the recijjients were often allowed 
to go, under guard, across the street to secure 
their property. Capt. Gallagher was granted 
permission to go there, and as he walked across, 
under guard, he, as well as he could, paced ofl" 
the distance, and concluded that the sti-eet was 
about fifty feet wide. 

On the 6th or 7th of February the working 
party supposed they had gone a sufficient dis- 
tance, and commenced to dig upward. When 
near the surface they heard the rebel guards 
talking above them, and discovered they Mere 
some two or three feet yet outside the fence. 

The displacing of a stone made considerable 
noise, and one of the sentinels called to his com- 
rade and asked him Avhat the noise meant. The 
guards, after listening a few minutes, concluded 
that nothing was wrong, and returned to their 
beats. This hole Avas stopped up by inserting 
into the crevice a pair of old pantaloons filled Avith 
straw, and by bolstering the Avhole up with boards, 
which they secured from the floors, &c., of the 
prison. 

The tunnel Avas then continued some six or 
seven feet more ; and Avhen the Avorking party 
supposed they Avere about ready to emerge to 
daylight, others in the prison AA-ere informed that 
there Avas a Avay noAV open for escape. One hun- 
dred and nine of the prisoners decided to make 
the attempt to get aAvay. Others refused, fearing 
the consequences if they Avere recaptured ; and 
others yet (among Avhom were Gen. Neal Doav) 
declined to make the attempt, because (as they 
said) they did not desire to have their Govern- 
ment back doAvn from its enunciated policy of 
exchange. Col. Rose, of NeAV York, Col. Ken- 
drick, of Tenn., Capt. Jones, Lieut. Bradford, 
and others, informed Gen. Dow that they could 
not see hoAv making their escape Avould affect the 
policy of exchange. Their principle Avas, that it 
was their personal right to escape if they could, 
and their duty to their Government to make the 
attempt. 

About half past eight o'clock on the evening of 
the 9th, the prisoners started out. Col. Rose, of Xew 
York, leading the van. Before starting, the pris- 
oners had divided themselves into squads of two, 
thi-ee, and four, and each squad Avas to take a 
difl'erent route, and, after they Avere out, Avere to 
push for the Union lines as fast as possible. It 
Avas the understanding that the working party Avas 
to have an hour's start of the other prisoners, and, 



150 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



consequently, the roije ladder in the cellar was 
dra-\vn out. Before the expiration of the hour, 
however, the other prisoners became impatient, 
and ■\vcre let down through the chimney success- 
fully into the cellar. 

Col. W. P. Kendrick, of West Tennessee, Capt. 
D. J. Jones, of the First Kentucky cavalry, and 
Lieut. R. Y. Bradford, of the Second West Ten- 
nessee, were detailed as a rear-guard, or, rather, 
to go out last ; and from a window Col. Iv. and 
his companions could see the fugitives walk out 
of a gate at the other end of the enclosure of the 
carriage-house, and fearlessly move off. The ap- 
erture was so narrow that but one man could get 
through at a time, and each squad carried with 
them provisions in a haversack. At midnight a 
false alarm was created, and the prisoners made 
considerable noise in getting to their respective 
quarters. Providentially, however, the guard 
suspected nothing wrong, and in a few moments 
the exodus Mas again commenced. Col. Kendrick 
and his companions looked with some trepidation 
upon the movements of the fugitives, as some of 
them, exercising but little discretion, moved bold- 
ly out on the enclosure into the glare of the gas- 
light. Many of them were, however, in citizens' 
dress ; and as all the rebel guards wear the United 
States luiiform, but little suspicion could be ex- 
cited, even if the fugitives had been accosted by a 
guard. 

Between one and two o'clock the lamps were 
extinguished in the streets, and then the exit was 
more safely accomplished. There were many 
officers Avho desired to leave, who were so weak 
and feeble that they were dragged through the 
tunnel by main force, and carried to places of 
safety, until such time as they would be able to 
move on their journey. At half past two o'clock, 
Capt. Jones, Col. Kendrick, and Lieut. Bradford 
passed out in the order in which they are named ; 
and as Col. K. emerged from the hole, he heard 
the guard within a few feet of him sing out, " Post 
No. 7, half past two in the morning, and all's 
well." Col. K. says he could hardly resist the 
temptation of saying, " Not so well as you think, 
except for the Yanks." Lieut. Bradford was in- 
trusted Avith the provisions for this squad ; and in 
getting through he was obliged to leave his hav- 
ersack behind him, as he could not get through 
with it upon him. 

Once out, they proceeded up the street, keeping 
in the shade of the buildings, and passed east- 
wardly through the city. 

A description of tlie route pursued by this par- 
ty, and of the tribulations through which they 
passed, will give some idea of the rough time they 
all had of it. Col. Kendrick had, before leaving 
the prison, mapped out his course, and concluded 
that the best route to take was the one towards 
Norfolk, or Fortress Monroe, as there were fewer 
rebel pickets in that direction. They therefore 
kept the York River Railroad to the left, and 
moved towards the Chickahominy River, They 
passed through Boar Swamp, and crossed the road 
leading to Bottom Bridge. Sometimes they waded 
through mud and water almost up to theii- necks, 



and kept the Bottom Bridge road to their left, 
although at times they could see and hear the 
cars travelling over the York River Road. 

While passing through the swamp near the 
Chickahominy, Col. Kendrick sprained his ankle 
and fell. Fortunate, too, was that fall for him 
and his party ; for while he was lying thei'e, one 
of them chanced to look up, and saw, in a direct 
Hne M'ith them, a swam]) bridge ; and in the dim 
outline they could perceive that parties with mus- 
kets were passing over the bridge. They there- 
fore moved some distance to the south ; and after 
passing through more of the swamp, reached the 
Chickahominy about four miles below Bottom 
Bridge. Here, now, was a difficulty. The river 
was only twenty feet wide, but it was very deep, 
and the refugees were worn out and fatigued. 
Chancing, however, to look up, Lieut. Bradford 
saw that two trees had fallen on either side of 
the river, and that their branches were iuter- 
lockecL By crawling up one tree and down the 
other, the fugitives reached the east bank of the 
Chickahominy ; and Col. Kendrick could not help 
remarking that he believed Providence was on 
their side, else they would not have met that nat- 
ural bridge. 

They subsequently learned from a friendly ne- 
gro that had they crossed the bridge they had 
seen, they would assuredly have been recaptured, 
for Capt. Turner, the keeper of Libby Prison, had 
been out and posted guards there, and in fact had 
alarmed the whole country, and got the people up 
as a vigilance committee to capture the escaped 
prisoners. 

After crossing over this natural bridge, they 
lay down on the ground afid slept until sunrise 
on the morning of the 1 1th, Avhen they continued 
on their way, keeping eastwardly as near as they 
could. Up to this time they had had nothing to 
eat, and were almost famished. About noon of 
the 1 1th they met several negroes, Avho gave them 
information as to the whereabouts of the rebel 
pickets, and furnished them with food. 

Acting under the advice of these friendly ne- 
groes, they renaained quietly in the woods until 
darkness had set in, when they were furnished 
with a comfortable supper by the negroes, and 
after dark proceeded on their way, the negroes 
(who everywhere showed their friendship to the 
fugitives) having first directed them how to avoid 
the rebel pickets. That night they passed a camj) 
of rebels, and could plainly see the smoke and 
camp fires. But their wearied feet gave out, and 
they were compelled to stop and rest, having only 
marched five miles that day. 

They started again at daylight on the 13th, and 
after moving a while through the woods, they saw 
a negro woman working in a field, and called her 
to them, and from her received directions, and 
were told that the rebel pickets had been about 
there looking for the fugitives from Libby. Here 
they lay low again, and resumed their journey 
when darkness set in, and marclied five miles, but 
halted until the morning of the 14th, when the 
journey was resumed. 

At one point they met a negro in the field, and 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



151 



she told them that her mistress was a secesh wo- 
man, and that she had a son in the rebel army. 
The \yarty, however, were exceedingly hungry, and 
they determined to secure some food. This they 
did by boldly approaching the house and inform- 
ing the mistress that they were fugitives from 
Norfolk, who had been driven out by Butler ; 
and the secesh sympathies of the woman were at 
once aroused, and she gave them of her substance, 
and started them on their way, with directions 
how to avoid the Yankee soldiers, who occasionally 
scouted in that vicinity. This information was 
exceedingly valuable to the refugees, for lay it they 
discovered the whereabouts of the Union forces. 

When about fifteen miles from Williamsburg, 
the party came upon the main road, and found 
the tracks of a large body of cavalry. A piece of 
paper found by Capt. Jones, satisfied him that 
they Avere Union cavalry ; but his companions 
were suspicious, and avoided the road, and moved 
forward ; and at the " Burnt Ordinary," (about 
ten miles from Williamsburg,) awaited the return 
of the cavalry that had moved up the road ; and 
from behind a fence corner, where they were se- 
creted, the fugitives saw the flag of the Union, 
supported by a squadron of cavalry, which proved 
to be a detachment of Col. Spear's Eleventh Penn- 
sylvania regiment, sent out for the purpose of 
picking up escaped prisoners. Col. Kendrick 
says his feelings at seeing the old flag were inde- 
scribable. 

The party rode into Williamsburg with the cav- 
alry, where they were quartered for the night, and 
M'here they found eleven others who had escaped 
safely. 

A Wedding on Horseback. — The following 
occurred at Battle Creek, on the Chattanooga 
Railroad, in March, 1864 : A pair- of lovers be- 
tliought themselves of getting married, and hav- 
ing procured a license, the)' set out on horseback. 
They soon came up to a parson " setting " on a 
fence, — it seems he did something occasionally 
at farming, — and requested him to " solemnize 
the sacred rites of matrimony at once." The 
parson finally assented, and he " setting " on the 
fence, and they on their horses, the !' sacred 
rite " Avas " solemnized," after which they went 
on their way rejoicing. 



A Hero indeed. — A good deal of interest 
was felt at the time Avhen the Confederate offi- 
cers, prisoners on board the " Maple Leaf," cap- 
tured that steamer, and made their escape to 
Currituck, in North Carolina. A correspondent 
furnishes the following instances of heroism con- 
nected with the affair, the hero of which is " a 
poor old man bowed down with age and poverty." 
The writer says : 

"A few days after their escape, a squad of Fed- 
eral cavalry, in scouring the country to arrest 
them, came upon the subject of this notice — 
Dempsey Kight by name — in the highway. A 
small tin bucket, which the old fisherman was 
carrying in his hand, attracted then- attention. 



They halted, and asked him if he had not been 
feeding the escaped rebel officers. Too proud to 
utter a falsehood, he unhesitatingly answered in 
the affirmative. Whereupon they demanded of 
him to reveal the place of their concealment, and 
with threats and blows sought to wrest it from 
him. But the principle of honor was too strong 
in the old man's bosom, and to all their impor- 
tunities he yielded not — their brutality he could 
not resist. They swore they would have the se- 
cret, or that he should die. With this intention, 
they hurried him aboard a gun-boat, and again 
tendered him the alternatives of death or of 
compliance with their wishes. He answered 
that he was convinced that they intended to 
hang him, but that he was resolved to die before 
he " would tell where those officers were." Im- 
mediately they suspended him by the neck until 
life was nearly extinct. They then cut him down, 
and after reviving him, they repeated the same 
question, and received the same answer. Again 
his body hung in the air, and when his life was 
far more spent than before, they again unloosed 
the halter, receiving, as before, the same firm 
denial. Exasperated to fury, they told him that 
this Avas his only chance, and that they Avould 
not cut him down again. Sustained in this hour 
of sore trial by his sense of honor, which was 
stronger than his fear of death, the old man re- 
plied that he was convinced of his approacliing 
end, yet he deemed death preferable to dishonor, 
and that he was ready to meet his fate. Again, 
and for the third time, his aged frame quivered 
in the agonies of death, and Avhen he had ceased 
to struggle, they once more released him. Ap- 
plying powerful stimulants, they succeeded in 
restoring him, when, with a determination worthy 
of the elder Brutus, he drew forth a knife, and 
attempted, by cutting his own throat, to free 
himself from his persecutors. By violence they 
forced his knife from him, when, by a mighty 
effort, he dashed the fiends aside, and plunged 
into the boiling surf to drown himself. With 
boat-hooks they fished liim up, and baffled by 
his unyielding will, they permitted him to go 
ashore. This is a true statement of this infamous 
transaction. Dempsey Kight still lives, and plies 
his humble calling as a fisherman, and that he is 
one of God's noblemen none will gainsay." 



Incidents of the Fight at Beaufort. — 
On almost every vessel, after the fight, the men 
were called aft, and publicly thanked by their 
respective Captains. On the ship " Bienville," 
particular mention was made, and special thanks 
returned, in presence of the ship's company, to 
William Henry Steele, a boy not fourteen years 
old, who conducted himself with distinguished 
bravery. He is a powder boy, and not only 
never flinched or dodged a shot, but when two 
men were killed at his gun, he did not turn pale, 
or cease for an instant his duties, but handed the 
cartridge he had in hand to the gunner, stepped 
carefully over the bodies, and hastened below for 
more ammunition. 



152 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



The case of Thomas Jackson, coxswain of the 
" Wabash," deserves notice. He was struck by 
a shot, or a splinter, which so nearly cut his leg 
off as to leave it hanging but by a small portion 
of the muscle and skin. Partially rising, and 
leaning painfully against a gun, Jackson glanced 
at his mangled limb, and in an instant perceived 
its hopeless condition. Feeling behind his back 
in his belt, where seamen always carry their 
knives, he drew his sheath-knife from its leather 
scabbard, and deliberately began to saw away at 
his leg ; but the knife was dull, and he could not 
cut the limb off. As he was borne below by his 
mates, and afterwards, he asked continually how 
the fight v.'as going, and kept saying, " I hope 
we'll win it ; I hope we'll win." In two hours he 
died, his last words being a wish for our victory 
in this battle, and a word of thanks that he had 
been able to do something for the honor of the 
" dear old flag." 

The entb.usiasm of the soldiers for the blue- 
jackets, after the action, literally knew no bounds. 
Whenever a boat's crew of men-of-war's-men 
came alongside a transport, there was a rush to 
the side to catch a nearer view of the gallant 
sailors, and, if possible, to clasp a tarry hand ; 
and whenever they appeared, the cheers were 
frantically loud, and long drawn out, and the 
brave Jacks were as happy and proud as men 
can be. 



The Typo Warriors. — The typos of the 
Thirteenth Illinois regiment of volunteers amused 
themselves at Camp Holla, Mo., by printing a 
paper entitled " Our Regiment." A correspond- 
ent thus made his shot : 

IlEADQUARTEItS HeAVY MUD INFANTRY, ) 

Camp Holla, July 17, 1861. \ 
To the Editor of Our Regiment : 

Heavy? Yes, sir! Bound to shoot rebels. 
This is the report. Chicago boy, the undersigned. 
I'm always boasting of Chicago. I'm full of fight. 
Although fighting is not my forte, I do not think 
I would stand being knocked down. I joined 
this August body in April, and avc May March 
daily, for we are getting stronger weekly. I may 
say in good season, if we Spring upon the enemy 
he is sure to Fall, for our Summer-saults will be 
a dose that will prove " the Winter of his dis- 
content." lie will have to evacuate. We won't 
strike light, for the South is no match for us. 
When the country called all hands to arms, I 
thought it a proud legacy to leave posterity that 
I joined a division for the Union. I set my name 
down, and there it stands. Nice uniform. Had 
my hair cut with a knife and fork. Red hair, 
yellow jacket, blue shirt, white hat, plantation 
shoes, pink trousers, bell buttons on behind, 
where I never saw them before. Left the city 
under encouraging circumstances. Toothache, 
nail in my shoe, forgot my rations, something in 
mj' eye. Chap in rear file rasping my skins. Got 
out of step and hurt my instep. While marching, 
washwoman handed me a bill. Had no money, 



and she had no sense — wanted to know where 
our quarters were. Asked her who gave the 
order to charge. Bad boy on sidewalk crying out, 
"Pay the poor woman." Loaded the little sun- 
of-a-gun with abuse, and he went off. Arrived 
at Camp Rolla all right, nobody being left. In- 
tentions to sleep in tents, but were intense-ly 
disappointed, as we slept on the grass, which, 
after all, served as well to all intents and pur- 
poses. Placed minute-men on watch, who moved 
all hands every second, until we really thought it 
time to strike. Took my turn in going round. 
Shot a cow and calf. " 'Tis meet to be here." 
Fighting, you see, for the public weal, places our 
lives at stake. Took the hindquarters into head- 
quarters. Pork in various shapes for rations 
heretofore. Not Jew-dishes. Serg. Hinmann 
would like to have some mutton. Told me to 
stir up, get a horse and find a saddle. Serg. 
Hinmann's drilling is a complete bore, and he 
thinks he augurs well on the whole. Marches 
us around in a body, until he almost wears out 
our soles. Makes our squad run so we will be 
fully able to sail in when we have the enemy at 
bay. Of course we have our fine times. Had 
some light reading sent me by a Sexton : " An- 
nual Report of Rose-Hill," " Ghost Stories," and 
his business circular, with price list of coffins, &c. 
I should like to overtake that undertaker. Serg. 
Hinmann speaks disparagingly of our literary 
tastes. Says the only thing red in the camp is 
my nose — my nasal " organ." I mention it be- 
cause it's a military move to right about face. 
Music by the band. I must come to a full stop 
now for a period. Flip flap. 

Yours, jolly and con-tent-ed, 

G. N. L. SCOTTY. 



A Sergeant Halts a Whole Rebel Regi- 
ment. — Among the beauties of the war in 
Western Virginia was the "mixed-up" way in 
which the combatants manoeuvre among the 
mountains. Here is an instance where a single 
loyal soldier halted an entire rebel regiment: 

Serg. Carter, of Tippecanoe, Ohio, was upon 
the post* first attacked by the enemy. The ad- 
vance-guard of the Second Virginia, (rebel,) con- 
sisting of twelve men, came suddenly upon him 
and his three companions. The bright moonlight 
revealed the flashing bayonets of the advancing 
regiment. He was surrounded and separated 
from his reserve. With great presence of mind 
he stepped out and challenged : " Halt ! Who 
goes there ? " The advance-guard, supposing 
they had come upon a scouting party of their 
own men, answered, " Friends, with the counter- 
sign." At his order, " Advance, one, and give the 
countersign," they hesitated. He repeated the 
order peremptorily, " Advance and give the coun- 
tersign or I'll blow you through." They answered, 
without advancing, " Mississippi." " Where do 
you belong?" he demanded. "To the Second 
Virginia regiment." " Where arc you going ? " 
" Along the ridge." They then in turn questioned 
him, — " Who are you ? " " That's my own busi- 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



153 



ness," he answered, and taking deliberate aim, 
he shot down his questioner. 

He called for his boys to follow him, and 
sprung down a ledge of rock, while a full volley 
went over his head. He heard his companions 
summoned to surrender, and the order given to 
the Major to advance with the regiment. Several 
started in pursuit of him. He had to descend 
the hill on the side towards the enemy's camp. 
While he eluded his pursuers, he found himself 
in a new danger. He had got within the enemy's 
camp pickets ! He had, while running, torn the 
U. S. from his cartridge box, and covered his belt 
plate with his cajD box, and torn the strips from 
his pantaloons. He was challenged by their sen- 
tinels while making his way out, and answered, 
giving the countersign, " ' Mississippi,' Second 
Virginia regiment." They asked him what he 
was doing there. He said that the boys had gone 
off on n scout after the Yankees, that he had been 
detained in camp, and in tiying to find them he 
had got bewildered. 

As he passed through, to prevent further ques- 
tioning, he said, " Our boys are up on the ridge ; 
which is the best way up ? " They answered, 
"Bear to the left, and you'll find it easier to 
climb." Soon again his pursuers were after him, 
as he expressed it, " breaking brush " behind him ; 
this time' with a hound on his trail. He made 
his way to a brook, and running down the shallow 
stream, threw the dog off" the scent, and, as the 
day was dawning, he suddenly came upon four 
pickets, who brought their arms to a ready, and 
challenged him. He gave the countersign, " Mis- 
sissippi," and claimed to belong to the Second 
Virginia regiment. His cap box had slipped from 
his belt plate. They asked him where he got 
that belt. He told them he had captured it that 
night from a Yankee. They told him to advance, 
and, as he approached, he recognized their ac- 
coutrements, and knew that he was among his 
own men, a picket guard from the First Kentucky. 

He was taken before Col. Enyart, and dismissed 
to his regiment. His motive in halting a whole 
column of the enemy was to give intimation to 
the reserve of their advance, that they might 
open upon them on their left flank, and so, per- 
haps, arrest their progress. 



Surgeon Eat. — We have heard and read a 
great many stories about the rat ; but in all our 
experience, we never before had one brought be- 
fore us in the character of a surgeon. At one 
of our large hospitals, an operation was success- 
fully performed upon an invalid soldier, by a com- 
mon rat ; which the surgeon in charge had him- 
self delayed for a time, with the hope of causing 
less sufi'ering to the patient. This patient Avas 
suffering from the effects of a fracture of the 
frontal bone of the skull, a piece of which pro- 
jected outM-ards to some length ; and the healing 
of the fleshy parts depended upon its removal. 
The bone was so fii-mly fixed, howevei", as, in the 
opinion of the surgeon, would cause unnecessary 
pain in its forcible removal ; and such remedies 
were applied as would assist nature in eventually 



ejecting it. A soothing poultice was placed upon 
the part a night or two ago, a hole being made 
through the application for the insertion of the 
projecting bone. The patient was soon asleep in 
his bed, but during the night was aroused by the 
sting of pain, and awoke, to discover a rat making 
off with the piece of bone in his mouth He 
struck at and hit the rat, but did not hurt him. 
The rat had probably been di-awn to the bed of 
the soldier by the scent of the poultice, which 
was pleasant to his olfactories ; but on reaching 
it, his keen appetite, no doubt, caused him to rel- 
ish, in a large degree, the juicy bone so convenient 
to his teeth. He, therefore, seized, and drew it 
from its position, and was made to scamper off 
by the patient, whom he had aroused with pain. 
It was a skilful operation, quickly performed, 
and will result beneficially to the invalid. — Pe- 
tersburg Express. 

Experiences with Rebel Prisoners. — 
" Su-ange as it may seem," says a soldier, " we 
made some very pleasant acquaintances among 
the prisoners we were sent to guard, some of 
whom we had helped to capture, and cared for 
when wounded on the field. One rebel — Maj. 
McKnight, of the rebel Gen. Loring's staff — was 
an especial favorite. He was a poet, musician, 
and joker, and used to run ' from grave to gay, 
from lively to severe,' on almost all matters. I 
append a httle morceau of his, under his %igm de 
plume of Asa Hartz, entitled 

MY LOVE AND I. 

BY ASA. HARTZ. 

My love reposes on a rosewood frame ; 

A bunk have I ; 
A couch of feathery down fills up the same ; 

Mine's straw, but dry ; 
She sinks to rest at night with scarce a sigh ; 
With waking eyes I watch the hours creep by. 

My love her daily dinner takes in state, 

And so do I ; 
The richest viands flank her silver plate ; 

Coarse grub have I ; 
Pure wines she sips at ease, her thirst to slake ; 
I pump my drink from Erie's limpid lake. 

My love has all the world at will to roam ; 

Three acres I ; 
She goes abroad, or quiet sits at home ; 

So cannot I. 
Bright angels watch around her couch at night ; 
A Yank, with loaded gun, keeps me in sight. 

A thousand weary miles now stretch between 

My love and I. 
To her this wintry night, cold, calm, serene, 

I waft a sigh, 
And hope with all my earnestness of soul, 
To-morrow's mail may bring me my parole. 

There's hope ahead ! we'll one day meet again. 

My love and I. 
We'll wipe away all tears of sorrow then ; 

Her love-lit eye 
Will all my many troubles then beguile, 
And keep this wayward reb from Johnson's Isle. 



154 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



Advent^uees of a Union Officer. — The 
experiences of Col. De Villiers, of the Eleventh 
Ohio regiment, who was captured with others, 
in Western Virghiia, in 1861, and conveyed to 
Richmond, and who afterwards made his escape, 
is thus detailed : 

"Arrived at Richmond, they were taken to a 
tobacco warehouse, where they found forty other 
prisoners. In the room there was neither table 
nor bed. They were kept without food ; no break- 
fast given them the next morning after their 
arrival — and when, finally, a little bread was 
brought them, it Avas thrown upon the floor as to 
a dog ; and the quantity so small, that every 
man must make double-quick in grabbing it, or 
he got none, and was compelled to beg from the 
others. But there were rich officers, who could 
buy something to cat ; for if the rebels did not 
love the Northerners, they loved their gold. But 
to shorten, he got the brain fever in prison, and 
was removed to the hospital ; and here the Col- 
onel took occasion to affirm, that the kindness 
which had been s]Doken of, as practised by the 
physicians, was not from rebels, but from our 
own surgeons. 

" Being by profession a physician. Col. De V., 
when he had sufficiently recovered, was asked by 
the hospital doctor to assist, which he consented 
to do ; and he was thus permitted to enjoy more 
Ubertj\ By good fortune, one day the command- 
ing General gave the physicians liberty to go into 
the city several times. They wore, as a distin- 
guished body, a red ribbon, or badge, fixed in 
then- button-hole. When he encountered the 
sentinel, he was challenged, and forbidden to pass 
on the gi-ound of being a prisoner ; the order of 
the General did not include him. Now, as they 
called him a French Yankee, he thought he Avould 
play them a Yankee trick ; so he wrote a note 
stating that he was included. When he returned 
to the hospital, the rebel physician said he had 
been practising deceit, and must consequently go 
back among the prisoners. He was again incar- 
cerated and put in irons. He soon made up his 
mind, however, to escape from there, or die. He 
was asked to take an oath by the rebels ; but, 
said he, ' I have taken an oath as a naturalized 
citizen of the United States, and I will never take 
another to conflict with it.' He had been tempted 
by the offer of position, but he abhorred the en- 
emies of this Union, and could never forget that 
he came here for Liberty's sake. He told Col. 
Woodruff" of his determination to escape, for his 
time had come. Col. W. wished him well, and 
hoped that he would escape. He set about it, 
and devised a lie, and stole ; for which he felt 
assured he would be forgiven. He stole the 
coat and hat of a secession officer, and in that 
garb passed the guard. 

" Col. De Villiers, while Brigade Inspector at 
Camp Dennison, Ohio, learned a lesson from the 
soldiers who wanted to go to Cincinnati. They 
were in the habit of lying in the bushes to hear 
the countersign, and having obtained it, passed 
the guard. Without the countersign he could 
not get out of the gate, even with his full uniform. 



So he lay for about two hours behind the guard- 
house, (in the night, as should have been stated,) 
until he was happy by hearing it. The guard called 
at his approach, ' Who comes there ? ' 'A friend, 
with the countersign.' He passed the guard, the 
gate was opened, and he was once more free. He 
made his Avay to Manassas Junction, which is 
nothing but a swamp. About six miles from 
Richmond, he was encountered by a guard, and 
to his challenge replied, ' A friend, without the 
countersign.' [He had the precaution to lay the 
double-barrel shot gun, which he contrived to get 
before he escaped from Richmond, down, befoi'e 
he approached this guard. He had, besides, a 
revolver and a bowie knife.] 

" Approaching, they asked him v/here he was 
from and whither he was going. He replied from 
Richmond to Petersburg. They then asked why 
he did not take the railroad, and he said he missed 
the cars. They then took him in custody, and 
marched one on each side of him upon a narrow 
bridge crossing a stream near at hand. The sit- 
uation was desperate, but he was determined 
never to go back to Richmond alive ; so when he 
got to about the middle of the bridge, he struck 
to the right and left, knocking one of the guards 
on one side and the other on the other side, and 
giving them both a good swim. Hence he made 
his way towards Petersburg, subsisting for three 
days upon nothing but a few raw beans, ' which 
was not very good for his digestion.' 

" Upon this tramp, for a distance of sixty-five 
miles, he cai'ried his skiff for crossing rivers (a 
pine board) vipon his shoulder. During his trav- 
els he was several times shot at. When he got 
in the neighborhood of Magruder's forces, his 
hardest time began. He tried to pass sentinels 
several times, and at one time was twice shot at 
in quick succession. He shot too. He did not 
know whether he hit the two sentinels or not, but 
they never answered. But the whole brigade was 
aroused, and he took to the James Puver in what 
he called his skiff, viz., his pine-board companion. 
He landed on the other side in a swamp, recross- 
ing again near Jamestown, where he lost his gun. 
He had cast away his officer's coat, and what re- 
mained of his suit was rusty enough. So he 
took an open course, and resolved to ask for 
work ; but like the poor men in the South, when 
they ask for work, they are told to go into the 
service. Even the ladies do not look upon a 
young man unless he is in the service ; viewed 
from this test, there were more patriots in the 
South than in the North ; they were all soldiers, 
old and young. 

" He hired with a German blacksmith, at $1.50 
per week, having concluded to remain a while, 
and learn something of the condition of the rebel 
forces. He staid a fortnight, observing all the 
rebel movements. At the expiration of this time, 
he got tired of blacksmithing, and wanted to go 
home. He found a good German Union man, to 
whom he told his story, without reservation, just 
as if he was telling it here to-night. This was 
of great service to him ; he led him for nine days, 
the Colonel having adopted another Yankee trick, 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



155 



and made a blind man of himself ; he couldn't 
see, and the German was his guide. Dropping 
the Yankee French, he became a French subject, 
and wantei to go back to France, because he 
could not get any work to do here ; and so he 
told Gen. Huger, when he got into his command. 
This General promised to send him to Fortress 
Monroe with a flag of truce. The next flag of 
truce that was sent he accompanied, blind still, 
and led by his faithful Geraian Union man. 

" He contrived, unobserved, to tell the Captain 
of the flag party that he was a prisoner, a Union 
officer, and had assumed blindness as a disguise, 
and that he should take him ; but the young of- 
ficer said he could not understand it, and said he 
would inform Gen. "Wool. He did so, and Wool, 
being an old soldier, comprehended the matter at 
once, immediately sending another boat out to 
bring him ; but it was too late, for the rebel ofl[i- 
cer said it w'as not worth while waiting on the 
Yankees, and hastened off". Having lost his Ger- 
man guide. Gen. Huger himself led him (the 
poor old jblind man) with unaffected sympathy, 
to the hotel, and he assured him that he should 
go with the next flag of truce which was sent ; 
and he further took the trouble of writing a spe- 
cial letter to Gen. Wool about the ' old French 
blind man who wanted to go home.' Col. De Vil- 
liers remarked that Gen. Huger evinced true kind- 
ness towards him. 

" With the flag, there were, besides, a number 
of ladies, Avho ' left the South for the purpose of 
going North to do business.' Though he was 
blind, he could see the glances they exchanged ; 
and though old and somewhat deaf, he could hear 
the officers tell the ladies to learn all they could, 
and come back with the information — wishing 
them much success. ' It is surprising what fine 
spies they make ! ' 

" When he got into safe quarters, he threw off" 
his disguise, his decrepitude — saw and was 
strong — observing, without surprise himself, the 
astonishment of the ladies at the change." 



First Experience in Battle. — A Union 
soldier, who was in the battle of Piketon, Ken- 
tucky, gives the following graphic description of 
his sensations during the fight : 

" And now for my share in the battle. I was 
riding along, somewhat carelessly, when crack ! 
crack ! crack ! went their rifles, and down fell our 
men. Crack ! crack ! crack ! they came. Off" I 
jumped from my horse, when along came the Ma- 
jor, and gave me his horse to hold ; but I soon 
hitched them both to a tree down by the river, 
and sprung again up the bank, when whiz ! went 
a bullet past my face, about three inches from it, 
and made me draw back in a hurry, I can assure 
you. I looked up the hill, but could see no one 
for the smoke, which was plenty ; so I levelled in 
the direction of the enemy and fired — loaded 
again and fired. I got my rifle in readiness 
again ! Ah ! that ball was pretty close. Here 
comes another — buzz, buzz — (you can hear their 
whiz for fully a hundi'ed yards as they come) — 



get out of the way. But where is it to go to ? 
Whew ! that was close. But, great God ! it has 
gone through a man's shoulder within a few yards 
of me ! He falls ! some of his comrades pick 
him up. 

" Now a horseman comes past in a hurry. He 
is right opposite me — v.-hen whiz, crack! a ball 
strikes liis horse in the fore-shoulder. Off" tum- 
bles the man ; down falls the horse, stiflfencd out 
and dead. If the bullet had gone through the 
animal, it would doubtless have struck me. 

" Here come a dozen more. How they whiz 
as they go past ! ' Load and fire ! ' ' Load and 
fire ! ' is the order — and load and fire it is. My 
notice was especially drawn to a very fine-look- 
ing man, who stood close to me, and he truly 
acted like a hero — loading and firing just as if 
he was on parade, when whiz ! whiz ! comes a bul- 
let. My God, how close ! It almost stunned me. 
AVhen 1 looked towards my soldier, I saw his 
comrades lifting him up. He was shot through 
the breast, and died in less than half an hour. 
O the horrors of war ! Vengeance on the heads 
of those who initiate it. 

"I directed my attention up the hill; a little 
puff' of smoke was dying away. ' Boys,' says I 
to the squad of his fellows, ' you see that smoke ; 
aim for it ; a rebel 's in its rear.' I raised my En- 
field, and glanced through its sights, when I for 
a moment caught sight of a man through the 
bushes and smoke there. Crack went our guns, 
and all was over. 

" We crossed to the place afterwards, and 
found musket-balls, and one Enfield rifle-ball — 
mine, as mine was the only rifle-ball fii-ed. They 
all went through him, either of which would have 
killed him — mine through his breast. Thank 
God, I have done my duty for the poor fellow 
who fell beside me." 



A Gallant Lieutenant. — During the bat- 
tle near Spottsylvania Court-House, Va., on the 
14th of May, 1864, Maj.-Gen. Wright's brigade 
was ordered to charge the Union works. In do- 
ing so, the Third Georgia regiment passed 
through a heavy fire of minie balls, losing sev- 
enty-eight men in killed and wounded. The 
color-bearer of the regiment, being wounded, 
planted the colors in the ground, and retired to 
the rear. At this moment the skirmish line was 
ordered to halt, which was understood by many 
as an order for the regiment to halt, which they 
did. Perceiving that a crisis was at hand, Lieut. 
R. G. Hyman sprang forward, seized the colors 
from amid a pile of slain, and waving them in the 
face of the foe, called upon the old Third to rally 
to it, which they did, with a yell, and the Yankee 
breastworks M'ere taken. Lieut. Hyman was at 
least fifty yards in advance of the regiment all 
the time. — Folsom's Georgia Becord, 



Capt. Gillingham's Adventure. — On the 
23d of August, 1863, Captain Ned Gillingham, 
of the Thirteenth New York cavalry, with an 



156 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



escort of eight Sergeants, whilst going from camp, 
near Centreville, as bearer of despatches to 
Washington, was met on the road near Allan- 
dale, about two o'clock P. M., by a detachment 
of the Second Massachusetts cavalry, the Ser- 
geant of the latter asking Capt. Gillingham if 
they need apprehend any danger ; to which Capt. 
Gillingham replied : " So far, we have not met 
with any obstruction." Capt. Gillingham had 
scarcely gone over four hundred yards, when he 
was met by a party of Mosby's cavalry, consist- 
ing of about one hundred men, by whom he 
was ordered, under fire, to halt. Capt. Gilling- 
ham, taking them for our own troops, (as they 
were dressed similarly to his own men,) replied: 
" Hold up firing — you are fools — you are foing 
on Government troops ; " to which the Captain of 
said troops replied : " Surrender there, you Yan- 
kee ." Capt. Gillingham replied he could 

not see the joke. Then, turning to Sergeant 
Long, Orderly of company B, and to Sergeant 
Burnham, ordered them to draw their sabres and 
folloAv him. A general conflict ensued, in Avhich 
sabres and pistols were freely used, resulting in 
the Avounding of Orderly Sergeant Long and Ser- 
geant Zeagle, both of company B, who, with foui" 
other Sergeants, were all taken prisoners. Capt. 
Ned Gillingham and Serg. Burnham eff'ected their 
escape, the former having been wounded in the 
arm, and the latter in the hip, as well as having 
their horses shot. Obtaining horses on the road, 
they reached Wasliington about six o'clock P. M. 



THE WOUNDED SOLDIER. 

The following beautiful and touching lines were 
written by Lieiit. John McKee, of company K, 74th 
Ohio regiment, who was accidentally drowned at 
Cincinnati, on his way home : 

Among the pines that overlook 

Stone River's rocky bed, 
Ohio knows full many a son 

There numbered with the dead. 

'Tis hard to die 'mid scenes of strife. 

No friend or kindred near, 
To wipe the death damp from the brow, 

Or shed affection's tear. 

To soothe the sufferer, in his pain, 

With words of holy cheer, 
Or bend the knee, in earnest prayer, 

For the dying volunteer. 

That day, when all along our lines 
Rained showers of shot and shell, 

Thus many a brave young soldier died — 
Thus many a hero fell. 

When night closed o'er this bloody scene. 

Returning o'er the ground, 
I heard the piteous moans of one 

Laid low by mortal wound. 

'Twas by the ford we crossed that day — 
The ground so dearly bought — 

Where Miller led his stalwart men, 
And gallant Moody fought. 



The wounded soldier's cheek was wan, 

And beamless was his eye ; 
I knew before another morn 

The wounded man must die. 

I built a fire of cedar rails, — 
The air was cold and damp, — 

And filled his canteen from the spring, 
Below the river's bank. 

And then I sat me down to ask 

If he would wish to send 
A last request or parting word 

To mother, sister, friend. 

"I have some word," the boy replied, 
" My friends Avould love to hear ; 

'Twould fill my sister's soul with joy. 
My mother's heart would cheer. 

" Tell them I died a soldier's death, 

Upon the battle-field. 
But lived to know the day was ours, 

And see the rebels yield ; — 

"That ere I died their colors fell. 
Their columns broke, and then 

I heard the wild, victorious shouts 
Of Negley's valiant men. 

" But most of all I'd have them know, 

That with my latest breath 
I spoke of Him I loved in life ; 

'Twas joy and peace in death. 

" Tell sister I have read with care — 

For holy ties endeared — 
The Bible mother gave to me 

Before I volunteered. 

"I'm very tired with talking now; 

Please raise my head some higher, 
And fold my blanket closely down. 

And build a larger fire. 

" The air is very cold to-night." 
I raised his head with care ; 

He closed his eyes as if to sleep. 
But clasped his hands in prayer. 

In silent converse with his God 

The wounded hero lay ; 
It seemed to him communion sweet, 

No agony to pray. 

He smiled as does the gentle child 
When angels whisper near ; 

No anguish worked upon his brow, 
Nor blanched his cheek with fear. 

I saw that death was coming fast ; 

His mind was all in prayer ; 
I asked him for his regiment. 

And where his comrades w'ere. 

" My Captain's dead," the boy replied. 

In accents low and mild ; 
" I've heard my mother speak of him 

When I was but a child." 

I knew his mind was wandering, 
That he was thinking then 

Of him who gave his life to save 
His faithful, valiant men. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



157 



And thus he died that stormy night. 

No friend or kindred near 
To wipe the death damp from his brow, 

Or shed affection's tear. 

Thus I have known the love of God 
Joy, peace, and comfort yield 

To one who fell with mortal wound 
On the bloody battle-field. 

And should you wander o'er the ground 

Where fell so many brave, 
Among the cedars on the hill 

There lies his lonely grave. 

The flowers will soon light up with smiles 

Stone River's rocky shore ; 
His spirit knows a brighter clime, 

Where flowers bloom evermore. 

And mild-eyed Peace may visit soon 

Stone River's rocky shore. 
But Murfrees' chiming Sabbath bells 

Will never wake him more. 



Anecdote of Gen. Wyman. — A correspond- 
ent accompanying the Union forces in their march 
from Jefl'erson City to Rolla, Mo., in 1861, relates 
the following : " After leaving camp at Union 
Hollow, a rugged part of the mountains beyond 
Springfield, an incident occurred worthy of pres- 
ervation. Gen. Wyman had issued orders that 
no man should go in advance of his company. 
About five miles from camp the General met two 
of the boys of the Illinois Thirteenth, waiting 
the approach of their company. Those who know 
the General, know, when he does not like any- 
thing, how roughly he can reprimand a soldier. 
The General addressed the boys in one of his 
very roughest styles : 

"'Boys, why are you in advance of your 

company this morning ? ' 

" One of the men, taking off his hat, addressed 
the General in the following style : 

" ' General, about two and a half miles from 
here are the graves of my mother and sisters, 
and I thought it was likely this was the last time 
I should be permitted to visit them, and I got 
permission of the Captain to go this morning to 
visit them, and I am here waiting for them to 
come up.' 

" This was too much for the General. Said 
he, ' My boy, that was right. I have always 
loved you, but that makes me love you twice as 
well as I ever did.' At this point, tears choked 
the words of the noble soldier, and one might 
have seen one whole-souled man weeping under 
the effects of paternal affection. Some time after 
this, they joined our staff, and rode with us, and 
while riding with me, he narrated to me the in- 
cident, and again gave vent to tears. Said he, 
* I am ttot ashamed of tears under such circum- 
stances.' " 

A Thrilling Event. — On Thursday, Sept. 10, 
1863, while General Forrest was at Lafayette, Ga., 
he was ordered to Ringgold for the purpose of 
. checking the enemy, reported to be marching in 



large force in that direction. Picking up about 
four hundred of his command, he marched off 
with all the promptitude of his ardent and enthu- 
siastic nature. Here he found Vancleve's corps, 
consisting of seventeen thousand infantry and 
cavalry. Skirmishing immediately commenced. 
General Forrest fighting them at every step, as 
he slowly fell back. For two days did the un- 
equal conflict continue, and notwithstanding the 
disparity of numbers, the loss on either side was 
about the same. General Forrest retired to 
Tunnel Hill about four o'clock, and in an hour 
the enemy was in sight, when one of the most 
gallant and thrilling incidents of the war occurred. 
'Ihe enemy's advancing column marched on, — 
right on, — and the cloud of dust and the huge 
paraphei'nalia which they displayed made them 
look indeed " terrible as an army with banners." 
On reaching the apex of the hill, a short pause 
was perceptible ; but skirmishers being thrown 
out on the right and left, on they came. In 
every ambush, behind every knoll, and house, 
and tree, could be seen a blue-coat, slyly, cau- 
tiously sneaking up like a hungry wolf in search 
of its prey. General Forrest levelled his trusty 
gun at the nearest one. The smoke from his 
gun seemed only to exasperate the infuriated 
foe, and to inspire them v>ith anxiety either to 
capture or destroy the small but defiant squad 
of Confederates, and for this purpose a hundred 
guns opened upon them, while a dozen Yankees 
rushed across the railroad for the purpose of 
getting still closer. As they crossed the track. 
General Forrest looked still farther up, and he 
saw a couple of Confederate soldiers coming 
down the road, unaware of the approach of the 
enemy, and the immediate danger that surrounded 
them. The impudence of the Yankees that had 
crossed the railroad, and were seen crawling in 
the woods, together with the peril that surrounded 
the two Confederate soldiers approaching, was 
more than General Forrest could stand. Hastily 
calling to his side five of his escort, he told them 
that his imperilled soldiers must be rescued, and 
that the insolent squad that had crossed the road 
must be captured. With coolness and self-pos- 
session, but with a loud and cheering shout, he 
ordered his little squad to the charge. In the 
midst of the iron hail that rained upon them, they 
rushed on. Every man forgot his own danger. 
The soldier stooped over his musket, or leaned 
upon his horse, absorbed in the scene. Dressed 
in a huge duster. General Forrest, as he dashed 
on in his fierce purpose, looked infernal. There 
was a sudden pause ; then their heads were cur- 
tained in by the wreathing smoke of their own 
guns. The Yankees were seen retreating back 
across the road, and the Confederate soldiers 
rescued from death. From the hill-side a volley 
of musketry was now poured upon the small 
squad. Having accomplished their purpose, they 
turned to retreat, but three of the seven were 
wounded. A ball struck General Forrest near 
the spine, within an inch of the wound he re- 
ceived at Shiloh, inflicting a painful but not dan- 
gerous wound ; while two of his escort were 



158 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



wounded — one in the back of the head, the 
other in the arm. — Marietta Rebel. 



Death of a Young Woman on the Battle- 
field OF CiiiCKAMAUGA. — The case of a young 
•woman in Willoughby Street, Brooklyn, brings 
to mind tlie story of the unfortunate Maid of 
Orleans, -who was " burnt by Avicked Bedford for 
a witch." It ■well illustrates the Solomonic proverb 
that " there is nothing new under the sun." The 
superstitions of the days of Joan of Arc still 
flourish. 

Early in 18G3, when disaster everywhere over- 
took the Union arms, and our gallant sons were 
falling fast under that marvellous sword of rebel- 
lion, a young lady, scarce nineteen, just from 
school, conceived the idea that she was destined 
by Providence to lead our arms to victory, and 
our nation through successful war. It was at 
first thought by her parents that her mind was 
weakened simply by reading accounts of con- 
tinued reverses to our arms, and they treated her 
as they would a sick child. This only had the 
effect of making her more demonstrative, and her 
enthusiastic declarations and apparent sincerity 

gave the family great anxiety. Ur. B- was 

consulted, the minister was spoken to, friends 
advised, family meetings held, intervieM's with 
the young lady by her former companions in the 
academy Mere frequent, but nothing could shake 
the feeling which had possessed her. 

It was liually resolved to take her to Michigan. 
A maiden aunt accompanied the fair enthusiast, 
and for a few weeks Ann Arbor became their 
home. The stern command of her aunt alone 
prevented her from making her Avay to Wash- 
ington to solicit an interview with the President 
for the purpose of getting command of the United 
States army. Finally it Avas found necessary to 
restrain her from seeing any but her own family, 
and her private parlor became her prison. To a 
high-spirited girl, this Avould be unendurable at 
any time, but to a young lady filled with such a 
hallucination, it was worse than death. She re- 
solved to elude her friends, and succeeded, leav- 
ing them clandestinely ; and although the most 
distinguished detectives of the East and the West 
were employed to find her whereabouts, it M'as un- 
availing. None could even conjecture the hiding- 
place. This was in April, 1 SG;]. She was mourned 
as lost. The habiUments of mourning were donned 
by her grief-stricken parents, and a suicide's grave 
was assumed to be hers. But it was not so. 
The infatuated gul, finding no sj-mpathy with 
her friends, resolved to enter the army disguised 
as a drummer boy, dreaming, poor girl, that her 
destiny Mould be worked out by such a mode. 
She joined the drum corps of a ■Michigan regi- 
ment at Detroit, her sex known only to herself, 
and succeeded in getting Mith her regiment to 
the army of the Cumberland. Hom' the poor 
girl survived the hardships of the Kentucky 
campaign, uhere strong men fell in numbers, 
must forever remain a mystery. The regiment 
to which she was attached had a place in the 



division of the gallant Van Cleve, and during the 
bloody battle of Sunday, the fair girl fell, pierced 
in the left side by a minie ball ; and Mhen borne 
to the surgeon's tent, her sex M'as discovered. 
She M-as told by the surgeon that her M'ound was 
mortal, and advised to give her name, that her 
family might be informed of her fate. This she 
finally, though reluctantly, consented to do, and 
the Colonel of the regiment, although sufl'ering 
himself from a painful M-ound, became interested 
in her behalf, and prevailed upon her to let him 
send a despatch to her father. This she directed 
in the folloMing manner : 

" Mr. , No — AVilloughby Street, Brook- 

lyn : Forgive your dying daughter. I have but 
a fcM' moments to live. My native soil drinks 
my blood. I expected to deliver my country, but 
the Fates Mould not have it so. I am content to 
die. Pray, jia, forgive me. Tell ma to kiss my 
daguerreotype. Emily. 

" P. S. Give my old M'atch to little Eph." 
(The youngest brother of the dying girl.) 

The poor girl was buried on the field on which 
she fell in the service of her country, which she 
fondly hoped to save. 



THE HERO OF SUGAli PINE. 

' 0, TELL me, Sergeant of Battery U, 

hero of Sugar Pine, 

Some glorious deed of the battle-field, 
Some wonderful feat of thine ; — 

' Some skilful move when the fearful game 

Of battle and life was played 
On yon grimy field, whose broken squares 
In scarlet and black are laid." 

' Ah ! stranger, here at my gun all day 

1 fought till my final round 

Was spent, and I had but powder left. 
And never a shot to be found. 

' So I trained my gun on a rebel piece ; 

So true M-as my range and aim, 
A shot from his cannon entered mine, 
And finished the load of the same ! " 

' Enough ! O Sergeant of Battery B, 

O hero of Sugar Pme ! 
Alas ! I fear that thy cannon's throat 

Can sM-allow much more than mine ! " 



A Thrilling Incident. — A. Z. Reeve, of 
the loMa army, gives the folloMing in a letter 
from Germantown, Tenn., March 12, 1863 : 

'' We have been here about six weeks, protect- 
ing the railroad. Col. Richardson, a rebel guer- 
rilla, has been hovering in the vicinity for some 
time, capturing forage parties and tearing up the 
road M-hencver opportunity offered. When pur- 
sued, he retreats to the SM'amps, and his command, 
dispersing in small squads, generally evade all 
attempts to discover them. To make the matter 
worse, they frequently dress in Federal uniform. 

On the morning of" the 9th of this month, our 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



159 



regiment and the Fourth Illinois cavalry started 
out with a guide for the retreat of the guemllas. 
Before we reached the rebel camp, the Sixth 
Illinois cavalry, with flying artillery attached, 
attacked the rebels from the opposite side, killed 
twenty-five of them, took some prisoners, and 
burned the camp and garrison equipage. In their 
headlong stampede, the rebels came well nigh 
running into our hands. While in hot pursuit, we 
came to the residence of one Piobert C. Forbes, 
who, intrenching himself in the house, commenced 
firing on our flankers as they approached. The 
flankers then charged on the house, effected an 
entrance, and discovered that Forbes had taken 
shelter in an upper chamber. The desperate man 
was called upon to surrender, but refused. He 
had already killed one member of the Fourth 
IlUnois cavalry, and had wounded another. He 
also had received a wound in the right arm, 
which disabled him to such an extent that he 
could not load his gun. His wound was received 
by a shot fired up through the floor. Still the 
desperate man refused to yield. As a last resort 
the house was set on fire. This compelled the 
man to come down, but he still obstinately refused 
to sm-render. He was immediately surrounded 
by the exasperated soldiers, who refrained from 
shooting him on account of the certainty of 
shooting their comrades. Meanwhile the old 
man clubbed his gun, and although his arm was 
badly lacerated and bleeding, he ferociously kept 
the soldiers at bay. At length one of the officers 
ordered the soldiers opposite to him to get away, 
and give him a chance " to shoot the old secession 
scoundrel." 

At these words the gun dropped from the old 
man's hands, and he earnestly inquired : 

" Is it possible ? Have I been fighting Union 
soldiers all this time ? " 

"Of course we are Union men," replied the 
officer. 

" My God ! why didn't I know this before ? " 
said the old man in a voice of agony ; " I am a 
Union man, too. I thought I was fighting Rich- 
ardson's guen'illas ! " 

The soldiers did not believe him at first, but in 
brief time he proved to them beyond all dispute 
that there was no counteifeit Unionism about 
him. He had been an incorruptible patriot dur- 
ing the war. At the outbreak of the rebellion 
he had been arrested by Confederate authority, 
and placed in chains. His crime consisted in 
telling the rebels that they were traitors, and de- 
served hanging. When Gen. Hurlbut passed 
through this part of the country, the old man 
joined him, but came back occasionally to see his 
family. He was on a brief furlough from the Fed- 
eral army when the raid was made on his house. 
Richardson had sworn vengeance against him, 
and he had resolved never to be taken alive. 
Owing to the fact that the guerrillas were in the 
habit of prowling about in Federal uniform, the 
(Jd man was led to mistake our soldiers for rebels. 

The explanation came too late to save the 
house. It was consumed with all its contents. 
There was not a quilt left to defend the mother 



and children from the cold. They had ffed from 
the burning building just in time to save their 
lives. It was a sad spectacle. The old man 
begged to be taken along with us. He told his 
wife to get to the Federal lines as soon as possible. 
A braver and a truer man to his country does 
not exist than Robert C. Forbes. I gave the 
mother and children ten dollars in greenbacks 
and my blankets. The other soldiers contributed 
to relieve the distresses of the family. Many 
sympathizing tears were shed by us all. I have 
not witnessed a scene so affecting since my en- 
listment. 



Yankeeism on the Field. — A correspondent 
gives the following, which, whether exactly true 
or not, is a good story : 

At the battle of the Rappahannock Station, 
after the Fifth Maine had gained possession of 
the works in their front, and were busy taking a 
whole brigade of Johnnies to the rear. Col. Ed- 
wards, who was one of the first to reach the rifle- 
pits, took a few men from company G, and pressed 
on in quest of more prisoners, supposing some 
might be trying to get away in the darkness of 
the night. Following the line of fortifications 
do^^^l towards the river, he saw before him a long 
line of troops in the rifle-pits. Finding that he 
was in a tight fix, he determined to put on a bold 
face. 

" Where is the officer in command of these 
troops ? " demanded the gallant Colonel. 

" Here," answered the Colonel who was com- 
manding the rebel brigade ; " and who are you, 
sir?" 

" My name is Col. Edwards, of the Fifth 
Maine, and I demand of you to surrender your 
command." 

" I will confer with my oflTicers first," replied 
the rebel officer. 

'•' Not a moment will I allow, sir," said Col. 
Edwards. " Don't you see my columns advanc- 
ing ? " (pointing to a large body of men march- 
ing over the hill, but who were rebel prisoners 
being marched to the rear.) " Your forces on 
the right have all been captured, and your retreat 
is cut off; " and as the rebel commander hesi- 
tated, he continued : " Forv.-ard ! Fifth Maine and 
Twenty-first New York ! " 

" I surrender, sir," said the rebel commander, 
quickly. "Will you allow me the courtesy of 
retaining a sword that has never been dishon- 
ored ? " 

" Yes, sir," replied Col. E._, " but I will take the 
swords of those officers," pointing to the Colonels 
by his side. 

They were handed to him. 

" Now order your men to lay down their arms, 
and pass to the rear with this guard." 

They obeyed, and a whole brigade of Louisi- 
anians, the famous Fifth and Sixth Tigers being 
among them, permitted themselves to be disarmed 
and marched to the rear as prisoners of war, by 
Col. Edwards and less than a dozen of his regi- 
ment. 



160 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



A Challenge. — The following is a copy of a 
challenge, which apjiears to have been prepared 
by a member of the Pillow Guards : — 

Memphis, Texn., June 3. 
Pilloio Ouards of Memphis to Prentiss Guards 
of Cairo : 

We have enlisted under the stars and bars of 
the Confederate States for the purpose of defend- 
ing Southern rights and vindicating Southern 
honor. But more especially we have been se- 
lected and sworn in for the purpose of guarding 
the person of our gallant Gen. Pillow. Under- 
standing that you occupy a like position with 
reference to Prentiss, the commandant at Cairo, 
we challenge you to meet us at any time, at any 
place, in any number, and with any arms or equip- 
ments which you may select. We wish to meet 
no others till we have met and conquered you and 
your General. Make your own terms, only let us 
know when and where, and be certain you will meet 
the bravest guard the world has ever known. 

The signatures of the challenging party are omit- 
ted in the copy in possession of your correspondent, 
but on the back is indorsed the following, viz. : 

June 17, 1861. 
Prentiss Guards to Pillow Guards : 

We accept no challenge from traitors, but hang 
them. If we ever meet, you shall suffer the fate 
of traitors. Joseph D. Walkek, 

Captain Company. 



A Brave Exploit. — During the last year of 
the war, Kentucky was infested with roving 
squads of armed men, sometimes calling them- 
selves Confederate cavalry. But in general they 
were little better than robbers, Avho took advan- 
tage of the disorders of the time to ply their ne- 
farious business ; and when called to account, 
would demand the treatment usually given to 
prisoners of war. Many old neighborhood feuds 
were thus revenged, and numerous deeds of blood 
and shame, which were attempted to be explained 
as only the disorders incident to civil war. 

In December, 1864, a small number of Union 
soldiers were stationed at Caseyville, on the Ohio 
River, with instructions to ferret out and punish 
all guerrilla bands infesting the neighborhood. 
Major Shook commanded the force, and about the 
loth of December he sent out Capt. Peck with a 
squad of men to hunt for Lyon, a troublesome 
guerrilla in that region. Three of his men — 
Lieut. Bogard, Serg. Richards, and Corp, Dough- 
tey — rode some two miles in advance of the 
scouting party, and they saw a group of men in 
blue overcoats before them in the road. Riding 
straight up to them, one of the men inquired 
what command they belonged to. Lieut. B. re- 
plied, " To Major Shook's command, at. Casey- 
ville."' Capt. Stedman, in command of the rejjels, 
then ordered the three men to surrender. 

" That's played out," coolly replied Serg. Rich- 
ards ; and drawing his pistol shot Stedman, so 
that he died next morning. Lieut. Bogard and 
Corp. Doughtey then fired on two other men. 



and brought them both to the gi-ound. As Lieut. 
B. was wounded, the Union party now feU back a 
few yards, when the Lieutenant fell from his 
horse. His companions, instead of continuing 
the retreat, now turned their horses and charged 
upon the hostile party, routing them, and bring- 
ing off the bodies of the three who had fallen, . 
The other two besides Stedman proved to be 
George Henry and Capt, Woodfolk. 

Woodfolk and Stedman were both notorious 
guerrillas and daring men — the latter having 
once been employed in the office of the Richmond 
Examiner, and having on his person a large quan- 
tity of Confederate money. 

Woodfolk bad once before been captured, 
brought to Louisville, and condemned to be shot, 
but by some means had made his escape. Besides 
killing these three, the party captured four horses, 
seven pistols, two guns, and seven cavalry equip- 
ments complete. 

Little Johnny Clem. — Of course you re- 
member the story of Little Johnny Clem, the 
motherless atom of a drummer boy, " aged ten," 
who strayed away from Newark, Ohio ; and the 
first we knew of him, though small enough to live 
in a drum, was beating the long roll for the 
Twenty-second Michigan. At Chickamauga he 
filled the office of " marker," carrying the guidon 
whereby they form the lines — a duty having its 
counterpart in the surveyor's more peaceful call- 
ing ; in the flag-man, who flutters the red signal 
along the metes and bounds. On the Sunday of 
the battle, the little felloAv's occupation gone, he 
picked up a gun that had fallen from some dying 
hand, provided himself with ammunition, and be- 
gan putting in the periods quite on his own ac- 
count, blazing away close to the ground, like a 
fire-fly in the grass. Late in the waning day, the 
waif left almost alone in the whirl of the battle, 
a rebel Colonel dashed up, and looking down at 
him, ordered him to surrender. "Surrender!" 
he shouted, " you little d — d son of a — ! " The 
words were hardly out of his mouth, when John- 
ny brought his piece to " order arms," and as his 
hand slipped down to the hammer, he pressed it 
back, swung up the gun to the position of 
" charge bayonet ; " and as the officer raised his 
sabre to strike the piece aside, the glancing bar- 
rel lifted into range, and the proud Colonel tum- 
bled from his horse, his lips fresh-stained with 
the syllable of vile reproach he liad flung on a 
mother's grave in the hearing of her child ! 

A few swift moments ticked on by musket- 
shots, and the tiny gunner was svrept up at a 
rebel swoop, and borne away a prisoner. Sol- 
diers, bigger but not better, were taken with him, 
only to be washed back again by a surge of Fed- 
eral troopers, and the prisoner of tliirty minutes 
was again John Clem " of ours ; " and Gen. Rose- 
crans made him a Sergeant, and the stripes of 
rank covered him all over, like a mouse in a har- 
ness ; and the daughter of Mr. Secretary Chase 
presented him a silver medal, appropriately in- 
scribed, which he worthily wears — a royal order 
of honor — upon his left breast. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



161 



A Singular Incident. — A soldier, writing 
from his camp near Fredericksburg, narrated the 
following, which occurred while he was on picket 
duty with his company : — 

It Avas Christmas day and after partaking of a 
Christmas dinner of salt junk and hard tack, our 
attention was attracted by a rebel picket who 
hailed us from the opposite side of the river. 

" I say, Yank, if a fellow goes over there, will 
you let him come back again 'i " 

Receiving an affirmative answer, he proceeded 
to test the truth of it by paddling himself across 
the river. He, was decidedly the cleanest speci- 
men of a rebel I had seen. In answer to a ques- 
tion, he said he belonged to the Georgia Legion. 
One of our boys remarked, " I met quite a num- 
ber of your boys at South Mountain." 

" Yes, I suppose so — if you were there," said 
the rebel, while his face grew very sad. " AVe 
left many of our boys there. My brother, poor 
Will, was killed there. It was a hot place for a 
while, and we had to leave it in a hurry." 

" That's so, Georgia ,' your fellows fought well 
there, and had all the advantage, but the old Key- 
stone boys were pressing you hard. By the way, 
I have a likeness here (taking it out of his pocket), 
that I picked up on the battle-field the next morn- 
ing, and I have carried it ever since." He hand- 
ed it to the rebel, who, on looking at it pressed it 
to his lips exclaiming, " My mother ! my mother ! " 

He exhibited considerable emotion at the re- 
covery of the picture, but on the recovery of his 
composure he said that his brother had it in his 
possession, and must have lost it in the fight. He 
then asked the name of the one to whom he was 
indebted for the lost likeness of his mother, re- 
marking, " There may be better times soon, and 
we may know each other better." 

He had taken from his pocket a small pocket- 
bible in which to write the address, when Alex 

, who had taken no part in the conversation, 

fairly yelled, " I knov/ that book ; I lost it at Bull 
Run ! " 

" Thar's whar I got it, Mr. Yank," said the reb- 
el, and he handed it to Alex. 

" I am much obliged to you, Georgia Legion ; 
I would not part with it for all the Southern Con- 
federacy." 

I Avas a little curious to know something fur- 
ther of the book, so I asked Alex to let me see It. 
He passed it to me. I opened it, and on the fly- 
leaf was written in a neat hand, " My Christmas 

Gift, to Alex , Dec. 25th, 1860. Ella." 

" Well, Alex," said I, " it'is not often one has the 
same gift presented to him a second time." 

" True, Captain ; and if I could but see the 
giver of that to-day, there's but one other gift I 
would want." 

" What's that, Alex ? " 

" This rebellion played out, and my discharge 
in my pocket." 

The boys had all been busy talking to our reb- 
el friend, who, seeing a horseman approaching in 
the direction of his post, bid us a hasty good-by, 
and made a quick trip across the Rappahannock. 
Night came on, and those not on duty lay down 
11 



on the frozen ground to dream of other Christmas 
nights, when we knew not of war. 



An Incident of Antietam. — D'.iring the 
battle, Corporal William Roach, of Co. K, Eight- 
ty-first Pennsylvania, shot a color-sergeant, ran 
forward of the company, took his cap, and, plac- 
ing it upon the end of his bayonet, twirled it 
about, and cried out to his companions, " That is 
the way to do it," but a member of another compa- 
ny in the meantime had seized the colors and car- 
ried them off in triumph. This act was done un- 
der a heavy fire of musketry, in as cool a manner 
and with as much deliberation, as if the regiment 
had been on parade. 



Fighting at Close Quarters. — At the 
battle of Hanover Court-House, Va., two ser- 
geants met in the woods : each drew his knife, and 
the two bodies were found together, each with a 
knife buried in it to the hilt. Some men had a 
cool way of disposing of prisoners. One, an offi- 
cer of the Massachusetts Ninth, well known in 
Boston as a professor of muscular Christianity, 
better known as " the child of the regiment/' 
while rushing through tlie woods at the head of 
his company, came upon a rebel. Seizing the 
" gray buck " by the collar, he threw him over 
his shoulder with " Pick him up, somebody." A 
little Yankee, marching down by the side of a 
fence which skirted the woods, came upon a strap- 
ping secesh, who attempted to seize and pull him 
over the rails, but the little one had too much 
science. A blow with the butt of a musket lev- 
elled secesh to the ground and made him a pris- 
oner. 



Incidents of Morgan's Raid. — The Morgan 
raid is ended — the great marauder captured and 
safely quartered in the Ohio Penitentiary ; the 
brave militia, who responded so nobly to the gov- 
ernor's call to rally and drive the invaders from 
our soil, have returned to their homes, and the 
narration of adventures is now the order. As 
every incident connected with the raid is of in- 
terest, I propose to relate my experience with the 
raiders, how they looked, and what they said.* 

About an hour before the expedition under 
Colonel Runkle left, I received from Surgeon 
Scott a peremptory order to report forthwith for 
duty on his staff. Reported accordingly at the 
railroad depot, where Dr. Scott was already wait- 
ing with sundry ominous looking mahogany boxes, 
baskets of bandages, lint and other articles neces- 
sary in the care of sick and wounded. For an 
hour we waited at the depot, while in the dim 
starlight, companies and regiments of armed men 
marched and countermarched, forwarded and 
halted, and at last about midnight, all were safe- 
ly stowed away in the cars, and the long train 
moved off amid enthusiastic cheers. 

Arrived at Hamden about two o'clock. From 
* From the "Sciota Gazette." 



162 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



there we could distinctly see the light of the 
burning depot at Jackson — evidence unmistaka- 
ble that we were in the vicinity of " the enemy." 
Our forces, numbering about 2,000, were unload- 
ed and got in marching order, and about daylight 
the column began to move toward Berlin, distant 
six miles, where it was thought the rebels 
would pass on their way east from Jackson. 
Reached a position about half a mile from Berlin 
about six o'clock A. m., when a report was brought 
in that the rebs were still in Jackson, and would 
probably soon be in our vicinity. For a short 
time there was a little excitement along our col- 
umn, but this soon died away, and it grew dull 
and tiresome, lying there by the roadside waiting 
tor something to turn up. An hour passed away, 
and yet no rebels in sight or hearing ; so, borrow- 
ing a couple of horses that our men had " pressed " 
into the service, Dr. J. D. Miller and myself or- 
ganized ourselves into an independent scouting 
party and set out to gather what information we 
could about the enemy. 

The morning was pleasant, the air pure and 
bracing, and the excitement just sufficient to ren- 
der the ride delightful. Learning that a number 
of scouts had gone out on the Jackson road, we 
decided to strike south from Berlin to the road 
leading from Jackson to GaUipolis, which we 
thought it probable the rebels would take. All 
along the road the houses were apparently de- 
serted ; the doors were closed, the window-blinds 
down, and neither man, woman, child nor horse 
was to be seen. At one house we could see, 
through a broken window-pane, the breakfast-ta- 
ble standing with the morning meal apparently 
imtouched. The family had probably heard the 
news of Morgan's approach, and without 
waiting for his appearance had made a precip- 
itate retreat. At another, where all was quiet 
and apparently deserted, on looking back after 
we had passed, we saw a terrified looking face 
peeping timidly out from behind a window-blind. 
The people along that road were evidently en- 
joying a tremendous scare. 

At length we arrived at the little village of 
Winchester, on the road leading from Jackson to 
GaUipolis, and eight miles from the former. It is 
a pretty hard place, and I'll wager an old hat that 
its voters are pretty nearly unanimous for Vallan- 
digham. We had the luck to be mistaken here 
for a couple of Morgan's men, which I can only 
account for from the fact that my companion, Dr. 
J. D. M., is an ardent Vallandighammer. I 
haven't much doubt, however, but that we fared 
better than if we had been known as Union 
scouts. We inquired of a mild-looking old man, 
if he could tell us where we could get something 
to eat. He directed us up the street to a little 
eight-by-ten grocery ; we rode up and found the 
door locked and the windows barred. After sun- 
dry vigorous knocks, we got an answer from the 
proprietor inside, who cautiously unlocked the 
door, when the following colloquy took place : 
" Have you any bread V " 
" No, sir." 
" Any pies ? " 



" No, sir." 
" Any crackers ? " 
" Yes, a few." 
" Any cheese ? " 
" Not a bit." 

" Well, give us some crackers, then ;" and 
with trembling hand he weighed out a pound or 
so, that might have been a part of the stores in 
Noah's ark. In the meanwhile a crowd of a doz- 
en or so of rather variegated specimens of hu- 
manity gathered around, all eager to learn the 
news. We ate our crackers and departed toward 
Jackson, distant eight miles, keeping a sharp look- 
out from every hill-top for the rebels. We met 
one young man who advised us not to go any fur- 
ther on that road ; he had been chased by about 
twenty-five of Morgan's men. 

" How near did tlaey get to you ? " I asked. 
" Within about two miles." 
The young man was evidently a little fright- 
ened. 

We rode on rapidly about a mile further, when 
leaving the main road we made a circuit of 
a mile or so through the fields toward the top of 
a high hill, from which we had been told we could 
see into Jackson. On the hill-side we tied our 
horses to a fence where they were, as we thought 
well concealed by the brier and other bushes. 
Walking up to the top of the hill, we found a num- 
ber of citizens there, eagerly watching the move- 
ments of the rebels, who could be seen from our 
position riding through the streets of the town, 
about a mile distant. In a short time they be- 
gan to move out on the road we had travelled, 
and which passed within half a mile of our posi- 
tion on the hill. Securing the services of a young 
man to carry a dispatch back to Colonel Runkle, 
I left Dr. J. D. and the citizens on the hill, and 
went down to a house by the roadside where 1 
could have a better view of the rebels and see 
how they were mounted, armed, &c. 

I had been there but a few minutes when two 
of the raiders, who were about a quarter of a 
mile in advance of the main body, came along. 
Riding up to where I was standing, they inquired 
the distance to GaUipolis ; what was the nearest 
point to the river ; whether there was any Union 
troops about there, &c. I answered their ques- 
tions so as to leave them rather more in the dark 
than before, and turning questioner asked them 
how many men they had. 

" How many do you think we have ? " 
" There are various reports about your num- 
ber," I rephed. 

" Well, what is your opinion ? " 
" I don't think you have more than four or five 
thousand." 

" Yes, we have over twelve thousand," one of 
them rephed. 

" You haven't half that number," I answered. 
" Well we have enough any how to ride through 
your state without any trouble," said they. 

" You're not through yet," I replied as they 
moved along. 

Shortly the main body came up, and I began 
to count them. They rode along rather slowlyi 



anp:cdotes, poetry, and incidents. 



163 



several of tliem stopping a few minutes to inquire 
about the road, the nearest route to the river, &c, 
but I managed to keep an accurate count until 
about five hundred had passed, while one of them 
rode up with the request : 

" Will you be so good as to bring me a drink 
of water ? " 

He was very polite for a rebel and a horse- 
thief to boot and if it had not been for the 
company he was in would have passed for a 
gentleman. I can't say I liked his polite request, 
but as it was backed by a pair of revolvers and a 
carbine, I concluded that it might be promotive of 
my longevity to comply, so without stopping to 
argue the matter, I merely remarked, 

" Well sir, I don't like to wait on a rebel, but 
as you are a prettj^ good-looking man, I guess I 
can get you a drink." 

Next came a man apparently fifty years of age 
riding in a buggy with a boy not more than four- 
teen or fifteen. " Will you please give me a cup 
of water for my sick boy V " he asked. The boy 
was evidently quite sick. He was leaning heav- 
ily against his father, who supported him as well 
as he could with his left arm. I handed him the 
cup which he took with a trembling hand, thank- 
ing me very kindly for it, his eyes speaking more 
thanks than his lips. He was a fine looking boy, but 
v/hat a training Avas it that he was receiving ! His 
father I could see felt very anxious about his con- 
dition, and to my remark that "that was a hard 
business for a boy, especially a sick one," he re- 
plied, " Yes, and I wish we were out of it." My 
conversation with them was cut short by a fellow 
with a face that ought to have hung him long 
ago, who rode up to the fence and sung out, 
" Here, stranger give me a drink." 
I took another look at his face, and then at 
the pair of revolvers in his belt, and concluded 
that I had better get rid of Jdm as soon as pos- 
sible ; so I gave him a drink and he went on with- 
out so much as saying " Thank you." 

By this time quite a number had gathered 
around the place where I was standing, some 
wanting water, others bread, others pies, or any- 
thing else they could get to eat ; while others ap- 
peared more anxious to learn the nearest road 
to the river. I told them to go to the well and help 
themselves to water, and a number of them 
rode in, while others dismounted, tied their horses 
to the fence and walked in. Their applications 
for food were not very successful ; all they got 
was a cold biscuit and two cold potatoes, — the 
ladies at the house assuring them that they had 
nothing else pi'epared. One of the ladies was 
the mother and the other the wife of Lieut. Col. 
Dove of the Second (Union) Virginia Cavalry. 
Col. D. had returned home wounded, a few days 
before ; but, on hearing of the approach of the 
raiders, had been taken to some place of con- 
cealment. The ladies, of course, were uncon- 
ditional Unionists, and not at all disposed to furnish 
supphes for such a band of rebel marauders. 
One fellow rode up and inquired of Mrs. D. if 



" I'll see if I can't find one," he said, as he rode 
over to the barn on the opposite side of the road. 
He didn't find a saddle, but there was a good 
buggy in the barn, to which he harnessed his 
horse, and driving out into the road, took his 
place in the ranks and went on, apparently very 
well pleased with the change in his mode of 
travelling. 

" What do you think of rebels now ? " inquired 
a rather jolly-looking young man, as they rode by. 

" Rather a hard-looking set," I answered. 
_ " Well, 1 haven't seen a good-looking Yankee, 
since I've been north of the river," he rephed ; 
at Avhicli the squad he was with felt called upon 
to indulge in a laugh. 

Another stoj^ped and dismounted near where 
I was standing to arrange something about his 
saddle. His horse was small, poor and nearly 
worn out. 

" If I got my horses as you do," I remarked to 
him, " I'd ride a better one than that." 

" We can't always get such as we want," said 
he ; " and they don't raise any good horses 
through here." 

Another came riding up on what had been 
one of the finest horses they had — a large and 
elegantly built iron gray — but very much- worn 
down. The rebel said he had ridden him ever 
since they crossed the river — said he wanted a 
fresh horse, and asked if I had one I'd like to 
trade. Told him I didn't know but I had. 
" Where ? " 
" Across there." • 
" How far ? " 

" About forty or fifty miles." 
" I guess I'll not go to-day," he said, as he 
started off. 

I asked another why they didn't go to Chilli- 
cothe the day before ? 

"' AVere they looking for us there ? " 
" I believe some people were." 
" Well, we're going on through two or three 
more States, and we'll call as we return," he 
replied. 

" Provided Hobson isn't in your way^ said. 
" Hobson wont trouble us," "he ansAvei'ed. " All 
we know about him is what we see in the daily 
papers." 

I thought, but didn't say, that it was probable 
they would have the honor of a more intimate 
acquaintance ere many days. 

But enough of what they said. A few words 
about how they looked. 

Personally a majority of them would have 
been fine-looking men, if they had been washed 
and respectably dressed ; but they were cov- 
ered with dust and all looked tired and worn 
down. Many went nodding along half asleep. 
A hundred or more wore veils, most of which 
looked new, and I presume had been talcen from 
the stores in Jackson ; others had handkerchiefs 
over their faces to shield them from the dust. I 
noticed an intelligent looking contraband wear 



ing a fine blue veil, which he raised very grace- 
there was a saddle about the place that he could j fully, as he rode up to a rebel, whom he accosted 
get. She told him there was not. I as " massa." Scarcely any two were dressed 



164 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



alike. Their clothing was made of butternut 
jeans, tweed, cassimere, linen, cloth, and almost 
everything ever used for men's wear. A few — 
perhaps a dozen — wore blue blouses and pants, 
such as are worn by United States soldiers. 

A large number of them had various articles 
of dry goods, — bolts of calico and muslin, pieces 
of silks and satins, cassimeres, and broadcloths, — 
tied on behind their saddles. Some had two or 
three pairs of new boots and shoes hanging about 
them. I don't think the stock of dry goods left 
in Jackson could have been very large or 
varied. 

They were not well armed, as has been re- 
ported. A few had carbines, many had double- 
barrel shot guns, some muskets, a small number 
had revolving rifles, and nearly all had revolving 
pistols. There were not, I think, a dozen sabres 
in the whole division. They had three pieces of 
artillery, — brass six-pounders, — but not a single 
caisson, so that all the ammunition for these must 
have been carried in the boxes of the gun-carriages, 
which would have held but a small supply. 

Their only wagon-train consisted of five light 
two-horse wagons. In four of these they had 
sick men ; in the other, carpet-sacks, valises, a 
few trunks, &c, which I took to be the officers' 
baggage. 

They did not ride in any regular order, but 
two, three, four and sometimes eight abreast, just 
as it happened. The officers wore no badges, or 
an)i;hing that would distinguish them ftom pri- 
vates. The last two men in the division rode up 
to where I was standing, and entered into con- 
versation. One was perhaps twenty years of age, 
the other about twenty-five, and both appeared 
to be intelligent and well-informed. I learned 
from them that their division was under command 
of Col. Bushrod Johnson ; that John Morgan and 
Basil Duke were both with the division that took 
the Berhn road from Jackson (and with which 
our boys fought the famous " battle of Berlin 
Heights.") They admitted that they were very 
tired, but felt confident they could get safely out 
of the State. I told them, in the course of the con- 
versation, that I Avas from Chillicothe, when they 
said they knew some of our citizens, and, naming 
them, inquired if I was acquainted with them. 
Answering in the affirmative, they gave me some 
friendly messages for their Chillicothe friends and 
rode on. The name of the elder was George 
Logan, that of the younger, Lloyd Malone. I did 
not tell them that oncof their friends was a Major 
in one of our militia regiments, and about that 
time was up at Berlin engaging their leader, John 
Morgan. I have since learned that Malone was 
until recently, a strong Unionist, and it was only 
after long continued importunity by his father 
that he was induced to espouse the rebel cause. 

1 think the number of men in that division was 
about 2,500, and comprised something more than 
half of Morgan's entire force. 

As soon as they had all passed, I started up 
the hill, intending to get my horse and ride back 
to head-quarters as speedily as possible and re- 
port to Col. llunkle. I had not gone far when I 



met a badly frightened individual making fast 
time down the hill. I managed to brinjj him to 
a halt, and learned from him that a stpiad of the 
rebels had just passed that way and taken our 
horses, saddles and bridles, leaving in their stead, 
two of their worn-down horses, and one mule, 
but no saddle or bridle. They were-bettcr horse- 
thieves than I gave them credit for being, or they 
never would have found our horses, av/ay up 
there among the brier-bushes. Arriving at the 
top of the hill, I stopped a short time to consider 
" the situation." My companion, J. D. I\L, after 
a liberal application of Jackson county free soil 
to his hands and face, borrowed an old coat and 
an old hat, and thus disguised, ventured, with the 
citizens who had collected on the hill, to go out 
to the roadside at a point half a mile or so be- 
yond the house to which I had gone. I have 
heard, but don't vouch for the truth of the report, 
that the doctor, in oi'der to insure his personal 
safely and conciliate the rebs, assured a number 
of them that he was an ardent Vallandighammer. 

I waited a short time for his return to the place 
we had left our horses, but he did not come, and 
I started alone on my way back to camp. He 
soon afterward returned, however, and secured 
the horses the rebels had left in place of ours, 
went to Jackson, and there got a conveyance to 
head-quarters, where he arrived about ten o'clock 
that night. 

The rebels did not make anything by that 
trade — the horses they lefl, as soon as they 
recover from their fatigue, will be worth more 
than those they took. 

My march back to camp was not a very pleas- 
ant one. To save distance, I took across hills 
and fields and through the woods. The mercury 
must have been about ninety, and those Jackson 
hills are high and steep and rough. I tried at 
several farm-houses to " press " a horse into ser- 
vice, but always found that Morgan's men had 
been there just before me. I heard, as I neared 
Berlin, some exciting stories about the terrific 
" battle of Berlin Heights " — how there had been 
heavy cannonading all day, and how our gallant 
militia had " fought like demons." Arrived at 
head-quarters about four p. m., and made my re- 
port to Col. Runkle, well satisfied with my day's 
scoutinor. 



APOCALYPSE. 

" All hail to the Stars and Stripes ! " 

LUTHER C. LADD.* 

Straight to his heart the bullet crushed, 
Down from his breast the red blood gushed, 
And o'er his face a glory rushed. 

A sudden spasm rent his frame, 

And in his ear there went and came • 

A sound as of devouring flame. 

Which in a moment ceased, and then 
The great light clasped his brows again, 
So that theyshouc like Stephen's, when 

* Killed at Baltimore, Md., April 19, 18C1. 



ANECDOTES, POETIiY, AND INCIDENTS. 



165 



Saul stood apart a little space, 

And shook with shuddering awe to trace 

God's splendors settling o'er his face. 

Thus, like a king, erect in pride, 
Raising his hands to heaven, he cried, 
"All hail the Stars and Stripes ! " and died. 

Died grandly ; but before he fell, 
(O, blessedness ineffable!) 
Vision apocalyptical 

Was granted to him, and his eyes, 
All radiant with glad surprise, 
Looked forward tlirough the centuries, 

And saw the seeds that sages cast 
In the world's soil in cycles past, 
Spring up and blossom at the last ; 

Saw how the souls of men had gi'own, 
And where the scythes of Truth had mown 
Clear space for Liberty's white throne ; 

Saw how, by Sorrow tried and proved. 
The last dark stains had been removed 
Forever from the land he loved ; 

Saw Treason crushed, and freedom crowned, 
And clamorous faction gagged and bound, 
Gasping its life out on tlie ground ; 

While over all his country's slopes 
Walked swarming troops of cheerful hopes. 
Which evermore to broader scopes 

Inci-eascd with power that comprehends 
The world's weal in its own, and bends 
Self-needs to large, unselfish ends. 

Saw how, throughout the vast extents 
Of earth's most populous continents. 
She dropped such rare hsart-affluence. 

That, from beyond the farthest seas. 
The wondering people thronged to seize 
Her proffered pure benignities ; 

And how of all her trebled host 

Of widening empires, none could boast 

Whose strength or love was uppermost. 

Because they grew so equal there 
Beneath the flag, which debonnaire, 
Waved joyous in the golden air : — 

Wherefore the martyr gazing clear 

Beyond the gloomy atmosphere 

Which shuts us in with doubt and fear, — 

He, marking how her high increase 
Ran greatening in perpetual lease 
Through balmy years of odorous Peace 

Greeted in one transcendent cry 

Of intense passionate ecstacy. 

The sight that thrilled him utterly, — 

Saluting with most proud disdain 
Of murder and of mortal pain. 
The vision whicli shall be again ; 

So, lifted with ]")ro])]ietic pride. 

Raised conquering hands to heaven and cried, 

"AH hail the Stars and Stripes," and died. 

Clakexce Butler. 



Mr. Lincoln's Kind-heartedness, — A 

correspondent referring to the second capture by 
the rebels of Benjamin Shultz, a member of the 
eighth New Jersey Eegiment, mentions the fol- 
lowing : — 

An incident connected with Mr. Shultz illus- 
trates the kind-heartedness of Mr. Lincoln. On 
his return from his former imprisonmenc, on 
parole, young Shultz was sent to Camp Parole, 
at Alexandria. Having had no furlough since 
the war, efforts were made, without success, to get 
him_ liberty to pay a brief visit to his friends ; but 
having faith in the warm-heartedness ' of the 
President, the young soldier's widowed mother 
wrote to Mr. Lincoln, stating that he had been 
in nearly every battle fought by the Army of the 
Potomac, liad never asked a furlough ; was now 
a paroled prisoner, and in consequence unable to 
perform active duties ; that two of his brothers 
had also served in the army, and asking that he 
be allowed to visit home, that she might see him 
once more. Her trust in the President was not 
unfounded. He immediately caused a furlough 
to be granted to her son, who, shortly before he 
was exchanged, visited his famUy to their great 
surprise and joy. 



" The Spirit op '76."— The lad — for he was 
but a stripling, thougli he had seen hard service — 
lay stretched out on the seat of the car. Another 
lad, of less than twenty summers, with his arm 
in a sling, came and took a seat behind him, gaz- 
ing upon him with mournful interest. Looking 
up to me, for I was accompanying the sick boy 
to his home, he asked : 

" Is he a soldier ? " 

" Yes." 

" Of what regiment?" 

" The thirteenth Illinois Cavalry. Are you a 
soldier '? " 

"Yes." 

" Where do you belong ? " In the one-hun- 
dred and fifth Regiment of Illinois Volunteers." 

" The one-hundred and fifth Regiment ! That 
sounds well. Illinois is doing nobly." 

" I did belong to the eleventh Illinois Infant- 
ry." 

"Then how came you in the one-hundred and 
fifth ? " 

"I was wounded at the battle of Fort Don- 
elson so that I was pronounced unfit for ser- 
vice and discharged. But I recovered from my 
wound, and when they commenced raising this 
regiment in my neighborhood, I again enlisted. 

Hitherto the sick boy had been perfectly 
still ; now he slowly turned over, looked up with 
glistening eyes, stretched forth his hand with the 
slow movement of a sick man to the top of the 
seat and without saying a word eagerly grasped 
the hand of the new recruit. The patriotism 
that glowed in those vt^an features and prompted 
those slow, tremulous movements, like electricity 
ran through every heart. The twice-enlistcJ 
youth, as soon as he saw his intention, delighted 
at the appreciation and reflection of his own spii-it, 



IGG 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



grasped the outstretched hand, exclaiming " Bully 
for you ! " 

AVords cannot describe the effect upon the pas- 
sengers as they saw those hands clasped in token 
of mutual esteem for love of country; a mutual 
pledge that each was ready to give his life, his 
al], for that country. They felt that the spirit of 
'7G still survived. 



Anecdotes of Stonewall Jackson. — A 
Yankee captain, captured in the battles beyond 
Kicbmond, was brought to some brigadier's head- 
quarters. Being fatigued, he laid down under a 
tree to rest. Pretty soon Gen. Lee and staff 
rode up. The Yankee asked who he was, and 
when told, praised his soldierly appearance in ex- 
travagant terms. Not long after Jackson and 
his staff rode up. When told that that was Jack- 
son, the Y''ankee bounced to his feet in great 
excitement, showing that he was much more 
anxious to see Old Stonewall than Lee. He 
gazed at him a long time. " And that's Stone- 
wall Jackson ? " " Yes." " Waal, I swan he ain't 
much for looks ; " and with that he laid down and 
went to sleep. 

During the same battles, a straggler who had 
built a nice fire in the old field and was enjoying 
it all to himself, observed what he took to be a 
a squad of cavalry. The man in front seemed to 
be reeling in his saddle. The straggler ran out to 
him and said, " Look here, old fellow, you are 
mighty happy. Where do you get your liquor 
from V Give me some, I'm as dry as a powder- 
horn." Imagine his feelings when he found it was 
Jackson — the most ungraceful rider in the army, 
and who naturally sways from side to side. 



The Makriage in Camp. — Six bold rifle- 
men clad in blue, with scarlet doublets over the 
left shoulder, bearing blazing torches ; six glitter- 
ing Zouaves, with brilliant trappings, sparkling 
in tlic light ; and then the hollow square, where 
march the bridegroom and bride ; then seven 
j-ows of six groomsmen in a row, all armed cap-a- 
pie, with burnished weapons, flashing back the 
lustre of the Zouave uniform ; and all around 
the grand regiment darkening the white tent- 
folds, as their ruddy faces are but half disclosed 
between the red and yellow glare of the fires, 
and the soft, silver light of the May-moon. (This 
is all you will bear in mind, out on the broad, 
open air. The encampment occupies a conically- 
shaped hill-top, flanked around the rear crescent 
by a wood of fan-leaved maples sprinkled with 
blossoming dogberries, and looking out at the 
cone upon the river-swards below. The plain is 
full of mounds and ridges, save where it bulges 
in the centre to a circular elevation perfectly flat, 
around which, like fa9ades about a court-yard, 
are arrayed the spiral tents, illuminated in honor 
of the coming nuptials.) The bride is the 
daughter of the regiment ; the to-be-husband a 
favorite sergeant. Marching thus, preceded by 



two files of sixes, and followed by the glittering 
rows of groomsmen, the little cortege has moved 
out of the gi-eat tent on the edge of the circle, 
and comes slowly, amid the bold strains of the 
grand " Mid-summer-Night's Dream," towards 
the regimental chaplain. 

You have seen the colored prints of Jenny 
Lind on the back of the music of " Vive la 
France." You have noted the light-flowing hair, 
the soft Swiss eye, the military bodice, the 
coquettish red skirt, and the pretty buskined 
feet and ankles underneath. The print is not 
unlike the bride. She Avas fair-haii-ed, blue 
eyed, rosy-cheeked, darkened in their hue by 
exposure to the sun, in just the dress worn by 
les Jilles du regiment. She was formed in that 
athletic mould which distinguishes the Amazon 
from her opposite extreme of frailty. You could 
not doubt her capacity to undergo the fatigues 
and hardships of a campaign, but your mind did 
not suggest to your eye those grosser and more 
mascuhne qualities which, whilst girting the 
woman with strength, disrobe her of the purer, 
more effeminate traits of body. You saw before 
you a young gii-1, apparently about eighteen 
years of age, with clear, courageous eye, quiver- 
less lip, and soldierly tread, a veritable daughter 
of the regiment. You have seen Caroline Kich- 
ings and good old Peter (St. Peter !) march over 
the stage as the corporal and la Jille. Well, this 
girl, ban'ing the light flaxen hair, would remind 
you of the latter drilling a squad of grenadiers. 

The bridegroom was of the same sanguine, 
Germanic temperament as the bride. As he 
marched, full six-feet in I'.eight, wilh long, light- 
colored beard, high cheek-bones, aquiline nose, 
piercing, deeply-studded blue eye, bread shoul- 
ders, long arms, sturdy legs, feet and hands of a 
laborious development, cocked hat with blue 
plume, dark blue frock, with bright scarlet 
blanket, tartan fashion over the shoulder, small 
sword, you would have taken him for a hero df 
Sir Walter. Faith, had Sir Walter seen him, he 
himself would have taken him. In default, how- 
ever, of Sir Walter, I make bold to appropriate 
him as a hero on the present occasion. Indeed, 
he was a hero, and looked it, every inch of him, 
leading that self-sacrificing girl up to the regi- 
mental chaplain, with his robe, and surplice, and 
great book, amid the stare of a thousand anxious 
eyes, to the music of glorious old Mendelssohn, 
and the beating of a thousand earnest hearts ! 

The music ceased ; a silence as calm as the 
silent moon held the strange, wild place ; the 
fires seemed to sparkle less noisily in reverence ; 
and a little white cloud paused in its course 
across the sky to look down on the group below ; 
the clear voice of the preacher sounded above 
the suppressed breathing of the sjicctators, and 
the vague burning of the fagot heaps ; a few 
short words, a few heartfelt prayers, the formal 
legal ceremonial and the happy " Amen. " It 
was done. The pair were man and wife. In 
rain or sunshnie,. joy or sorrow, for weal or woe, 
bone of one bone, and flesh of one flcsli, forever 
and ever, amen ! 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



16; 



Splitting the Difference. — As soon as 
the West Virginia State bill passed Congress, Mr. 
Cai'lisle, true to his purpose, went at once to the 
President. 

" Now, Mr. Lincoln," said he, " you must veto 
that bill." 

" Well, said the honest president, with just the 
least bit in the world of humor, "I'll tell you 
what I'll do, I'll split the difference and say noth- 
ing about it." 



Heroic Conduct of Two Ladies. — The 
conduct of two young ladies at Danville, on the 
occasion of the arrival of the rebels at that place 
was equal to Spartan courage. For many 
months a beautiful specimen of the national flag 
had floated from the residence of Mrs. Taylor, 
an estimable widow lady, and when the rebels 
took possession of Danville, it was but natural 
that they should seek to remove the hated em- 
blem. A squad of half-a-dozen men was sent to 
Mrs. Taylor's residence, to take possession of the 
flag, but they were confronted at the door of the 
residence by Miss Maria and Miss Mattie Taylor, 
the two accomplished and charming daughters of 
the patriotic widow, the young ladies announcing 
their determination to defend the cherished ban- 
ner. The chivah'ous half-dozen returned to 
their commander and reported that, it would 
require a force equal to a full company to cap- 
ture the flag, and a company was accordingly 
dispatched to make the capture. Arriving in 
front of Mrs. Taylor's residence, the commander 
of the company demanded the surrender of the 
flag ; but the two young ladies again made their 
appearance, bearing the flag between them, each 
armed with a revolver. In response to the de- 
mand for the flag, the ladies informed their per- 
secutors that they would never surrender it to 
rebels, and, drawing their pistols, vowed that 
they would shoot the first rebel that polluted the 
sacred emblem with his foul touch. The compa- 
ny of rebels retired, leaving the ladies in quiet 
possession of their flag. 



YANKEE VANDALS. 

Air — " Gay and Happy." 

The Northern Abolition vandals, 
Who have come to free the slave, 
Will meet their doom la " Old Virginny,' 
Where they all will get a grave. 



So let the Yankees say what they will, 
We'll love and fight for Dixie still, 
Love and fight for, love and fight for, 
We'll love and fight for Dixie still. 

They started for Manassas Junction, 
With an army full of fight, 
But they caught a Southern tartar, 
And they took a bully flight. 
So let the Yankees, etc. 

' Old Fuss and Feathers " could not save them, 
All their boasting was in vain, 



Before the Southern steel they cowered, 
And their bodies strewed the plain. 
So let the Yankees, etc. 

The " Maryland Line " was there as ever. 
With their battle-shout and blade, 
They shed new lustre on their mother, 
When that final charge they made. 
So let the Yankees, etc. 

Old Abe may make another effort, 
For to take his onward way. 
But his legions then as ever, 
Will be forced to run away. 
So let the Yankees, etc. 

Brave Jeff and glorious Beauregard, 
With dashing Johnston, noble, true. 
Will meet their hireling hosts again, 
And scatter them like morning dew. 
So let the Yankees, etc. 

When the Hessian horde is driven, 
O'er Potomac's classic flood, 
The pulses of a new-born freedom 
Then will stir old Maryland's blood. 
So let the Yankees, etc. 

From the lofty Alleghanies, 
To old Worcester 's sea-washed shore, 
Her sons will come to greet the victors, 
There in good old Baltimore. 
So let the Yankees, etc. 

Then with voices light and gladsome, 
We will swell the choral strain, 
Telhng that our dear old mother. 
Glorious Maryland's free again. 
So let the Yankees, etc. 

Then we'll crown our warrior chieftains. 
Who have led us in the fight, 
And have brought the South in triumph 
Through dread danger's troubled night. 
So let the Yankees, etc. 

And the brave who nobly perished, 
Struggling in the bloody fray. 
We'll weave a wreath of fadeless lam'el, 
For their glorious memory. 
So let the Yankees, etc. 

O'er their graves the southern maidens, 
From sea-shore to mountain grot. 
Will plant the smiling rose of beauty, 
And the sweet forget-me-not. 
So let the Yankees, etc. 



Story of the One- Armed. — A soldier in 
the general hospital at Fredericksburg, a day or 
two after the battle in December, 1862, wrote as 
follows: — Having lost my right arm on last 
Saturday, on that fatal " inchned plane " in front 
of Fredericksburg, I am obliged to employ an 
amanuensis to reUeve my brain, which under the 
stknulus of some reactionary fever, must find^ 
legitimate work, or it will go off into all sorts of 
phantasies, or, perhaps, fall into a melancholy 
mood not at all productive of " healing by first 
intention," as the doctors call a speed}- cure. I 
don't know what I can do better than to set down 



168 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



some of my experiences, -which, I doubt not, are 
unfortunately or fortunately, as the case may be, 
similar to those of hundreds of my fellow-victims. 
It matters not to Avhat particular regiment I be- 
long, seeing that it is a Philadelphia regiment, 
and not altogether unknown to fame. Strange 
as it may seem, my recollections of Saturday, 
until four o'clock in the afternoon, are confused 
and indistinct . I remember well enough of be- 
ing roused before dayhght, from a very profound 
sleep upon the sidewalk in Fredericksburg by the 
sudden boom of cannon, and that, at short in- 
tervals, the firing continued till after sunrise, 
when the crash of small-arms began to betoken 
close quarters, and the air seemed to groan in 
unison as in the agony of an elemental dissolu- 
tion. 

Column after column of marching men went 
past in all the buoyancy of high hope, courage in 
their hearts, and determination in every linea- 
ment of their faces. Following every regiment 
were the litter-bearers, with their ready stretch- 
ers jauntily slung upon their shoulders ; and 
I remember well of calculating in my own mind 
the chances of each man for an exit from the 
fi-ont upon one of those humane inventions. 

By and by the litter-bearers returned, burden- 
ed with mangled, bleeding men, and from the 
great numbers carried off 1 calculated the stub- 
bornness of the resistance to our advance to 
Eichmond. I was not excited ; I was not fear- 
ful ; I was simply apathetic, while awaiting the 
order to advance. At last it came — clear 
and distinct, but not loud, the words came : — 
" Attention, Battalion ! " Instantly the line closed 
with a steady straight front, and every man 
stood erect with suspended breath for the next 
command. Nor did we wait long. " Battalion 
right face, forward, quick, march ! " and we were 
off. 

Forward we went until we cleared the streets 
of the town and arrived opposite the batteries 
on the hill on our left, when at the command, 
" By the left flank, march ! " we changed our 
direction to the front, and faced the fire before 
us, advanced to the lines of the brigade that pre- 
ceded us from' town ; but soon the smoke obscured 
the view of everything, save the flashes of the 
batteries before us, and the sparkle of .the mus- 
ketry in the dim sulphurous twilight of the bat- 
tle, until the receding lines, in faUing back, pro- 
duced a mingled mass of retreating and advanc- 
ing men. " Steady men, — forward ! "' rang out 
the voice of our commander ; and disentangled 
from the retreating fugitives, we steadily bore on 
until we neared the batteries, and with a cheer 
we sprang forward, but that instant a line of fire 
leaped out from behind a stone wall close in our 
front, and — I don't remember anything more 
about it. My next recollections were of a con- 
fused and mixed character ; one moment I would 
seem perfectly conscious of something, the next 
of nothing. Then I would imagine I was at 
home, and half asleep, while all the house was 
astir with some past or anticipated catastrophe 
with which I was in some wav connected. All 



was dark, and a gi-eat load seemed to press me 
down and glue me to the ground In spite of all 
my efforts to rise. 

I could hear voices, but none familiar and but 
one that seemed spoken by human kind, or had 
a human chord of sympathy in it. Then I felt 
something force open my jaws, and some fluid 
trickle into my throat, which I managed to swal- 
low to prevent stranghng, and it still trickled 
down, and I still painfully swallowed, hoping, 
praying that it would stop ; but It did not until 
I recognized that it was some strong spirit that I 
was taking and that I was becoming more able to 
swallow it. All this time I could hear the kind 
voice encouraging me, also some cold unsympa- 
thlzlng voices ; but I could not distinguish what 
they said. Only by the tone could I tell the 
sympathetic from the unsympathetic. At last I 
distinguished the words, in part, of one who said, 
" It's no use working with him. He's dying 
now." Quietly, but oh, so earnestly and sym- 
pathlzingly the kind voice replied, " No, doc- 
tor, he IS not dying ; he is coming to life ; he 
will live if we don't give him up ; this hurt 
of his head wont amount to anjthing if we can 
get him warmed up ; don't you see he has been 
nearly frozen to death, while faint fr-om loss of 
blood;, but he is coming on finely, and by and 
by you can take off his arm, and the man may 
get well. Who knows but he has a mother or a 
sister to love him, and thank you or me some day 
for a son or brother saved." 

Yes, I was saved ; I understood It all now ; I 
remembered the battle and my state, its doubt- 
less consequence, and, for the sake of that dear 
mother and sister so strangely invoked, with an 
effort I succeeded in opening my eyes once more 
to the light of the sun on earth. At first the 
light confused me, but soon I could distinguish 
three surgeons beside me, looking at me with 
some curiosity, if not interest. On the opposite 
side, as I lay on the ground, in a large tent, kneel- 
ed a looman, who, with her left hand, supported 
my head, while with her right she held a spoon, 
with which, at short intervals, she dipped the 
warm fluid from a cup held by a mere boy-sol- 
dier, who seemed her special attendant. 

I tried to speak, but could not, and she merely 
shook her head to discourage my efforts, and, 
turning to her attendant, said : — " Now, Johnny, 
the beef soup," and in a minute the soup was 
substituted for the toddy, and I gi-adually felt 
life and the love of it returning. After further 
eflbrt to look about me, I saw that there was a 
basin of water beside me, with a sponge in it, 
and from the blood on the lady's hands, I inferred 
what I afterwards learned to be the truth, that 
she had been engaged in washing the blood 
from my head and face, when she discovered 
that what had seemed on a superficial view to be 
a most desperate wound of the head, including 
the skull, was but a mere scalp Avound, which 
bled pi'ofusely, and doubtless made a most un- 
l)romising case for surgery at first view — a view 
very tiat'ural Indeed, taking into consideration 
the' state of my stupor. Gradually I i-ecovered 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCmENTS. 



169 



strength, until after sufficient reaction, my shat- 
tered arm was amputated, and I am doing as 
■well as could be expected. I was, it seems, struck 
both in the head and arm by pieces of the same 
projectile, whatever it may have been, and lay 
senseless on the field till late in the night, when 
I was found by some humane litter-bearers, and 
carried to the city; and then, before being 
dressed, was put into an ambulance and carried 
over here, where, among the hundreds similarly 
brought, I was necessarily obliged to await my turn 
and thank God when my turn did come I fell into 
good hands — a woman's hands at that. In that 
place even in the roar and din and carnage of 
battle, was found a woman with a heart to dare 
danger and sympathize with the battle-struck- 
en, and sense and skill and experience enough 
to make her a treasure beyond all price. May the 
choicest blessings of Heaven be hers in all time 
to come ! I have since observed her in her ministra- 
tion s here, and she does indeed, seem gifted in a 
most wonderful degree for scenes like this, or else a 
hard school of sufiering has made her the strange 
womaii she is. To the wounded she is all sym- 
pathy and kindness, but let any one not a patient 
attempt familiarity, even in jest, and her black 
eyes ilash such an indignant rebuke as is hardly 
equalled by her cool cutting rejoinder. , More 
than one shoulder-strapped puppy has had oc- 
casion to rue the time he intruded his remarks 
upon her. I have learned that she has been in 
the army ever since the war broke out, nursing 
the sick and wounded, and " ever in front." Hos- 
pitals in the rear are no place for her. 

Dr. McDonald, of the Seventy-ninth New 
York Volunteers, the Surgeon in charge here, has 
placed her in charge of the supphes and stores, 
and most efficiently does she deal them out. 
Many a " poor wounded soldier " would lack his 
timely stimulant, soup or delicacies, if she did 
not pass through the tents at all hours of the 
day and night, for they say she seldom sleeps. Dr. 
McDonald has known her long as the matron 
of the One Hundredth Pennsylvania, or as it is 
better known the Roundhead Regiment which 
has been in South Carolina with the Seventy- 
ninth New York Regiment, and is still with it 
in the same division and he informs me that, on 
on that fatal day of -Gen. Benham's defeat, on 
James Island, she performed incredible labors 
just as she does here. And yet she has never 
been a ^jaiV/ nurse. She is a member of her 
regiment," she says, and it is only because it 
does not require her services that she works for 
others. 

For all the labors, and privations, and suffer- 
ings of her campaigning life she receives no pay ; 
she draws her rations as. a private soldier, and 
the private soldiers who know her almost wor- 
ship her. 

I overheard one say to-day, that he would 
kill, as he would kill a dog, the man who would 
dare insult her, even in thought ; and I believe it. 
War produces great developments of character, 
and Miss Nellie Isl. Chase is a most notable in- 
stance of it. She is not yet twenty-four years old, 



but in experience as a nurse or hospital matron, on 
the battle-field, I think she has no living equal. 
She may not thank me for this notice of her great 
services : I don't* think she will, for she dislikes 
notoriety, and never mingles m the " society of the 
army," nor permits intimacies nor attentions from 
any but those who have adopted her and protected 
her. But the world has a right to know its he- 
roines, as well as its heroes, and hers is a name 
that must at least be known as widely as that of 
the veteran regiment of which she is a member. 

But gratitude for life preserved, has led me 
from my way, and I return to it to state my fur- 
ther experience of" wounded and in general hos- 
pital," as the next tri-monthly report of my regi- 
ment will have me accounted for. We are 
placed in large " hospital tents," in a secluded 
valley near Falmouth Station, and receive all 
the care and attention that such accommodations 
admit ; but, without doubt a " cold snap " would 
soon " reduce the number of inmates " to less than 
a moiety of their j^resent " muster." 

The brain that would work, or do mischief, 
an hour ago, grows weary now, and I must wait 
another time to tell the further story of the — 

One-Ahmed. 



THE WOODS OF TENNESSEE. 

The whip-poor-will is calling 

From its perch on splintered lirab, 
And the plaintive notes are echoin' 

Through the aisles of the forest dim ; 
The slanting threads of starlight 

Are silvering shrub and tree, 
And the spot where the loved are sleeping. 

In the woods of Tennessee. 

The leaves are gently rustling, 

But they're stained with a tinge of red - 
For they proved to many a soldier 

Their last and lonely bed. 
As they prayed in mortal agony 

To God to set them free, 
Death touched them with his finger 

la the woods of Tennessee. 

In the list of the killed and wounded, 

Ah, me ! alas ! we saw 
The name of our noble brother, 

Who went to the Southern war. 
He fell in the tide of battle 

On the banks of the old " Hatchie," 
And rests 'neath the Avild grape arbors 

In the woods of Tennessee. 

There's many still forms lying 

In their forgotten graves, 
On tlie green slope of the hill-sides. 

Along Potomac's waves ; 
But the memory will be ever sweet 

Of him so dear to me, 
On his country's altar offered, 

In the woods of Tennessee. 



A Battle in the Air. — During the heat 
of the battle of Chickamauga, an owl, alarmed at 
the unusual tempests of sounds, was frightened 



170 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



from liis usual haunts. Two or three crows spied 
him at once, and made pursuit, and a battle en- 
sued. 

The contest was observed by an Irishman of 
the Tenth Tennessee, which was at the time hot- 
ly engaged. Pat ceased firing, dropped the 
breach of his gun to the ground and exclaimed 
in astonishment, " Moses, what a country ! The 
very birds in the air are fighting." 



Reading the Lists. — At the door of the 
Chronicle Office in Washington was a bulletin 
board, on which proof-slips of important tele- 
grams were posted. 

Passing the other day, said a correspondent, 
I found an old man there alone. Tall, erect, 
firm of mouth, tender of eye, nervous of nosti-il, 
of speech quick — he looked fifty or sixty years 
of age, and like a master mechanic. He stood close 
to the board slowly rolling a lead pencil down the 
list of killed and intently following it with his eye. 
He turned as he heard my step. " Young man, 
let me use your eyes a minute." " Certainly, 
sir," I answered. " I've lost my glasses — I've got 
a boy in the army — we first heard he was wound- 
ed and then we heard he was killed — help me." 
He told me the name of the regiment — the twelfth 
New Jersey. I ran down the half column of 
" dead." " Not there," I said. " Ah 1 " — sharp and 
reserved^ but there Avas a long relieving breath 
thereafter. Then I began the columns of " wound- 
ed." Down the first one — down the second one 
— slowly, a little nervously, for I heard the la- 
bored breathing of the firm-mouthed old man 
close at my side, and through his dress and bear- 
ing was looking into his Newark home. Three 
or four inches down the third column I found the 
name. He knew I had found it before I took 
my finger from the paper. " Well ? " — The boy 
is a hero if he is like his father. " In the arm 
and in Judiciary Square Hosi^ital," was my 
answer. I left him at the gate of the square. 
Next day I called at the hospital. The old man 
met mo at the door. " All right ; left arm just 
above the elbow : I've got him a furlough, and 
we go home to-morrow morning." I shall not 
soon forget the proud tone in his voice as he said 
that "allriiiht." 



Man's Life to Himself. —I noticed upon the 
hurricane-deck, said a letter-writer, an elderly 
darkey with a very philosophical and retrospec- 
tive cast of countenance, squatted upon his bundle 
toasting his shins against the chimney, and appar- 
rently plunged in a state of deep meditation. 
Finding upon inquiry that he belonged to the 
Ninth Illinois, one of the most gallantly behaved 
and heavily losing regiments at the Fort Donelson 
battle, and part of which was aboard, I began to 
interrogate him upon the subject. His philoso- 
phy was so much in the Falstafiian vein that I 
will give his views in his own words, as near as 
my memor>- serves me. 

"Were vou in the fi^ht?" 



" Had a little taste of it, sa." 

" Stood your ground, did you ? " 

" No, sa, I runs." 

" Run at the first fire, did you ?" 

" Yes, — sa, and I would have run soona, had I 
knoad it war coming." 

" Why, that wasn't very creditable to your 
courage." 

" Dat isn't in my line, sa -^ cookin's my pro- 
feshun." 

" Well but have you no regard for your repu- 
tation ? " 

" Reputation's nofin by the side of life." 

" Do you consider your life worth more than 
other people's." 

" It's worth more to me sa." 

" Then you must value it very highly ! " 

" Yes, sa, I does — more dan all dis world — 
more dan a million ob dollas sa, for what would 
that be wuth to a man with the bref out of him ? 
Self preserbashum am the first law wid me." 

" But why should you act upon a different rule 
from other men ? " 

" Because different men set different values 
upon dar lives — mine is not in the market." 

" But if you lost it, you would have the satis- 
faction of knowing that you died for your 
country." 

" What satisfaction would dat be to me when 
de power of feelin' was gone ? " 

" Then patriotism and honor are nothing to 
you ? " 

" Nuffin whatever, sa, — I regard them as 
among de vanities." 

" If our soldiers were like you, traitors might 
have broken up the government without resist- 
ance." 

" Yes, sa, dar would have been no help for it. 
I would'nt put my head in de scale, 'gainst no 
gobernment dat eber existed, for no gobernment 
could replace de loss to me." 

" Do you think any of your company would 
have missed you if you had been killed ? " 

" May be not, sa — a dead white man ain't 
much to dese sogers, let lone a dead nigga — but 
I'd a miss myself, and dat was de pint wid me." 

It is safe to say that the dusky corpse of that 
African will never darken the field of carnage. 



Incident of Antietam. — In a small clump 
of woods near the battle field, the body of a dead 
Union soldier in a pai'tially upright position, was 
found resting against a tree. 

The expression of the man's countenance was 
perfectly natural — in fact he appeared as if he 
was only asleep. Alongside of him was an old 
and worn Bible, which the poor fellow, knowing 
his time had come, was reading, and in this way, 
a soldier and Chi'istian he died ; and now, with 
thousands of others, his grave is unknown. 



Soldier Morals. — General Sherman seemed 
to understand that a " hungry soldier has no 
morale or morals ;" for when he caught a lad in 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



171 



blue in his wagon one night abstracting there- 
i'rom a large sugar-cured ham, he asked him 
kindly and without show of anger, " Have you 
no meat ? " " None," said the soldier ; " the regi- 
ment is one day behind on rations, and the com- 
missary doesn't want to make extra issues." 
" Take the ham then," said Sherman as he re- 
sumed his cigar, " and whenever you need any 
more come to me and ask for them." 



THE MEETING ON THE BORDEE. 

The civil war had just begun, 

And caused much consternation, 
"While O. P. Morton governed one 

Great State of this great nation, 
So it did. 

Magoffin governed old Kentuck, 

And Dennison Ohio ; 
And no three humans had more pluck 

Than this puissant trio, 

So they hadn't. 

Magoffin was the leading man : 

He telegraphed to Perry, 
And writ, by post, to Dennison, 

To meet him in a huriy, 

So he did. 

And Dennison and Morton too, 

Believed they had good reason 
To fear Magoffin sought to do 

Some hellish act of treason. 

So they did. 

But they concluded it was best 

To do as he demanded, 
So they would have a chance to test 

The question, " Is he candid ? " 

So they did. 

And Morton, with some trusty chaps, 

Went up to see " Megaffin ; " 
At 6 A. 51. they took their traps. 

And off they went a-puffin'. 

So they did. 

Magoffin 4 a. m. did fix, 

By post and by the wire ; 
But when the hour had come — why nix 

Comehraus was he — Beriah, 

So he was. 

And then could you have heard them swear ! 

Them chaps along with Perry ; 
They cussed, and stamped, and pulled their hair, 

For they were angry — very, 

So they were. 

And when they found that they were sold. 

And saw no chance for fighting. 
They took a train that they controlled. 

And home they went a-kiting. 

So they did. 

At 2 A. M. the scamp did come. 

But didn't let them know it ; 
And so, at three, they started home, 

And when they start, they "go it," 
So they do. 



No matter what they find to do, 
'Tis done with all their power ; 

What other men will do in two. 
They'll do in just one hour. 

So they will. 

And now if they could mix his " todd," 
They'd put some pizcn stuff in, 

And serve their country and their God, 
By kilUng off "Meguffin," 

So they would. 

And serve the devil, too, as well. 

By sending him, a traitor. 
To roast eternally in hell, 

As Pat would roast a tater. 

So they would. 

Just give them chaps a half a chance — 

Let them but lay a hand on 
A traitor, and he'll have to dance, 

With atmosphere to stand on, 
So he will. 

But those who love old Uncle Sam, 
Thet love and in their greeting 

They show it, and in every palm. 
You feel the heart a beating. 

So you do. 

For patriots are brothers all — 

Alike our flag they cherish ; 
With it, aloft, they bear the scroll ; 

" Let every traitor perish," 

So they do. 

Stonewall Jackson. — Thomas Jefferson 
Jackson was a psychological event. With him it 
was but one splendid leap from bed to battery, 
from the stagnations of a sickly fancy to the in- 
spirations of a robust and exclusive feme. The 
energies that slept in the sluggish, dull cadet — 
in the uninteresting, morose professor, — the 
querulous, tedious hypochondriac — the formal 
and severe elder — the odd and awkward man — 
not walking, " only getting along," and talking to 
himself — awoke with a bound of joy at the call 
of the trumpets, at the waving of the banners, 
once more to exult with the bayonets, as at Con- 
treras; among the batteries, as at Cherubusco 
and Chepultepec. Nor any the less ready, if the 
trumpet were the trumpet of the Spirit, and the 
banner the banner of the Lord. The modern 
covenanter, who, debating all day, and praying 
all night, dashed into the smoke of the argument 
with his loyal father-in-law, to convert him to se- 
cession, and the inspired rebel, who, praj-ing all 
night, and fighting all day, repelled, rocklike, 
the shock of the Union charge at Bull Run, were 
the same — and both were most like that Richard 
Cameron, who cried, three times above the din and 
dust of his last fight, " Lord, spare the green and 
take the ripe ! " — that Richard Cameron, imder 
whose head, as placid as John the Baptist's, and as 
bloody — under whose reeking hands, no more to 
fight with Bible or with sword, some admiring en- 
emy had inscribed, " Here hang the remains of 
one who hved praying and preaching, and died 
praying and fighting ! " And so of the man, Avho, 



172 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



praj'ing, smote Shields at Cross Keys and Port 
Republic, taking revenge for Winchester; who, 
praying, drove Banks pell-mell out of the Valley 
and across the Potomac ; who, praying, stormed 
Harper's Ferry with a feu d'enfer ; and, still 
watching and praying, thundered in our rear at 
Richmond and Bull Run the second, at Freder- 
icksburg and Chancellorsville. Of this muscular 
Christian his admiring foes competed in phraseol- 
ogies of generous praise, " forgetting his fatal er- 
ror to applaud the greatness of his soul." They 
recounted with genial iteration the separate vir- 
tues of the man — his courage, his patience, his 
sincerity, his devotion, his singleness of purpose, 
his self-abnegation, his just obedience, and his 
faith in God ; of the Christian, the simplicity of 
his every word and act, liis perfect truthfulness, 
his mildness and his mercy, his religious enthusi- 
asm, his continual prayerfulness, his almost super- 
stitious observance of the Sabbath, his iron rule 
of duty, and " first, last, and all the time," his 
faith in God ; of the soldier, his intrepidity, his 
modesty, his magnanimity. Ills fury in the fight, 
and his generosity in victory, his stable bearing 
in reverse, his tenderness toward his own wounded 
and the wounded of the enemy — how he shared 
the privations of his men, setting them examples of 
endurance and devotion ; his calmness " among 
the shrieking shells and the death-lights of the 
battle ; " the absolute fearlessness of hisdemeanor, 
as of one who knew what his men hoped, that the 
Almighty would not sound his recall until his 
work'was done; of the General — his celerity, 
his ubiquit)-, his momentum, his forced marches, 
his " thundering in the rear," his indomitable 
will,Jthe magic of his personal influence, and " how 
his cause did hang upon his heart." We have 
been told (still by his enemies), of his splendid 
oi-jginality, his military genius, as bold as it was 
modest. " Every time we have been seriously 
threatened," writes a loyal chaplain, " he did it 
— no one else has done it. The first time I saw 
his face my heart sank within me. His moral 
brain is grand." 

We have heard on every hand that the men 
idohzed him, not so much for what he did, as for 
how he did it. He thought as little of the glory 
as of the danger, and his impulse sprang less from 
patriotism than from piety. An eminent North- 
ern divine, a representative man in the ranks of 
the rebel enemies, has defined Jackson's motive 
as a " solemn feeling of obligation to his Maker who 
he thought had called him to this mission." He 
was sublimely impersonal — incapable of pride, 
insensible to praise, unconscious of criticism — 
" serving God," as he supposed, and going straight 
on. The applause that took the form of cheers 
embarrassed him absurdly; and when the cap- 
tured garrison at Harper's Ferry greeted him with 
that spontaneous burst with which the heart of 
the true soldier salutes the soldier of true heart, 
his confusion was only exceeded by his surprise. 
He afterward expressed to his prisoners his 
sense of the extraordinary compUment in the elo- 
quent language of double rations. 

His religious character, and in equal degree with 



his military qualities, impressed itself upon hig 
command ; not an officer or private of the old 
Stonewall Brigade but shut down " the soldier's 
safety-valve" (as some rough definer has styled 
hard swearing) within the hearing of his Gen- 
eral. His supplication before battle to the God 
of battles, for inspiration and strength — his 
thanks, when the day was won or lost, for victory 
or preservation ; his " camp-meetings " among 
his men ; the almost invariable formula with 
which he introduced his brief and plain dis- 
patches, " By the blessing of Almighty God we 
have had a success," — these were traits not less 
characteristic of this rebel General Jackson than 
the famous "By the Eternal!" of his loyal 
and self-sufficient namesake. So likewise, were 
the " Very good, very good — it's all right ! " 
with which he received his death-warrant from 
the lips of his agonized wife : and, before that, 
his, " Don't tell the troops I'm wounded." That 
must have been a touching smile with which in 
his dying hour he indulged himself for once, in 
a comrade-like expression of a soldier's satisfac- 
tion, '' The men who may live through this war 
will be proud to say, ' I was one of the Stone- 
wall Brigade ! ' " 

And apropos of " Stonewall." A coiTCspon- 
dent, over the signature of " Altamont," contrib- 
uted to The Tribune a sketch of the vigorous 
rebel, in some respects fresher and fuller than 
any that had appeared before, and therein his 
soubriquet was traced back, not to the stone 
bridge at Bull Run, nor to the " There stands 
Jackson like a stone wall," of Gen. Bee, or to the 
stone fences of Winchester Heights ; but to Jack- 
son's original " Stonewall Brigade," so called be- 
cause principally recruited in a stone-wall coun- 
try — the valley counties of Jeflferson, Clarke, 
Frederick, Page, and Warren ; and the writer 
showed that the brigade had borne this name be- 
fore the fii'st battle of Bull Run, and of course 
before the affair of Winchester Heights, and that 
the brigade had lent its name to its stout leader, 
not derived it from him. Since his death this 
sketch has been reproduced in many papers, but 
the light it threw on the " Stonewall " question 
has been everywhere ignored; nevertheless, 
Stonewall Jackson, in his last hours, was careful 
to explain to some members of his staff who hung 
upon his parting words, that the honorable title 
belonged to his men, not to him ; it was not per- 
sonal and figurative like " Old Hickory," as the 
newspapers persist in making it— but the local de- 
signation of a corps. 

The Rebels say he was a " fearful loss ; " that 
they would have given Richmond for him, even 
their victories of Chancellorsville and the AVilder- 
ness ; but that his woi-k was done. " He helped 
to build a nation, and all that now remains to do 
is to dedicate it to God and to honor." So in 
Richmond he lay in state, wrapped in the new 
" National flag," that on the morrow was given, for 
the first time, to the breeze over the " National 
Capitol." That same flag was afterward present- 
ed to his wife by the " President of the Confed- 
erate States of Amei'ica." ' 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



173 



The personal peculiarities of Jackson were all 
on the side of modesty. We have all heard or 
read, again and again, how he shunned observa- 
tion, and how difficult it was for a stranger to sin- 
gle him out from among his men by his appear- 
ance or his manner, for his appearance was far 
from imposing, and his manner that of a plain 
man minding his own business. On horseback, 
he by no means looked the hero of a tableau. 
On his earlier fields and marches he had been 
blessed with a " charger" that happily resembled 
its rider—" a plain horse, that went straight 
ahead, and minded its own business; but one 
day it got shot under him, and then his friends 
presented him with a more ornamental beast, a 
mare that took on airs, and threw him ; so he 
exchanged her, in disgust, for a less visionary 
and artistic quadruped — still a horse, but never 
such a congenial spirit as that original " Ole 
VIrglnny " of his, that never tired, and whose ev- 
erlasting long-legged, swinging walk was the very 
thing to make marches with. " He's in the saddle 
now," sang those limber rebels, from the song of 
their corps : 

" He's in the saddle now ! fall in ! 

Steady the whole brigade ! 
Hill's at the ford, cut off ; we'll win 

His way out, ball and blade. 
What matter if our shoes are worn ? 

What matter if our feet aro torn 1 
Quick step ! We're with him before morn ! 

That's Stonewall Jackson's way." 

Jackson had never seen his home since the 
war broke out ; nor would he, he declared, until 
it was over — " unless the war itself should take 
him thither." He firmly declined the luxury of 
" hospitable mansions " along the line of his march ; 
nor after his occupation of Winchester could he, 
without much difficulty, be induced to pass a 
night in the house of any old friend in Frederick, 
Clarke, or Jefferson. He preferred to sleep 
among his men. It was one of these valley 
friends of his who miscarried so absurdly in an 
attempt to cajole him out of his Imperturbable reti- 
cence. The gentleman, at whose house Jackson 
had been induced to make a brief visit in joass- 
ing, was eagerly curious to learn what the next 
movement of the ubiquitous rebel would be; 
so he boldly claimed his confidence on the score 
of ancient friendship. After a few minutes of 
well-affected concern and reflection the grim 
joker button-holed his bore. " My stanch old 
friend," said, he with mysterious deliberation, 
" can — you — keep — a secret V " 

" Ah, General ! " 

" So can I." 

The love and admiration he at all times 
evinced for Lee resembled the devotion with which 
Turner Ashby had followed him. Replying to 
the remarks of a friend about his own peculiar 
military ideas and habits, and his proneness " to 
do his marching and fighting his own way," he 
said " We are blessed with at least one General 
whom I would cheerfully follow blindfold, whose 
most dubious strategy I would execute without 



question or hesitation, and that General Is Robert 
E. Lee." The anecdote is authentic. But 
Jackson had the sagacity to perceive very early 
that his military genius was essentially local and 
partisan — that it was as an executive officer ex- 
clusively that he was remarkable — and that 
kaleidoscopic and subtle combinations must be 
left to the Lees and Johnstons of the Rebel army. 
When the question of Secession, Union, or 
" Armed Neutrality, " went before the people of 
Virginia, Stonewall Jackson voted the Union 
ticket; but when the State went out he went 
out with her. From first to last he had no pa- 
tience (if such a phrase can be true of such a 
man) with the intemperate expressions of bitter 
sectional hate that continually affronted his ear ; 
and he was blunt In his admonition to the women 
of Winchester — when he again left the checkered 
fortunes of that town to our advancing troops — 
" not to forget themselves." " My child, " he 
would say to some Immoderate rebel in crinoline, 
" you and I have no right to our hates ; personal 
rancor is the lowest expression of patriotism and 
a sin beside. We must leave these things to God." 
Immediately on the heels of the battle of An- 
tletam, and almost within gun-shot of McClellan's 
100,000 men, Stonewall Jackson with a force 
not exceeding 7,000, destroyed thirty miles of 
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad track, from seven 
miles west of Harper's Ferry to the North Moun- 
tain. He actually obHterated the road, so that 
when the road-masters with their gangs went to 
work to restore it, it was only by the charred and 
twisted debris that the track could be traced. 
Every tie was burned, every rail bent — nothing 
remained to be done but to cart off the bare bal- 
last. The General took off his coat, and, with a 
cross-tie for a fulcrum and a rail for a lever, 
helped to demolish the " permanent way ;" and 
with his own hands he assisted in bending the 
heated rails around the trunks of trees- 
All this while McCIellan, with his splendid 
army, lay all around him, and might, with but a 
small show of energy, and less of strategy, have 
brought the guns that were yet warm from An- 
tietam to bear on the slouched hat of the re- 
nowned rebel as he was in the act of prying out 
his first rail ; nor was Jackson at any time more 
than fifteen miles off from our little Napoleon. 

When we reflect that Gen. McCIellan had 
been a practical railroad man, that the dust of 
the track was yet on his boots, and that of all our 
generals he should have had the most lively 
appreciation of the vital importance of such a 
gi-eat military thorough-fare as the Baltimore and 
Ohio Road to the plans of the Government, and 
to the operations of his own army ; when we 
recollect with what force and importunity he had 
urged these considerations upon the War Depart- 
ment, we can only wonder why he left Jackson 
to the undisturbed enjoyment of his railroad ex- 
ercises. Was it lack of energy merely ? 

Though in no respect a railroad man, neither 
practically nor theoretically, Jackson's attentions 
to the Baltimore and Ohio line were unremitting 
and full of solicitude — so muc»h so, that when, on 



m 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



the occasion I have just recalled, the task of rail- 
stripping and twisting, and the burning was done, 
he walked over the whole thirty miles of his work 
to see that it was good. He looked upon that 
road with the eye of military genius, and the 
great part it must play in the wai'like machinery 
of the Government was plain to him ; therefore 
he took more pains to destroy it once, than Gen. 
IMcClellan had taken to save it from many as- 
saults ; and but for the Jacksonian sagacity, and 
energy that from the beginning of the war has 
presided over the very life of the road, to guard 
and guide it, the valor of the rebel must have 
triumphed. 

An intelligent Union chaplain has said, " if 
any man whom this war has developed resembles 
Napoleon, it is Stonewall Jackson." Bating the 
qualified exaggeration of the remark it is not 
without reason. Like Napoleon, Jackson had 
daring originality, and like him he taught his 
enemy that if they would beat him they must 
imitate him. I He adopted and adapted in thel 
liast the whole system of raid which Morgan had! 
made so redoubtable in the West!;' ami 'iTol only 
the Stuarts, Mosebys, Imbodens, Jenkinses, Jones- 
es and Wilders, are of his making, but in a cer- 
tain sense the Stouemans, Griersons, Kilpatricks, 
and Davises also. 



Homespun Dress. — The accompanjang 
song was taken from a letter of a Southern girl 
to her lover in Lee's army, which letter was obtain- 
ed fi'om a mail captured on Sherman's march 
through Northern Alabama. The materials of 
which the dress alluded to is made are of cotton and 
wool, and woven on the hand-loom, so commonly 
seen in the houses at the South. The scrap of a 
dress, enclosed in the letter as a sample, was of 
a gray color with a stripe of crimson and green 
— quite pi-etty and creditable to the lady who 
made it. 

The lines are not a false indication of the uni- 
versal sentiment of the women of the South, who 
by the encouragement they have extended to the 
soldiers and the sacrifices they have made, have 
exercised an influence which has proved of the 
greatest importance to the rebels, and have shown 
what can be accomplished by united effort on 
the part of the gentle sex. 

HOMESPUN DRESS. 

Air — " Bonny Blue Flag." 

Oh yes ! I am a Southern girl, and glory in the 

name, 
And boast it with far greater pride than glittering 

wealth or fame ; 
I envy not the Northern girl her robes of beauty 

rare, 
Though diamonds deck her snowy neck and pearls 

bedeck her hair. 
Chords — Hurrah ! liurrah ! for the Sunny South 
so dear, 
Three clicers for the homespun dress the 
Southern ladies wear. 



This homespun dress is plain, I know, my hat's pal- 
metto too, 

But then it shows what Southern girls for Southern 
rights will do — 

We scorn to wear a dress of silk, a bit of Northern 
lace. 

We make our homespun dresses up and wear them 
with much grace. 

Chorus — Hurrah ! etc. 

Now Northern goods are out of date, and since Old 
Abe's blockade. 

We Southern girls are quite content with goods our- 
selves have made — 

We sent the brave from out our land to battle with 
the foe, 

And we will lend a helping hand — we love the 
South you know. 

Chorus — HuiTah! etc. 

Our land it is a glorious land, and ours a glorious 

cause. 
Then, three cheers for the homespun dress and for 

the Southern boys ; 
We sent our sweethearts to the war, but, dear girls, 

never mind, 
The soldier never will forget the girl he left behind. 
Chorus — Hun-ah ! etc. 

A soldier is the lad for me — a brave heart I adore. 

And when the Sunny South is free, and fighting is 
no more, 

I then will choose a lover brave from out that glori- 
ous band, 

The soldier-boy that I love best shall have my heart 
and hand. 

Chorus — Hurrah ! etc. 

And now, young men, a word to you, if you would 

win the fair. 
Go to the field where honor calls, and win your ladies 

there ; 
Remember that our brightest smiles are for the tme 

and brave, 
And that our tears are for the one that fills a soldier's 

grave. 
Chorus — Hurrah, etc. 



George Morse, the North Woods Guide. 
— George Morse, the well known North Woods 
Guide, was killed in the terrible battle near the 
James river. Born in the woods, he was never 
contented out of them. Although friends, who 
appreciated his good qualities, often tried to in- 
duce him to change his mode of life, and to ap- 
ply himself to some of the ordinary pursuits of 
civilization, he could never long keep away from 
the woods and waters of our Northern wilderness. 
He was lost in towns, while he knew every river 
and mountain and lake of the vast forest reach- 
ing from the Mohawk to the St. Lawrence. He 
was our beau ideal of a woodsman — of exhaust- 
less endurance — with an eye like the eagle's — 
equally fearless and gentle — proud of his wife 
and children — temperate in all things and the 
best shot in the state. As a guide, he was inval- 
uable — quiet, attentive, unobtrusive and kind- 
hearted — anticipating every want — always watch- 
ful and never at fiiult. " We ne'er shall look 
upon his like again." 

He was an enthusiastic lover of the Union, and 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



175 



joined the Herkimer regiment (the Thirty-fourth); 
soon after it took the field. His habits of life 
rendered him invaluable as a scout, and he was 
employed as such whenever unusual skill was 
necessary to accomplish the result desired. His 
adventures while thus employed, would fill a vol- 
ume. Scores of rebels were made to bite the 
dust by his trusty rifle. And yet cruelty consti- 
tuted no part of his composition. As an illustra- 
tion : While scouting near Ball's Bluff, on the 
Potomac, he approached to within a few yards of 
the dwelling of a rebel spy, who, with his wife, 
was at the moment drinking tea near the open 
door of the house, which was surrounded by reb- 
el troops. The capture or death of the spy was 
an ambition with him. Nothing laid so near his 
heart; (for he had caused the death of two 
Union scouts a few days before) and he was 
buoyant with exultation when he had him thus 
within short range. But the wife sat in a di- 
rect line of her husband, and it was impossible 
to shoot the one without hitting the other. The 
temptation was very great, but George Morse 
could not peril the life of a woman even to kill 
a spy; and, heavy-hearted, he retired, trusting 
to the chances of another day. 

With the best intentions in the world, he 
could never tie himself down to camp life or 
to the soldier's drill. His colonel knew this, 
and making him a sergeant, allowed him to do 
as he pleased ; and the whole regiment acqui- 
esced. As a reward they were often feasted 
upon rebel spoils, gathered by our lamented 
friend as an amusement. It was an almost ev- 
ery-day occurrence to see him marching into 
camp with eatable burthens, heavy as himself, 
upon his shoulders ; and when any sick soldier 
coveted some delicacy unattainable in camp it 
was only necessary to " tell George Morse " to en- 
sure it. 

Those who knew him can fancy his effi- 
ciency in battle. He never fought in the ranks. 
He was own captain and general. He never 
wasted powder or ball ; and every other man 
in the army may have been fatigued, but he 
was not. We can imagine him in the retreat, 
leaping or crawling, from tree to ti-ee, within 
short range of the enemy's advance, loading and 
firing with the rapidity of lightning, but with 
the red man's caution, and bringing down his 
game at every shot. When he fell, one of the 
most effective men in that entire host of heroes 
fell ; and tears will be shed in forest huts and 
in city palaces when it Is announced that George 
Morse is dead. 



Indian Strategy. — One of the Fourteenth 
New York Artillery — a Seneca Indian, under- 
took on a wager, to bring In alive a rebel sharp- 
shooter who was perched in a tree in front of 
the Union lines at Petersburg, considerably in 
advance of his own. His manner of accomplish- 
ing this was as ingenious as successful. Procuring 
a quantity of pine boughs, he enveloped himself 
with them from head to foot, attaching them se- 



curely to a branch, which he lashed lengthwise of 
his body. When completed, he was indistinguish- 
able to a casual observer from the surrounding 
foliage, and resembled a tree as closely as it was 
possible for his really artistic efforts to render 
him. Thus prepared, and with musket in hand, 
concealed likewise, he stole by almost impercep- 
tible movements to beneath the tree where the 
sharpshooter was lodged. Here he patiently 
waited until his prey had emptied his piece at 
one of our men, when he suddenly brought his 
musket to bear on the " reb, " giving him no time 
to reload. The sharpshooter was taken at a dis- 
advantage. To the demand to come down he 
readily assented, when the Indian triumphantly 
marched him a prisoner into camp and won his 



Incident of Stuegis's Expedition. — The 
main body of Sturgis's command halted at Salem, 
and a detachment of 300 men were sent out to 
reconnoitre the road to Kipley, a little town 
about twenty miles south-west of Corinth, Miss. 
When within a few miles of that place the ad- 
vance guard of the detachment came upon and 
captured a squad of half-a-dozen rebel cavalry 
without firing a gun. As is customary, the pris- 
oners were closely examined with a view to elicit- 
ing such Information of the enemy's whereabouts 
and intentions as they might be able to give. 

A gaunt, stringy-haired man, who seemed to 
be the leader of the rebel party, was conducted 
to the officer in command of our advance. 

" What regiment do you belong to ? " asked 
the officer. 

"I wont tell," was the pointed reply of the 
rebel. 

" How far is it to Ripley ? " was the next ques- 
tion. " 

" Don't know," answered the man, sullenly. 

" Who is your commander ? " 

" Wont tell. " 

" How far offis the command to which you be- 
long ? " still inquired the persevering Federal, 
pretending not to notice the crusty demeanor of 
his prisoner. 

Here the rebel informed him, in terms that 
would not be altogether comely in print, that he 
would see him in a much hotter region than 
Mississippi before he would tell him anything 
at all. 

"Very well," said the officer, drawing and 
cocking a revolver ; " I will send you there to 
wait for me." 

" You may shoot me if you want to, " said the 
plucky Confederate, " but you will be sorry 
for it." 

" Why ? " 

" Because there is a hundred men over yonder 
in the woods, and if they hear you shoot they 
will come up and murder every man of you." 

" "Well," said the officer, " since you have told 
me just what I wanted to find out, I guess I 
won't shoot you ; " and in thirty minutes the 
whole hundred men were prisoners also. 



176 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



An Incident in the Cars. — In a car on 
a railroad wbich runs into New York, a scene oc- 
curred ■which will never be forgotten by the wit- 
nesses of it. A person dressed as a gentleman, 
speaking to a friend across the car, said, " Well, 
I hope the war may last six months longer. If it 
does, I shall have made enough to retire from 
business. In the last six months I've made a 
hundred thousand dollars — six months more and 
I shall have enough." 

A lady sat behind the speaker, and necessa- 
rily heard his remark ; but when he was done 
she tapped him on the shoulder, and said to him : 
" Sir, I had two sons — one was killed at the battle 
of Fredericksburg, the other was killed at the bat- 
tle of Murfreesboro." 

She was silent a moment, and so were all 
around who heard her. Then, overcome by her 
indignation, she suddenly slapped the speculator, 
first on one cheek, and then on the other, and 
before the fellow could say a word, the passengers 
sitting near, who had witnessed the whole affair, 
seized him, and pushed him hurriedly out of the 
car, as one not fit to ride with decent people. 



Capture of the Greyhound. — Pollard, 
in his observations in the North, gives the follow- 
ing account of the capture and the events preced- 
ing it. 

On the night of the 9th of May, 1864, the 
Greyhound was lying off Fort Fisher, the signal- 
men blinking at each other with their lights in 
sliding boxes. It was necessary to get a dispen- 
sation from the fort for the Greyhound to pass 
out to sea, as no less than three fugitive conscripts 
— " stowaways " — had been found aboard of her. 
Two of them were discovered on searching 
the vessel at Wilmington. But lower down the 
stream the vessel is overhauled again, and goes 
through the process of the fwnigation of her 
hold to discover improper passengers. In the 
case of the Greyhound, to the intense disgust of 
the captain, and execrations of the crew, the 
process brought to light an unhappy stowaway, 
who was recognized as a liquor-dealer of Wil- 
mington, and made no secret of his design to flee 
the conscription. After the threat, and appar- 
ently serious preparations, to throw him over- 
board, the " stowaway " was, no doubt, relieved 
to find himself taken ashore to the comparative 
mercies of the enrolling officer. 

At last we are off. The moon is down ; the 
steward has had orders to kill the geese and .shut 
up the dog ; the captain has put on a suit of dark 
clothes ; every light is extinguished, every 
word spoken in a whisper, and the turn of the 
propeller of the Greyhound sounds hke the 
beat of a human heart. There is an excitement 
in these circumstances. The low, white-gray 
vessel ghdes furtively through the water, and you 
catch the whispered commands of the captain : 
" stead-ey," and then the more intense and ener- 
getic whisper, "Black smoke, by G— ; cut off 
your smoke." Every eye is strained into the 
shadows of the night. But how utterly useless 



did all this precaution and vigilance appear on 
the Greyhound ; for after two hours of suspense 
we were out of the blockade lines, and had seen 
nothing but the caps of the waves. A blockade 
for blockheads, surely, I thought as I composed 
myself to sleep, dismissing entirely from my mind 
all terrors of the Yankee. 

It was about two o'clock the next day, and the 
Greyhound was about one hundred and fifty 
miles out at sea, when the lookout reported a 
steamer astern of us. The day was hazy, and 
when the vessel was first descried, she could not 
have been more than five or six miles astern of 
us. For a few moments there was a sharp sus- 
pense ; perhaps the steamer had not seen us ; ev- 
ery one listened with breathless anxiety, as the 
tall fellow at the mast-head reported the discov- 
eries he was making, through his glasses, of the 
suspicious vessel. " He is bearing towards a 
bark, sir ; " and for a few moments hope mounted 
in our hearts that we might not have been ob- 
served, and might yet escape into the misty ob- 
scurity of the sea. In vain. " He is a side- 
wheel steamer, and is bearing directly for us, sir." 

" Give her her way," shouted the captain in 
response ; and there was a tumultuous rush of 
the crew to the engine-room, and the black 
smoke curling above the smoke-stack, and the 
white foam in our wake told plainly enough that 
the startled Greyhound was making desperate 
speed. 

But she was evidently no match for the Yan- 
kee. We were being rapidly overhauled, and in 
something more than an hour from the beginning 
of the chase, a shell from the Yankee vessel, the 
" Connecticut," was whistling over our bows. 
The crew became unruly ; but captain " Henry," 
revolver in hand, ordered back the man to the 
wheel, declaring " he was master of the vessel 
yet." The mate reported that a very small 
crew appeared to be aboard the Yankee. " Then 
we will fight for it," said the spunky captain. 
But the madness of such a resolution became 
soon manifest ; for as the Connecticut ovei-hauled 
us more closely, her decks and wheel-houses were 
seen to be black with men, and a shell which 
grazed our engine, warned us that we were at 
the mercy of the enemy. But for that peculiar 
nuisance of blockade-runners — women passen- 
gers — the Greyhound might have been burnt, 
and the last duty performed in the face of the 
rapacious enemy. 

Dizzy, and disgusted with sea-sickness ; never 
supposing that a vessel which had passed out of 
the as§erted lines of blockade without seeing a 
blockader, without being pursued from those lines, 
and already far out on the sacred highway of 
the ocean, and flying the British ensign, could be 
the subject of piratical seizure ; never dreaming 
that a simple confederate passenger could be the 
victim of kidnapping on the high seas, outside of 
all mlltary and territorial lines, I had but a dim 
appreciation of the exciting scenes on the Grey- 
hound in the chase. Papers, memoranda, pack- 
ages of Confederate bonds, were ruthlessly tossed 
into the purser's bag to be consumed by the flames 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



177 



in the engine-room ; the contents of trunks were 
wildly scattered over the decks ; the white waves 
danced witli ambrotypes, souvenirs, and the torn 
fragments of the large package of letters, mis- 
sives of friendship, records of affection, which 
had been entrusted to me, and which I at last un- 
willingly gave to the sea. 

Here, at last, close alongside of us, in the 
bright day, Avas the black, guilty thing, while 
from her sides were pushing out boats, with well- 
dressed «rews in lustrous uniforms, and officers 
in the picturesqueness of gold and blue — a brave 
sight for grimy confederates ! The Greyhound 
was no sooner boarded, than an ensign, who had 
his hair parted in the middle, and his hands en- 
cased in lavender-colored kids, came up to me 
and asked me with a very joyous air how many 
bales of cotton were on board the vessel. I aftei-- 
wards understood that, from my disconsolate 
looks, he had taken me to be the owner of the 
cotton, and was probably desirous, by his amiable 
question, to give a sly pinch to my misery. 



HO ! YANKEE BOYS THROUGHOUT 
THE WEST. 

BY K. TOMPKINS. 

Ho ! Yankee boys throughout the West, 

Hear ye the traitor's shout, 
" We'll build the Union up again, 

And leave New England out ! " 
And shall we join the rabble cry, 

At tyranny's command ? 
Traduce the homes our childhood loved. 

Betray our ftUher land ? 

CHORUS. 

And shall we join the rabble cry, 

At tyranny's command 1 
Traduce the homes our childhood loved, 

Betray our father land 1 

Forget the days we rambled o'er 

Our free New England hills : 
Forget the joyous liours we passed, 

Beside her shining rills ; 
Forget the cheerful tires, whose smoke 

Upon her free air curls ? 
Forget the hearths where cluster round 

New England's peerless girls ? 

Chorus. — Forget the cheerful, &c. 

What ! look with alien eyes upon 

The land where Hancock died, 
And in a vile and impious tone 

The pilgrims' faith deride ? 
Shall Lexington and Bunker Hill, 

Be named by us in scorn. 
Because a revolution there 

In Freedom's name was born 1 

Chorus. — Shall Lexington, &c. 

No ! By the blood of heroes shed 

On Bunker's gory height ; 
Kg ! by the mem'ry of the dead, 

Who dared old England's might — 
The flag that floats o'er Plymouth rock 

Shall wave o'er Sumter's wall ; 
These States shall all together stand, 

Or all together fall. 

Chorus. — The flag, &c. 
12 



We've met a boasting cavalier — 

Proud lord of whips and chains, 
Within our nation's council halls 

And conquered him with brains ; 
And now, if he will have it so, 

We'll make the Southron feel 
The pilgrims' sons, wherever found. 

Can liandle lead and steel. 

Chorus. — And now, if he, &c. 

The torch that burned at Lexington, 

Lit by our patriot sires. 
Shall yet illume the southern skies 

With freedom's holy fires ; 
And Yankee schools shall dot the plains, ' 

And Yankee churches rise, 
Till truth and light dissolve each chain 

And slavery groans and dies. 

Chorus. — And Yankee schools, &c. 



The Death of General Stevens. — The 
army was retreating from Centrevillc. The bat- 
tle was fought against a rebel force that had pen- 
etrated five miles nearer Washington than our 
rear and was moving to strike upon the flank. 
Gen. Stevens' division, the advance of Reno's 
corps, was on the left of the road taken by the 
trains, and intercepted the enemy. He saw that 
the rebels must be beaten back at once, or during 
the night they would stampede the wagons, and 
probably so disconcert our retreat that the last 
divisions Avould fall a prey to tlieir main force. 
He decided to attack immediately, at the same 
time sending back for support. Having made his 
dispositions, he led the attack on foot at the head 
the Eighty-eighth (Highlanders). Soon meeting 
a withering fire and the color-sergeant, Sandy 
Campbell, a grizzled old Scotchman, being 
Avounded, they faltered. One of the color-guard 
took up the flag, when the General snatched it 
from him. The wounded Highlander at his feet 
cried, " For God's sake, General, don't you take 
the colors ; they'll shoot you if you do ! " The 
answer was, " Give me the colors ! If they don't 
follow now, they never will ; " and he sprang fbi- 
ward, crying, " We are all Highlanders ; follow, 
Highlanders ; forward, my Highlanders ! " The 
Highlanders did follow their Scottish chief, but 
while sweeping forward a ball struck him on his 
right temple. He died instantly. An hour af- 
terwards, when taken up, his hands were atill 
clinched around the flag-staff. 

A moment after seizing the colors, his aon, 
Captain Hazzard Stevens, fell wounded, and 
criod to his father that he was hurt. With but a 
glance back, that Roman father said: " I cannot 
attend to you now, Hazzard. Corporal Thon^- 
son, see to my boy." 



Anecdote of President Lincoln. — Judge 
Baldwin, of California, an old and highly respec- 
table and sedate gentleman, called on General 
Halleck, and, presuming upon a familiar acquain- 
tance in California a few years since, solicited a 
pass outside of the lines to see a brother in Vir- 
ginia, not thinking that he would meet with a re- 
fusal, cis both his brother and himself were good 



178 



ANECDOTES, POETEY, AND INCIDENTS. 



Union men. " Wc have been deceived too often," 
said General Halleck, " and I regret I can't grant 
it." Judge B. then went to Stanton, and was very 
briefly disposed of with the same i-esult. Finally 
he obtained an interview with JNIr. Lincoln, and 
stated his case. '' Have you applied to General 
Halleck V " inquired the President. " And met with 
a flat refusal," said Judge B. " Then you must 
see Stanton," continued the President. " I have, 
and with the same result," was the reply. " Well, 
then," said the President with a smile of good hu- 
mor, " I can do nothing, for you must know that I 
Juxve very little infiuence with this Administration !" 



Sherman's Love of Music. — A correspon- 
dent with Sherman's army recorded this incident. 

Memorable the music " that mocked the moon " 
of November of the soil of Georgia ; sometimes a 
triumphant march, sometimes a glorious waltz, 
again an old air stirring the heart alike to recol- 
lection and to hope. Floating out from throats of 
bi'ass to the ears of soldiers in their blankets and 
generals within their tents, these tunes hallowed 
the eves to all who listened. 

Sitting before his tent in the glow of a camp 
fire one evening, General Sherman let his cigar 
go out to listen to an air that a distant band was 
playing. The musicians ceased at last. The gen- 
eral turned to one of liis officers : 

" Send an orderly to ask that baud to play that 
tune again." 

A little while, and the band received the word. 
The tune was " The Blue Juniata," with exquisite 
variations. The band played it again, even more 
beautifully than before. Again it ceased, and 
then, off to the right, nearly a quarter of a mile 
away, the voices of some soldiers took it up with 
words. The band, and still another band, played 
a low accompaniment. Camp after camji began 
singing ; the music of " The Blue Juniata " be- 
came, tor a few minutes, the oratorio of half an 
army. 



An Incident by the Way. — On my last 
trip toward Huntsville we found the track torn 
up, and the cross-ties still burning. Nearly half 
a mile was destroyed — for the iron had been 
heated till it wa§ bent and useless. Guerrillas 
were seen at a distance. Pickets were thrown 
out, and the negroes and white laborers went to 
work. As it was getting dark, the fences were 
soon made into huge fires to enable the workmen 
to see. Suddenly a '' butternut " laborer came 
running along the line. 

" The rebels ! The rebels ! " 

" How many ? " asked the captain. 

" Oh ! the world is full of them ! " he shouted, 
without stopping a second. 

" The situation " had quite a serious aspect, — 
a small party of us, enclosed by woods, with thick 
undergrowth, great fires to show our position, and 
no knowledge of the whereabouts of Granger's 
command. But " the rebels " proved to be our 
own men — an Indiana cavalry regiment that was 
hunting a mounted gans of guerrillas. One of 



their men had been tortured and then murdered 
a few days before, and these boys declared that 
their rule of action was death to all traitors, and 
to take no prisoners. 

In a few hours — with really wonderful speed — 
the break was repaired, and we went slowly on 
our way. These rapid repairs have caused the 
Georgians to invent a new military maxim : " The 
Yankees carry their railroads with them." 

On these car-tops one often hears tales of deeds 
of heroism by privates that somehow scidom get 
into print. 

On my last trip down, I was speaking to an 
officer about the hospitals, A soldier who sat 
next to me said he had been a steward in one of 
them several months. I asked him if the soldiere, 
Avhen they were sick, persisted in the continuous 
swearing which characterizes the army. 

" No, sir," he said, " they are lilic little chil- 
dren then ; they return to their father's house. " 

I saw that I had come in contact with a man 
worth talking to, and had a long convei'sation 
with him. Only a few scraps of it can be given 
now : 

" Oh," he said, " they are so grateful for the 
smallest favors ! I have heard them say so softly, 
' thank you, sir,' for every little thing I did for 
them, that I was almost ashamed. I thought I had 
seen brave men in battle, but I never knew what 
bravery was till I went to the hospital. They 
often told me to fix them out." 

" What is that ? " 

" Well, they would see that the doctor gave 
them up, and they would ask me about it. I 
would tell them the truth. I told one man that, 
and he asked how long V I said, not over twenty 
minutes. He did not show any fear — they never 
do. He put up his hand so, and closed his eyes 
with his own fingers, and then sti-etuhed himself 
out, and crossed his arms over his breast. ' Noav. 
fix me,' he said. I pinned the toes of his stock- 
ings together ; that was the way we laid corpses 
out; and he died in a few minutes. His faoe 
looked as pleasant as if he was asleep and smiling. 
Many's the time the boys have fixed themselves 
that way before they died." 

I asked him another c^uestion : 

" Yes," he said, " the soldiers when they avc 
dying almost always speak of some woman. 
When they are married men, it's oftenest about 
their wives. If they are not married, it is mostly 
their mothers and sisters — oftenest a mother." 

I saw that the soldier had a Bible in his pocket. 

"When I left my company," he said, " I thought 
nothing of the swearing ; but when I came back 
to it from the hospital, it seemed awful." 

Yet such is the power of the influence of asso- 
ciation that my good friend — really and not sham 
pious friend — when I afterward spoke of the in- 
surgents, got indignant at the contemplation of 
their conduct, and called them the d — d rebels ! 



Reprieved at last. — A correspondent 
writing from Norfolk, Va., on the eighteenth of 
April, 1864 says: A scene of very thrilling intereal 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



179 



transpired here on Wednesday last, in reference 
to a soldier of the Tenth N. Hampshire who had 
been condemned to be shot en charge of desertion. 
The facts were briefly these. The soldier, a young 
man of 24 years of age, was a native of Virginia. 
With other young men who had loved the old 
flag, he had been conscripted and forced into the 
rebel army. During the siege of Washington, 
N. C., a year since, he served in the Eighteenth 
Virginia one of the regiments that attempted to 
take that town. When, however, the rebel army 
withdrew without accomplishing its object, he with 
six other Virginians, and three East Tennesseans, 
deserted and came into our lines. I remember them 
distinctly and had a number of conversations with 
them while they were kept under guard. They 
all took the oath of allegiance at length, and en- 
listed in the Union service, except the one named 
above. He desired to go north and Avas permit- 
ted to do so. When the last calls for troops were 
made he found himself at Portsmouth, N. H., and 
was finally induced, by the large bounty and love 
of military life, to enlist in the Tenth regiment of 
that state. The regiment came out here and was 
stationed some eight or ten miles from this city. 
He desired, it seems, to visit the city, and fre- 
quently applied to his captain for a pass, but was 
as frequently refused. In an evil hour, he re- 
solved to get a suit of citizen's clothes and come 
to the city without a pass. A man living on the 
borders of the camp furnished him the suit, and 
thus attired he started for the city. He had only 
just come into the road when he met his Lt. Col. 
and Captain, and was challenged, disarmed, ar- 
rested and finally tried by court martial for de- 
sertion and condemned to be shot. He was ab- 
sent from camp ouly six hours all told, and al- 
tirmed to the last that he never dreamed of desert- 
ing. His sentence was read to him on Tuesday, 
and on Wednesday at 1 2 o'clock, he was to be 
shot. He was overwhelmed with amazement 
and feai", not having once conceived so fatal an 
issue to his case. From that time till he was led 
out of his prison to be executed, one or more 
chaplains were with him a large part of the time, 
to offer him the spiritual counsel and comfort that 
he needed. He, in the end, became calm, and 
looked on death with composure, forgave all who 
had sought his life, and left messages for his 
friends. 

In the mean time efforts were made to obtain 
his reprieve, but up to nine o'clock on Wednes- 
day morning, nothing had been effected, and the 
prisoner was taken from his cell, and started for 
the field, where his coffin and grave, and troops 
drawn up in hollow around them, awaited his 
coming. But on the way the hoped-for reprieve, 
for seven days, overtook him. The train was 
stopped and the commander of the escort read 
him the unexpected paper. In a moment he 
turned deadly pale, and then threw his arms 
around the neck of the guard, who sat in front of 
him, and wept aloud. It was a scene I never 
shall forget. Strong men wept like children, in 
the great joy that had well-nigh killed the pris- 
oner. 



An Incident of Bristoe. — A con-espondent 
of a southern paper writing from Cook's brigade 
of the Confederate Army, relates the following 
incident: — "I will now give you an incident 
in the battle at Bristoe, which I can assure you 
is strictly true, as the officer who saw it, and told 
me about it, is a man of undoubted veracity. 
There was a man of Company A. Twenty-seventh 
North Carolina troops, named George P. Piner, 
who went into the fight, with a small Testament 
in his breast pocket. A ball struck the book, and 
penetrated as far as the fifth chapter of !Mat- 
thew, twenty-first and twenty-second verses. 
It merely blackened that passage, glanced off, 
and left the man uninjured. The verses read: 
" Ye have heard that it was said by them of old 
tune. Thou shalt not kill, and whosoever shall 
kill, shall be in danger of the judgment, and 
whosoever is angry with his brother without 
cause shall be in danger of judgment." The 
man said, that Yankee ball was like the devil, — 
it had to turn its course when met by scriptural 
opposition. 

There was a man also of the same company 
and regiment, named J. H. Parker, who discovered 
a Yankee shai'p-shooter behind an old chimney. 
He ran up to him, and bayoneted the Yankee 
through the body, killing him instantly. Parker 
was killed himself shortly afterwards. 



Teamsters' Conundrums. — Army team- 
sters are proverbial for the scientific volubility with 
which they swear. A teamster with the Cum- 
berland army, not long ago got stuck in the mud 
and he let fly a stream of profane epithets that 
would have astonished " our army in Flanders,'\ 
even. A chaplain passing at the time was 
greatly shocked. 

" My friend," said he to the teamster, " do you 
know who died for sinners ? " 

"D n your conundrums. Don't you see 

I'm stuck in the mud ? " 



How TO Clean a Well.— A gentleman 
in Atlanta, Georgia, whom we will call Mack, had 
a well pretty much filled up with rubbish and 
trash of different kinds, which he wanted cleaned 
out. He spoke to a freedman about the job, and 
in a very confidential way intimated that there 
was a treasure hid in that well he was anxious 
to exhume. He imposed profound secrecy 
upon his sable help, and sent him off in search 
of another one of his hue who could be trusted. 
The upshot of the matter was that about one 
hundred negroes soon knew that an iron safe be- 
longing to the express company, and which con- 
tained almost an invaluable amount of gold, had 
been precipitated into this well when the city was 
evacuated. The affair was speedily brought to 
the ears of the Provost Marshal and Mack on 
going to see about his well one morning, found 
it guarded by a strong provost guard, who forbade 
any one coming on the premises. Mack pro- 
tested against any such proceeding, and persisted 



180 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



that everything on that lot, in the well and out 
of it, was his individual property. The Assistant 
Provost Marshal gave him an official wink, and 
intimated that ' all was right.' Mack thought if 
it was not, it would be in the end. 

A strong posse of ireedmen was sent down in- 
to the well to work. Bucketful after bucketful 
of rubbish and mud was drawn out ; but no treas- 
ure as yet made its appearance. Occasionally 
the officer of the guard went down on a pros- 
pecting tour. In punching about with his bay- 
onet he hit upon something that had the true 
metallic sound. They had the treasure now sure. 
Again the negroes went to work, and after labor- 
ing some hours succeeded in bringing out the top 
of an old tin-plate stove. At last the firm bot- 
tom of the well was reached, but no iron safe. 
Mack saitl he thought the safe was about ten feet 
further down. Whatever may have been the 
provost marshal's opinion on the subject, he con- 
cluded he had not time to prosecute the search 
further, and withdrew his Ibrces, leaving Mack 
in possession of a thoroughly cleansed well, and at 
liberty to hunt up the safe if he wanted to. Mack 
didn't want to. 



How Thieves were treated in the 
Ninth Corps. — Brigadier General Potter, 
commanding the Ninth Corps, riding along with 
his orderly in East Tennessee, saw a man run- 
ning with something in his hand, followed by a 
woman crying out after him. Stopping him, he 
found he had stolen some article, and asked him 
his corps. " Ninth Corps," " Very well," said 
the General ; and he ordered his orderly to tie him 
up to a tree, and give him a good strapping, with 
a stirrup strap. Amid his howls it came out that 
he belonged to the Fourth Corps. " Very well," 
said the General. " 1 am commander of the 
Ninth Corps; if you belong to it, all right; if not 
you'll know how we treat tellows that steal in the 
Ninth Corps." 



Waifs and Esticays. — After the retreat 
of Shelby's force ironi Boonville, Mo. a small 
bundle of papers was picked up on the street, 
left there by some systematic and sentimental 
Confederate in his liasty tlight. First among 
this bundle was the log-book, containing a 
succinct diary of events, belonging to a rebel 
soldier. The leaves of the diary were composed 
of heavily ruled, coai'se blue tbolscap, and the 
cover made of wall-paper. It contained a chro- 
nology of daily events, of which the following is 
a specimen : 

the 12 came to clinton 

the 13 came to fort hutson and went boord the boat 
an started up the river. 

14 still going up the river. 

1 5 going up the river. 

16 an-ived at trinity on Black river. 

17 awaiting at trinity for a Boat. 

18 left Trinity. 

19 got to nionro. "^ 

20 crost the anames line. 

21 come to camden. 



A few pages further on was a specimen of 
keeping accounts : 

G Harden Better 

for work 26 days $26 

for cofoy too Pounds .... $14 

Several pages of correspondence occurred 
after the writer arrived in Polk county, Missouri. 

The writer Avrote to his friend, that " wee hav 
plenty of corn bred and pore beefe to eat and 
sasafrassHee to drink," and concluded, hopefully, 
thus: 

"come wee will, come I hope wee will come in 
peace and can enjoy our lives as wee yewst to do bee 
fore the wore broke out." 

It will be seen by the following, that Pegasus 
accompanied Shelby in his raid, and was ridden 
by William H. Landreth : 

HEART-KENDING BOAT BALLAD. 

1 . father father bild Me a Boat 

and pot it on the oason that I may float 
her father was weltliy he bilt her a Boat 

an pot it on the oason that She ]\Iite float 
She Stepte on' the Boat She cridc out Goy 

Now II find my sweet salar Boy. 

2. She handent Bin Sailen far on the Main 

She Spide three Ships come in from Spain 
She hailed each captain as he drew ni 
An of him She did in quire of her swce Salar 
Boy. 

3. Capttain Captain tell me trew 

if my sweet william is in your crew 
II tell you far lady II tell you My Dear 
your Sweet William is not hear. 

4. At the head of rockeyilent as we past By 

Will was taken Sick an thare did die 
She stove her boat a gants a rock 

I thaut in my Soal her heart was Break 
She rong her hand She tear her hair 

Jest like a lady in dis pair. 

5. go bring me a Cher for to set on 

a pen and ink for to set it down 
at the end or ever line she dropt a tire 
at the end of ever virs it was o My dire. 

6. go dig my grave booth Wide an deep 

poot a marvel Stone at my head an feet 
an on my breast you may carv a dove 
too let the world no that I dide for love. 

Wm. H. Landreth. 



THE new KIVEK SHOOK — A BALLAD. 

1. at the foot of yon Montain wher fountain do flow, 
there is music to entertain me whar Plesent wind blow ; 
thare I spide a fair Damsel, a girl I a doar, 

as she was a Walking on the new river Shoar. 

2. I ask her rite kinley could She fancy Me, 

all tho my fourtun is not grat that's noth She She, 
your Beuty is a nouf and it is you I a doar, 
an it is you I will Mary on the new river Shoar. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



181 



8. as soon as her old father, this same come too her, 
he swear he Wood de Prive mee of my Deares Dear. 
he Sent me a way Wher loud canon do roar, 
.an left my Dear trulove on the new river shoar. 

4. She rote Me a letter an in this letter these lines, 
and in this letter these Words you May find : 
Come Back My dear dewell for it you I a doar, 
an it is you I Will Mary on the new river Shoar. 

5. I Prused this letter I Pmsed it moast Sad, 
thare was non in that company culd Make My hart 

glad, 
I drew out My Brawd Soard an onward did go, 
to meet My dear tru love on the new river shoar. 

6. as Son as her old father, tis same came to hear, 
he Swar he wood de Prive Me of my derest der. 
he rased him a army fooul twenty or Moar, 

to fite a yong Soalger on the new river Shoar. 

7. I Drew out My Brawd Soard an Waverd it round, 
there is no yous. My little army, that you all kno, 
to fight a yong Soalg on the new river Shoar. 

8. So hard is the Coquest of all women kind, 
they all Ways hav ruld, they all Ways confined ; 
they hav children to Squall an husban to scold, 
Makes Many yong lases look Wethered and old. 

W. H. L. 



One of the Pictures of War. — A cor- 
respondent relates the following intervieAv of a 
Federal forafiiug party ■with a Tennessee farmer: 

At another place we called on the owner, a 
man of over sixty years, well saved, yet evidently 
much cast down and disheartened. He was po- 
lite, and answered all questions studiously. On 
being asked what he had to spare, he answered, 
" No"t much ; indeed, nothing." His wife and 
four children, standing beside him, said not a 
word, but the countenance of the whole group 
showed that the old man told the truth. " Indeed, 
I have nothing," said he ; " what, with one army 
and another campaigning through this part of 
Tennessee, they have stripped me of all I could 
spare and more too." 

" Have yon no horses or nmles ? " asked the 
officer. 

" Yes," answered the man, " I have one more 
mule, which is entirely broken d^wn ; it was left 
by a trooper, who took my last horse in its stead." 

" No beef-cattle ? " was the next question. 

" No, not one," was the answer. 

" Any hogs ? " 

" Yes, sir ; I have four pigs, which I had in- 
tended for my wintei"'s supply of meat." 

" Any negi'oes ? " asked the officer. 

" No, not one ; my servants all left me two or 
three months ago. I have not one on the place. 
I have to chop all my wood, and my wife and 
daughters do the in-doors, what they can." 

" Any corn or wheat ? " 

" No wheat, and only two or three barrels of 
corn," was the reply. 

" Let's see your mule," said the officer. It was 
brought up, and was as the old man said. 

" Show me those pigs," was the next demand. 



When the old man heard this, he could hardly 
speak; his hopes were almost at an end. He 
showed the pigs, however ; they were no more 
than such a family would need, nor as much. 

The officer then kindly said : " You may keep 
all these things ; they will help you and can be 
of little good to us," and gave the old man a 
" safeguard," which might save his property from 
our troops. Three years before, this man owned 
a large, well-stocked plantation ; had cattle and 
hogs in plenty, with servants to come at his call, 
and corn to sell or keep. Now, he was sincerely 
thankful, and much moved that we spared him 
his four little shoats, his pittance of corn, and his 
old mare-mule with which he hoped to make a 
small crop next spring. The war has been at his 
very door ; he had seen it in all relations, and 
knew that it was vigorously prosecuted. 



The Little Girl's Kindness to the Sol- 
diers. — " After the battle of Sharpsburg, we 
passed over a line of railroad in Central Georgia. 
The disabled soldiers from Gen. Lee's armies were 
returning to their homes. At every station the 
wives and daughters of the farmers came on the 
care, and distributed food and wines and band- 
ages among the sick and wounded. 

" We shall never forget how very like an angel 
was a little gu-1, — how blushingly and modestly 
she went to a great rude, bearded soldier, who 
had carved a crutch from a rough plank to re- 
place a lost leg ; how this little girl asked him if 
he was hungry, — and how he ate like a famished 
wolf! She asked if his wound was painful, and 
in a voice of soft, mellow accents, ' Can I do 
nothing more for you ? I am sorry that you are so 
badly hurt ; have you a little daughter, and wont 
she cry when she sees you ? ' 

" The rude soldier's heart was touched, and 
tears of love and gratitude filled his eyes. He 
only answered, ' I have three little children ; God 
grant they may be such angels as you.' 

" With an evident effort he repressed a desire 
to kiss the fair brow of the pretty little girl. He 
took her little hand between both his own, and 
bade her ' good-by, — God bless you ! ' The 
child will always be a better woman because of 
these lessons of practical charity stamped inef- 
faceably upon her young heart." — Southern paper. 



How Brave Men Suffer and Die. -- •' If 
anybody thinks," says B. F. Taylor, in his ac- 
count of the battle of Chicamauga, " that when 
men are stricken upon the field they fill the air 
with cries and groans, till it shivers with such 
evidence of agony, he greatly errs. An arm is 
shattered, a leg carried away, a bullet pierces the 
breast, and the soldier sinks down silently upon 
the gi-ound, or creeps away if he can, without a 
murmur or complaint ; faUs as.the sparrow falls, 
speechlessly ; and like that sparrow, I earnestly 
believe, not without a Father. The horse gives 
out his fearful utterance of almost human suffer- 
in<T, but the mangled rider is dumb. The crash 
of musketry, the crack of rifles, the roar of guns, 



182 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



the shriek of shells, the rebel whoop, the Federal 
cheer, and that indescribable undertone of rum- 
bhng, grinding, splintering sound, make up the 
voices of the battle-field." 



An Incident op Shiloh. — During the bat- 
tle of Shiloh an officer hurriedly rode up to an 
aid and inquired for Grant. " That's him with 
the field-glass," said the aid. 

"Wheeling his horse about, the officer furiously 
rode up to the General, and touching his cap, 
thus addressed him, — 

" Sheneral, I vants to make one report ; 
Schwartz's battery is took." 

"Ah!" says the General, "how was that?" 

" Veil, you see, Sheneral, de sheshenists come 
up in front of us, and de sheshenists flanked us, 
and de sheshenists come in de rear of us, and 
Schwartz's battery was took." 

" Well, sir," says the General, " you of course 
spiked the guns." 

" Vat," exclaimed the Dutchman, in astonish- 
ment, "schpikedem guns, schpike dem new guns ! 
— no, it would schpoil hem ! " 

" Well," said the General, sharply, " "What did 
you do ? " 

" Do V vy, we took dem back again ! " 



Coolness on tue Field. — A lad of fif- 
teen years of age, belonging to the Fifth Wiscon- 
sin, whose name is Douglas, and resides at Beav- 
er Dam, was in the battle of Williamsbm-g, and 
got his gun wet so that it could not fire. During 
the hottest of the fight, and whilst the regiment 
was falling back, he deliberately sat down, took 
out his screw-driver, unscrewed the tube from 
his gun, dried it out, put it back, capped it, got 
up and put into the field as if nothing unusual 
was going on. 



listening to the narration, at once responded, 
" I'll take the poor fellow up there for nothing. 
I carried just such a one up last night, but I guess 
I shant lose nothing." No, thought we, my dear 
fellow, such true nobility of nature shall not re- 
sult in loss to you if we can help it, so we de- 
manded his card, and here it is. 

WILLIAM RYDER, 

Proprietor of Carriages Nos. 28 & 46. 

Stable 96 Lawrence St. 

New York. 



Quaker Guns. — When General Sills's di- 
vision left Fi-ankibrt, Ky., the last thing they did 
was to remove the two monster cannon from 
their position on the hills over South Frankfort. 
Some Union men of Frankfort, during the night, 
went over to the spot and planted two empty 
beer-kegs in the place of the cannon, and cover- 
ed them with a tarpaulin. All next day a lot of 
Morgan's cavalry were scouting around the kegs, 
but dared not enter Frankfort for fear of being 
charged upon. On Wednesday night " our forc- 
es " abandoned the kegs, when, as we learn, they 
made a bold and daring charge on the " tarpau- 
lin beer-keg battery, " and captured it without 
the loss of a man. The captain acknowledged 
that he had been " sold by the Yanks," and it 
was not until then that they were aware of the 
fact that Gen. Sills's whole corps had left Frank- 
fort. Then, as they have always done, they 
pounced upon an unprotected city. But Gen. 
Dumont's forces soon let them know that it was 
not the " battle of the kegs " when they attacked 
them. It was these men and the two empty 
beer kegs that kept the rebels from burning all 
the bridges around Frankfort. 



A Genuine Nobleman. — Returning home 
from Philadelphia, we had ibr a fellow-passenger 
a poor, broken, emaciated Massachusetts soldier, 
too weak to sit erect, and so far gone in physical 
constitution as to give little hope for aught else 
than his possible arrival at his home in Boston 
with the breath of life not extinct. He was ac- 
companied by a kind matron, who, though no 
relation of the sufferer, was a Massachusetts 
woman, and had in the pity of her soul volun- 
teered to attend his passage home to die. It 
was a piteous sight, and but a type of many hun- 
dreds we have seen the past year. Of course an 
object of such interest awakened the tenderest 
sympathies of all beholders. We proffered such 
aid as we could, and on arrival at the wharf in 
New-York attempted negotiations with various 
carriers for a passage for the iuvahd up to the 
New-Haven cars. As the boy was destitute of 
money, as well as broken down in health, we 
tried to so far touch the pity of some of the 
hack-drivers as to get him conveyed at an honest 
price. While chaffering with the crowd, up 
stepped a frank and honest-looking driver, who. 



One of the Virginia Eeserves. — Pol- 
lard, in his observations in the North, relates the 
following: — 

General Butler followed up his little story by 
an amusing account of an interview he had had 
with a certain gentleman of Richmond — one of 
the " Virginia Reserves " — who had strayed in- 
to his lines. I must confess his laughter was a 
little contagious as he gave the details of the in- 
terview. The unfortunate individual had come 
into his lines by some mistake, bewildered as to 
the points of the compass. His appearance was 
rather unmilitary, as General B. described it ; a 
suit of black, wet and glued to his skin, a stove- 
pipe hat, and what seems to have attracted most 
at headquarters, as a curiosity of Richmond — 
" a black satin vest." 

" Who are you ?" thundered General Butler. 

" Sir," said the unfortunate individual, with 
the air of importance in misery, " I am one of the 
Virginia Reserves." 

" Alluding only to the oddity of his appear- 
ance, " said General Butler, I remarked : " and 
how many more are there like you, Mr. 
M V" 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



18c 



" I will answer aU proper questions," replied 
the unfortunate individual ; " but, sir, General 
Butler, do not expect me to inform you as to our 
military resources I " 

The General seems to have thought the old gen- 
tleman a little stilted, and explained to me Aat 
he only wanted to have a little fun out of him. 
So, with what I can imagine to have been the 
growl of an ogre, he remarked : " Ah, ha, Mr. 
Si ; so, so, Mr. M ; we have an- 
other name than that of soldiers for persons in 
your dress ; yes, sir, another name : we call them 
SPIES ! " At the mention of this dreadful word the 
unlbrtunate proprietor of the satin vest went off 
into protest — pledging " his honor, " " his sacred 
honor, " " his honor, which no man. General But- 
ler, had ever doubted ; " that he was " a soldier." 



THE CUMBERLAND. 

HENRY W. LONGFELLOW. 

At anchor in Hampton Roads we lay, 

On board the Cumberland sloop-of-war ; 
And at times from the fortress across the bay 
Tlie alarm of drums swept past, 
Or a bugle blast 
From the camp on shore. 

Then far away to the south uprose 

A little feather of snow-white smoke, 
And we knew that the iron ship of our foes 
Was steadily steering its course. 
To try the force 
Of our ribs of oak. 

Down upon us heavily runs 

Silent and sullen, the floating fort j 
Then comes a puff of smoke from her guns, 
And leaps the terrible death, 
With fiery breath, 
From each open port. 

We are not idle, but send her straight 

Defiance back in a full broadside ! 
As hail rebounds from a roof of slate. 
Rebounds our heavier hail 
From each iron scale 
Of the monster's hide. 

" Strike your flag ! " the rebel cries. 

In his aiTOgant old plantation strain, 
** Never !" our gallant Morris replies ; 
" It is better to sink than to yield ! " 
And the whole air pealed 
With the cheers of our men. 

Then, like a kraken huge and black. 

She crushed our ribs in her iron grasp ! 
Down went the Cumberland all a wrack. 
With a sudden shudder of death, 
And the cannon's breath 
For her dying gasp. 

Next mora, as the sun rose over the bay, 

Still floated our flag at the mainmast-head, 
Lord, how beautiful was Thy day I 
Every waft of the air 
Was a whisper ofprayer. 
Or a dirge for the dead. 



Ho ! brave hearts that went down in the seas. 

Ye are at peace in the troubled stream. 
Ho ! brave land ! with hearts like these, 
Thy flag that is rent in twain, 
Shall be one again, 
And without a seam. 



Captain Williams' Escape. — T. J. Wil- 
liams, Captain in the Twenty-Third regiment of 
Kentucky Volunteers gives the following account 
of his remarkable escape from the prison at Ma- 
con, Georgia : — I was captured May 27, 1864, at 
the battle of New Hope Church, or Dallas, 
Georgia ; June 1st, I arrived at Macon, 
Georgia, and was placed in the stockade, or 
" pen '■ where I found twelve or fourteen hun- 
dred officers, taken at dlfFerent periods of the war. 
Among them Captain John A. Arthur, Eighth 
Kentucky Cavalry, and when the war began, 
connected with the"^ " Daily Times " ; also. Captain 
Paul and Lieutenant David Locke, of Newport, 
and Lieutenant Neimyer, of Covington, who 
were all in good health. The stockade embraced 
about two acres ; the fence was about twelve teet 
high, and twelve feet from the outer fence waa 
another about six feet high, which was called 
" the dead line," the sentinels having instructions 
to shoot any one touching this line. Jane 11, an 
officer, whose name I do not remember, and 
who was bathing at least fifteen feet from this 
line, was shot and killed by one of the guard, who 
received a furlough as a reward for his inhuman- 
ity. 

On the evening of June 4, 1 escaped from the 
stockade by getting between the coupling-pole 
and bed of the sutler's wagon, and in this man- 
ner rode by the guard, but was detected after get- 
ting beyond all the guards. For this oilence I was 
sent to the Macon jail with an order " place him 
(me) in close confinement," and feed me on corn- 
bread and water until further orders. The fur- 
ther orders never came to hand. 

Shortly after being placed in jail I managed 
to procure the impression of the cell keys on a 
piece of dough made out of some wheat bread 
I obtained tor the occasion, and with the assist- 
ance of a file, I succeeded in manufacturing, out 
of teaspoons, keys to fit all the locks. 

June 30. — 1 had everything in readiness to 
release all the prisoners, but Avas betrayed by an 
inmate of the jail. 

After this attempt I was placed in a cell with 
Captain Whitlock, Aid to General Logan, Ser- 
geant Gillespie, First Kentucky Cavalry, and 
George Manning, Twenty-Fourth JMassachusetts 
Infantry. 

July 4. — We made a Declaration of Indepen- 
dence, and came near gaining our freedom in 
the following manner : 

During the day one of our number feigned 
sickness. At night when the doors were opened 
for the purpose of changing water, our sick man 
stole into an empty cell and his place in our cell 
was filled with a stuffed pair of pants and shirt. The 
ruse not being detected, the man on the outside 



184 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



with the assistance of the teaspoon keys, opened 
our doors, and by two o'clock in the morn- 
ing of July 5, we were nearly through the 
wall ; we were however detected shortly after- 
ward, and again locked up. The jailer thinking 
I was the one to blame for the damage done, 
threatened me with a chain round my neck, and 
one around each ankle, should I make another 
attempt to escape. 

July 22. — By another ruse, we again succeed- 
ed in getting out of our cell. By 2 o'clock we 
had an opening nearly large enough to pass 
through. Being in the third story of the jail, we 
required a rope, with which to reach the ground, 
and made it by tearing our blankets up for the 
purpose, and a very strong cable was the result 
of our labor. Fifteen minutes, and we would be 
outside of the gloomy walls. But again we were 
doomed to disappointment, and were again locked 
up, and after this attempt a guard of soldiers was 
placed around the jail to make sure of us. 

July 2G. — Captain Whitlock and myself con- 
cluded to attempt the passage of the guards dis- 
guised as one of the negro attendants of the jail. 
Accordingly, we made a fire on the cell floor by 
splitting some fine kindling of pine wood, burned 
some cork which we were fortunate in procuring, 
and by 6 o'clock that evening were ready for the 
experiment, myself to attempt it first. When 
the doors were opened for the purpose of chang- 
ing the water, I placed one bucket on my head 
and another in my right hand, and passed within 
two feet of the guard without detection. I was 
in the act of passing out of the yard-gate when 
recognized, and the attention of the guard called 
to me by a deserter from the Army of the Poto- 
mac. I was again placed in my cell, and passed 
the night sadly. It appeared to me that I was 
not to succeed in making my escape, no matter 
how often I attempted it. But I concluded to 
" try again." 

July SO. — Our plans were interrupted by 
being placed in the cars " for Charleston, South 
Carolina," but Stoneman came to the rescue. 
The authorities, learning that the road had been 
cut, removed us from the cars to the stockade. 
Stoneman fought the rebels all day within our 
hearing, and toward evening drove the rebels 
within three-fourths of a mile of the city. His 
shells struck several buildings in the centre of the 
city, creating cjuite a panic. Hopes of being i-e- 
leased by Stoneman created the warmest feehng 
among our prisoners, but we were doomed to dis- 
appointment, as our troops were compelled by 
the overwhelming force brought against them, to 
fall back, and two days later Stoneman liimself 
was brought in a prisoner. 

July 31. — Captain Whitlock, myself, and 
eight others were returned to jail as " dangerous 
characters." August 3, another plan was con- 
cocted. Myself and another were to smuggle 
eurselves into a cell on the outside of the door 
which closed at the end of the entry, and which 
it was necessary to open in order to allow the es- 
cape of all the prisoners. Another prisoner was 
to remain outside his cell, and co-operate with us 



from the inside. This he failed to do, and for 
fear of detection next morning, myself and part- 
ner resolved to escape that night. 

The prisoners of the cell in which we had 
managed to smuggle oui'selves, not having made 
any attempt to escape, the jailer was in the habit 
of only locking the inside door upon them. Any 
one having a key could open this door from the 
inside ; I had altered a key to fit it. About nine 
o'clock, we opened the door, and after passing out 
closed and locked it again. I was to pass the 
guard first, get over the fence, and make a signal 
to my comrade. I stole gently down to the large 
outer door where I could observe the guard pass- 
ing and repassing. We had hoped to catch the 
guard asleep, but after watching until three 
o'clock in the morning, they were still on the alert. 
I resolved to attempt the passage when he was 
pacing his beat with his back toward me, and was 
in the act of making the leap, when the command 
" Halt ! who comes there ? " rang out upon the 
air. I drew back and discovered the relief-guard 
approaching; the guard was relieved, and five 
minutes later I gave a leap, and thinking the 
guard had noticed me, and was about to fire, 
threw myself upon the ground ; I lay here some 
ten minutes, the guard passing within twelve feet 
of me. Finding that he had not noticed me I 
made my way to the fence and scaled it in safety. 
I made the signal agi'ced upon, Avaited ixn hour 
and a half, and thinking my friend would not 
risk the running of the guard, started on my jour- 
ney, reaching the city limits just at daylight. 

Sometime before my escape I contrived to get 
hold of a confederate uniform, ixpon which I 
sewed two bars which indicated, in the rebel ar- 
my, a first lieutenant. Five miles from the city 
I obtained a first-rate breakfast, for which they 
refused pay, thinking that I was what I represent- 
ed myself to be, " Lieutenant J. R. Brown, Fourth 
Louisiana Battalion Volunteer Infantry." Dur- 
ing the forenoon I lost myself, and at noon found 
myself only nine miles fi'om JMaeon. I took din- 
ner at an old planter's ; living at this house wa4< 
a young man who had been in the army — he 
proved very inquisitive ; he asked me the names 
of our otKcers, engagements in which we had 
taken part, &c., all of Avhich I was able to an- 
swer correctly, being in possession of the 
complete history of the regiment, which I ob- 
tained from a confederate soldier in prison. The 
old gentleman was not so susi)icious, but on the 
contrary was very sociable, asking me if I was a 
married man, and drawing my attention to tlie 
fact that he had four daughters, all unmarried, 
&c. Before I left, the young man was satisfied 
that I was a loyal southerner, and the old gentle- 
man refused to take any pay from a " soldier." 
I thanked him, and bade them all good-by. 

That night I had to pay five dollars in Confed- 
erate money, for supper. I engaged a bed, and 
had a good sound sleep only twelve miles from 
Macon. I also learned that two hundred of 
Wheeler's men were in camp only two miles 
off. Next morning I started early, and passed 
about one hundred wounded men on furlough 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



185 



going down to the station to take the cars for 
home. I approved of the policy of allowing 
wounded men to go home, &c. They wanted to 
Jcnow whether I was on furlough or not. I re- 
plied that I was just out of the hospital, and then 
en route to see a friend three miles from For- 
sythe ; I passed on. Near Forsythe I passed a 
squad of Wheeler's men, in search of the camp of 
which I had heard the night previous. I gave 
them directions where to find the camp, after 
which they asked me what command I belonged 
to, &c. I gave them the same old tale, which 
satisfied them and passed on. 

At the edge of Forsythe, I passed three hospit- 
al camps, and experienced no trouble in doing 
go. Two miles beyond the town I asked permis- 
sion from an old planter, who was returning 
home, to ride with him in his buggy, which he 
granted. Seven and a-half miles from town, 
we came to this gentleman's home. I thanked 
him for his kindness and passed on. 

I learned from a negro the names of parties 
living on the opposite side of the Omulgee Riv- 
er, which I had to cross that evening, and meet- 
ing any one, I generally satisfied their curiosity 
by telling them that I was just going down to 
Mr. Bradford's or " any other man's " name that 
I happened to know in advance. 

At the river I found three cavalrymen (Wheel- 
er's), on duty, " looking after Yanks." Stone- 
man's men at this time were scattered all over 
this part of the country, and made it more diffi- 
cult to escape than under other circumstances. 

The old ferryman Avas very inquisitive. I think 
I satisfied him by giving him a larger bill than 
he could change, and telling him to keep the 
change until my return on the following day. I 
asked the guards if they Avere " looking out for 
Yanks, " to which they replied, " Yes." I told 
them what command I belonged to, &c., and 
passed on. Five miles from this place I encoun- 
tered my hardest customer. He had been an 
officer in the rebel Eastern army, but resigned 
early in the war. He suspected me at fu-st sight, 
and the following dialogue ensued between us : 

Reb. — " What command do you belong to ? " 

Yank. — " Fourth Louisiana Battalion." 

Reb. — '' Give me the names of officers com- 
manding your regiment, brigade and division." 

Yank. — " Lieut. Colonel John McHenry, for- 
merly commanded the regiment. He was wound- 
ed in the arm and thigh at the battle of Resaca, 
since Avhich time Major Bowie has commanded. 
Colonel Gibson commands the brigade, and Major 
General Stewart the division." 

Reb. — " Where is Col. McHenry at now ? " 

Yank. — " He is in the hospital at Columbus, 
Georgia." 

Reb. — " Have you any papers to vouch for 
the tnith of your statements ? " 

Yank. — "I have not." 

Reb. — " How is it that you are without pas- 
ses?" 

Yank. — " It is not necessary for an officer to 
have papers in going so short a distance." 

Reb. — " You may be all right, but I want to 



be satisfied. I fitted myself out for the purpose 
of scouting for Yanks, and we are picking them 
up every day. How far have you come to-day ? " 

Yank. — " From Forsythe. I came over to 
see my friend Joe Smith, the miller, who lives 
three miles down the river to the left of the road 
as you come from Macon. I am now going to 
Mr. Sanderson IVIiddlebrook's, on private business 
for a friend in the hospital at Forsythe." 

Reb. — " How long have you been in For- 
sythe ? " 

Yank. — " Over two months. 1 was wounded 
at Resaca ; after recovermg from my wound, I 
was taken with erysipelas." 

Reb. — " You can give the names of citizens 
of Forsythe if you have been there two months." 

Yank. — " No, sir, I cannot. I suffered se- 
verely, and was afterward so sick that I did not 
leave camp, and consequently did not form any 
acquaintances." 

Reb. — " Describe the camp and buildings sur- 
rounding it." 

I described quite a number of buildings I had 
noticed in coming through. 

Reb. — " Can you describe no others ? " 

Yank. — " No, sir." 

Reb. — " You have omitted the most conspicu- 
ous building in the camp. Can you not de- 
scribe it ? " 

Yank.— "No, sir." 

Reb. — " Well, sir, I will have to take you to 
camp at Graball, where there are officers better 
able to decide the matter." 

Yank. — " My friend, if you do your duty you 
do well ; but when you go bej-ond that, it is un- 
bearable. I am a confederate officer, and ex- 
pect to be treated as such. I have given you 
enough proof to satisfy any reasonable man ; and 
if you were an old soldier you would have been 
satisfied with half the questions answered by 
me. I have to be in Forsythe on Monday next, 
in order to go to the front. If I go with you, I 
will have to come back to-morrow to I\liddle- 
brook's, and then I cannot reach Forsythe in 
time." 

Reb. — "Well, come and go back to Mr. 
Smith's and stay all night." 

Yank. — "I cannot go there, for the same rea- 
son that I cannot go to camp." 

Reb. — " Well, sir, if you will describe Mr. 
Smith's house, I will be satisfied that you are all 
right." 

It struck the rebel that if I was one, I could 
describe the house. That if I was a Yankee, I 
had not been to Mr. Smith's, — which was three 
miles off the road, — and consequently could not 
describe it. I knew ihat if I did not describe it 
I would have to go to camp with him, so 1 deter- 
mined to make the attempt. In order to gain 
time, I pretended not to understand him. 

I knew that there were no brick buildings in 
that part of the country, and that it must be ei- 
ther a frame or a log house. Mr. Smith being a 
miller, I concluded that it must be a frame. Af- 
ter asking him what he said, I told him that I 
could describe it ; and commenced to do so. I 



186 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



told him that it was a two-story frame house, of 
pretty good size. 

He replied that I was right, and that he was 
thoroughly satisfied ; asked my pardon for de- 
taining me so long ; shook hands, and we parted. 
After this I resolved to travel at night, only. 

At Hillsboro I was compelled to lie over 
three days, until General Iverson's brigade of 
Wheeler's command, got out of my way — nar- 
rowly escaping capture, twice, by pickets or 
scouts of this command. One of Stoneman's 
raiders was captured at this place, driven into the 
\YOods, and brutally murdered by his captors. 
Near Monticello I was chased by blood-hounds, 
but having procured an article which destroys 
the scent before leaving Macon, I escaped from 
them and their savage masters. The dogs hav- 
ing lost the scent, myself and negro guide — 
whom I engaged to take me around the town — 
went into a negro housQ and took supper. While 
there we were informeil that three Yankees had 
been caught a short distance from town, and a 
negi'O, caught with them, had been shot. My 
guide, upon hearing this, made an excuse to go 
out, and never returned. Shortly afterward I 
started on again. There being but one road for 
me to take, and fearing my pursuers might cross 
over and lie in wait for me, I concluded to lie 
over that night. I came to an old cotton-gin in 
the end of which was a window, but no visible 
means of getting up. After hunting around 
awhile, I found a pine pole, which I placed 
against the end of the building, and, by dint of 
pretty good climbing reached the window and 
got in. Here 1 lay all next day, sometimes gaz- 
ing at the soldiers passing along the road, not 
more than fifty yards distant, and sometimes 
sleeping. At night I got down, went back to the 
negro house of the niglit before and took supper. 

At Madison, three more of Stoneman's caval- 
ry were captured and murdered in cold blood. 

Near Lawrenceville, hearing that our army 
had been driven across the Chattahoochie river, 
and was retiring on Chattanooga, and deeming it 
best to change my direction, I resolved to enter 
the house of a rich widow lady, engage supper, 
and endeavor to obtain sight of a map. 

I got supper, and also saw a map, from which 
I added some new points on my lead-pencil map. 
While in the house, the old lady asked me what 
I thought about the war. I replied that if the peo- 
ple of other States did as well as those of Geor- 
gia they would be successful. She replied that 
she thought they Avere a subjugated people. This 
was before the fall of Atlanta. While I stayed 
near Lawrenceville, large numbers of rebels 
passed by — some going home, others making for 
the mountains. They said there was no use stay- 
ing at Atlanta and being killed up ; that they 
were whipped anyhow. 

The morning of August 25th found me six 
miles from the Chattahoochie river, and twenty- 
seven miles from Marietta. 

That night I reached the river at a place 
know as Mackeyfield's Bridge. I fouM that the 
bridge had been destroyed by our cavalry in their 



retreat, and I was compelled to swim it, which I 
did at twelve o'clock at night. I passed through 
Roswell at daylight, and concluded to ti-avel that 
day until I reached our lines at Marietta. I met 
quite a large number of citizens, to whom I rep- 
resented myself as having been paroled by Stone- 
man, in front of Macon, with the understanding 
that I was to send out a Federal Lieutenant in 
my stead, and that if I failed to do so I was 
to report at Marietta as prisoner of war. Sever- 
al of them advised me not to leport, but " I 
couldn't think of breaking my parole." Five 
miles from Marietta I took breakfast at an old 
lady's house ; she told me of the cruel treatment 
received at the hands of the Yankees, &c. She 
mentioned one case, I remember, in which she 
had traded butter and milk for flour and coffee, 
and afterward the flour and coflee were taken from 
her by the Yankees. 

I reached our lines at Marietta that day, Au- 
gust 26th, at ten o'clock, A. m., after a tedious and 
dangerous journey of twenty-two days, having 
travelled a distance of one hundred and sixty 
miles, all but thirteen miles on foot. None but 
those who have experienced it, can imagine the 
intense feeling of joy that overwhelms one upon 
again beholding the old flag, after a period of 
suffering in Southern dungeons. 



DRAGOON'S SONG. 

Clash, clash goes the sabre against hay steed's side, 
Kling, kling go the rowels as onward I ride ; 
And all my bright harness is living and speaks, 
And under my horse-shoe the frosty grouml creaks ; 
I wave my buff glove to the girl whom I love, 
Then join my dark squadron, and forward I move. 

The foe all secure, has laid down by his gun ; 

I'll open his eyelids before the bright sun ; 

I burst on his pickets — they scatter, they fly ; 

Too late they awaken — 'tis only to die. 

Now the torch to their camp ; I'll make it a lamp, 

As back to my quarters so slowly I tramp. 

Kiss, kiss me my darling ; your lover is here, 

Nay, kiss off the smoke-stains ; keep back that bright 

tear; 
Keep back that bright tear till the day when 1 come, 
To the low wailing fife and deep muBlcd drum, 
With a bullet half through the bosom so true. 
To die, as I ought for my country and you. 

George H. Bokeb. 



H 



Southern Opinions. — At every movement 
of General Sherman's army, he captured more 
or less of the confederates, and occasionally a few 
came forward and voluntarily gave themselves 
up. One of them being asked what he thought 
of the Union forces and General Sherman, re- 
plied in the following rather extravagant but at 
the same time truthful style : " Sherman gits on a 
hill, flops his wings and crows; then yells out, 
' Attention ! creation ! by kingdoms, riglit wheel ! 
march ! ' and then we git." 

Some of the prisoners, with an air of curiosity 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



187 



worthy of a ' Yank,' inquire -where the boys get 
those guns which they load on Sunday and fire 
all the week. 



The Occupation of Wilmington. — 
Tlie reception accorded to the soldiers of the Re- 
public by the inhabitants of Wilmington, N. C. 
was a great and pleasing surprise to the officers 
and men. 

The inhabitants, male 'and female, came from 
their houses into the streets, waving their hats 
and handkerchiefs as greetings of welcome. 
" We have been looking for you lor a long time," 
said one. " You have got here at last," exclaimed 
anothei". " God bless you." And many like ex- 
pressions. American flags were brought out and 
suspended over doors and from windows. One 
old lady expressed herself very glad to see 
Gen. Terry and his staff, for, said the aiacient 
dame, " when I first seed you I thought you were 
Confederate officers come looking up tobacco." 
The colored people seemed beside themselves 
with joy ; they sang and jumped, and shouted 
for joy. _ 

The sight of the colored troops filled the meas- 
ure of their ecstatic joy. The men danced in 
jubilation, the women screamed and went into 
hysterics, then and there, on the sidewalks. And 
their sable brethren in arms marched past, proud 
and erect, singing their " John Brown " hymn, 
where it was never sung before. Some of the 
larger houses were closed and abandoned ; the 
people inhabiting these dwellings were affiliated 
with treason and rebellion. To their imagina- 
tion, and their guilty consciences prompted the 
imaginings, our soldiers wei-e not deliverers, but 
the avenging agents of the government which 
they had v/antonly and without cause outraged 
and insulted. 

Even from some of the finest mansicwis came 
forth the inmates with smiles of welcome for the 
defenders of the Union. What houses were 
closed or abandoned were of the first class. The 
middle class are nearly all loyal and four years' 
experience of secession has convinced even many 
of the slave-holding aristocracy that they com- 
mitted a grave mistake, as well as a great crime, 
when tliey attempted to sever the bands of our 
common Union. 



dress parade, he asked F. why he did that. He 
replied, " To look as much alike as possible." — 
The Colonel burst out laughing, and went, after 
parade, to the store and bought him a pair of 
shoes with his own money. 



Looking Alike. — The following incident 
illustrates how desirous the volunteers are to obey 
orders, and the good result of their efforts : 

I suppose you will see that I have written 
mother's letter with a pencil, and yours with pen 
and ink. It is because we have just had a lot of 
pen-holders and pens given us by the govern- 
ment. We have also had a box and a half of 
shoe-blacking given to each man. You will re- 
member that in my last letter I stated that G. 
F. , one of the privates, had no shoes. When 
the Colonel gave us the blacking he said he 
wanted us to look as much alike as possible. So 
G. F. went to work and blacked his feet and pol- 
ished them ; and when the Colonel came along on 



Gen. Haudee and the Straggler. — 
While on a forced march in some of the army 
movements in Mississippi, Gen. Hardee came up 
with a straggler who had fallen some distance in 
the rear of his command. The General ordered 
him forward, when the soldier replied that he was 
weak and broken down, not having had even half 
rations for several days. ' 

" That's hard," replied the General, " but you 
must push forward, my good fellow, and join 
your command, or the provost guard will take 
you in hand." 

The soldier halted, and, looking up at the Gen- 
eral, asked : 

" Aint you Gen. Hardee ? " 

" Yes," replied the General. 

" Didn't you write Hardee's Tactics ? " 

" Yes." 

" Well, General, I've studied them tactics, and 
know 'em by heart. You've got an order thar 
to double column at half distance, aint you ? " 

" Well," asked the General, " what has that 
order to do with your case ? " 

" I'm a good soldier. General, and obey all that 
is possible to be obeyed : but if you can show 
me an order in your tactics, or anybody else's 
tactics, to double distance on half rations, then 
I'll give in." 

The General, with a hearty laugh, admitted 
that there were no tactics to meet the case, and 
putting spurs to his horse, rode forward. 



How a Lieutenant Escaped. — The fol- 
lowing incident is connected with the flight at 
Sommerville, during the raid of Forrest through 
Tennessee: — Lieut. Mclnfryre, Ninth Ilhnois 
Cavalry, who was sent by Gen. Grierson with 
dispatches from Newcastle, eight miles east of 
Sommerville and twelve miles north of the La 
Grange, finding himself suddenly surrounded, 
threw away his arms and crawled under a house. 
From there he crept to a cotton gin near by. In 
the gin was a large pile of cotton seeds. The 
lieutenant dug a hole in it, crawled in, pulled a 
large basket over his head, and was thus com- 
pletely ensconced, save his legs, over which he 
drew sufficient to conceal them, some of the seed. 
No sooner had he hid, than a surgeon of the 
Seventh Illinois also came rushing into the gin, 
pursued by ten rebels. He had just time to con- 
ceal himself between some boards in the loft, 
when the rebels came rushing up, and began to 
search for him. They had not seen the lieuten- 
ant enter the gin, but they were certain the sur- 
geon was there. They put a guard at every av- 
enue of escape, at each door and window, and 
then commenced the search. They went all 
through the building upstairs, tried upon the 



188 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



plank beneath which lay the surgeon, but did 
not find him. They peeped into every knot-hole* 
but in vain. 

Not long after it was ascertained that Forrest 
had returned South, and the various columns of 
infantry, cavaliy and artillery were accordingly 
ordered back and went into camp. 



An Incident op Spottsylvania. — Dur- 
ing the kill in the strife, I rode back to the Sec- 
ond corps' hospitals to see the wounded. 

" How goes it, boys ? " was the question. 

" All right," said one. 

" Pretty rough," said another. 

" They niver will get through the Second 
corps," said a Hibernian. 

The lull had become a storm. How fearfully 
rolled the musketry ! It is utterly useless to at- 
tempt a description or comparison. It was vol- 
ley after volley, surge after surge, roll after roll. 

Maurice Collins, of the Twelfth Massachusetts, 
was brought in with an ugly wound through his 
shoulder. He was a Catholic, and the priest 
was showing him the crucifix. 

" Will it be mortal ? " he asked. 

" Perhaps not, if you will lie still and keep 
quiet ; but you may have to lose your arm." 

" Well, I am willing to give my arm to my 
country," was the reply of one, who, though born 
in the ever green isle, while loving the harp and 
shamrock, adores the stars and stripes of his 
adopted country. 

THE FLORIDA'S CRUISE. 

BY A FOKETOP-MAN OF THE C. S. S. FLORIDA. 

Air — Red, White, and Blue (Southern edition). 

One evening:, off Mobile, tlie Yanks they all knew 
That the wind from the north'ard most bitterly blew; 
They also all knew, and they thought they were sure, 
They'd block'd in the Florida, safe and secure. 

Huzza ! huzza, for the Florida's crew ! 

We'll rangre with bold Maffitt the world through 
and through. 

Nine cruisers they had, and they lay off the bar, 
Their lonp; line to seaward extending so far, 
And Preble, he said, as he shut his eyes tight : 
I'm sure they're all hammock'd this bitter cold night. 

Bold Maffitt commanded, a man of great fame. 
He sail'd in the Dolphin — you've heard of the same ; 
He call'd us all aft, and these words he did say: 
I'm bound to run out, boys, up anchor, away ! 

Our hull was well whitewash'd, our sails were all 

stow'd, 
Our steam was chock up, and the fresh wind it 

blow'd ; 
As we crawl'd along by them, the Yanks gave a 

shout — 
Wo dropp'd all our canvas and open'd her out. 

You'd have thou<iht them all mad, if you'd heard 

the curs'd racket 
They made upon seeing om* flash little packet ; 



Their boatswains did pipe, and the blue lights did 

pi-T'y. 

And the great Drummond light — it turn'd night into 
day. 

The Cuyler, a boat that's unrival'd for speed, 
Quick let slip her cables, and quickly indeed 
She thought for to catch us and keep us in play, 
Till her larger companions could get under way. 

She chas'd and she chas'd, till at dawnins: of day 
From her backers she thought she was too far away, 
So she gave up the chase and reported, no doubt, 
That she'd sunk us and burnt us somewhere there- 
about. 

So when we were out, boys, all on the salt sea. 
We brought the Estelle to, right under our lee, 
And burnt her and sunk her with all her fine gear, 
And straight sail'd for Havana the bold privateer. 

'Twas there we recruited and took in some stores. 
Then kiss'd the senoras and sail'd from their shores, 
And on leaving their waters, by way of a joke. 
With two Yankee brigs, boys, we made a great smoke. 

Our hull was well wash'd with the limestone so white. 
Which sailors all know is not quite Christianlike, 
So to paint her all ship-shape we went to Green Keys, 
Where the Sonoma came foaming, the Rebel to seize. 

We put on all sail and up steam right away, 
And for fort3'-cight hours she made us some plaj', 
When our coal being dusty and choking the flue, 
Our steam it slack'd down, and nearer she drew. 

Oh, ho ! cried our captain, I see what's your game ! 
Clear away the stern pivot, the Bulldog by name. 
And two smaller dogs to keep him corapanie. 
For very sharp teeth have these dogs of the sea. 

The Sonoma came up, until nearly in range, 
When her engines gave out ! — now wasn't that 

strange ? 
— I don't know the truth, but it's my firm belief 
She didn't like the looks of the Florida's teeth. 

She gave up the chase and returned to Key West, 
And told her flag captain that she done her best ; 
But the story went round, and it grew rather strong, 
And the public acknowledg'd that something was 
wrong. 

We went on a cruising and soon did espy 
A fine, lofty clipper, bound home from Shanghai ; 
We burnt her and sunk her i' th' midst of the sea, 
And drank to Old Jeff in the best of Bohea ! 

We next found a ship with a quakerish name : 
A wolf in sheep's clothing oft pla3-s a deep game, — 
For the hold of that beautiful, mild, peaceful Star 
Was full of saltpetre, to make powder for war. 

Of course the best nature could never stand that, 

Saltpetre for Boston's a little too fat. 

So we burnt her and sunk her, she made a great 

blaze. 
She's a star now gone down, and we've put out her 

rays. 

We next took a schooner well laden with bread ; 
What the devil got into Old Uncle Abe's head ? 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



189 



To send us such biscuit is such a fine thing, 
It sets us all laughing, as we sit and sing. 

We next took the Lapwing, right stuff in her hold. 
And that was blaclc diamonds that people call coal ; 
With that in our bunkers we'll tell Uncle Sara, 
That we think his gunboats are not worth a damn. 

The Mary Jane Colcord to Cape Town was bound. 
We bade iier heave to though and swing her yards 

round, 
And to Davy Jones' locker without more delay 
We sent her afire, and so sailed on our way. 

Huzza ! huzza, for the Florida's crew ! 

We'll range with bold Maffitt the world through 
and throufrh. 



Fkench Delaney. — Near Falls Church, 
Virginia, there lived before the war a wealthy 
and highly-respected family of the name of De- 
laney. When the war broke out one of the 
sons joined Mosby's band, and a daughter became 
a volunteer nurse in a rebel hospitah Both be- 
came celebrated in their way. The son was 
young, daring and adventurous, the pride of the 
female sex for thirty miles around the place of his 
nativity. He was soon the dread of Union sol- 
diers and Union men of Virginia. 

Not a stray soldier from picket escaped him, 
not a Union farmer, but ti'embled at his name. 
The vicinity of Dranesville, Chantilly, Falls 
Church and Vienna can attest to his notoriety and 
achievement. The father of a rebellious son and 
daughter sternly maintained his loyalty and fidel- 
ity to the Union. At the opening of the war he 
immediately offered his services to the Federal 
Government, and was promoted to the rank of 
colonel in the volunteer service. 

Early one day a scouting party, consisting of 
detachments from the Thirteenth New York and 
Second Massachusetts Cavalry, under the com- 
mand of Lieutenant E. B. Lyell, started from 
Falls Church in pursuit of guerillas, reported to 
be in the neighborhood of Chantilly and Herndon 
station. On the morning following their depart- 
ure, the troops were quietly drinking their coflee 
within half a mile of the station, five of the ad- 
vance guard posted on the road ; suddenly, as if 
rising from the earth, came galloping at full speed, 
five men fully armed and equipped. 

A volley from the advanced guard caused a mo- 
mentary pause ; the next minute the guerillas 
turned and fled, the advance starting in pursuit, 
an exciting chase ensuing for half a mile. A sec- 
ond volley was fired by the pursuers ; but still the 
rebels kept onward in their course till they arrived 
near the pine woods, when they dashed in and 
the men dared not follow. A stray horse was 
seen to gallop from the woods without a rider ! 
A man was shot ! AVhere was he V 

The neighborhood was searched, and, in an ad- 
joining house, stretched on a bed, pale and breath- 
mg hard, was found a wounded man, a young lady 
fanning him tenderly. The officer in command 
asked him, " Do you belong to the regular Con- 
federate army, and what regiment ? " He replied ; 
" I belong to Mosby's command." He stated 



that he had always used the Union men well 
when he had taken them prisoners, and begged 
that a surgeon be sent ; with which request Lieu- 
tenant Lyell promptly complied. The surgeon 
came too late, for two nights afterwards the noto- 
rious Frenchy Delaney breathed his last, Colo- 
nel Delaney arriving just in time to take a last 
farewell. 

Curious to relate, Colonel Delaney was tak- 
en prisoner to Richmond, and his own son was 
present at the capture. The news of his fate flew 
fast ; on arriving at Dranesville, the officer in 
charge was accosted by the fair damsels of reb- 
eldom, in terms like this : " Now, have you really 
shot Frenchy Delaney ? Well, now, that is too 
bad ; I hope he wont die." " Yes," replied Ly- 
ell, " and very soon you will have no rebel 
beaux to many ? you will have to take up with 
Union men." " We will," was the answer, " but 
we will convert them." " Perhaps," said the 
Lieutenant, " we shall convert you." The maid- 
ens smiled incredulously, and Lyell left for his 
command. 



Reminiscences of General Sumner. — 
When the history of this war is faithfully written, 
Sumner's name will be one of the brightest in 
that noble army whict has illustrated the disci- 
pline and valor of Northern troops on so many 
bloody fields, but which, through a leader infirm 
of purpose, never yet gathered the ripe fruits of 
victory. At Fair Oaks and Malvern Hill he de- 
cided the fate of the day ; and through the whole 
Peninsular campaign he was in the hottest, dead- 
liest of the fighting. 

He had the true soldierly temperament. Not 
only was his whole heart in the war, but if it is 
possible for any man to love fighting, to ieel what 
the ancients called " the rapture of the strike," 
Sumner was that man. He snuffed the battle 
afar off". He went into it with a boyish enthusi- 
asm. Our generals usually expose themselves 
not too little but too much. If they participated 
less in the peril, they might often economize the 
lives of their men more and yet achieve the same 
results. But in this soldiery imprudence Sumner 
eclipsed them all. The chronic wonder of his 
friends was that he ever came out of battle 
alive ; but at last they be^an to believe with him, 
that he was invincible. He would get bullets in 
his hat, his coat, his boots, his saddle, his horse, 
sometimes have his person scratched, but always 
escaped without serious injury. His soldiers 
used to tell, with great relish, the story that in the 
Mexican war a bullet which struck him square in 
the forehead fell flattened to the ground without 
breaking the skin, as the hunter's ball glances 
from the forehead of the buffalo. It was this 
anecdote which won for him the soubriquet of 
" Old Bull Sumner." He desired, when his time 
should come, to fall in battle ; but it illustrates 
the fortunes of war that the officer who for forty 
years had thus courted death should at last die 
peacefully in his bed, surrounded by his family. 

At Fair Oaks, when his troops were stagger- 



190 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



ing under a pitiless storm of bullets, Sumner 
came galloping along up and down the advance 
line, more exposed than any private in the ranks. 
" What regiment is this ? " he asked. " The fif- 
teenth Massachusetts," replied a hundred voices. 
" I, too, am from ^lassachusetts ; three cheers for 
our old Bay State ! " And,swin^ng his hat, the 
general led off, and everj' soldier joined in three 
thmidering cheers. The enemy looked on in won- 
der at the strange episode, but was driven back 
by the fierce charge which followed. 

This was no unusual scene ; it was the way 
Sumner fought his battles. Staff officers will tell 
you by the hour, how, when the guns began to 
pound, his mild eye would light up with flashes 
of fire ; how he would take out his artificial teeth, 
which became troublesome during the excitement 
of battle, and place them carefully in his pocket ; 
raise his spectacles from his eyes and rest them 
upon the forehead, that he might see clearly ob- 
jects at a distance ; give his orders to his subor- 
dinates, and then gallop headlong into the thick 
of the fight. 

How many soldiers, as they read cind talk of 
his death, recall the erect form, the snowy hair 
streaming in the wind, the frank face of that won- 
derful old man, who, 

" In worst extremes, 
And on the perilous edge of battle 
Wlicn it raged," 

would ride along their front lines, when they 
were falling like grass before the mower, encour- 1 
aging the fearful, and shouting through the smoke, 
" Steady, men, steady ! Don't be excited. | 
When you have been soldiers as long as I, you ; 
will learn that this is nothing. Stand firm and i 
do your duty I" j 

For a man of sixty-four, his health was marvel- j 
lous. His long, temperate life in the pure air of j 
the great plains and the mountains — a region of | 
which he was enthusiastically fond — retained in ' 
his vigorous frame the elasticity of boyhood. Up- 
on a maixh he usually quite wore out his staff | 
with hard riding. When he left the field a short j 
time previous to his death there were few offi- j 
cers as nimble and agile as he ; few who could ; 
spring upon a horse more easily, or ride with ' 
more grace and endurance. 

There was no straining for dramatic effect 
about Sumner. He never advertised his exploits. 
He sometimes displayed heroism which would il- , 
lustrate the brightest pages of history ; but he did I 
it unostentatiously, unconsciously. It was the 
act of a soldier quietlv pertbrmiug a soldier's du- 

*>'• . [ . \ 

At Fair Oaks, on Saturday evening, after Ca- 1 

sey and Heintzelman had suffered greatly, and j 

been driven three or four miles, Sumner crossed j 

the Chickahominy at an unexpected point, and | 

attacking the enemy ^-igorously in flank and rear, 

turned the tide of battle. On Sunday morning 

the fight was renewed ; many a gallant officer 

fell. Gen. Howard lost his ann at the head of 

his brigade, and our triumph was gained at a 

heavy cost ; but Sumner held his advantage. 



During a luU in the battle, McClellan crossed the 
river, remained long enough to write his famous 
despatch censuring Casey's men, and then suc- 
ceeded in returning upon a log over the swelling 
stream. Our bridges were swept away ; our ar- 
my was thus cut in twain ; and Sumner, with his 
three shattered corps, was left without hope of 
reinforcements. The weakened half of our ar- 
my was at the mercy of the enemy's entire force. 

On that Sunday night, after making his dis- 
positions to receive an attack, Sumner sent for 
Gen. Sedgwick, who commanded his Second Di- 
vision, — one of his special friends and most trust}' 
soldiers. " Sedgwick," said he, " you perceive the 
situation. The epemy will probably precipitate 
himself upon us at daylight. Reinforcements are 
impossible ; he can overwhelm and destroy us. 
But at this most critical period the country cannot 
afford to have us defeated. The enemy may win 
a victory ; but we must make it a victory that 
shall ruin him. There is just one thing for us to 
do : we must stand here and die like men ! Im- 
press it upon your officers that we must do this 
to the last man — to the last man ! We may not 
meet again ; but we will at least die like soldiers." 

And so Sumner wrung the hand of his lieuten- 
ant and bade him farewell. Morning came ; the 
rebels failing to discover our perilous condition, 
did not renew the attack ; in a day or two new 
bridges were bmlt, aud the sacrifice was averted. 
But Sumner was the man to carrj- out his resolu- 
tion to the letter. 

After Fair Oaks, he retained possession of a 
house on our old Une of battle ; and the head- 
quarters' tents were brought up and pitched there. 
They were within range of a rebel battery which 
awoke the General and his staff every morning, 
by dropping shot and shell all about them for two 
or three hours. Sumner implored permission to 
capture or drive away that batterj-, but was re- 
fused, on the ground that it might bring on a 
general engagement. He chafed and stormed : 
•' It is the most disgraceful thing of my hfe," he 
said," that this should be permitted ;" but Mc- 
Clellan, whose prudence never forsook him, was 
inexorable. Sumner was begged to remove his 
head-quarters to a safer position, but he persisted 
in staying there for fourteen days, and at last only 
withdrew upon a peremptory order from his su- 
perior. 

The experience of that fortnight shows how 
much iron and lead may fly about men's ears 
without harming them. During the whole bom- 
bardment only two persons at the head-quarters 
were injured. The surgeon of a Rhode Island 
battery was slightly wounded in the head by a 
piece of shell which flew into his tent ; and a pri- 
vate, who laid down behind a log for protection, 
was instantly killed by a shell knocking a splinter 
from the log, which fractured his skull. There 
were many hairbreadth escapes ; but not another 
man received a scratch. 

During the artillery fighting, the day before 
Antietam, Sumner lay upon the grass under the 
shade trees, in front of the brick house which 
served for General Head-quarters. A few yardj 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND DsCIDENTS. 



191 



distant, in an open field, a party of staff officers 
and civilians were suddenly startled by a stray 
gbell from the enemy, -which dropped about a 
hundred feet from them. It was followed by 
another which fell stiU nearer, and the group 
broke up and scattered with great alacrity. 
" Why," remarked Sumner, with a peculiar smile, 
" the shells excite a good deal of commotion 
among those young gentlemen ! " The idea which 
seemed to amuse him was that anybody should be 
disconcerted by shells. 

At Fredericksburg, by the express order of 
Bumside, Sumner remained on this side of the 
river during the fighting. The precaution prob- 
ably saved his life. Had he ridden with his usual 
rashness out on that fiery front, he had never 
returned to tell what he saw. Still, he chafed 
sadly under the restriction. As the sun went 
down on that day of glorious but fruitless en- 
deavor, he p^ccd to and fro in front of the Lacey 
Hous3 with one- arm thrown around the neck of 
his son, his face haggard with sorrow and anxiety, 
and his eyes straining eagerly for the arrival of 
each successive messenger. 

He was a man of high ambition. Once, hearing 
Gen. Howard remark that he did not aspire to 
the command of a coi-ps, he exclaimed : " Gen- 
eral, you surprise me. I would command the 
world, if I could ! " But it was the ambition of a 
soldier and a patriot He gave to his superiors 
not merely lip-service, but zealous, hearty, untir- 
ing co-operation. It was a point of honor with 
him, even when he believed them mistaken or in- 
competent, never to breathe a word to their dis- 
paragement. 

He was sometimes called arbitrary ; but he had 
great love for his soldiers, especially his old com- 
panions in anus. One of his officers tell a laugh- 
able story of applying to him for a ten days' fur- 
lough, when the rule against them was impera- 
tive. Sumner peremptorily refused it. But the 
officer sat do"ivn beside him, and began to talk 
about the Peninsula campaign, the battles in 
whic h he had done his duty, immediately under 
Sumner' eye ; and it was not many minutes be- 
fore the General granted his petition. '• If he 
had only waited," said the narrator, " until I re- 
minded him of some scenes at Antietam, I am 
sure he would have given me twenty days instead 
of ten." 

He possessed great kindness of heart : he was 
intrinsically a gontleman — an example which 
some of our Major-Generals might study to ad- 
vantage. His intercourse with women and chil- 
dren was characterized by peculiar chivalry and 
gentleness. There was much about him to revive 
the old ideal of the soldier — terrible in battle, 
but with a heart open and tender as a child's. 

To his youngest son — a captain upon his 
staff — he was bound by ties of unusual affection. 
" Sammy " was his constant companion ; in private 
he leaned upon him, caressed him, and consulted 
him upon the most trivial matters. It was a 
touching bond which united the gray, war-worn 
veteran to the child of his old age. 



THE CAPTAIN'S WIFE. 

BY THEODORE TILTOX. 

We gathered roses, Blanche and I, for little Madge, 
one morning, — ' 
" I am a soldier's wife," said Blanche, "and dread 
a soldier's fate ! " — 
Her voice a little trembled then, as nnder some fore- 
warning, — 
A soldier galloped up the lane, and halted at the 
gate. 

" Which house is Malcolm Blake's 1 " he cried, — " a 
letter for his sister ! " 
And when I thanked him, Blanche inquired, "Bat 
none for me, his wife ? " 
The soldier played with Madge's carls, and stooping 
over, kissed her : 
" Your father was my captain, child ; — I loved 
him as my life ! " 

Then suddenly he galloped off, and left the rest un- 
spoken ; 
I blu-st the seal, and Blanche exclaimed — " What 
makes you tremble so ? " 
What answer did I dare to speak ? — how ought the 
news be broken 1 
I could not shield her from the stroke, yet tried to 
ease the blow. 

" A battle in the swamps," I said, — " our men were 
brave, but lost it ; " 
And pausing there, — " the note," I said, " is not 
in Malcolm's hand." 
And first a flush went through her face, and then a 
shadow crossed it, — 
"Read quick, dear May, — read all, I pray, and 
let me understand ! " 

I did not read it as it stood, but tempered so the 
phrases 
As not at first to hint the worst, — held back the 
fatal word, 
And half re-told his gallant charge, his shouts, hii 
comrades' praises, — 
When, like a statue carved in stone, she neither 
spoke nor stirred ! 

Oh ! never yet a woman's heart was frozen so com- 
pletely ! — 
So unbaptized with helping tears ! — so passionle» 
and dumb ! 
Spell-bound she stood, and motionless — till little 
Madge spoke sweetly : 
" Dear mother, is the battle done ? — and will mv 
father come 1 " 

I laid my finger on her lips, and set the child to play- 
ing ; — 
Poor Blanche ! the winter in her cheek was snowy, 
hke her name ! 
What could she do but kneel and pray ? — and linger 
at her praying ? 
O Christ, when other heroes die, moan other wives 
the same ? 

Mast other "women's hearts yet break, to keep the 
cause from failing ? 
God pity our brave lovers then, who face the ba^ 
tie's blaze ! 
And pity ^vives in widowhood ! — But is it unavail- 
ing? 
O Lord, give Freedom first, then Peace, — and 
unto Thee be praise I 



192 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



An Incident of the Battle Field. — A 
writer in the " Congregationallst" tells this : — 

Eeturning, we saw a newly opened grave. It 
was for a Michigan boy of eighteen, who had 
been shot down "by the side of his father, who 
was a private in the same company. The father 
sat beside the grave, carving his boy's name upon 
a rude head-board. It was his first-born. I took 
him by the hand, and gave him all my heart ; of- 
fered a prayer, which brother Holmes followed 
with appropriate words. There was no coffin, 
but a few pieces of board were laid in the bottom 
of the grave, between the body and the bare 
ground. 

"Wrap him in this blanket," said the father; 
" it is one his sister sent him. Ah ! me, how will 
they bear it at home ? What will his poor 
mother do ? She must have a lock of his hair ! " 

I stooped to cut the lock with my penknife, 
when a soldier came forward with a pair of scis- 
sors from his little '• housewife." My heart blessed 
the Sabbath-school child who had made that 
timely gift. And so, having rendered the last 
offices of faith and affection, we laid the brave 
boy in his gi-ave, while the cannon was still roar- 
ing the doom of others, young and brave, whom 
we had just left on the field. 



A Story of General Grant. — A visitor 
to the army called upon him one morning, and 
found the General sitting in his tent smoking, and 
talking to one of his stall-officers. The stranger 
approached the chieftain, and inquired of him as 
follows : — 

" General, if you flank Lee, and get between 
him and Riclimond, will you not ' uncover Wash- 
ington,' and leave it a prey to the enemy ? " 

General Grant, discharging a cloud of smoke, 
with a " silver lining," from his mouth, indif- 
ferently replied, " Yes, I reckon so." 

Stranger, encouraged by the reply he thus re- 
ceived, propounded question number two, — 

" General, do you not think Lee can detach 
sufficient force from his army to reinforce Beau- 
regard and ovei'whelm Butler ? " 

" Not a doubt of it," replied the GeneraL 

Stranger, becoming fortified by his success, 
propounded question number three, as follows, — 

" General, is there not danger that Johnston 
may come up and reinforce Lee, so that the lat- 
ter will swing around and cut your communica- 
tions and seize your supplies ? " 

" Very likely," was the cool reply of the Gen- 
oral, as he knocked the ashes fi'om the end of his 
cigar with his little finger. 

Stranger, horrified at the awful fate about to 
befall General Grant and the army, made his 
exit and hastened to Washington to communicate 
the " news." • 



Reminiscence of Fort Donelson. — On 
Saturday night before the surrender, a council 
of war was called. Pillow, Floyd, Buckner, and 
a number of brigadiers composed this body. 



There was much confusion and exciting debate 
for a while. Some thought it necessary to sur- 
render, and some did not. It was midnight, and 
no definite understanding was come to. General 
Floyd, seeing this, dismissed the council, request- 
ing Pillow and Buckner to remain. The three 
sat down gloomily by the fire to ponder over the 
sad aspect of affairs. A long silence ensued. 

" Well, gentlemen," said Floyd, " I see you are 
still divided, and as I have the casting vote, I 
will settle the matter at once. I favor a surrender 
myself, provided the duty does not devolve upon 
me. I cannot surrender, because the United 
States Government have indicted me for treason, 
and the probability is that if they w^ere to get mc 
they would hang me. So you see the thing is 
impossible. I transfer the command to you. Gen- 
eral." 

" Well, gentlemen, it remains with us to decide 
this matter, and we must do it at once. It is now 
midnight, and if we retreat we haven't got a min- 
ute to lose." 

" I say retreat," said Pillow. 

" I say surrender ! We have shed enough 
blood already to no purpose," said Buckner. 

" Well, gentlemen," said Pillow, " I'm in the 
same fix as yourself. The Yankees have got me 
indicted for shipping guns and munitions of war 
to the Confederate Government. So you see I 
can't surrender either ; they would hang me as 
quick as they would you, and if you are excusar 
ble I guess I am too. So I transfer my right of 
command to you, General Buckner." « 

General Buckner bowed, but said nothing. 
At that moment a noise was heard without. The 
door opened, and the courier announced an 
officer who desired admittance. He was ordered 
to show him in, and the next moment Colonel 
Forrest, all splashed with mud and water, with 
high toj^ped boots and an old slouched hat, made 
his appearance. He walked to the firej^lace and 
seated himself without saying a word. After a 
few moments Floyd said : 

" Well, Colonel, have you anything important 
to communicate that you come here at this late 
hour, or has your curiosity led you to pay us this 
visit in order to find out what we have decided 
upon ? " 

" Both," rcphed Forrest, dryly ; then rising 
from his chair, he said : 

"But is it possible, gentlemen, as I have 
already heard whispered this night, that you 
intend to surrender V " 

" Yes," was the reply. " We have just arrived 
at that conclusion." 

" But," said Forrest, " there is no occasion for 
it, gentlemen ; the whole army can easily escape 
without the loss of a man ; not an hour ago I 
crossed the river on my horse where it was not 
waist deep. I crossed it going on horseback, 
and waded it coming back. It is free from 
Yankee pickets also, and there is no danger to be 
feared." 

" Yes ; but, Colonel," said General Floyd, " my 
scouts have reconnoitred the entire river, and an 
officer who arrived not half an hour ago told me 




M'VJ/GCN, i{ )[iN SEDGW LCK 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



193 



that he had tested the river everywhere, and no 
spot had he found that was fordable." 

" I don't care, General, if he did," said Forrest ; 
"he told.you a d — d lie, as I am ready to swear 
that I waded the river not half an hour ago, as 
my wet clothes will testify. And now, gentle- 
men, as it is getting late, it is high time you should 
be acting. AVill you take my advice and make 
your escape ? " 

" No," was the reply, " it is too late." 

" I have one request to make," said Forrest ; 
" I have a fine regiment of cavalry here, and I 
want permission to take it out. Grant me this 
much, and I'm off." 

Genei-al Buckner nodded his head, when For- 
rest bolted out of the house, took his command, 
crossed the river, at the aforesaid place, and 
made his escape without the loss of a man. 



A Good Marksman. — The effectiveness of 
the batteries is proverbial. While advancing on 
Resaca, when Sweeney's division was on the 
right and in reserve, Cajjtain Arndt's Michigan 
battery was wheeled into position. 

" Do you sec that house ? " said the captain, 
addressing one of his gunners, and pointing to a 
building a mile away. 

" I do, captain," was the response. 

" Can you hit it?" 

" Yes, sir." 

The piece was levelled, the lanyard drawn, 
and the chimney of the house feU with a crash ! 



~ Amusing Incident. — Charles Gates, a 
minor son wished to enlist, but his aged parents 
objected to it. One morning he was sent to 
drive the cows to pasture, on his way to work, 
taking his dinner with him. But at night he did 
not come back, because he had run away and 
enlisted. He remained through the three years 
without a furlough, and returned with the regi- 
ment unharmed by rebel bullets. He arrived in 
the old pasture at home one night just at " cow- 
time," and leisurely drove up the same old cows 
as if he hadn't been away for three years. His 
"reception" was a joyful one, none the less so 
because his coming was a complete surprise. 



A Burial at Sea. — A correspondent at 
Nassau, N. P. wrote as follows: — "A melan- 
choly incident occurred upon the steamship 
Fannie, while being chased by a Yankee man-of- 
war. One of the passengers on board, Cajitain 
Frank Du BaiTy, late chief of ordnance on Gen. 
Beauregard's staff, C. S. A., died. Preparations 
had to be completed for his burial, which took 
place amid all the excitement of the chase. A 
burial at sea is a ceremony at all times full of so- 
lemnity, but it is when coupled with such events 
as this that war assumes its most repulsive aspect. 
In that frail little steamer, quivering with her 
efforts to escape the relentless fate bearing down 
on her with frowning guns, and the ferocity of a 
13 



tiger, while every living heart on board was 
throbbing with anxiety for safety, they were sud- 
denly called upon to I'ender the last and most 
solemn rites known to our existence. No time 
then to stop in mid-ocean, while woi'ds that con- 
signed " dust to dust," "ashes to ashes," went up 
in presence of the grim destroyer, but still dash- 
ing onward through the waves — a short and 
hurried service, a heavy splash, and a body sank 
to its eternal resting-place in the broad ocean's 
bosom, while all that was dear to it in life sped 
from it on its way like the arrow from the bow." 



The Soldier Bird. — One day in the 
spring of 1861, Chief Sky, a Chippewa Indian, 
living in the northern wilds of Wisconsin, cap- 
tured an eagle's nest. To make sure of his prize 
he cut the tree down, and caught the eaglets as 
they were sUding from the nest to run and hide 
in the grass. One died. He took the other 
home, and built it a nest in a tree close by his 
wigwam. The eaglet was as big as a hen, cov- 
ered with soft brown down. The red children 
were delighted with their new pet ; and as soon 
as it got acquainted, it liked to sit down in the 
grass and see them play with the dogs. But Chief 
Sky was poor, and he had to sell it to a white 
man for a bushel of corn. The white man 
brought it to Eau Claire, a httle village alive with 
white men going to the war. " Here's a recruit," 
said the man. " An eagle, an eagle ! " shouted 
the soldiers, " let him enlist ; " and sure enough, 
he was sworn into the service with ribbons round 
his neck, red, white, and blue. 

On a perch surmounted by stars and stripes, 
the company took him to Madison, the capital of 
the state. As they marched into camp Randall, 
with colors flying, drums beating, and the people 
cheering, the eagle seized the flag in his beak and 
spread his wings, his bright eye kindling with the 
spirit of the scene. Shouts rent the air ; " The 
bird of Columbia ! the eagle of freedom forever ! " 
The state made him a new perch, the boys named 
him " Old Abe," and the regiment, the Eighth 
Wisconsin, was henceforth called " the Eagle reg- 
iment." h Qp the march it was canned at the head 
of the on fpany, and everywhere was greeted 
with deli/ r"- At St. Louis, a gentleman offered 
five hundr. :1 dollars for it, and another his farm. 
No, no, tbj boys had no notion of parting with 
their bird. It was above all price, — an emblem of 
battle and of victory. Besides it interested then: 
minds, aud made them think less of hardships and 
of home. 

I can lot tell you all the droll adventures of the 
bird thr'ough its three years of service, its flights 
in the ,iir, its fights with the guinea hens, and its 
race v^'ith the darkies. When the regiment was 
in su mmer quarters at Clear Creek in Dixie, it 
wa? allowed to run at large, and every morning 
went to the river haffa mile ofi", where it splashed 
and played in the water to its heart's content, 
faithfully returning to camp when it had enough. 
Old Abe's favorite place of resort was the sutler's, 
tent, where a live chicken found no quarter m 



194 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



hia presence. But i-ations got low, and for two 
days Abe had nothing to eat. Hard-tack he ob- 
jected to, fasting was disagreeable, and Tom, his 
bearer, could not get beyond the pickets to a 
farmyard. At last, pushing his way to the colo- 
nel's tent, he pleaded for poor Abe. The colonel 
gave him a pass, and Tom got him an excellent 
dinner. 

One day a rebel farmer asked Tom to come 
and show the eagle to his children. Satisfying 
the curiosity of the family, Tom sat him down in 
the barnyard. Oh what a screeching and scat- 
tering among the fowls ; for what should Abe do 
but pounce upon one and gobble up another, to 
the great disgust of the farmer, who declared that 
was not in the bargain. Abe, however, thought 
there was no harm in confiscating, nor did Tom. 

Abe was in twenty battles, besides many skii'- 
mishes. He was at the seige of Vicksburg, the 
storming of Corinth, and marched with Sherman 
up the lied river. The whiz of bullets and the 
scream of shells were his delight. As the battle 
grew hot and hotter, he would flap his wings and 
mingle his wildest notes with the noise around 
him. He was very fond of music, especially Yan- 
kee Doodle and Old John Brown. Upon parade 
he always gave heed to " Attention." With his 
eye on the commander, he would listen and 
obey orders, noting time accurately. After pa- 
rade he would put off his soldierly air, flap his 
wings, and make himself at home. The rebels 
called him " Yankee Buzzard," " Old Owl," and 
other hard names ; but his eagle nature was quite 
above noticing it. 

The rebel General Price gave orders to his men 
to be sure and capture the eagle of the Eighth 
Wisconsin ; he would rather have it than a dozen 
battle flags. But for all that he scarcely lost a 
feather ; only one from his right wing. His tail- 
feathers were once cropped by a bullet. 

At last the great rebellion came to an end, and 
the brave Wisconsin Eighth, with their live eagle 
and torn and riddled flags, were welcomed back 
to Madison. They went out a thousand strong, 
and returned a little band, scarred and toil-worn, 
having fought and won. 

And what of the soldier bird ? In thf .ime of 
his gallant veterans, Capt. Wolf presfe ^o "lim to 
the state. Governor Lewis accepted I ^i.'^-istri- 
ous gift, and ample quarters are provilWa for him 
in the beautiful State-house grounds, where may 
he long live to tell us 

" What lieroes from the woodland spring:, 
When through the fresh awakened 1 md 
The thrilling cry of freedom rang." 

Nor is the end yet. At the great fair in Chicago 
an enterprising gentleman, invited " Abe " to at- 
tend. He had colored photographs of the old 
hero struck off, and sold $16,700 worth for the 
benefit of poor and sick soldiers. Has not the 
American eagle done its part ? k. 



A Story of President Lincoln. — "Mr, 
President," said a friend to him, "there isn't 
much left of Hood's army, is there ? " 



" Well, no, Medill ; I think Hood's army is 
about in the fix of Bill Sykes' dog, down in San- 
gamon county. Did you ever hear it ? " 
Of course, the ansAver was, " Never." 
" Well, Bill Sykes had a long, yaller dog, that 
was forever getting into the neighbors' meat- 
houses and chicken-coops. They had tried to 
kill it a hundred times, but the dog was always 
too smart for them. Finally, one of them got a 
bladder of a coon, and filled it up with powder, 
tying the neck around a piece of punk. When 
he saw the dog coming he fired this punk, split 
open a hot biscuit and put the bladder in, then 
buttered all nicely and threw it out. The dog 
swallowed it at. a gulp. Pretty soon there was 
an explosion. The head of the dog lit on the 
porch, the fore-legs caught astraddle the fence, 
the hind-legs fell in the ditch, and the rest of the 
dog lay around loose. Pretty soon Bill Sykes 
came along, and the neighbor Sciid : ' Bill, I guess 
there aint much of that dog of your'n left.' 
' Well, no,' said Bill ; ' I see plenty of pieces, but 
I guess that dog, as a dog^ aint of much more ac- 
count.' Just so, Medill, there may be fragments 
of Hood's army around, but I guess that dog, as 
a doQi aint of much more account." 



SHERMAN'S IN SAVANNAH. 

Like the tribes of Israel, 

Fed on quails and manna, 
Sherman and his glorious band 
Journeyed through the rebel land, 
Fed from Heaven's all bounteous hand, 

Marching on Savannah. 

As the moving pillar shone 
Streamed the starry banner, 

All the day in rosy light, 

Beaming glory all the night, 

Till it swooped in eagle flight 
Down on doomed Savannah. 

Glory be to God on high ! 

Shout the loud hosanna ! 
Ti-eason's wilderness is past, 
Canaan's shore is won at last ; 
Peal a nation's trumpet-blast, — 

Sherman 's in Savannah ! 



Life in Southern Prisons. — During the 
expedition of Col. Streight through Georgia in 
the spring of 1863, Capt. T. M. Anderson of Com- 
pany D, Fifty-first Regiment, of Indiana, was 
captured by the confederates and imprisoned at 
Richmond, from whence he escaped in company 
with Lieutenant Skelton, of the Seventeenth 
Iowa Regiment, and, reached the Union lines \n 
safety, after much suffering. The following is 
his account of his experiences : — 

I was taken prisoner on the third day of May, 
1863, near Rome, Ga., with Col. Streight's com- 
mand. We were all paroled and sent to Rich- 
mond with the expectation of going through to 
our lines ; but judge of our surprise when we 
were thrust into Libby Prison, and our paroles 
taken from us. We entered Libby on the six-' 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



195 



teenth day of May, and from that day I was not 
on the ground until I made my escape. 

From the day that I entered until I succeeded 
in getting away, did I watch my opportunity. I 
soon became satisfied that to get out of any of the 
upper rooms was an impossibility, and the only 
room that there was any prospect of getting out 
of was the hospital room in the east end of the 
building, which is as low as the street on the north 
side, but the second floor on the south side. Well, 
I had to get into tliis hospital before I could hope 
to escape ; consequently, I was taken suddenly 
very sick. Of course I was carried to the hos- 
pital, where all sick men are taken. I kept my 
bed three or four days ; was visited by the sur- 
geon (a mullet-headed fellow, that didn't know 
beans), regularly, every day- He left me a large 
dose of medicine, which I found did me a great 
deal of good, in my vest-pocket. After several 
days of feigned sickness, I set to work to find a 
companion to go with me ; and, as fortune favored 
me, I found the man, Lieut. Skelton, of the Seven- 
teenth Iowa Regiment, who had long had the same 
opinion that I had, that he would get away from 
there if possible. 

We soon commenced our arrangements, and 
worked very slowly, and everything being ready 
on the eleventh of this month, we resolved to 
make the attempt. During the day we went down 
into the basement story, which is used as a cook- 
room for the hospital, and cut a small door open 
into the south-east corner of the room. This we 
opened with a large beef-cleaver, by drawing the 
spikes and nails and by cutting off the cross-bars. 
As we had to work very cautiously and silently, 
it took us some time to do this, but it was accom- 
plished ere dark. The hour of ten o'clock was 
the hour we set to make the break. We pre- 
pared crackers and dried beef enough to last us 
through, and then dressed ourselves in citizens' 
clothes (which we had received from home), and 
then everything was ready. We watched the 
sentinels very closely, and just as the hour of ten 
was called they all turned and walked to the 
west, and at that moment we opened the door, 
and like lightning we crossed the guard-line, and 
when the guards faced about we were walking 
coolly and briskly down the street. 

We kept down Canal street some two squares, 
and then turned up Main street. We then thought 
that the boldest step was safest, so we went through 
the city on Main street, then through Rockets, a 
little town adjoining Richmond on the east. After 
passing through Rockets we came to the Williams- 
burg road. This we kept for about a mile, when 
we came in sight of their batteries and Ibrts, and 
we knew that pickets were on the road ; so, to 
avoid the batteries and pickets, we took a by-path 
leading off to the right and down into a deep 
ravine, and in this Ave passed between their forts 
out into the country. The night was dark, and 
consequently it was very diflicult travelling. We 
made about seven miles that night, and came to 
the Williamsburg road again just at daybreak. 
We filed into a thick clump of cedar bushes and 
lay down for the day. It was raining very hard, 



and it was chilling cold ; hut we were free ; what 
cared we for cold rains when we were breathing 
the air of freedom ! All day Satiu-day we were 
in the bushes. The rebel drums we could plainly 
hear on all sides of us, guns firing, and soldiers 
were passing and re-passing ; and at one time five 
rebs passed so near us that I thought we should 
surely be discovered, but they did not see us, and 
we, of course, did not hail them. We had been 
surmising all day about- our whereabouts, but 
could not find out our exact locality, so we con- 
cluded to hail the first darkey that passed. We 
watched the road closely, and about sundown I 
heard a wagon coming. Lieutenant Skelton said 
he would go out and stop it if it was driven by a 
negro. He crawled close to the road-side and 
awaited the coming of the wagon, when he jumped 
out and told the negro-driver to halt. 

The boy stopped his team, and out came a 
white man to know what he wanted. He instant- 
ly saw our danger, and being ready for any emer- 
gency cried out : " Say, Mister, I have lost a 
black boy, and have tracked him out into this 
neighborhood, but here I lost him. Have you 
heard or seen anything of aboy about twenty years 
old, five feet five and very black ? My name is 
Calloway and if you hear anything of my boy 
you will do me a grand kindness by having him 
put in irons. Good day, sir." The man prom- 
ised to do his best, and believing eveiy word, 
drove on. Just at dark we again set forward 
on the Williamsburg road leading to Bottom's 
bridge, over the Chickahominy river. There is 
a force of about 400 men at the bridge. We 
ti-avelled some three miles, and fearing we would 
run into their pickets if we went further, we 
turned into the woods again. It had been rain- 
ing some time, and consequently was as dark as 
Egypt in the woods. We could not go any fur- 
ther, so laid down for the night again. We could 
not sleep, for we were by this time as wet as if 
we had been in the river. Day at last dawned, 
and ere it was quite light we were on our way. 
We had only left Richmond some ten miles be- 
hind us up to Sunday morning. We now by the 
aid of a small pocket compass, laid out our course 
directly north, and kept it for several hours. 
We then turned directly east, toward the Chick- 
ahominy river, and soon found ourselves in one 
of the most dense swamps that it was ever my 
fortune to get into, but in this swamp we knew 
we co^ld travel with safety. On we went through 
under-brush and bi-iers, through water over our 
boots several inches, and all of that day did we 
travel through that miry swamp. 

We crossed the Chickahominy about a half an 
hour by sun, and again fortune favored vis, for 
at the very point where we first struck the river 
there was "a large tree blown across the stream- 
On this we crossed about three miles north of 
Bottom's bridge. Being very weary, we did not 
go more than" a mile from the river where we 
halted for the night in the woods. We were now 
close to the main travelled road running from 
Bottom's bridge, parallel with the river up to 
Savage's, ancf we could hear cavalry passing 



196 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



along this road all night. We did not sleep any, 
for again it rained and it was a cold night, but 
almost everything has an ending, and so it was 
with that Sunday night, but I thought it was 
forty-eight hours long. After foasting en our 
dried beef and hard tack we set forward and 
soon came to this road, and just as we were in 
the act of crossing the fence we spied a rebel 
scout coming up the road. He had seen us and 
we dared not run, for then he would be sure to 
suspicion us,'>so we stood our ground prepared to 
■club him if he said anything. 

He came up and we looked at him boldly and 
impudently, and without uttering a word. He 
passed on, never looking back to see where we 
went. We quickly crossed the road and entered 
the woods, and if we didn't do some tall walking 
then for about ten miles, I Avouldn't be here to 
say so. On we went, keeping our course direct- 
ly east, allowing nothing to turn us from it but 
farm-houses, all of which Ave were very careful 
to go around ; but thi'ough swamps, over hills 
and hollows we went. About ten o'clock A. M. 
on Monday, as we were going through the woods 
we suddenly came in sight of a farm-house, and 
a negro girl raking leaves close by. I thought 
likely she could tell us where we were, so I went 
up and spoke to her. All that she could tell was 
that we were, in New Kent County. I then 
asked her whether her master was a secesh, and 
whether he was at home or not. She said he 
was both. I then told her that we were Yankees, 
trying to get home, and that she must not tell 
her master that she had seen any one all of which 
she readily promised. 

She said, " I am looking for Mr. Bradley 
(which was her master's name) every minute, 
and you had better run." Again we made good 
time, and soon came to one of the most intricate 
swamps I ever saw. It was about two hundred 
yards wide, and as far as we could see to the 
right or left it was the same. There were little 
tufts of grass growing up all over it, some three 
or four feet apart, and out of these there were 
little sprouts growing. We had to pull ourselves 
from one of the bunches of grass to another, and 
I feel justified in saying that the c^uicksand and 
mire was six feet deep in many places, but in 
about an hour, and after getting very wet, we 
succeeded in getting over, and then we turned 
around, pulled off our hats, and yelled, " Good 
]:>}■, Mv. Bradley." During all of our day's travel 
that was a by- word with us, but on we pushed, 
exerting ourselves to the utmost to put as many 
miles between us and Richmond as possible. 

That night we came within three miles of 
Dyuscuna Creek, and about twenty-two miles 
ti-om Williamsburg. We were now in a negro 
settlement, and stopped for the night. We en- 
gaged a negro guide to conduct us to Dyuscuna 
Creek bridge the next morning, and an hour be- 
fore daylight we were on our way, amving at 
the bridge just at sun-up. We here partook 
sparingly of our beef and crackers, and then set 
forward. We had not gone more than a mile 
before we saw two horsemen coming down the 



road toward us. We thought that it was per- 
fectly safe to travel the road by daylight then, as 
we had heard that our troops had been at the 
bridge late the evening before ; so when these 
horsemen came in sight we quickly jumped into 
the bushes to await their coming. I saw they 
were colored men, and felt no hesitancy in com- 
ing out to the road and speaking to them. They 
said, in answer to my inquiries, that there were 
rebel scouts on that road every day. I then 
told them that we were Yankee prisoners from 
Richmond trying to get within our lines. Their 
faces instantly brightened, and they told us to go 
back in the woods, and remain there until night 
or we would be picked up. We knew it to be 
good advice, so we backed into the bushes 
again. 

One of the darkies lived only a few miles from 
us, and the other near Chickahominy Church, 
some eight miles directly on our route. This 
darkey told us that he would pass there on his 
way back home in the evening, and said he would 
show us the way home if we would wait. We 
remained in the bushes all that day, which was 
Tuesday, and true to his promise the darkey 
made his appearance late in the evening. He 
instructed us how to get round a large planta- 
tion that was close by and reach his friend's house. 
We accordingly set forth, and in about an hour 
arrived safely at the house. The old darkies gave 
us our supper, and kept a strict watch for intrud- 
ers while we were eating. When it became suf- 
ficiently dark our guide harnessed his horse and 
put him to his cart, putting on the cover and ty- 
ing it down very tight all round. 

We then ensconced oui'selves very snugly in 
the back part of the cart, while the darkey al- 
most filled the front part, and away we went, 
driving like the wind sometimes. "When about 
half way we came to a picket post. Mr. Darkey 
told us to lay down and be mute, whereupon he 
gave his horses the reins and whip and we went 
past that picket like a whirlwind. If there were 
any pickets there, they saw nothing but the out- ' 
lines of a cart, for we were out of sight ere they 
could halt us. We reached the church about 
nine o'clock, and after giving us another supper 
the darkey piloted us for three miles on the road '[ 
to Williamsburg and then left us. We were now ■[ 
about eight miles from our lines, on a plain road 
leading to them. We had some fears of meeting ! 
with some of the rebel scouts on the road, for -I 
our guide told us they were on the road day and 
night. So we moved briskly but very cautious- 
ly. The road was not the mainly-travelled one 
leading to Williamsburg, but we came into it when 
within about two miles of the town. 

We thought if we met any scouts at all it would 
be at the junction of these two roads, so we ap- 
proached the main road very slowly but found 
no one there. Then we thought ourselves safe. 
So on we went toward town, not knowing at 
what unfortunate moment we might come in 
contact with a party of rebel scouts, and have -^ 
all our hopes dashed to the ground. We had 
gone about two miles and walking very fast, 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



197 



■when suddenly and unexpectedly the stillness of 
the night was broken by a gruff voice calling out, 
" Halt." We did not wait for a second challenge, 
but came to a dead halt instantly, not knowing 
■whether we were near our own pickets or a 
couple of rebs, for we could see tliat there 
were two. " Who conies there V " was the next 
challenge. I answered " friends." He then told 
me to advance and give the coimtersign. Not 
liking to go up blindly, I asked " To whom I 
should advance ; " and without answering my ques- 
tion, he asked " To whom are you friends ? " 
That vras the hardest question I ever had to 
answer. I knew not what to say, but in a mo- 
ment answered. " We are friends to the North." 
" Come up," said he ; " we are Union pickets." 

I thought those were the sweetest words that I 
ever heard. We threw up our hats high in the 
air, and went with such a yell that the sentries 
thought us crazy. When inside our pickets we 
turned and said, " Good-by, Mr. Bradley." We 
soon explained our boisterous conduct to the pick- 
ets, who were looking on with amazement, and 
then everything was all right. My pen here 
fails, dear Tribune, to express our happiness ; but 
to know and feel that we were under the protec- 
tion of Uncle Sam, and standing on the gi-ouud 
over which that dear flag was triumphantly float- 
ing, under whose folds both of us had fought on 
many battle-fields, was inexpressible. We were 
conducted to the quarters of the Lieutenant of 
the Guard, and there remained until morning. 
It was at two o'clock, a. m. when we crossed the 
lines. We had walked nearly seventy-five miles 
through swamps, woods, and briers, and conse- 
quently our feet were nearly used up. 

I had cut my boots ofi' my feet the night before, 
for my teet were wet from the first night of start- 
ing, and my boots had contracted to my feet and 
were punishing me severely, so on Wednesday 
morning Ave were without boots or socks, our 
feet swollen and bruised, even bleeding, and 
it was with the utmost difficulty that I could wallc. 
Yet we were two of the happiest boys, I suppose, 
in America at that time. What cared we then 
whether we had any feet at all or not, for we had 
our liberty. We took breakfast with JNIajor 
Wheeling of the Fourth N. Y Cavalry, and Pro- 
vost Marshal of the District. He treated us with 
the greatest kindness, and after breakfast sent us 
in his buggy to Col. Fori^est's quarters with a let- 
ter of introduction to that officer. 

Col. AVest received us kindly, and gave us 
stockings and shppers, and in the evenmg sent 
us to Yorktown, where we arrived on the night 
of the great fire and magazine explosion. We 
had been ordered to report to Gen. Butler at 
Fortress Monroe, and at Yorktown were fur- 
nished transportation by Gen. to the fort, with 

a letter of introduction to Gen. Butler. Imme- 
diately on our arrival we went to the General's 
head-quarters and were shown to his room, in 
rather a sorry plight to be sure — clothes torn in 
many places by the briers, and slip-shod, with 
sore feet. The old General eyed us very 
closely when we entered. Ilis military eye 



ran all over us in a moment. After saluting him, 
he asked, " Do you wish to see me on business ? " 
Whereupon we gave him our letter from Col. 
West. After glancing over it he changed instantly. 
It was not the rigid General Butler of a moment 
before, for now he grasped our hands, shaking 
them warml}^ After asking us many questions 
concerning our prisoners, he placed us in the care 
of the gentlemanly Capt. Puffer, one of his A. D. 
C's. with orders to furnish us with clothing, trans- 
portation and everything else that we needed, 
which was all faithfully attended to by that . 
officer. 



How General McPherson was killed. 
A soldier v/ho was near the General at the time 
he was shot gives the following particulars of the 
occurrence and the actions of the confederates 
which preceded it : — "I entered the woods to 
behold a woimded man whose name is George 
Reynolds, of the Fifteenth Iowa Fourth Division, 
Seventeenth Army Corps, and a short distance 
from him lay General James B. McPherson, suf- 
fering intense agony from a fatal wound, a Minie 
ball having entered the right breast, passed near 
the heart, and came out near the left side. 

I then took my position close to his side and 
requested him to drink a little cold water I had 
secured a short time before, and asked the priv- 
ilege to bathe his temples ; to which interroga- 
tories I could elicit no reply, only a faint nod of 
the head. Occasionally returning to conscious- 
ness he would ask me for his hat, which by search 
I found had been stolen from him, as also his 
belt. I had not been in this situation over five 
minutes when a rebel straggler came up, to whom 
I remarked, " You are a prisoner, are you not ? " 
To which he replied, " No, sir-ee ! " and then 
asked me, " Can you walk ? Come along," etc. 
I gave a negative answer and exhibited a very- 
sore and bandaged leg, all besmeared with blood, 
which had troubled me of late, and was thus 
successful in making him believe I was severely 
wounded. 

This was the work of a few moments ; when 
four more rebels came up, and simultaneously 
two more of our stragglers passed near by. They 
were taken with the previously mentioned. 
They then extracted the papers which were in 
plain view from the General's pocket, took liis 
watch and marine glass, but did not search the 
remainder of his pockets, nor ask any questions 
in reference to whom he was nor did we inform 
them. They acted with civility, considering it a 
battle-field. They then ordered the wounded man 
and myself to follow them. We told them we were 
not able, and if they took us they Avould have 
to carry us, etc. ; when to my glad astonishment 
they absconded with their three prisoners, with 
the aforementioned articles, leaving their two 
supposed cripples with the General. All this 
time the rebel shot and shell were crashing with 
fearful rapidity all around us, in every direction. 
Several balls lighted within a few feet of the 
General, scattering the dirt all over him in a 
complete shower. While the rebels were taking 



198 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



from the General the articles previously men- 
tioned, he sat up and again asked for his hat, 
which I beheve, were the last words he spoke, 
for 1m3 agony was most intense. 

After the rebels had gone, it was agreed that 
I should go in sparch of an ambulance, while my 
solitary wounded companion remained with the 
General. My companion believing that our men 
were still in front fighting as well as rear, I pro- 
ceeded in the direction of Atlanta, as near as I 
can judge, about three-eighths of a mile, when I 
saw I'ebel skirmishers not far distant in my front, 
as also their works ; the brush being rather thin, 
it was difficult to escape ; but by creeping back 
where the brush was more dense, I then ran as 
best I could until I got back again to the Gen- 
eral, Avhen my companion informed me he had 
just died, but said nothing after I left him. 
During this interval the woods were thoroughly 
riddled, and every moment I expected to meet 
the General's sad fate ; but Providence spared me. 
A straggler who said he belonged to the Third 
cr Fourth Division, Pioneer Corps, came up and 
was requested to act as witness. He, it seems, 
committed the theft. 

The first thing we examined was the contents 
of the wallet, and on opening it saw the gold 
chains and gold piece, or medal ; opening another 
apartment, we saw a roll of bills, which our new 
comer instantly grabbed, as he said, to ascertain 
the contents. Unfolding them, as near as I can 
recollect, I saw the aforementioned bills, ^s 
soon as his eye caught sight of the large bills, he 
separated them from tlie smaller ones, and then 
made the following diabolical proposition, to wit : 
— Boys, let us eciually divide the sjjoIIs and say 
nothing about it. We positively and in the 
strongest terms refused to be accomplices in such 
an iniernal scheme, lie then kept possession of 
all the large bills, leaving only eight dollars, and 
ran as fast as his legs could carry him in a west- 
erly course toward the wagon trains. 

I looked upon him as a wretch like Judas of 
old, and could have wished that in his escape he 
had met with the same fate as he of whom sacred 
writ informs us, " He burst asunder and all his 
bo\\'e!3 gushed out." Leaving the guilty culprit 
v.'il.h the fruits of his dastardly act, I would re- 
mark tiiat fearing capture every moment, and the 
importance of the General's rescue, was the rea- 
son of our not continuing a critical examination 
of the remaining contents, and making all speed, 
we proceeded in the direction I entered the woods 
an hour or more before. Emerging from the 
woods we boi-e to the south-west, In which dli-ec- 
tion we saw wagon-trains and ambulances. 

The first ambulance to which we made known 
our mission refused to go. Proceeding further, 
we came to two more, when we requested the 
foremost one to go with us, and seeing three offi- 
cers rkhng up toward us, we explained to them 
our object, when they Informed us they were part 
of his stair and were very anxious to get him. 
So taking the first ambulance, we piloted them 
to the spot, and then a most thrilling scene took 
place that 1 shall never forget. Looking down 



the woods from the ambulance, I saw the rebel 
skirmishers steadily advancing, and thinking the 
staff officers were not fully aware of the danger 
we Avere all in (as I had intentionall}' refrained 
from describing the danger to them previously), 
I jumped from the ambulance, and to my surprise, 
confronted an armed rebel. 

Seeing we were in desperate circumstances, I 
rushed to inform the staff officers, who were now 
carrying his body out of the woods, and I in- 
formed them that the rebels were now closing in 
around us, and the necessity of all who had 
revolvers being ready to use them. I believe 
they all drew them, and I endeavored as best I 
could to assist in carrying his body to the ambu- 
lance. We got him in as best we could, under 
such exciting circumstances (for I was afraid 
every moment a cannon ball or shell would crush 
the ambulance or kill the mules), and whirling 
swiftly around, we drove off at a perfect gallop, 
with rebel shot and shell and IVIinle balls hurled 
In a perfect storm after us. But, fortunately, no 
one was hurt. 

So great was the danger that we had to drive 
with fearful rapidity nearly three-fourths of a mile 
before we could jiroperly and comfortably adjust 
the General's body. I only remember the name 
of one of these staff officers, and that Is Lieuten- 
ant Colonel Strong. There was also a Captain and 
First Lieutenant. I would remark that the offi- 
cers acted with determined bravery ; in fact, all 
did, and the coolness of my wounded companion 
was really sublime amidst severe suffering from 
his arm. 

After the rescue we drove to Gen. Sherman's 
head-f|uarters. The body was taken out and car- 
ried into the house to be examined. Gen. Sher- 
man seemed deeply affected by the sight. My 
wounded companion was then taken to the near- 
est hospital of the Twenty-third Corps, by order 
of the Medical Director. He was wounded by a 
Minle ball through the left arm just above the 
elbow. He went through all the exciting cir- 
cumstances from the time he was wounded to the 
time he was taken to the hospital before he had 
it dressed, which must have been nearly five 
hours. The General was wounded about half- 
past 12 r. M., and rescued from the rebels about 
3 r. M. He lived about one hour after he was 
wounded. 



The Mockixg Bird of Kesaca. — A cor- 
respondent in Georgia, wrote as follows : — I find 
in an Atlanta paper the following extravaganza 
upon a mocking bli-d at liesaca. It calls to my 
mind a fact that I had forgotten. At the first 
advance upon Resaca, on the 9th of May, I re- 
member observing at dusk an unusual number of 
birds, and as night fell, just as the troops were 
withdrawing, a grand chorus of whip-poor-wills 
rang through the forest. Perhaps Kesaca has 
been a favorite home for the songsters of the 
woods. 

" Waverley," the correspondent, who was an 
eye-witness and participator in the late battles 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



199 



in North Georgia, relates the following pretty in- 
cident of the battle of Resaca : 

"In the hottest part of the battle of Sunday, 
a, shell came screaming through the air from the 
works in front of our left. It paused above a 
point where General Johnston and General Polk 
Avere standing, whistled like a top above them, 
and before exploding whistled half-a-dozen notes 
clear as a fife to the drum-like rattle of musketry. 
The din had scarce died awaj-, and the fragments 
fallen to the ground, when the attention of the 
party was directed to one of the upper boughs of 
a tall pine, where a mocking-bird had begun to 
imitate the whistle of the shell. Neither the roar 
of cannon, nor the rain of balls could drive this 
brave bird from its lofty perch. It sat above the 
battle-field like a little god of war, its blythe tones 
warbling over the din of arms — 

" In profuse strains of unpremeditated art," 

and its stout heart as free as though it swelled to 
the breezy winds of peace in the summer woods. 
Thou Touchstone of the battle-field, mocking the 
very air of death and pouring out a cheery can- 
ticle for the slain, who are happy in dying for the 
land they love, thou art the true type of the 
great Confederate heart. Be it like thine, as 
bold and free. May it swell as it is pressed, and 
grow strong as it hurls back the vandal and in- 
vader. May it stand upon its own door-sill, as 
that gallant bird stood upon the bough of the 
pine, and trill a chant of defiance in the face of 
danger, and though despair span its bony fingers 
about its throat, may its armies take a lesson from 
thy pluck, thou vaHant mocking-bird, and sing in 
the breach and shout on the hills, to the music of 
Minie ball and shrapnell, never doubting, never 
daunted, defying the power of the world, and 
obedient only to the God of the universe. For 
he who dies in the front dies in the love of the 
Lord, and there is not a sentiment truer for the 
soldier than that the brave who perish in the 
cause of liberty are thrice blessed above the lazy 
sons of peace. 

" Not man nor monarch half so proud, 
As he whose flag becomes his shroud." 



A Touching Incident of the War. — An 

interesting anecdote is related of Franklin, who, 
it is alleged, in order to test the parental instinct 
existing between mother and child, introduced 
himself as a belated traveller to his mother's house 
after an absence of many years. Her house be- 
ing filled with more illustrious guests than the 
unknown stranger, she refused him shelter, and 
would have turned him from her door. Hence 
he concluded that this so-called parental instinct 
was a pleasant delusive belief, not susceptible of 
proof. 

The opposite of this occurred in Washington. 
In one of the fierce engagements with the rebels 
near Mechanicsville, a young lieutenant of a 
Rhode Island battery had his right foot so shat- 
tered by a fragment of shell that, on reaching 
Washington after one of those horrible ambulance 



rides, and a journey of a week's duration, he was 
obliged to undergo amputation of the leg. He 
telegraphed home hundreds of miles away that all 
was going well, and with a soldier's fortitude 
composed himself to bear his sufferings alone. 

Unknown to him, however, his mother, one of 
those dear reserves of the. army, hastened up to 
join the main force. She reached the city at 
midnight, and the nurses would have kept her 
from him until morning. One sat by his side 
fanning him ^ he slept,' her hand on the feeble 
fluctuating pulsations which foreboded sad results. 
But what woman's heart could resist the plead- 
ings of a mother then ? In the darkness she was 
finally allowed to glide in and take the place at 
his side. She touched his pulse as the nurse had ' 
done ; not a word had been spoken ; but the 
sleeping boy opened his eyes and said, " That feels 
like my mother's hand ; who is this beside me ? 
It is my mother ; turn up the gas and let me see 
mother ! " 

The two dear faces met in one long, joyful 
sobbing embrace, and the fondness pent up in 
each heart sobbed and panted, and wept forth its 
expression. 

The gallant fellow, j'c«t twenty-one, his leg 
amputated on the last day of his three years' 
service, underwent operation after operation, and 
at last, when death drew nigh, and he was told 
by tearful friends that it only remained to make 
him comfortable, said, " he had looked death in 
the face too many times to be afraid now, " and 
died as gallantly as did the men of the Cumber- 
land. 



YE L ON DONNE TIMES CORRESPONDENTE 
HIS BULLE RUNNE LETTRRE. 

" BuLLE RuNNB, July ye twenty-firste ; 

Welle, here am I, alle righte, ^ 

And just returned from wytnessinge 

Ye famouse Bulle Runne fighte. 

" There was no fighte, there was no Bulle, 
Unlesse itte mighte bee mee ; 
And I the onlie manne to runne, 
At leaste thatte I could see. 

" I satte me on a dystante hylle, 
FuUe fyfteene myles awaye, 
Thatte I mighte see ye soldierees kille, 
life anie came mye waye. 

" I hadde a branne newe telescope. 
And a bottelle of olde Porte, 
Wytthe sandewytches, inne case I founde 
Ye provenderre ranne shorte. 

" Ande soone I sawe a monstrouse crowde 
Fulle fyfteene myles awaye, 
■ And cannones there were roaringe loude, 
And muskettes inne fulle playe. 

" I satte mee there fromme earlie dawne 
Untille ye settynge sunne, 
And thenne I thoughte thatte certaynellie 
Ye battclle muste bee done. 



200 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



" I sawe no fighte, butto I muste write 
As iffe I sawc ittc alle, 
Thou2:he reallie I do believe, 
Therre was no fighte atte alle. 

" And thysse itte is mye judgemente, 
Afterre carefulle studie mayde, 
Thatte one syde is a cowarde, 
And ye otherre is afrayde. 

" I wisshe you woulde lette mee come home ■ 
I'm tyred of alio thysse bustle ; 
I wysshe no more ye worlde to roame, 
Youres truly, Billie Russelle." 



Incidents of Kenesaw. — It was an im- 
posing scene ! A rebel regiment, their bayonets 
glistening in the slanting rays of the setting sun, 
were having a dress-parade on the summit of the 
Kenesaw Mountain. Below were their rifle-pits, 
and their camarades d'armes occupying them. 

A courier dashed up ; he hands the adjutant a 
document. It is an order from Johnston, an- 
nouncing to the troops that Sherman had brought 
his army so far south that his line of supplies was 
longer than he could hold ; that he was too far 
from his base — just whei'e their commanding 
general wished to get him ; that a part of their 
army would hold the railroad, thirty miles north 
of the Etoway, and that the great railroad bridge 
at Alatoona, had been completely destroyed ; that 
in a few days Sherman would be out of supplies 
because he could bring no more trains through 
by the railroad. They were urged to maintain a 
bold front, and in a few days the Yankees would 
be forced to retreat. Breathless silence evinces 
the attention which every word of the order re- 
ceives, as the adjutant reads. Cheei-s are about 
to be given, when hark ! loud whistles from Sher- 
man's cars, at Big Shanty, interrupt them. The 
number of whistles increase. Alatoona, Ack- 
worth, and Big Shanty depots resound with them. 
Supplies have amved. The effect can easily be 
imagined. The illustration was so apt — the 
commentary so appropriate — that it was appre- 
ciated at the instant. " Bully for the base of sup- 
plies ! " " Bully for the long line ! " " Three 
cheers for the big bridge ! " " Here's your Yankee 
cars ! " " There's Sherman's rations ! " Bedlam 
was loose along their line for a short time. 

There is a tree in front of General Harrow's 
Fourth Division, Fifteenth Army Corps, Sher- 
man's army, which is called the fatal tree. Eight 
men were shot, one after another, as soon as they 
advanced to the ill-fated tree to take a secure po- 
sition behind its huge trunk. Seven men were 
shot, when a board was placed there with the 
word " dangerous " chalked upon it. The rebels 
shot the guide-post into fragments, and a sergeant 
took his place behind the unsuspecting tree. In 
less than two minutes two ]\Iinie balls pierced the 
sergeant's body, and he fell, the eighth martyr 
beneath the shadow of the tree of death. 



A Fair Division. — One of those biting cold 
mornings, while the armies of Meade and Lee 
were staring at each other across the little rivu- 
let known as Mine Run, when moments appeared 
to be hours, and hours days, so near at hand 
seemed the deadly strife, a solitary sheep leisure- 
ly walked along the run on the rebel side. A 
rebel vidette fired and killed the sheep, and drop- 
ing his gun, advanced to remove the prize. In 
an instant he was covered by a gun in the hands 
of a Union vidette, who said, " Divide is the 
word or you are a dead Johnny." This propo- 
sition was assented to, and there, between the 
two skirmish lines, Mr. Rebel skinned the sheep, 
took one half, and moved back to his post, when 
his challenger, in turn dropping his gun, crossed 
the run, got the other half of the sheep, and 
q||ain assumed the duties of his post amid the 
cheers of his comrades, who expected to heljJ him 
eat it. Of the hundreds of hostile men arrayed 
against each other on either bank of that run, 
not one dared to violate the truce intuitively 
agreed upon by these two soldiers. 



A Romance of the War. — The following 
simple and unvarnished story has hardly a paral- 
lel in the page of fiction. Its strict truth is be- 
yond question : — 

Near Murfreesboro, June 28, 1864. — The 
original of the following letter is in my possession. 
The events so gi-aphically narrated transpired 
in Overton County, Tennessee. I knew Dr. 
Sadler from a small boy. The men who mur- 
dered him wer-e noted guerillas, and killed him 
for no personal grudge, but on account of his 
sentiments. I have no personal acquaintance 
with the young lady ; but have the highest au- 
thority for stating that she is a pure, high-minded 
girl, the daughter of a plain farmer in moderate 
circumstances. It only remains to state that Pe- 
tcet was killed January 30, and Gordenhire 
February 4, 1864, so that the vengeance they in- 
voked has overtaken all three of the murderers 
of M. G. Sadler. 

John W. Bowen. 

Martin's Creek, April 30, 1864. 

Major Cllft, — According to promise I now at- 
tempt to give you a statement of the reasons 
why I killed Turner, and a brief history of the 
affair. Dr. Sadler had, for two years previous 
to his death, seemed equally as near and dear to 
me as a brother, and for several months nearer 
than any person, — my parents not excepted. If 
he had not, I never would have done what I did, 
promise to be his. 

The men who killed him had threatened his 
life otl:cn because he was a Union man ; they said 
he should not live ; and after taking the oath they 
arrested him, but Lieutenant Oakley released 
him at pa's gate. He stayed at pa's till bed-time, 
and I warned him of the danger he was in ; told 
him I had heard his life thi-eatencd that day, and 
that I felt confident he would be killed if he did 



AKECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



201 



not leave the neighborhood, and stay off until 
these men became reconciled. 

He promised to go ; said he had some business 
at Carthage, and would leave the neighborhood 
that night, or by daylight next morning, and we 
felt assured he had gone. But for some unac- 
countable reason he did not leave. About 3 o'- 
clock, p. M., next day, news came to me, at Mr. 
Johnson's, where I had gone with my brother, 
that Dr. Sadler was killed. I had met Peteet, 
Gordenhire, and Turner on the road, and told my 
brother there that they were searching for Dr. 
Sadler to kill him. Sure enough they went to 
the house where he was, and, sti-ange to me, after 
his warning, he permitted them to come in. They 
met him apparently perfectly friendly, and said 
they had come to get some brandy from Mr. 
Yelton, which they obtained, and immediately 
after drinking, they all three drew their pistols 
and commenced firing at Sadler. He drew his, 
but it was snatched away from him. He then 
drew his knife, which was also taken from him. 
He then ran round the house and up a stairway, 
escaping out of their sight. They followed, how- 
ever, and searched till they found him, and brought 
him down and laid him on a bed, mortally wound- 
ed. He requested some of his people to send for 
Dr. Dillin to dress his wounds. It is strange to 
me, why, but Sadler's friends had all left the room, 
when Turner went up, and put his pistol against 
his temples, and shot him through the head. They 
all rejoiced like demons, and stood by till he had 
made his last strugde. They then pulled his eyes 
open, and asked him in a loud voice if he was 
dead. They then took his horse and saddle, and 
pistols, and robbed him of all his money, and 
otherwise insulted and abused his remains. 

Now, for this, I resolved to have revenge. Pe- 
teet and Gordenhire being dead, I determined to 
kill Turner, and to seek an early opportunity of 
doing it. But I kept that resolution to myself, 
knowing that if I did not I would be prevented. 
I went prepared, but never could get to see him. 

On the Thui'sday before I killed him, I learned 
he was preparing to leave for Louisiana, and I 
determined he should not escape if I could pre- 
vent it. I arose that morning, and fixed my pis- 
tols so that they would be sure fire, and de- 
termined to hunt him all that day. Then, sitting 
down, I wrote a few lines ; so that, if I fell, my 
friends might know where to look for my remains. 
I took my knitting, as if I were going to spend the 
day with a neighbor hving on the road toward 
Turner's. It rained very severely, making the 
roads muddy, so that I became fatigued, and con- 
cluded to go back and ride the next day, on Satur- 
day. But ma rode my horse on Saturday, and 
left me to keep house. We had company Sunday 
p. M., so that I could not leave ; but the company 
left about noon, and I started again in search of 
Turner. I went to his house, about two-and-a- 
half miles from pa's. I found no one at home, 
and therefore sat down to await his return. After 
waiting perhaps oue-aud-a-half hours, a man 
came to see Turner, and not finding him, he said 
he supposed he and his wife had gone to Mrs. 



Christian's, his sister-in-law, who lived about one- 
half mile distant. 

I concluded to go there and see, fearing the man 
would tell him I was waiting for him, and he would 
escape me. I found him there, and a number of 
other persons, including his wife, and her father 
and mother. Most of them left when I entered 
the house. I asked Mi-s. Christian If Turner was 
gone. She pointed to him at the gate, just leav- 
ing. I looked at the clock, and it was 4-30 o'clock, 
p. M. I then walked out into the yard, and, as 
Turner was starting, called to him to stop. He 
turned, and saw I was preparing to shoot him ; he 
started to run. I fired at the distance of about 
twelve paces, and missed. I fired again as quick 
as possible, and hit him in the back of the head, 
and he fell on his face and knees. I fired again 
and hit him in the back, and he fell on his right 
side. I fired twice more, only one of these shots 
taking eSect. By this time I was within five 
steps of him, and stood and watched him till he 
was dead, and then turned round and walked 
toward the house, and met Mrs. Christian and her 
sister, his wife, coming out. They asked me what 
I did that for. My response was, " You know 
what that man did the 1 3th of December last, — 
murdered a dear friend of mine. I have been 
determined to do this deed ever since, and I never 
shall regret It." They said no more to me, but 
commenced hallooing and blowing a horn. I got 
my horse out and started home, where I shall stay 
or leave when I choose, going where I please, and 
saying what I please. L. J. W. 



General .Sumner at Antietam. — A sto- 
ry Is told of the veteran Sumner at the battle ot 
Antietam. His son, young Captain jSumner, a 
youth of twenty-one, was on his staff". The old 
man calmly stood, amidst a storm of shot and 
shells, and turned to send him through a doubly 
raging fire, upon a mission of duty. He might 
never see his boy again, but his country claimed his 
life, and, as he looked upon his young brow, he 
grasped his hand, encircled him In his arms, and 
fondly kissed him. " Good-by, Sammy," " Good- 
by, father," and the youth, mounting his horse, 
rode gayly on the message. He returned un- 
harmed, and again his hand was grasped with a 
cordial " How d'ye do, Sammy ?" answered by a 
grasp of equal aiFection. The scene was touch- 
iua to those around. 



Incident op Lookout Mountain. — It 
was near sundown when General T. J. Wood, 
whose conduct all through the three days' battle 
marked him as one of the ablest leaders of the 
national ai-mies, rode along the lines of his 
superb division. Loud shouts of enthusiasm ev^ 
erywhere greeted his appearance, until at last his 
feelings, no longer controllable, broke out in a 
speech : 

" ' Brave men ! ' said he, ' you were ordered to 
go forward and take the rifle-pits at the foot of 
these hills ; you did so ; and then, by the Eter- 
nal ! without orders, you pushed forward and 



202 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



took all the enemy's works on top ! Here is a fine 
chance for having you all court-martialled ! and 
I myself will appear as the principal witness 
against you, unless you promise me one thing.' 

" ' What is it ? what is it ? ' laughingly inquired 
his men. 

" ' It is,' resumed the General, ' that as you are 
now in possession of these works, you will con- 
tinue against all opposition of Bragg, Johnston, 
Jeff. Davis and the devil, steadfastly to hold 
them ! ' 

" At the conclusion of this speech, the enthu- 
thusiasm of the soldiers knew no bounds. They 
left the ranks and crowded round their General. 
' We promise ! we jiromise ! ' they cried. And, 
amid such exclamations as, ' Of course we'll hold 
them ! ' ' Let any one try to take them from us ! ' 
* Bully for you ! ' ' Three cheers for old Wood,' 
the gallant officer rode off the field." 



" I FIGHTS MIT SIGEL ! " 

BY GRANT P. HOBINSON. 

I MET him again, ho was trudging along, 

His knapsack with chickens was swelling ; 
He'd " Blenkcrcd " these dainties, and thought it no 
wrong, 

From some secessionist's dwelling. 
" What regiment's yours 1 and under whose flag 

Do_ you fight ? " said I, touching his shoulder ; 
Turning slowly around he smilingly said, 

For tlie thouglit made him stronger and bolder ; 
" I ficjMs mit Sigel." 

The next time I saw him his knapsack was gone, 

His cap and canteen were missing, 
Shell, shrapnel!, and grape, and the swift rifle-ball 

Around him and o'er him were hissing. 
How are yon, my friend, and wliere have you been, 

And for what and for whom are you fighting 1 
He said, as a shell from the enemy's gun 

Sent his arm and his musket a " kiting," 
" / fights mit Sigel." 

And once more I saw him and knelt by his side, 

His life-blood was rapidly flowing ; 
I whispered of home, wife, children, and friends, 

The bright land to which he was going ; 
And have you no word for the dear ones at home, 

The " wee one," the father or mother? 
" Yaw ! yaw ! " said he, " tell them ! oh ! tell them 
I fights " — 

Poor fellow ! he thought of no other — 
" 1 fights mit Sigel." 

We scraped out a grave, and he dreamlessly sleeps 

On tlio banks of the Shenandoah River; 
His home and his kindred alike arc unknown, 

His reward in the hands of the Giver. 
We placed a rough board at the head of his grave, 

" And we left him alone in his glory," 
But on it we marked ere we turned from the spot, 

The little we knew of his story — 
" 1 flgJits mit Sigel." 



Army Signals. — This most interesting and 

useful arm of the nfilitary service is perhaps, less 
heard of by the public than any other ; and its 



invaluable labors, as well as its frequent imminent 
perils, are ahke unrecorded, and, therefore, un- 
appreciated. The signal officer who would bring 
late and full news to the commanding General 
must undergo not a little fatigue and hardship. 
He must climb high trees to watch the enemy ; 
he must penetrate through tangled thickets and 
forests, in search of eligible stations ; he must 
climb the sides of steep and rugged mountains, 
and his bright and showy flag never fails to 
attract the rebel sharpshooter's fire when he 
is in reach, which he must often be to secure a 
good post, or observe the enemy. 

When once a station is estabhshed, his flag 
must never droop by day nor his torch grow dim 
by night, till he has orders from his chief to 
abandon his post for a new one. And yet so 
great is the mystery with which he must enshroud 
his art, so profoundly secret must he keep the 
weighty messages and orders confided to him, 
and so silent are his operations, that the world 
and even the army know little about him. He 
alone is proof against the wiles of those " uni- 
versal walking interrogation-points," the corre- 
spondents, though he, above all others, is the man 
whom they would delight to be permitted to " use." 
But he has his reward for all this. In the clear 
upper air where he dwells, he sees, as with a 
hawk's eye, the whole great drama played out be- 
neath him ; he sees the long lines of men de- 
ployed through the valleys, and knows where thej' 
go, and why ; his eyes feast upon the field of bat- 
tle, where the columns of attack rush impetuously 
down a wooded slope, across an open field, and 
up into another piece of wood, and all is clear to 
him and intelligible, while, to others who must 
grovel on the ground, there is nothing but an ex- 
asperating muddle. 

Signal stations are of two kinds ; reflecting sta- 
tions and stations of observation ; the former for 
transmitting dispatches, the latter for watching 
the enemy and communicating the results to the 
commander. Both are constructed on the same 
principles, and employ the same instruments. 
The latter are few and simple. The flag is 
made of different colors, to contrast with the 
line of the background, white, black, or red. The 
one usually employed is but four feet square; 
for the largest distances it is made six feet square, 
and mounted on a third joint of staff to give it 
wider range. The marine glass is used for scan- 
ning the horizon rapidly, and making general ob- 
servations ; the telescope for reading signals at a 
great distance, and observing fixed points minute- 
ly. Besides these there is a certain mysterious 
pasteboard disc, stamped with a circle of figures, 
and a sliding interior one of letters corresponding 
to each. This is the key and clew of the whole 
matter, and to the uninitiated is, of course, im- 
penetrable. 

When a message is about to be sent, the flag- 
man takes his station upon some elevated object, 
and " calls " the station with which he desires to 
communicate by waving the flag or torch slowly 
to and fro. The operator, seated at tlie glass, 
watches closelv the distant flag, and as soon as it 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



203 



responds by dipping, lie is ready to send his dis- 
patch. Holding the written message before him, 
he calls out to the flagman certain numbers, each 
figure or combination of figures standing for a let- 
ter. The flagman indicates each separate figure by 
an ingenious combination of a few very simple mo- 
tions. For instance, one stroke of the flag from 
a perpendicular to a right horizontal, indicates 
one figure ; a stroke to the left horizontal, indi- 
cates another ; a stroke executing a half circle, 
another, &c. After each motion indicating a fig- 
ure, the flag returns always to a perpendicular. 
There are a few syllables which are indicated by 
a single stroke of the flag ; otherwise the word 
must be spelled out letter by letter. Experienced 
signal officers, however, employ many abrevia- 
tions by omitting vowels, &c., so that scarcely a 
single word, unless a very unused one, is spelled 
out in full. 

When a message is being received, the operator 
sits at the glass, with the flagman near to record 
it. This the operator then interprets, for not 
even the General himself is in the secret, and by 
supplying the omitted vowels, &c., makes out an 
intelligible piece of the king's English. 

The rapidity with which all this is executed by 
experienced operators is astonishing. The flag 
is kept in such rapid motion that the eye of the 
inexpert can scarcely follow, and his wonder is 
increased by being told that the reader, of whom 
he cannot see the slightest Indication with his 
naked eye, is ten or twelve miles away. An or- 
dinary message of a few lines Is despatched In 
ten minutes ; a whole page of foolscap occupies 
about thirty minutes in Its transmission. Officers 
who have long worked together, and are Intimate- 
ly acquainted with each other's abbreviations and 
peculiar expressions, can Improve upon even this 
speed. 

The distance also through which signals can be 
transmitted, without an intermediate station, is 
surprising. Captain Leonard, chief signal officer 
of the Fourth Corps, sent despatches regularly 
frona Ringgold to Summerville, on Lookout Moun- 
tain, a distance of eighteen miles. Lieut. Wil- 
liam Keynolds, formerly of the Tenth Corps, sig- 
nalled from the deck of a gunboat twenty miles 
into Port Royal harbor. N. Daniels was sent by 
the Secretary of War, to Maryland Heights to 
give information of the enemy's movements, and 
he succeeded In sending messages rapidly over 
the extraordinary distance of twenty-four miles 
— from the Heights to Sugar-loaf Mountain — 
four miles from Frederick. But these Instances 
required remarkably favorable conditions of the 
atmosphere, locality, &c. Ordinarily, messages 
were not sent a greater distance than six: or 
eiprht miles. 



An Anecdote of the Wilderness. — In 
the battles of the Wilderness, the Twentieth 
Massachusetts regiment was In the thick of the 
fight, and one color-bearer after another was shot 
down almost as fast as the men could be replaced. 
But such was the eagerness to keep the flag aloft 



that at one time, two men, — Irishmen — caught 
hold of the standard at once, as it was about to 
fall, and struggled for it. Just then a shot 
struck the staff, cutting It In t^yo, and leaving one 
man with the flag, and the other with the broken 
stick. " Bedad ! " said the man with the short 
end of the staff, " the rebels have decided for us 
this time ! " and went to loading and firing again, 
as coolly as if nothing had happened. 



An Incident of Rocky Face. — Briga- 
dier General Morgan related the following Inci- 
dent that occurred on his line of operations. 
While his brigade occupied the gap, between Oak 
Knob and Rocky Face, a corporal of Company I, 
Sixtieth Illinois, broke from the Une, and under 
cover of projecting ledges got up within twenty 
feet of a squad of rebels on the summit. Taking 
shelter from the sharpshooters, he called out : 

" I say, rebs, don't you want to hear Old Abe's 
amnesty proclamation read ? " 

" Yes ! yes ! " was the unanimous cry ; " give 
us the ape's proclamation." 

" Attention ! " commanded the corporal, and 
in a clear and resonant voice, he read the amnes- 
ty proclamation to the rebels, beneath the cannon 
planted by rebel hands to destroy the fabric of 
government established by our fathers. When 
he arrived at those passages of the proclamation 
where the negro was referred to, he was Interrupt- 
ed bycries of " None of your d — d abolitionism 
— look out for rocks ! " And down over his hid- 
ing-place descended a shower of stones and rocks. 
Having finished the reading, the corporal asked : 

" Well, rebs, how do you like the terms ? Will 
you hear it again ? " 

"Not to-day, you bloody Yank. Now crawl 
down in a hurry and we wont fire," was the re- 
sponse ; and the daring corporal descended and 
rejoined his command, which had distinctly heard 
all that passed. 



The Death and Burial of Gen. J. E. B. 

Stuart. — No incident of mortality since the fall 
of the great Jackson, has occasioned more painful 
regret than this, said the Richmond Examiner of 
May 13, 1864. Major J. E. B. Stuart, the model 
of Virginia cavaliers and dashing chieftain, whose 
name Avas a terror to the enemy, and familiar as a 
household word In two continents. Is dead, struck 
down by a bullet from the dastardly foe, and the 
whole Confederacy mourns him. He breathed out 
his gallant spirit resignedly, and In the full posses- 
sion of all his remarkable faculties of mind and body 
at twenty-two minutes to eight o'clock, Thursday 
night, at the residence of Dr. Brewer, a relative, 
on° Grace street, in the presence of Drs. Brewer, 
Garnett, Gibson, and Fontaine of the General's 
staff. Rev. Messrs. Peterkin and Keppler, and a 
circle of sorrow-stricken comrades and friends. 

We learn from the physicians in attendance 
upon the General that his condition during the 
dav was very changeable, with occasional de- 
lirium, and other unmistakable symptoms of 



204 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



speedy dissolution. In the moments of delii-ium 
the General's miud wandered, and like the im- 
mortal Jackson, (whose spirit, we trust, his has 
joined), in the lapse of reason his faculties were 
busied with the details of his command. He re- 
viewed, in broken sentences, all his glorious cam- 
paigns around McCIellan's rear on the Peninsula, 
beyond the Potomac, and upon the Rapidan, 
quoting from his orders and issuing new ones to 
his couriers, with a last injunction to " make haste." 

About noon Thursday, President Davis visited 
his bedside, and spent some fifteen minutes in the 
dying chamber of his favorite chieftain. The 
President, taking his hand, said, " General, how 
do you feel ? " He repUed, " Easy, but willing 
to die, if God and my country tliink I have ful- 
filled my destiny and done my duty." As even- 
ing approached the General's dehrium increased 
and his mind again wandered to the battle-fields 
over which he had fought, then off to wife and 
children, and off again to the front. A telegraph- 
ic message had been sent for his wife, who was in 
the country, with the injunction to make all haste 
as the General was dangerously wounded. Some 
thoughtless, but unauthorized jDcrsou, thinking 
probably to spare his wife pain, altered the dis- 
patch to " slightly wounded," and it was thus she 
received it, and did not make that haste which 
she otherwise would have done to reach his side. 

As evening wore on the paroxysms of pain 
increased, and mortification set in rapidly. 
Though sufTering the greatest agony at times, the 
General was calm, and applied to the wound, 
with his own hand, the ice intended to relieve 
the pain. During the evening he asked Dr. 
Brewer how long he thought he could live, and 
whether it was possible for him to survive through 
the night. The doctor, knowing he did not de- 
sire to be buoyed by false hopes, told liim frankly 
that death the last enemy, was rapidly approach- 
ing. The General nodded, and said, " I am re- 
signed if it be God's will ; but I would hke to 
live to see my wife. But God's will be done." 
Several times he roused up and asked if she had 
come. 

To the doctor, who sat holding his wrist, and 
counting the fleeting, weakening pulse, he remark- 
ed, " Doctor, I suppose I am going fast now. It will 
soon be over. But God's will be done. I hope 
I have fulfilled my destiny to my country and 
my duty to my God." 

At half-past seven o'clock it was evident to the 
physicians that death was setting its clammy seal 
upon the brave, open brow of the General, and 
they told him so — asked if he had any last messages 
to give. The General, with a mind perfectly 
clear and possessed, then made disposition of his 
staff and personal effects. To Mrs. General R. 
E. Lee he directed that the golden spurs be giv- 
en as a dying memento of his love and esteem of 
her husband. To his staff officers he gave his 
horses. So particular was he in small things, 
even in the dying hour, that he emphatically ex- 
hibited and illustrated the ruling passion strong 
in death. To one of his stafl', who was a heavy- 
built man, he said, " You had better take the 



larger horse ; he will carry you better." Other 
mementos he disposed of in a similar manner. 
To his young son, he left his glorious sword. 

His worldly matters closed, the eternal interests 
of his soul engaged his mind. Turning to the 
Rev. Mr. Peterkin, of the Episcopal Church, and 
of which he was an exemplary member, he asked 
him to sing the hymn commencing : 

" Rock of ages cleft for me, 
Let me hide myself in thee," 

he joining with all the voice his strength would 
permit. He then joined in prayer with the min- 
isters. To the doctor he again said, " I am going 
fast now ; I am resigned ; God's will be done." 
Thus died General tJ. E. B. Stuart, 

His wife reached the house of death and 
mourning about 10 o'clock on Thursday night, 
one hour and a half after dissolution, and was, of 
course, plunged into the greatest grief by the an- 
nouncement that death had intervened between 
the announcement of the wounding of the Gen- 
eral and her arrival. 

The funeral services preliminary to the consign- 
ment to the grave of the remains of General 
Stuart, were conducted yesterday afternoon in 
St. James' Episcopal church, corner of Marshall 
and Fifth streets, Rev. Dr. Peterkin, rector. 
The cortege reached the church about five o'clock 
without muste or military escort, the Public 
Guard being absent on duty. The church was 
already crowded with citizens. The metallic 
case, containing the corpse, was borne into the 
church and up the center aisle to the altar, the 
organ pealing a solemn funeral dirge and an- 
them by the choir. 

Among the pall-bearers we noticed Brigadier- 
General John H. Winder, General George W. 
Randolph, General Joseph R. Anderson, Brigar 
dier-General Lawton, and Commodore Forrest. 

Among the congregation appeared President 
Davis, General Bragg, General Ransom, and 
other civil and military officials in Richmond. A 
portion of the funeral services, according td the 
Episcopal Church, was read by Rev. Di". Peterkin, 
assisted by other ministers, concluding with sing- 
ing and prayer. 

The body was then borne forth to the hearse 
in waiting, decorated with black plumes, and 
drawn by four white horses. The oi'gan pealed 
its slow, solemn music as the body was borne to 
the entrance, and while the cortege was forming, 
the congregation standing by with heads un- 
covered. Several carriages in the line were oc- 
cupied by the members of the deceased General's 
staff, and relatives. From the church the cortege 
moved to Hollywood Cemetery, where the re- 
mains were deposited in a vault ; the concluding 
portion of the service read by Dr. Minngerode, 
of St. Paul's Church, — and all that was mortal 
of the dead hero was shut in from the gaze of men. 

Dr. Brewer, the brother-in-law of Gen. Stuart, 
has furnished us with some particulars obtained 
from the General's own hps, of the manner in 
which he came by his wound. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



205 



He had formed a line of skirmishers near the 
Yellow Tavern, when, seeing a brigade preparing 
to charge on his left, Gen. Stuart and his staff 
dashed down the line to form troops to repel the 
charge. About this time the Yankees came thun- 
dering down upon the General and his small 
escort. Twelve shots were fired at the General 
at short range, the Yankees evidently recognizing 
his well-known person. The General wheeled 
upon them with the natural bravery which had 
always characterized him, and discharged sik 
shots at his assailants. The last of the shots 
fired at him struck the General in the left side of 
the stomach. He did not fall, knowing he would 
be captured if he did, and, nerving himself in 
his seat, wheeled his horse's head and rode for 
the protection of his lines. Before he reached 
them his wound overcame him, and he fell, or 
was helped from his saddle by one of his ever- 
faithful troopers, and carried to a place of security. 
Subsequently, he was brought to Richmond in an 
ambulance. The immediate cause of death was 
mortification of the stomach, induced by the flow 
of blood from the kidneys and intestines into the 
cavity of the stomach. 

General Stuart was about thirty-five years of 
age. He leaves a widow and two children. His 
oldest offspring, a sprightly boy, died a year ago 
while he was battling for his country on the Rap- 
pahannock. When telegraphed that his child was 
dying he sent the reply, " I must leave my child 
in the hands of God ; my country needs me here ; 
I cannot come." 

Thus has passed away, amid the exciting scenes 
of this revolution, one of the bravest and most 
dashing cavaliers that the " Old Dominion " has 
ever given birth to. Long will her sons recount 
the story of his achievements, and mourn his un- 
timely departure. Like the hero of the old song, — 

" Of all our knights he was the flower, 
Compagnon de la Marjolaine ; 
Of all our knights he was the flower, 
Always gay." 



Home Life in the South. — " There are 
many little things in which our daily life is 
changed," said the wife of a Confederate officer, 
— " many luxuries cut off from the table which 
we have forgotten to miss. Our mode of pro- 
curing necessaries is very different and far more 
complicated. The condition of our currency has 
brought about many curious results ; for instance, 
I have just procured leather, for our negro-shoes, 
by exchanging tallow for it, of which we had a 
quantity from some fine beeves, fattened and 
killed upon the place. 

" I am now bargaining, with a factory up the 
country, to exchange pork and lard, with them, 
for blocks of yarn, to weave negro clothes ; and 
not only negro-clothing I have woven, I am now 
dyeing thread to weave homespun for myself and 
daughters. I am ravelling up, or having ravelled, 
all the old scraps of fine worsteds and dark silks, 
to spin thread for gloves, for the General and 



self, which gloves I am to knit. These home-knit 
gloves and these homespun dresses will look much 
neater and nicer than you would suppose. My 
daughters and I being in want of under garments, 
I sent a quantity of lard to the Macon factory, and 
received in return fine unbleached calico, — a 
pound of lard paying for a yard of cloth. They 
will not sell their cloth for money. This un- 
bleached calico my daughters and self are now 
making up for ourselves. You see some foresight 
is necessary to provide for the necessaries of 
life. 

" If I were to describe the cutting and altering 
of old things to make new, which now perpetually 
go on, I should far outstep the limits of a letter, 
— perhaps I have done so already, — but I thought 
this sketch would amuse you, and give you some 
idea of our Confederate ways and means of living 
and doing. At Christmas I sent presents to my 
relations in Savannah, and instead of the elegant 
trifles I used to give at that season, I bestowed as 
follows : several bushels of meal, peas, bacon, 
lard, eggs, sausages, soap (home-made), rope, 
string, and a coarse basket ! all which articles, I 
am assured, were most warmly welcomed, and 
more acceptable than jewels and silks would 
have been. To all of this we are so familiarized 
that we laugh at these changes in our ways of 
life, and keep our regrets for graver things. 

" The photographs of your children I was so 
happy to see. You would have smiled to have 
heard my daughters divining the present fashion 
from the style of dress in the likenesses. You 
must know that, amid all the woes of the South- 
ern Confederacy, her women still feel their utter 
ignorance of the fashions, whenever they have a 
new dress to make up or an old one to renovate. 
I imagine that when our intercourse with the rest 
of mankind is revived we shall present a singu- 
lar aspect ; but what we shaU have lost in external 
appearance I trust we shall have gained in subli- 
mer virtues and more important qualities." 



The Last Words of Colonel Stone. — 
Much has been said — but not too much — in 
praise of Col. Newton Stone, late commander of 
the Vermont Second, who fell in the second day's 
fight in the Wilderness. He was first wounded 
in the leg, and conveyed to the rear ; and, after 
having his wound dressed, requested to be placed 
upon his horse, which was done ; when he imme- 
diately rode to the front and took his position at 
the head of his regiment, amid the cheers of his 
men, whom he addressed briefly as follows, — 

" Well, boys, this is rough work ; but I have 
done as I told you 1 wished you to_ do, not to 
leave for a slight wound, but remain just as long 
as you could do any good ; I am here to do as 
long as I can." He then rode along the line, 
speaking a word of good cheer to every company, 
and, as he halted to address Company B, a rifle- 
ball pierced his head, and he fell from his horse 
a corpse. At that moment, the regiment was 
forced back and the body of their Colonel was 
captured, but was immediately re-taken. 



200 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



"PICCIOLA." 

It was a sergeant old and gray, 

Well singed and bronzed from siege and pillage, 
Went tramping in an army's wake, 

Along the turnpike of the village. 

For days and nights the winding host 

Had through the little place been marching, 

And ever loud the rustics cheered, 

Till ev'ry throat was hoarse and parching. 

The squire and farmer, maid and dame, 

All took the sight's electric stirring. 
And hats were waved, and staves were sung, 

And 'kerchiefs white were countless whirling. 

They onl}' saw a gallant show 

Of heroes stalwart under banners, 
And in the fierce heroic glow 

'Twas theirs to yield but wild hosannas. 

The sergeant heard the shrill hurrahs, 
Where he behind in step was keeping ; 

But glancing down beside the road 
He saw a little maid sit weeping. 

" And how is this ? " he gruffiy said, 

A moment pausing to regard her; 
" Why wecpest thou, my little chit ? " 

And then she only cried the harder. 

" And how is this my little chit," 
T*he sturdy trooper straight repeated, 

" When all the A-illage cheers us on. 
That you, in teai's, apart are seated ? " 

" We march two hundred thousand strong ! 

And that's a sight my baby beauty, 
To quicken silence into song, 

And glorify the soldier's duty." 

" It's very, very grand, I know," 

The little maid gave soft replying ; 
" And father, mother, brother, too, 

All say ' hurrah' while I am crying." 

" But think — O, Mr. Soldier, think, 

How many little sisters' brothers 
Are going all away to fight, 

Who may be killed as well as othere ! " 

"Why, bless thee, child, " the sergeant said. 
His brawny hand her curls caressing, 

" 'Tis left for little ones like you 
To find that war's not all a blessing. " 

And, " bless thee ! " once again he cried ; 

Then cleared his throat and looked indignant, 
And marched away with wrinkled brow 

To stop the straggling tear benignant. 

And still the ringing shouts went up 

From doorway, thatch, and fields of tillage ; 

The pall behind the standard seen 
By one alone, of all the village. 

The oak and cedar bend and writhe 

When roars the wind througli gap and braken ; 
But 'tis the tenrterest reed of all 

That tremhles first when earth is shaken. 



The Cruelties of War. — In the month 
of January, 1863, at Laurel, N. C, near the Ten- 
nessee border, all the salt was seized for distri- 
bution by Confederate Commissioners. Salt was 
selling at seventy-five to one hundred dollars a 
sack. The Commissioners declared that the 
" Tories " should have none, and positively re- 
fused to give Union men their portion of the 
quantity to be distributed in that vicinity. This 
palpable injustice roused the Union men, they 
assembled together and determined to seize their 
proportion of the salt by force. They did so, 
taking at Marshall, N. C, what they deemed to 
be their share, and which had been withheld from 
them, simply because they adhered with uncon- 
querable devotion to the government of their 
fathers. 

Immediately afterward the Sixty-fifth N. C. 
regiment, under command of Lieut. Col. Jas. 
Keith, was ordered to Laurel, to arrest the offend- 
ers. 

L. M. Allen was Colonel of the regiment, but 
bad been suspended for six months for crime and 
drunkenness. Many of the men engaged in the 
salt seizure left their homes. Those who did not 
participate in it became the sufferers. Among 
those arrested were Joseph Wood, about sixty 
years of age ; Day Shelton, sixty ; James Shel- 
ton, fifty ; Roddy Shelton, forty-five ; Ellison 
King, forty ; Halen Moore, forty ; Wade Moore, 
thirty-five ; Isaiah Shelton, fifteen ; Wm. Shelton, 
twelve ; James Medcalf, ten ; Jasper Channel, 
fourteen; Sam Shelton, nineteen, and his brother 
aged seventeen, sons of LIfus Shelton, — In all thir- 
teen men and boys. Nearly all of them declared 
they were innocent, and had taken no part in 
appropriating the salt. They begged for a trial, 
asserting that they could prove their innocence. 

Col. Allen who was with his troops, but not in 
command, told them they should have a trial 
but that they would be taken to Tennessee for 
that purpose. They bid farewell to their wives, 
daughters and sisters, directing them to procure 
the witnesses and bring them to the Court in 
Tennessee, where they supposed their trial would 
take place. Alas ! how little they dreamed what 
a fate awaited them ! The poor fellows had pro- 
ceeded but a few miles when they were turned 
from the road Into a gorge in the mountain, and 
halted. Without any warning of what was to be 
done with them, five of them were ordered to 
kneel down. Ten paces in front of these five a 
file of soldiers were placed with loaded muskets. 
The terrible reaUty flashed upon the minds of the 
doomed patriots. 

Old man Wood ( sixty years of age, ) cried 
out : " For God's sake men, you are not going to 
shoot us ? If you are going to murder us, give 
us at least time to pray. " Col. Allen was re- 
minded of his promise to give them a trial. They 
were informed that Allen had no authority ; that 
Keith was in command ; and that there was no 
time for praying. — The order was given to fire ; 
the old man and boys put their hands to their 
faces and rent the air with agonizing cries of de- 
spair ; the soldiers wavered and hesitated to obey 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



207 



the command. Keith said, if thev did not fire 
instantly, he would make them change places 
with the prisoners. — The soldiers raised their 
guns, the victims shuddered convulsively, the 
word fire was given and the five men fell pierced 
with rebel bullets. Old man Wood and Shelton 
were shot in the head, and their brains scattered 
upon the ground, and they died, without a 
struggle. The other three lived only a few 
minutes. 

Five others were ordered to kneel, among them 
little Billy Shelton, a mere child, only twelve 
years old. He implored the men not to shoot 
him in the face. — " You have killed my father 
and brothers, " said he, " you have shot my father 
in the face ; do not shoot me in the face." He 
covered his face with his hands. The soldiers 
received the order to fire, and five more fell. 
Poor little Billy was wounded in both arms. He 
ran to an. officer, clasped him around the legs, 
and besought him to spare his life. " You have 
killed my old father and my three brothers; you 
have shot me in both arms — I forgive you all 
this — I can get well. Let me go home to my 
mother and sisters." What a heart of adamant 
the man must have had who could disregard such 
an appeal ! The little boy was dragged back to 
the place of execution ; again the terrible word, 
" fire ! " was given, and he fell dead, eight balls 
having entered his body. The remaining three 
were murdered in the same manner. Those in 
whom life was not entirely extinct, the heartless 
officers dispatched with their pistols. A hole 
was then dug, and the thirteen bodies were pitched 
into it. 

The grave was scarcely large enough; some 
of the bodies lay about the ground. A wretch, 
named Sergeant N. B. D. Jay,^<«^J£m^ijy^n, 
Hit nttiiiflhnl fn" 3-:-^n aCssQ e. dgqlfia^^f Jjie 
Sixt3'-fiftk--'?^T5!tb™OaTolina regiment, juiliped 
upon the bleeding bodies, and said to some of 
the men : " Pat Juba for me while I dance the 
damned scoundrels down to and through hell." 
The grave was covered lightly with earth, and 
the next day when the wives and families of 
the murdered men heard of their fate, searched 
for, and found their grave, the hogs had rooted 
up one man's body, and eaten his head off. Oh, 
heavens ! what must have been the agony of 
their wives and children on beholding that 
sight ! — When the awful reahty burst upon them, 
what great drops of affliction must have oozed 
from their bleeding hearts ! Yet all this was 
done in the cause of freedom ! " O Liberty ! 
what crimes are committed in thy name ! " 

Captain Moorley, in charge of a cavalry force, 
and Col. Thomas, in command of a number of 
Indians, accompanied Keith's men. These pro- 
ceeded to Tennessee; Keith's men returned to 
Laurel, and were instructed to say that the cav- 
alry had taken the prisoners with them tobe tried , 
iu accordance with the pledge of Col. Allen. Li 
their progress through the country, many Union 
men were known to have been killed and scalped 
by the Indians. Upon the return of Keith and 
his men to Laurel they began systematically to 



torture the women of loyal men, to force them 
to tell where their fathers and husbands could be 
found, and what part each had taken in the salt 
raid. The women refused to divulge anything. 
They were then whipped with hickory switches — 
many of them till the blood coursed in sti-eams 
down their persons to the ground ; and the men 
who did this were called soldiers ! Mrs. Sarah 
Shelton, wife of Ezra Shelton, who escaped from 
the town, and Mrs. Mary Shelton, wife of Lifus 
Shelton, were wliipped and hung by the neck till 
they were almost dead ; but would give no infor- 
mation. Martha White, an idiotic girl, was beaten 
and tied by the neck all day to a tree. Old 
Mrs. Unus Kiddle, aged eighty-five years, was 
whipped, hung, and robbed of a considerable 
amount of money. Many others were treated 
with the same barbarity. And the men who did 
this were called soldiers ! The daughters c^' 
William Shelton, a man of wealth and highly re- 
spectable, were requested by some of the officers 
to play and sing for them. . They played and 
sang a few National airs. ; Keith learned of it, 
and ordered that the ladies be placed under ar- 
rest and sent to the guardhouse, where they re- 
mained all night, o/^,, -,• ' - , 

Old Mrs. Sallie Moore, seventy years of age, 
was whipped with hickory rods till the blood ran 
in streams down her back to the ground ; and the 
perpetrators of this were clothed in the habili- 
ments of rebellion, and bore the name of soldiers ! 

One woman, who had an infant five or six 
weeks old, was tied in the snow to a tree, her 
child placed in the doorway in her sight, and, as 
she knew about the seizure of the salt, both her- 
self and her child were allowed to perish. Ser- 
geant N. B. D. Jay, of Capt. Reynolds' com- 
pany, and Lieut. R. M. Deever assisted their 
men in the execution of the hellish outrages. 
Houses were burned and torn down. AU kinds 
of property were destroyed or carried off. All the 
women and children of the Union men who were 
shot, and of those who escaped, were ordered to 
General Alfred E. Jackson's headquarters at 
Jonesboro,' to be sent through the lines by way 
of Knoxville. When the first of them arrived at 
this place, the officer in charge applied to Gen. 
Donelson (formerly Speaker of the House of 
Representatives at Nashville) to know by which 
route they should be sent from there, whether by 
Cumberland Gap or Nashville. Gen. Donelson 
immediately directed them to be released and 
sent home, saying that such a thing was unknown 
in civilized countries. They were then sent 
home, and all the ref^gees^m^.t on ih^ road/were 
also turned back. '-' ' 

On the 13th of February, 1863, a squad of 
soldiers were sent to conscript James McCoUum, 
of Green county, Tennessee, a very respectable, 
industrious man thirty or thirty-five years of age. 
They found him feeding his cattle. When he 
saw some of them he ran to the back of his barn, 
and, without halting or attempting to arrest him, 
one of them shot him through the neck, killing 
him instantly. His three little children, who saw 
it, ran to the house and told their mother ; she 



208 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



came out wringing her hands in anguish, and 
screaming with terror and dismay. 

The soldiers were sitting upon the fence. 
They laughed at her agony, and said they had 
only killed "a damned Tory." The murdered 
man was highly esteemed by his neighbors, and 
was a firm Union man. 

In April last, two rebel soldiers named Wood 
and Ignole went to the house of INIrs. Ruth Ann 
Rhea,"living on the waters of Lick Creek county, 
to conscript her son. The old lady was pai-- 
tially deranged ; she commanded the soldiers to 
leave her house, and raised a stick to strike one 
of them. He told her if she struck him, he 
■would run her through with his bayonet ; she gave 
the blow, and he shot her through the breast. 

In the same month, Jesse Price, an old man 
sixty years of age, two sons and two nephews, 
were arrested in Johnson county, Tennessee, 
bordering on Virginia, by Col. Fouke's cavalry, 
composed of Tennessee and North Carolina men. 
They were taken to Ash county, North Carolina, 
to be tried for disloyalty to Jefferson Davis & Co. 
The old man had been previously arrested, taken 
to Knoxville, tried and acquitted. 

When the five prisoners arrived in Ash coun- 
ty, a groggery keeper proposed to treat Fouke's 
men to eight gallons of brandy if they would 
hang the old man, his sons and nephews, without 
trial. The bargain was struck, and the five un- 
fortunate men were hanged without further cere- 
mony. The brandy was furnished, and some of 
it drank before the tragedy, — the rest afterward. 

And it is upon the graves of such martyrs, up- 
on the basis of such damning acts of barbarity, 
that the independence of a Southern Confedera- 
cy is to be established ? The blood of these 
murdered men, women, and children, appeals to 
heaven against such a consummation. Read this 
hloody record of inhuman fiendish slaughter, ye 
snivelling sympathizers, and ask yourselves if the 
vengeance of a just God must not, sooner or later, 
blast the hopes and schemes of such enemies of 
their race. Is it possible that an inexorable idol, 
demanding such rivers of innocent blood, can be 
long worshipped in the light of the nineteenth 
century ? Forbid it "God ! Forbid it, all ye 
mighty hosts of heaven ! Christianity cries out 
against it. American honor demands that the mon- 
strosity be. cast into flames and destroyed forever. 

All the blessed memories of the past ; all the 
glorious anticipations of the future, call upon the 
noble patriots of the Union to avenge the blood 
of these martyrs to the cause of.,fi-eedom a^d na- 
tionaUty. — Meinphis BuUeiin^J _ /.;,/,} 



\ ft / 

"General Reno's Last Words. — When 
General Reno fell, Gen Sturges was within a few 
yards of him. He was in command of the di- 
vision formerly commanded by Reno, increased 
by several new regiments, and the men had just 
distIno;uished themselves in driving the rebels 
from the summit of the Blue Ridge. These gen- 
erals were bosom friends; had been classmates 
at AVest Point, and graduated together. When 



Reno fell, Sturges ran to his assistance, had him 
picked up, and said : " Jesse, are you badly 
wounded?" To which he replied, " Yes, Sam, 
I am a dead man." General Sturges had him 
placed upon a litter and carried to the rear, 
where he died in an hour. His last words, before 
leaving the battle-field were, " Boys, I can be 
with you no longer in body, but I am with you in 
spirit." 

THE SOUTHSRN CROSS. 

Fling wide each fold, brave flag um'oUed 

In all thy breadth and length ! 
Float out unfurled, and show the world 

A new-born nation's strength. 
Thou dost not wave all bright and brave 

In holiday attire ; 
'Mid cannon chimes a thousand times 

Baptized in blood and fire. 

No silken toy to flaunt in joy, 

When careless shouts are heard : 
Where thou art borne all scathed and torn, 

A nation's heart is stirred. 
Where half-clad groups of toil-worn troops. 

Are marching to the wars, 
What gi-ateful tears and heartfelt cheers 

Salute thy cross of stars ! 

Thou ne'er hast seen the pomp and sheen, 

The pageant of a court ; 
Or masquerade of war's parade. 

When fields are fought in sport ; 
But thou know'st well the battle yell 

From which thy foemen reel, 
When down the steeps resistless leaps 

A sea of Southern steel. 

Thou know'st the storm of balls that Swarm 

In dense and hurtling fight. 
When thy crossed bars, a blaze of stars, 

Plunge headloag through the fight ; 
Where thou'rt unfurled are thickest hurled 

The thtmderbolts of war ; 
And thou art met with loudest threat 

Of cannon from afar. 

For thee is told the merchant's gold ; 

The planter's harvests fall : 
Thine is the gain of hand and brain, 

And the heart's wealth of all. 
For thee each heart has borne to part 

With what it holds most dear ; 
Through all the land no woman's hand 

Has staid one volunteer. 

Though from thy birth outlawed on earth. 

By older nations spurned, 
Their full-grown fame may dread the name 

Thy infancy has earned. 
For thou dost flood the land with blood. 

And sweep the seas with fire ; 
And all the earth applauds the worth 

Of deeds thou dost inspire ! 

Thy stainless field shall empire wield, 

Supreme from sea to sea, 
And proudly shine the honored sign 

Of peoples yet to be. 
When thou shalt grace the hard-won place 

The nations grudge thee now, 
No land shall show to friend or foe 

A nobler flag than thou. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



209 



Grant and the Politician. — A certain 
western Colonel in Major-General Grant's army, 
took advantage of a sick-furlough to canvass for 
a nominationto Congress. On application for an 
extension of his furlough, Gen. Grant TYrote on 
back of it, as folloivs : 

" If Col. is able to travel over his dis- 
trict to electioneer for Congress, he is able to be 
with his regiment, and he is hereby ordered to 
join it immediately, or be dismissed from the ser- 
vice." 



Abraham Lincoln's First Speech. — 
President Lincoln made his maiden speech in 
Sangamon county, at Pappysville (or Kichland) 
in the year 1832. He was then a Whig, and was 
a candidate for the legislature of this State. The 
speech was sharp and sensible. To understand 
why it was so short, the following facts will show : 
First, Mr. Lincoln was a young man, say twen- 
ty-two years of age, and timid. Secondly, his 
fHends and opponents, in the joint discussion had 
rolled the sun nearly down. Mr. Lincoln saw 
that it was not a proper time to discuss the ques- 
tions fully, and hence he cut his remarks short. 
Probably the other candidate had wholly exhaust- 
ed the subjects under discussion. The time, ac- 
cording to W. H. Herndon's informant — who 
has kindly fui-nished this valuable reminiscence 
for us — was 1832, it may have been 1834. The 
President lived at that time with James A. Hern- 
don, at Salem, Sangamon county, who heard the 
speech, talked about it, and knows the report to 
be correct. The speech which was characteristic 
of the man, was as follows : 

"Gentlemen, Fellow-citizens: I pre- 
sume you all know who I am. I am humble 
Abraham Lincoln. I have been solicited by 
many friends to become a candidate for the legis- 
lature. My polities are short and sweet, like an 
old woman's dance. I am in favor of a National 
Bank. I am in favor of the internal improve- 
ment system, and a high protective tariff. These 
are my sentiments and political principles. If 
elected, I shall be thankful ; if not, it will be all 
the same." 



The Battle-Field of Gettysburg. — I 
have just returned from a visit to Gettysburg 
and if you choose to accompany me in a long 
ramble over the field and hear what a partic- 
ipant in the battle has to say, well and good. 
In the main, " I tell the story as 'twas told to 
me ; " but it is hard to say anything new upon a 
theme already hackneyed. You newspaper peo- 
ple have, I know, what most people have, a hor- 
ror- of — long articles ; therefore, " for fear your 
readers should grow skittish," you have my full 
permission to abbreviate, expunge, or omit, at 
your pleasure. Assuming this article, then, to 
have escaped the fate of your waste-paper basket, 
start with me on this fine November morning, out 
on the Emmettsburg road. For our companion and 
guide we have Captain. A. F. Cavada, a gallant 
14 



and accomplished young officer, who served all 
through, from Yorktown to Petersburg, and for 
nearly two years on the staff of Major General 
Humphreys. 

About a mile out we halt. The Captain lo- 
quitur. " Now I begin to feel at home. Let me 
take an observation, as these fences were not 
here^then. All right. I've got it now. Do you 
see that big walnut on the ridge over there? 
That was Gen. Humphrey's headquarters on the 
morning of Thursday, July 2d. Ahnost worn out 
with hard marching, I was aroused from my weary 
bivouac at daylight, and ordered to post Col. 
Tilghman's regiment — the Twenty-sixth Penn- 
sylvania — on i^icket along here. Later in the 
the day, right of our division, Carr's brigade, held 
this brick house. Further down was posted 
TurnbulFs battery. There, belov/ that barn, 
stood Lieut. Seeley's and still further toward our 
left the batteries of Birney's division, under Liv- 
.ingston, Smith, Randolph, Clark, and Winslow. 
I mention them all, for never were guns handled 
more beautifully. All suffered fearfully — See- 
ley's especially. He had hardly a man or horse 
left standing, and was himself severely wounded. 
He was a gallant officer, and had risen from 
the ranks. Now go with me into that orchard. 
I want to find a certain apple-tree which served 
as a rendezvous during the day for us staff 
officers and our orderlies. At one period, stand- 
ing under it, with Captains Humphreys and 
McClellan, a shell exploded in the tree, killing 
three of our poor orderlies, besides striking my 
horse." We found the tree — its limbs were 
shattered, and the top entirely gone. 

" About 2 o'clock the whole Third Corps moved 
out in line-of-battle over the open ground, and a 
more magnificent spectacle of ' living valor roll- 
ing on the foe,' I never witnessed. Away over 
on that bare spot of rising ground the rebels had 
planted two batteries, with which they enfiladed 
our whole line, fairly sweeping it from left to 
right. Lord ! how they pitched it into us ! 
Longstreet's infantry debouched from those woods, 
and in a short time all around where we are 
standing — to the right, left and in front — along 
this road, through that peach orclrard, away down 
toward Round Top, for houi-s the battle raged. 
General Sickles was wounded near that large 
barn. How well I remember this spot of ground. 
It was here, behind that stone-fence, that I had 
been ordered to post Colonel Burling's brigade. 
On my way back, I passed the One Hundred and 
Fourteenth Pennsylvania Regiment, then cocn- 
manded by my brother, Lieut. Col. F. F. Cava- 
da. It had just been ordered to an advanced 
position beyond the road. I rode up and shook 
hands with him. ' Good-by, Fred, look out for 
yourself; you are going into a hot place, and are 
sure to catch it.' So it turned out. The One 
Hundred and fourteenth, in connection with the 
Sixty-eighth Pennsylvania, Col. Trippin, had a 
bloody fight of it, and lost heavily. My brother 
and his brigade commander, Gen. Graham, were 
both taken prisoners, the latter severely wounded. . 
I never saw the rebels fight with such diabolka! ; 



210 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



fury. The most murderous fire — canister, 
shrapnel, and musketry — was poured into their 
faces as it were, but nothing stopped them. The 
Third Corps, those heroes of Chancellorsville, 
and other bloody fields, led by Birney, Hum- 
phrejs, De Trobriand, Ward, Graham and Carr 
— never fought more heroically." 

A word of criticism here. At one period of 
the battle, Birney, being hard pressed called up- 
on Gen. Sj'kes, in command of the Fifth Corps, 
for assistance. Sykes had been ordered to sup- 
port the Third if called upon, but he returned for 
answer that he " Avould be up in time — that his 
men were tired and were making coffee!" 
They did come up in about an hour, and, says 
Gen. Warren, in his testimony, " the troops un- 
der General Sykes arrived barely in time to 
save Bound Top, and they had a very desperate 
fight to hold it." And again of the operations 
next day. " When the repulse took place. Gen. 
Meade intended to move forward and assault 
the enemy in turn. He ordered an advance of 
the Fifth Corps, but it was carried on so sloidj/ that 
it did not amount to much, if anything." Gen. 
George Sykes is a brave man, but entirely "too 
slow," so at least Gen. Grant seemed to think, 
for in the subse;]uent reorganization of the Army 
of the Potomac, the services of '• Tardy George," 
No. 2, Avere dispensed with. The Fifth, as a corps, 
has a gl&rious record, and never failed to fight 
bravely when properly handled. 

To resume the captain's narrative. " As the 
afternoon wore on the pressure became great- 
er and greater, until at last our whole corps, 
with the exception of Carr's brigade and a few 
other regiments, was hurled down the slope, 
broken and discomfited, the rebels following in 
hot pursuit. Our losses were frightful. In our 
division, of 5,000 men, our loss was nearly 2,000." 
"Well, Captain, you saw most of the heavy 
fighting done by this army, tell me, were you 
ever in a holler place than this ? " " Never but 
once — and that reminds me of a little story. 
In the attack upon the enemy's position at the 
first Fredericksburg, our division was ordered to 
storm the heights. As we were preparing to 
move, Gen. liitmphreys — always a very polite 
man — turned round to his staff, and in his 
blandest manner remarked, ' Young gentle- 
men, I intend to lead this assault, and shall be 
happy to have the pleasure of your company.' 
Of course, the invitation was too polite to be de- 
clined. That was the roughest place I ever was 
in, and I can't conceive, even to this day, how 
any of us ever got back alive. Our division 
lost nearly 1,100 iuen in about fifteen minutes. 
In this clump of bushes my horse received a sec- 
ond wound, and fell dead under me. I managed 
to scramble over the ridge, where our men were 
being rallied, and soon after the sun went down 
and the rebels were beaten back beyond the road. 
" Capt. Chester, of our military family, was 
seen to go down in the melee and after night-fall 
a party started out in search of him. We found 
him near that large flat rock, alive, but grievous- 
ly wounded. His horse and faithful orderly both 



lay dead beside him, and across his legs a 
rebel soldier, whom he had killed with his revolv- 
er, while in the act of plundering him of his 
Avatch. He was taken up tenderly, and convey- 
ed to the hospital on Rock Creek where he died 
next day. 

" With heavy hearts we now set about the task 
of burying such of our poor fellows as were 
within reach. Always the saddest of a soldier's 
duties, it was peculiarly so upon this occasion,^ for 
all felt that the rising sun would bring with it a 
repetition of this day's horrors, and that, perhaps, 
at this hour to-morrow, some comrade might be 
performing this same sad office for us. 

" 'Few and short were the prayers we said, 
And wc spoke not a word of sorrow, 
As we steadfiistly gazed on the face of the dead. 
And bitterly thought on the morroiu. ' " 

In the course of the day we paid a visit to Mr. 
•Sherfey's house, where we were most hospitably 
received. Iliis house stands about the centre of 
the field and is riddled from garret to basement. 
Traces of the conflict are to be seen on every 
side, including the last resting-place of many poor 
Southerners. Mr. Sherfey's '"barn was burnt dur- 
ing the fight, and some of the wounded who 
sought refuge there perished in the flames. 
" These," saul Mrs. Sherfey, producing some tin 
cans, " contain peaches that were growing in our 
orchard over there at the time of the battle. These 
are vu/ trophies." In the front garden grows the 
beautiful shrub known as the " burning bush," 
luxuriant with its crop of bright red berries, ty- 
pical of the blood shed at its roots. " Take some 
of the berries with you and plant them," said the 
kind old lady ; " they will grow anywhere, and 
will be pleasant mementos of Gettysburg." 

We next made our way to Little Bound Top, 
where we had the pleasure of meeting Colonel 
Batchelder. This gentleman is engaged in col- 
lecting the details of the battle, and will, no 
doubt^ produce a book of equal interest with his 
great map. I was sorry to hear him say that he 
intends designating this as " Weed's Hill," in 
honor of the general who fell on its top. Honor 
the memory of the brave man in some other way. 
Colonel, but don't seek to change this name. As 
" Little Bound Top," it has already passed into 
history, and so it will be known forever. There 
are few finer views of the whole field than from 
this point, and here took place the closest and 
most sanguinary fighting of Thursday. In front 
and to the right the Fifth Corps had a heavy 
thing of it. "On the height fought two of the 
noblest soldiers of the army, Vincent and Rice. 
The former laid down his life here, the latter at 
Spottsylvania the year after. All the little stone 
walls thrown up between the huge boulders kre 
still here. In fact, nothing is changed. Would 
that this could be said of other parts of the field. 
Inscriptions upon the rocks mark the spots where 
Vincent and Hazlett fell. Here, too, at_ the 
early age of twenty-five, fell that accomplished 
soldier Col. O'Bourke, of the One Hundred and 
Fortieth New York. Graduating at the head of 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



211 



his class, two years before, he was at once as- 
sifi^ned to duty "in the field, and soon became dis- 
tinf uished for his reckless and impetuous courage. 
He was struck while mounted upon a rock gal- 
lantly animating his men. Fortunately, the ex- 
treme left was held by that splendid regiment 
the Twentieth Maine, then under the command 
of Col. Chamberlain, afterwards one of Sheri- 
dan's heroes of the Five Forks. Firing away 
their last cartridge, Chamberlain ordered his 
regiment to charge down the hill, and succeeded 
in clearing its sides with the bayonet. The re- 
markable ledge of rocks known as the " Devil's 
Den," directly opposite Round Top, was oc- 
cupied by the enemy's sharpshooters, one of 
whom had a safe position within the cleft and 
picked oif our men with fatal accuracy. The 
face of the boulder behind which he lay is cov- 
ered with marks of the minies sent at him. One 
even " went for him " clean through the crevice, 
but missed. He was finally dislodged by a charge 
and escaped through an opening to the rear. 
Seven muskets, it is said, were found in his 
hiding place. There is room enough for ^fty. 
On the slope in front of his den lie bleach- 
ing the bones of rebel dead, washed out by the 
rains. The scene of Crawford's charge, with our 
superb Pennsylvania Reserves, was to the right 
and in front of Little Round Top. Brigadier 
General Zook and Colonel Jeffards — the latter 
of the Fourth Michigan — were killed in the 
field beyond. Colonel Jeffards was killed by a 
bayonet-thrust, while gallantly holding up with 
his own hands the colors of his regiment. Near 
that ploughed field, charging at the head of his 
brave " 13ucktails," fell our Chester county 
neighbor, Col. Frederick Taylor. No death in 
the whole army was more sincerely mourned. 

" Many the ways that lead to death, but few 
Grandly ; and one alone is glory's gate, 
Standing wherever free men dare their fate, 
Determined, as thou ivert, to die — or do ! " 

We now proceed along the line held by us on 
Friday, Colonel B. politely acting as guide. In 
that little grove, close to our lines, fell the rebel 
General Barksdale on Thursday. This violent, 
brawling rebel start-ed in search of" his rights" 
and this little pile of stones here marks the spot 
where he is presumed to haye found them^ It is 
said that he was drunk when he started on the 
charge, and this may account for his headlong, 
reckless bravery. True or not, " the story's still 
extant." Here in the thickest of the fight, ex- 

f)Osing himself like a common soldier, the gal- 
ant Hancock received his wound. That ad- 
vanced line of works was held b)' the Vermont 
brigade. It was commanded by Gen. Stannard, 
who subsequently gave an arm to the cause on 
the James. A pile of knapsacks, just as they 
were unslung, still lie mouldering hei-e, — on one 
the inscription " Sixteenth Vermont " is still vis- 
ible. Even now the debris of battle — hats, 
shoes, cartridge-boxes, bayonet-scabbards, can- 
teens, &c. — lie scattered all over the field. 
Next we come to the position held by the " Phil- 



adelphia Brigade," composed of the Sixty-ninth 
— " Paddy Owens' regulars ; " the Seventy- 
second, Baxter's Zouaves, and that splendid 
fighting regiment, the Seventy-first, or California, 
commanded originally by the lamented Baker, 
and subsequently by our fellow-townsmen, Col- 
onels John Markoe and R. Penn Smith. This 
brigade — veteran fighters, every man of them — 
was led upon this occasion by a gallant New York- 
er, Brigadier-General Webb, and nobly was the 
honor of both cities sustained. Would that I 
had it in my power to particularize all the or- 
ganizations conspicuous for courage and conduct 
in this gi-eat battle, but that would be to mention 
almost every regiment, battery and squadron en- 
gaged. From here we have an excellent view 
of Seminary Ridge, the line of woods whence 
the rebels issued and the beautiful level fields 
over which they swept in their grand charge. 
This certainly is the most magnificent battle-field 
in the world. The heights of La Belle Alliance 
and Mont Saint Jean in some respects resem- 
ble our Cemetery and Seminary Ridges, with the 
same gentle, undulating valley intervening ; biit 
at Waterloo the principal road runs at right an- 
gles, while here, parallel with the position. Speak- 
ing of the bombardment which preceded the 
charge, that experienced soldier. General Han- 
cock, says : " It was the most terrific cannonade 
I ever witnessed, and the most prolonged." A 
rebel eye-witness describing it, says : '' I have 
never yet heard such tremendous artillery firing. 
The very earth shook beneath our feet, and the 
hills and rocks seemed to reel like a drunken 
man. For one hour and a half this most terrific 
firing was continued, during which time the 
shrieking of shells, the crash of falling timber, the 
fragments of rock flying through the air, shatter- 
ed from the cliffs by solid-shot ; the heavy mut- 
terings from the valley between the opposing 
armies, the splash of bursting shrapnel, and the 
neighing of wounded artillery horses, made the 
same terribly grand and sublime." After this came 
the charge. Our eighty guns, planted on the 
crest from Cemetery Hill to Round Top, " vol- 
ley'd and thundered," and, when the infantry 
joined in the choi-us, so terrible was the fire that 
tore through them that the rebel columns pre- 
sented the extraordinary spectacle of ten thou- 
sand men playing at " leap-frog ! " In spite of 
every eflTort, the flower of Lee's veterans, direct- 
ed by tried leaders such as Garnett, Armstead, 
Kemper, Wright, Posey and Mahone, failed in 
carrying our position, although at one or two 
points they charged up to, and even over it. 
'' What other than Southern troops would have 
made that charge ? " Ay, sir, but what other 
than Northern would have met and repulsed it ? 
Northern endurance, upon this occasion was too 
much for Southern impetuosity and dash. " There 
swung the pine against the palm." In the bloody 
ruck ^hundreds of their best officers went down. 
It was the turning point of the grand drama, and 
with the sun, on that third day of July, went 
down the sun of" the Confederacy " forever ! Al- 
though kno-ivn as " Pickett's charge," Gen. Gra- 



212 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



ham. whom I met here yesterday, informs me 
that Pickett himself was not in it. He describes 
him as a coarse, br0al fellow, and says he treat- 
ed him with the greatest inhumanity after the 
battle, whilst wounded, and a prisoner in his 
hands. The rebel corps commanders either did 
did not expose themselves as freely as our own, 
or they had better luck, for none were hit, whilst 
we lost one, Reynolds, killed ; and two, Hancock 
and Sickels, wounded. The story told in Black- 
wood, by Col. Freemantle, of the British army, 
who was present may help to explain it. He 
says, that carried away by excitement, he rushed 
up to Longstreet, who was sitting on a_ fence 
" quietly whitterling a stick," whilst watching the 
charge, and said, '' Gen. Longstreet, isn't this 
splendid ; I wouldn't have missed it for the 
AYorld ? " " The d— 1 you wouldn't," replied Long- 
street ; " why, don't you see we are getting lick- 
ed like h — 1 ! " We now crossed the Balti- 
more pike, calling on our way at the small 
frame building, on~the Taneytown road, used as 
the head-quarters of Gen. Meade on Friday. 
This will always be a point of great interest. 
The house is sadly shattered, and the poor 
widow who .owns it complains bitterly of her 
losses. " When I comes home, my house was all 
over blood ; the ' sogers ' took away all my cover- 
Jits and quilts, two tons of hay, they spiled my 
spring, my apple-trees and every ding." She 
says a couple of hundred dollars would be a great 
help to her, and thinks she should get it from some- 
veresJ' Sure enough, why shouldn't the _ poor 
woman get it V In the garden of a cottage in the 
little village of Waterloo the visitor is shown the 
monument erected over the Marquis of Angle- 
sea's leg, and the poor peasant has made quite a 
little fortune by exhibiting the boot cut from the 
leg, and the table upon which the amputation 
was performed. This hint might not be thrown 
away upon a more enterprising person, but I 
doubt if this poor, old, frowsy German woman 
will ever ijrofit by it. To the right of Cemetery 
Hill was stationed the battery so furiously as- 
saulted by Hays' brigade of Louisiana^ Tigers. 
The lunettes and traverses remain undisturbed 
and grass-grown. 

The little eminence in front was held, and 
with distinguished honor, by that conscientious 
and patriotic soldier, Brigadier-Gen. Wadsworth. 
The works thrown up by our men on Gulp's Hill 
are still to be seen, except such portion of the 
timber as is being removed by the owner of the 
fround. Only think of the meanness of the man 
who is pulling to pieces these monuments, and 
converting the timber into fence-rails and cord- 
wood ! The effect of the furious fire poured upon 
Ewell's swarming columns is visible enough. 
Hardly a rock or a tree in front of these works 
has escaped. Many of the trees are covered and 
scarred with bullets as high as fifty feet from the 
ground. There was " wild," as well as deadly 
shooting here on that fearful Thursday night 
and early Friday morning. Along this rough, 
rocky hill fought our own Geary, and that dis- 
tinguished Rhode Islander, Brigadier Gener- 



al Green. Five months after, at the desperate 
midnight battle of Wahatchie, in Lookout Val- 
ley, this indomitable fighting officer only ad- 
ded to the laurels already gained at Antietam, 
and Gettysburg. An inscription on a tree close 
by tells the story of a large mound in the ravine 
below : " To the right lie buried forty-five rebels ! " 
From here we struck aci-oss to the scene of the 
fii'st day's fight. In the following communication 
to Governor Curtin, General Cutler tells us how 
the battle opened : " I owe a duty to one of your 
regiments, the Fifty-sixth, and its brave command- 
er, Colonel J. W. Hofmann. It was my fortune 
to be in the advance on the morning of July 1st. 
The atmosphere being a little thick, I took out 
my glass to examine the enemy, being a few pac- 
es in front of Colonel H., he turned to me and 
inquired, ' Is that the enemy ? ' My reply was 
' Yes.' Turning to his men, he commanded, 
' Ready — right oblique — aim — fire ! ' and the 
battle of Gettysburg was opened. The fire Avas 
followed by other regiments instantly, still, that 
battle on the soil of Pennsylvania was opened by 
her own sons, and it is just that it should become 
a matter of history." Ilere is the ground fought 
over by our brave cavalrymen, under Pleasanton, 
Buford, Kilpatrick, Farnsworth, Merrit, Custer 
and Gregg. Never, in any preceding campaign, 
had the cavalry of this army rendered such dis- 
tinguished and invaluable service. To meet the 
enemy was to ovex-throw them, until, at last, it 
was only with the greatest difficulty that Stuart 
could get his men to stand at all. The next 
point reached was the scene of the bloody, though 
unavailing struggle of the First and Eleventh 
Corps. The marks of battle still abound, but the 
interest centres in the spot where Reynolds was 
killed. The General was nearly up with the 
skirmish line — no place, say military men, for a 
corps commander ; " but that was just like John 
Reynolds;" and he had just despatched several 
of his aids, Capts. Baird, Rosengarten and Rid- 
dle, on some special duties, and was himself 
watching the deployment of a brigade of Wiscon- 
sin troops, when the fatal bullet, fired by a sharp- 
shooter, struck him in the neck and he fell otl" his 
horse dead. Poor Reynolds ! 

" There have been tears and breaking hearts for 

thee." 

We now stand in the National Cemeter}-, on 
Cemetery Hill. Who can stand unmoved in this 
silent city of the dead. Here repose the pre- 
cious offerings laid upon the altar of the country 
by the loyal States. Ordinarily the filling up of 
a cemetery is slow work — the Avork of years. 
Three days sufficed to Jill this ! And what is the 
reward of those brave men for their weeks of 
weary marching, and days and nights of fearful 
fif^hting ? " Two paces of the vilest earth ! " 
Here They lie, " those unnamed demi-gods " of 
the rank and file. " Unknown ! " " unknown ! " 
the only epitaph of hundreds. Yes, here they 
lie " massed " with beautiful military precision, 
rank upon rank, as if awaiting the order to ap- 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



213 



pear In review before the Great Commander-in- 
chief of us all ! 

" Up many a fortress wall 
Thej' charged — those boys in blue ; 
'Mid surging smoke and volleying ball 
The bravest were the first to fall — 
To fall for me and you ! " 

Who can ever forget those terrible days of 
July, that period of agonizing suspense ? 

And when the news did come, oh, how that 
sad catalogue pulled upon the heart-strings ! 
liej^nolds, Zook, Farnsworth, Card, Weed, Jef- 
fards, Taylor, Arrowsmith, O'Rourke, Lowery, 
Cross, Hazlett, Vincent, Devereaux, Willard, 
Adams, Miller. 

"Period of honor as of woes, 
What bright careei's 'twas thine to close ! 
Mark'd on thy roll of blood what names, 
To Freedom'' s memory, and to Fame's 
Laid there their last immortal claims ! " 



So ends my story of Gettysburg. 



G. J. Gross. 



Fkanklin W. Smith, a Boston contractor, 
was tried by court-martial, and found guilty of 
pocketing a thousand or two dollars out of a con- 
tract with the Navy department for supplies. 
The report of the court-martial was sent to Pres- 
ident Lincoln for his examination, who returned 
it with this characteristic indorsement : 

" Whereas, Franklin W. Smith, had transac- 
tions with the United States Navy Department 
to a million and a quarter of dollars, and had the 
chance to steal a quarter of a million ; and where- 
as, he was charged with stealing only ten thou- 
sand dollars, and from the final revision of the tes- 
timony it is only claimed that he stole one hun- 
dred dollars, I don't believe he stole anything at 
all. 

" Therefore, the records of the court-martial, 
together with the finding and sentence, are dis- 
approved, declared null and void, and the defend- 
ant is fully discharged. 

A. Lincoln." 



THE STARS AND BARS. 



P^ 



'Tis sixty-two ! — and sixty-one, (j**' 
With the old Union, now is gone. 

Recking with bloody wars — 
Gone with that ensign, once so prized, 
The Stars and Stripes, now so despised — 

Struck for the stars and bars. 

The burden once of patriot's song, 
Now badge of tyranny and wrong. 

For us no more it waves ; 
We claim the stars — the stiipes we yield, 
We give them up on every field, 

Wiicre fight the Southern braves. 

Our motto this, " God and our right," 
For sacred liberty we fight — 
Not for the lust of power ; 



;1J^ 



Compelled by wrongs the sword t' unsheath, 
We'll fight, be free, or cease to breathe — 
We'll die before we cower. 

By all the blood our fathers shed. 
We will from tyranny bo freed — 

We will not conquered be ; 
Like them, no higher power we own 
But God's — we bow to him alone — 
We will, we will be free ! 

For homes and altars we contend. 
Assured that God Avill us defend — 

He makes our cause his own ; 
Not of our gallant patriot host. 
Not of brave leaders do we boast — 

We trust in God alone. 

Sumter, and Bethel, and Bull Run 
Witnessed fierce battles fought and won. 

By aid of Power Divine ; 
We met the foe, who us defied. 
In all his pomp, in all his pi-ide, 

Shouting, " Manasseh's mine ! " 

It was not thine, thou boasting foe ! 
We laid thy vandal legions low — 

We made them bite the sod ; 
At Lexington the braggart yields, 
Leesburgh, Belmont, and other fields ;— 

Still help us, mighty God ! 

Thou smiledst on the patriot seven — 
Thou srailest on the brave eleven 

Free, independent States ; 
Their number thou wilt soon increase. 
And bless them with a lasting peace. 

Within their happy gates. 

No more shall violence be heard, 
AVasting, destruction no moi-e feared 

In all this Southern land ; 
"Praise," she her gates devoutly calls, 
"Salvation," her Heaven-guarded walls — 

What shall her power withstand ? 

" The little one," by heavenly aid, 

" A thousand is — the strong one made, 

" A nation — oh ! how strong ! " 
Jehovah, who the right befriends, 
Jehovah, who our flag defends. 

Is hastening it along ! 



Incident of the Morgan Raid. — When 
Gen. John Morgan's band was within four miles 
of Jasper, Pike county, Ohio, they captured a 
number of citizens, among them a school-teacher, 
by the name of Joseph McDougal, aged tbrty- 
seven. The captured men were marched on the 
double-quick to the village of Jasper, allowed a 
few moments' rest, and then double-quicked two 
and a half miles to Piketon, and there, with others 
captured, formed into line for parole. 

Before the oath was administered, however, 
Captain ISIitchell, of one of Morgan's companies, 
ordered Mr. McDougal to step out of the ranks. 
Ai'ter a little parley, this Mitchell ordered two 



!14 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 




soldiers to march McDougal to the Sciota river, a 
short distance off. Here he was placed in a 
canoe, facing Mitchell and his two men, and, at a 
signal from Mitchell, two shots were fired at the 
prisoner ; one ball taking effect just below the 
right eye, the other in his left breast, near his 
heart. Death followed instantaneously. The 
wretches left their victim in the canoe. Prison- 
ers who were with Mr. McDougal represent him 
as a gentle but brave-hearted man, the flag of his 

, country being sacred to him above all earthly 

Wmbols. ^\^ (^.^rt^ ^,, ^ ^ 

^ S'iP-r— 

Whipped and Demoralized, but not 
/Scattered. — A soldier of Bates' division of the 
confederate army, after the command had run two 
days from Nashville, had thrown away his gun 
and accoutrements, and alone in the woods, sat 
down and commenced thinking — the first chance 
he had for such a thing. Rolling up his sleeves, 
and looking at his legs and general physique, he 
thus gave vent to his feehngs. " I am whipped, 
badly whipped, and somewhat demorahzed, but 
no man can sav I am scattered." 



Anecdote of General Brooks. — A sol- 
dier in the Fourth Vermont Regiment relates 
the following incident of the battle of Sharps- 
burg : — 

We marched through a cornfield, and the men 
lay down Avith Ayres's battery, which is connect- 
ed with our brigade, and took position. The ene- 
my saw us, and poured in a perfect hurricane of 
canister, grape, and shell, but did but little dam- 
age. Then old Ayers opened, and for three hours 
I could not hear myself think. The air was full 
of bursting shells and whistling balls, mingled 
with the roar of artillery and the sharp crack of 
the sharpshooters' rifles. General Brooks would 
not lie down as his men did, but stood up in plain 
sight. I told the boys he would get hit before 
night, and so he did ; a ball struck him in the 
cheek and knocked out two teeth, but did no 
other injury. I have told you before how short 
and gruff he is. When he was struck, one of the 
men who was close beside him, asked him if he 
was wounded. " iVo, sir; had a tooth pulled" 
said the old man ; and he never left the field 
until after dark. 



French Notions of American Geogra- 
phy. — We translate from the " Almanach du 
Magazin Pittoresque," the following paragraph 
contained in an abstract of events of the war 
in the United States : — 

May 23. — The Federal troops assembled at 
Harper's Ferry, cross the Potomac, and after a 
first engagement occupy Alexandria. 

May 27. — The Federals commanded by Gen. 
Banks, experienced a first reverse. They re- 
cross the Potomac, and fall back upon Williams- 
burg. 

May 30 and 31. — A great battle is fought near 



Richmond; on the first day the advantage re- 
mains with the Confederates ; on the second day 
they experience considerable loss, and abandon 
Corinth. 

After seven days of bloody fighting near Rich- 
mond (June 23 to 29), 95,000 Federals, com- 
manded by McClellan, retire before the Confed- 
erate army, which, with re-enlbrcements brought 
by Gens. Beauregard and Jackson, have been in- 
creased to 185,000 men. They take position on 
the James River, 17 miles from Charleston, 

On the cover of the book it is stated that " the 
Central Committee of Primary Instruction in the 
City of Paris has placed the ' Magazin Pittoresque ' 
on the list of books proper to be given as prizes 
in the public schools." 



MARCH ALONG. 

GEOKGE H. BOKEK. 

Soldiers are we from the mountain and valley. 
Soldiers are we from the hill and the plain ; 
Under the flag of our fathers we rally ; 
Death, for its sake, is but living again. 
Then march along, gay and strong, 
March to battle with a song 
March, march along ! 

We have a history told of our nation, 

We have a name that must never go down ; 

Heroes achieved it through toil and privation ; 
Bear it on, bright with its ancient renown ! 
Then march along, etc. 

Who that shall dare say the flag waving o'er us. 

Which floated in glory from Texas to Maine, 
Must fall, where our ancestors bore it before us. 

Writes his own fate on the roll of the slain. 
Then march along, etc. 

Look at it, traitors, and blush to behold it ! 

Quail as it flashes its stars in the sun ! 
Think you a hand in the nation will fold it, 

While there's a hand that can level a gun ? 
Then march along, etc. 

Carry it onward, till victory eai-n it 

The riglits it once owned in the land of the frea ; 
Then, in God's name, in our fury we'll turn it 

Full on tiie treachery over the sea ! 
Then march along, etc. 

England shall feel what a vengeance the liar 
Stores in the bosom he aims to deceive ; 

England shall feel how God's truth can inspire ; 
England shall feel it, but only to grieve. 
Then march along, etc. 

Peace shall unite us again and forever, 

Though thousands lie cold in the graves of these 
wars ; 
Those who survive them shall never prove, never, 
False to the flag of the stripes and the stars ! 
Then march along, gay and strong, 
March to battle with a song ! 
March, march along ! 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



215 



Illinois at the Battle of Gettysburg. 
— The part borne in this terrible struggle by the 
troops of Illinois, is thus described by Colonel 
William Gamble, who commanded the Eighth 
Cavalry from that state : — 

On the afternoon of the 30th of June the first 
cavalry briijade of Buford's division, commanded 
by Col. W." Gamble, of the Eighth Illinois caval- 
ry, arrived at Gettysburg, — the Eighth Illinois 
cavalry in front. Col. Gamble received orders 
to pass through the town on the Cashtown road 
and select the most eligible line of battle beyond 
the Seminary that could be found, encamp the 
brigade and send forward one or two squadrons 
to find the enemy, and remain on picket to watch 
the movements of the enemy. These orders were 
promptly carried out. The squadrons for ad- 
vanced picket duty were taken from the Eighth 
Illinois cavalry, who advanced three miles fur- 
ther, found the enemy, remained in front until sev- 
en o'clock the next morning, when the enemy com- 
menced advancing in three divisions under Gen. 
A. P. Hill, and with shell and musketry drove in 
the squadrons mentioned, and the Eighth Illinois 
cavalry had the honor of being first fired on by 
the enemy and of returning their fire. 

The advance of the enemy was immediately 
reported to General Meade, the infantry advance 
being eight miles in our rear were ordered up to 
support the cavalry. 

The cavalry of ]3uford's Division was ordered 
to fight the enemj-. I dismounted part of the 
Eighth Illinois, Eighth New York, and Third In- 
diana cavalry, in all about 900 men, and ordered 
them to the front to keep back the enemy as long- 
as possible till our infantry came up to our sup- 
port. -Uevin's brigade of New York cavalry was 
on our right and Merrit's brigade of regular cav- 
alry -was on our left. AVe had to fight the wholci 
Army Corps of Gen. A. P. Hill, 25,000 strong, 
for three and a half hours, from 7 till 10^ A. 
M., to hold the original line of battle selected by 
me according to previous orders. 

Tidball's horse battery, A, Second U. 8. ar- 
tillery, was attached to my brigade that day. 

The cavalry above mentioned fought Hill's 
corps for thi'ce and a half hours, on the morning 
of the 1st of July, and held the original line of 
battle selected beyond the Seminary, until our 
infantry came up, with a loss of one hundred and 
eleven officer sand men, killed, wounded, and miss- 
ing, and fifty-six cavalry horses killed, thirteen 
artillery horses killed, and fifteen artillerymen 
killed and wounded. Nothing of this is men- 
tioned in the newspapers or dispatches, but the 
above are absolute tacts, under my own observa- 
tion. 

An hour before dark the rebels outflanked our 
left ; this brigade of cavalry was again ordered to 
the front, dismounted and fought the rebels on 
Seminary Eidge, and saved a whole division of 
our infantry from being surrounded and cap- 
tured. Nothing of this either is mentioned in the 
newspapers or dispatches, yet these facts oc- 
curred, with the loss of some of our best officers 
and men. 



Whittier ani> the Alabama Planter. — 
He met with an Alabama planter in Boston, who 
expressed a desire to converse with him, and an 
interview took place, during which there was a 
free interchange of views. The planter frankly 
acknowledged that there was in the South a 
strong feeling of hate toward the North and 
Northern men, and they were determined to 
fight. He explained how this feeling was fostered 
by the politicians of the South, and how the 
feelings of the North were represented there, and 
stated that almost his sole object in coming to 
Boston was to ascertain for himself whether the 
facts were as they had been represented. He 
was evidently surprised to find the anti-slavery 
poet " so mild mannered a man," and confessed 
that, generally, he did not perceive that the feel- 
ing of the North toward the South was so bitter 
and unfriendly as he had been led to expect. 
He had experienced nothing but civility and 
courtesy, and admitted that Southerners gener- 
ally received the same treatment. 

Finally, Whittier, after attending him to some 
of the desirable places of resort, told him that, as 
he was now here, he might as Avell see the worst 
of the anti-slavery phase of Northern fanaticism, 
as the fashionable phrase is, and j^roposed to visit 
Garrison. The planter consented, and so they 
turned their steps to the Libcralor office, where 
they found Garrison, Wendell Phillips, and Fred. 
Douglass, and there they enjoyed a " precious 
season of conversation." Would it not have been 
a sight worth seeing — that conclave in the Lib- 
erator office, with Garrison, Whittier, Phillips, 
Douglass, and the Alabama planter in the fore- 
ground V The planter went to his home a wiser, 
and perhaps a sadder man, than he came, and 
protested that all he could do, Avhile mourning 
for the condition of the country, was to pray over 
it. Would that more of the Southern peopie 
might come and see for themselves how basely 
the North had been belied ! 



The Union JNIen of Alakama.- — The fol- 
lowing account of the condition and persecutions 
of the Union men of North Alabama, and of the 
efforts of our troops, particularly the Fifty-first 
Indiana regiment, commanded by Col. A. D. 
Streight, to relieve them, is from the pen of the 
chaplain of that regiment. 

— CiMP, NEAR. Dl-XAIUR^Jjlly. 16* 

The subject on which I wish to write, is the con- 
dition and suffering of the mountaineers in North- 
ern and Central Alabama. There is a vast val- 
ley of rich soil extending from beyond Tuscum- 
bia west to Huntsville in the east. In this valley 
the great planters live. Here is their great cot- 
ton-growing region and the wealth of the state. 

These mountains are peopled with quite anoth- 
er class of inhabitants, shorn of highfalutin aris- 
tocracy — a plain, candid, industrious people. 
Now these ^loor classes, deprived of culture, as 
they climb the mountains, pass through the gor- 
ges, and roam over the plains, think for them- 
selves. 



216 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



It came to pass in the course of human events, 
when Jeff Davis wished these honest-hearted men 
to assist him in carrying ont his great, grand, and 
overwhehning scheme of unnatural rebeUion 
against the government they cherished, they said 
no. Things Avent on without opposition only as 
they opposed its course to destruction at the bal- 
lot-box. Here they met the enemies of their 
country every time, and almost with a unanimous 
voice did they declare against secession in every 
form. When the affairs of the state had assumed 
a malignant form, and were far on the road to 
ruin and wild desperation, they only expostu- 
lated ; but when the abominable, uncivil, anti- 
republican conscript act passed, and was being 
enforced by an unfeeling, heartless band of ruf- 
fians; when confusion, dire confusion, had come 
upon them, turning brother against brother, and 
father against son ; when squalid poverty stared 
them in'the face and desperation was ensuing, 
caused by their being driven from home to seek a 
place of safety in the mountains, in caverns, in 
dens, — they opened their eyes to gaze upon the 
painful sight of liberty gone, constitution pros- 
trated, home gone, and with it quietude and hon- 
or. To escape despotism and these heartless ruf- 
fians, men left their homes and lied to the moun- 
tains. Some made for the Union army, coming 
through the mountain pathways for twenty, for- 
ty, sixty, and some even ninety miles, having a 
complete line of friends to help them extending 
from Decatur to near Montgomery — the best 
underground railroad ever heard of or ever es- 
tablished. 

Old men and young men came asking and 
praying the army to assist them, demanding pro- 
tection from the old flag, and asking to live and 
to fight under the old Constitution, declaring they 
only owed allegiance to the old government, and 
it was the only one they would fight for. 

Their piteous cries moved our colonel, A. D. 
Streight, who asked for a leave of absence for 
four days, that his regiment might visit the moun- 
tains, pry into the caverns, and ascertain more 
positively the true condition of those loyal perse- 
cuted men. Accordingly, early Saturday morn- 
ing, July 12th, with the Fourteenth Cavalry, and 
a sufficient number of our Alabamians for pilots, 
the Fifty-first crossed the river, and set out for 
the mountain regions. On we moved across the 
valley, while the sun poured his rays upon us — 
not an Indiana sun, but the sun away down in 
Alabama. Now this sun was shining much hot- 
ter than the sun shines any day in Indiana. Col. 
Streight steered us for Col. Davis's, who lived 
twenty-five miles out from Decatur, at a pass in 
the mountains called Davis's Gap. 

We arrived at Col. Davis's at dark, and merci- 
ful heavens, what did we there behold ! An 
elderly lady came to the door, who was between 
sixty and seventy years old. She was asked 
does Col. Davis five here? She answered he 
did. Is he at home ? She answered he is not. 

Said Col. Streight, " we are Union troojw ; 
have heard of your suffering, and have come to 
relieve you." She still hesitated. " Do you be- 



lieve me ? " She said she would dislike to dis- 
pute his word, but a young lady came to the door 
and asked, " have you any of the Alabama boys 
with you ? " They were called up from the rear. 
While coming, the young lady remarked, " We 
have been so often deceived by guerillas, that 
we " — The boys came. " Is that you, John ? " 
Instantly she sprang into his arras, threw her 
arms around him, while she exclaimed : " Thank 
God, we are safe." " Now," answered the elder- 
ly lady, " I can have the old man here in a few 
minutes." "Where is he?" " Just back in the 
mountains." W^hat ! an old man of seventy- 
three years, resident of the same farm for more 
than forty-four years, known by all men as a 
quiet peaceable, and pious man — to be driven 
from his home, to have to seek refuge in the 
mountains, iu the caverns, and dismal, secluded 
retreats, where the eyes of only the wild beasts 
had gazed ! Yes, it is this old gentleman who 
had been driven from home, simply because he 
loved his country. 

The night passed away without any strange 
occurrences and morning came on. We started 
out, three companies strong, to scour the country 
round, to, if possible, find the wounded man, but 
after searching, inquiring after, and tracing him 
till he abandoned his horse, we came to the con- 
clusion that further search would be fruitless, 
fearing the rascals had pursued and murdered 
him. He may, there is a slight probability he 
will, come up yet. They stole his horse and ac- 
coutrements. While this search was going on, 
companies were sent out in almost every direc- 
tion to scour the surrounding country. AVhen 
we all meet, in the evening, some have arrested 
prominent secessionists, who have saddles, some 
have pantaloons taken from artillerymen they had 
previously murdered several miles away, and 
others horses. Sunday evening found us with 
over fifty recruits. They came to us all day 
Monday like doves to the windows. Monday even- 
ing we had speaking exercises, in which Col. 
Streight, Adjutant Ramsay, and Chris. Sheets 
took part. The speeches of the colonel and ad- 
jutant were such as they should have delivercil, 
but that of Sheets was a strange tune coming 
from an Alabamian. Sheets represented Winson 
county in the Convention when Alabama is said 
to have seceded. He was prominent among the 
very few in that Convention wlio would not 
and did not sign the ordinance of secession. 

Sheets is a young man of fine promise and 
makes a splendid speech. He declared to his 
downtrodden countrymen that the time had come 
for them to act, and act they must, either in an 
army they had no sympathy with, and in a cause 
for which they could have no reasonable hope of 
success — must thus fight an enemy they loved 
and for a cause they hated ; or, on the other 
hand, join the army of the United States, fight 
in a cause they loved, among their friends, con- 
tend against a foe to God and man, one they hat- 
ed, and one that must be put down before peace, 
quietude and pi-osperity could again prevail. 
He advised them to join that army and be men, 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



217 



and fight the Southern Confederacy to hell and 
back again. Said he, " To-morrow morning I am 
going to the Union army. I am going to exjjose 
this fiendish villany before the world. They shall 
hear from me. I have slept in the mountains, 
in caves and caverns, till I am become musty ; 
my health and manhood are failing me. I will 
stay here no longer till I am enabled to dwell in 
quiet at home." 

Tuesday morning came — the morning we had 
set, and were compelled by our time being out 
to return to camp, thirty-one or thirty-two miles 
away. At about seven o'clock a company of about 
twenty men were seen approaching our lines, be- 
ing led by a woman. They entered amid great 
applause. She told her story in her peculiar 
way, with her own peculiar gestures, the tears 
streaming from her eyes. Said she, " I knew I 
could pass those guerrillas, and find my husl)and 
and son," vvho had fled for their lives some thirty- 
four miles back in the mountains. The lady, not 
in good health, and fifty-five years old, had rid- 
den a poor old horse over the mountains, tracing 
the mountain pathways through the gorges and 
around the precipices, sixty-four miles, counting 
the distance to and from her friends, and had 
made the trip in thirty hours, hunting her friends 
and cooking their breakfast in the time. These 
acts (for there are many such) should be known. 
Such heroines from the mountains have mani- 
fested more devotion for their country and friends 
than any of our Revolutionary mothers, whose 
acts of patriotism are held in everlasting remem- 
brance. When the historian tells of noble deeds 
of daring and devotion to country, Anna Camp- 
bell, of Morgan County, Alabama, should stand 
first on the scroll of fame. It is no use to talk 
— when this old lady related her simple tale, 
there were but few who were not afiected. Ad- 
jutant Ramsay wept, and it is said that even Colo- 
nel Streight shed tears. I know I did. I felt 
it was noble to weep on such occasions. 

I visited an old patriot of eighty-four years. 
He was blind, so that he had not left his home in 
seven years — a peaceful, quiet old man, ripen- 
ing for a better land, for he was devotedly pious. 
Now, simply because this old gentleman had 
raised his family well, so that they were all for the 
Union, and none of them in the Southern army, 
these fiends incarnate were thii-sting for his blood, 
and had threatened him with hanging ; for they 
had taken one of his neighbors not less virtuous, 
and only ten years younger. 

Time come for us to leave, and our boys, hav- 
ing divided their rations with the Alabama re- 
cruits, were on less than half rations. This was 
the hottest day of the season,, and there were no 
ambulances in which to carry the weak. But 
there could be no falling out, for we must pass 
through a hostile country. The men were formed 
into a long line, for we had about one hundred 
and fifty recruits from the mountains. And now 
comes the most touching scene of the expedition. 
We had left our families when it was heart-rend- 
ing to part with the loved ones ; but what was 
that to the parting here ? We left our wives in 



the bosom of a sympathizing community ; but 
these poor men must now leave their families in 
the midst of an unfeeling, heartless set — a com- 
munity who would turn their wives out, or burn 
their houses over their heads, or destroy their 
scanty means of subsistence, and, may be, as 
they have done several times before, outrage 
their persons. The wives bade their husbands 
farewell, bidding them go, and they would take 
care of themselves as best they could. Mothers 
wept when they bade their sons good by, with 
their blessings on them. Forward ! was the 
command — a wild shriek — and we move from 
scenes of suffei'ings such as we have never be- 
fore seen. 

Mr. Lincoln " Good on the Ciior." — Dur- 
ing one of the last* visits that the martyred Pres- 
ident made to James River, a short time before 
the capture of Richmond, he spent some time in 
Avalking around among the hospitals, and in visit- 
ing various fatigue parties at work in putting up 
cabins and other buildings. 

He came upon one squad who were cutting logs 
for a house ; and, chatting a moment with the 
hardy woodsmen, asked one of them to let him 
see his axe. Mr. Lincoln grasped the helve with 
the easy air of one perfectly familiar with the 
tool, and remarked that he " used to be good on 
the chop." 

The President then let in on a big log, making 
the chips fly, and making as smooth a cut as the 
best lumberman in Maine could do. 

Meantime the men crowded around to see the 
work ; and, as he handed back the axe, and 
walked away with a pleasant joke, the choppers 
gave him three as hearty cheers as he ever heard 
in the whole of his political career. 



Baptism of the Big Gun. — Father Mooney, 
on the occasion of the baptizing of one of the 
big guns mounted at Fort Corcoran in June, 1861, 
made the following remarks : 

" Gentlemen : It is with more than ordinary 
pleasure I come forward to perform a ceremony 
which is not only pleasing to us all, but highly 
honorable — I may say, a welcome prerogative to 
me on this auspicious occasion — and that is, the 
christening of the noble gun on Fort Corcoran. 
In the kind providence of God, it has been for me, 
as a priest, during the last nine years, to baptize 
many a fine blue-eyed babe; but never had I 
brought before me such a large, quiet, healthy, 
and promising fellow as the one now before me. 
Indeed, I may remark, it has often occurred, when 
pouring the baptismal water on the child's head, 
he opened his Httle eyes, and got a little more of 
the baptismal water than he wished ; but, on this 
occasion, this noble son of a great father has his 
mouth open, evidently indicating that he is anx- 
ious to speak, which I have no doubt he soon 
will, in a thundering voice, to the joy of his 
friends and terror of his enemies. I need not 
tell you that a most appropriate name has been 
selected by our esteemed Colonel, and one that will 



218 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



be welcomed by you all ; and that is the honorable 
name of the gallant commander of our brigade, 
Colonel Hunter. Therefore, the great gun shdll 
hereafter answer to its name — the Hunter Gun. 
Now, parents anxiously listen to the first lispings 
of the infant's lips, and the mother's heart swells 
with joy when she catches the first utterance of 
her cherished bal^c, in the words, ' mamma, mam- 
ma ! ' but here I shall guarantee to you that this 
promising boy will speak for the first time, in 
loud, clear accents, those endearing words, ' papa, 
papa, papa! — pairla mia, 2)(itria 7nia!' and, in 
name as in off'ect, he will hunt traitors from this 
fort, while the echo of his voice will be as sweet 
music, inviting the children of Columbia to share 
the comforts of his father's home ; and thus may 
he soon speak, to the glory of the Stars and 
Stripes, honor to the name thai he bears, and last- 
ing credit to the Sixty-ninth New York," 



Scenes at Vicksbukg. — " As I was riding by 
a small, religious-looking church, cruciforni in 
shape — all churches do not look sacred — but 
this, in a grove of magnolia trees, with a small 
spire surmounted Vt'ith the emblem of faith, gothic 
windows, and everything that tends to make it a 
place of worship, and inspire one with love for 
Him who holds the wind in the palm of His hand, 
who careth for the bird and feedeth the young 
lamlis upon the hills, — 

'' I halted at the gateway, and noticed that the 
doors were open. After dismounting and climb- 
ing a hill, I stood upon a level with the church. 
Could it be ? I could not realize until I walked to 
the door and looked in. Not a vestige of floor, not 
a remnant of a pew — altar gone. Even the string- 
pieces that supported the floor were gone. A few 
negroes sat in the corners cooking meat, Avhile 
the smoke arose in reluctant wreaths, as though 
hesitating at the desecration. A beautiful marble 
font lay broken upon the ground, while the bowl 
was used for ordinary ablutions and the washing 
of dishes. 

" I asked Jiow this had been done. ' Why,' said 
they, ' rebel cavalry used to camp in it, and they 
buriied all the seats and the pulpit ; we only 
burned the floor.' 

" I had a superstitious fear about entering it to 
look in the small side rooms, one of which had 
given forth sounds of praise, and in the other the 
sacred vestments of the priest were kept. The 
organ had long since vanished ; the vestments 
were gone. Desecration and desolation sat here 
in silence — mournful reminder of a curse too 
deep for words, that Fate had uttered against the 
people Avho conceived this thing. What a fit com- 
ment on the rebellion ! Churches desecrated, and 
graveyards defiled. 

" In a cemetery there are graves opened by cu- 
rious, impious hands. One grave has the body 
of a celebrated duellist who was killed in Ar- 
kansas, opposite INIemphis, embalmed. He looks 
like one sleeping. There are skulls that seem 
to laugh at the chaos which perplexes us, and 



fresh faces sleeping under glass that look as 
though they were in eternal sleep. 

" Infants, with their white caps, looking like 
cherubs asleep, through the glass of metallic 
cases, awake not nor arise at the tread of the 
stranger. 

*' The fences were burned by the rebels, and the 
passing of hurrying feet and the tread of animals 
have worn ofi' many of the graves until the occii- 
pants are exposed." — Letter of Sept. 1863. 



A Battle within a Battle. — An officer 
of the Second Connecticut regiment, in a letter 
to his family, says : " The coolest thing I ever 
heard of happened at the battle of Fair Oaks. 
Ptight in the hottest of the battle, two of the Sec- 
ond's boys got at loggerheads with each other, 
threw down their muskets, and fell to at fisticuff's 
— had it out, picked up their arms, and pitched 
into the rebels again. I have heard of a wheel 
within a wheel ; but a battle within a battle is 
certainly something new." 



A Young Hero. — A correspondent at Cin- 
cinnati gives the following touching incident of 
the hospital : " The eyes of a youth but twenty-one 
years of age, byname W. N. BuUard, of company 
A, Eighth Illinois regiment, were closed in death 

yesterday morning, at the Marine Hospital in 

this city, by the tender hands of that noble- 
hearted and faithful woman, Mrs. Caldwell, who 
has been unwearied in her personal attention to 
the sick and wounded since the establishment of 
the Mai'ine as a military hospital for its present 
purpose. Young BuUard was shot in the breast 
at Fort Donelson. The ball, a minie, tore his 
breast open, and lacerated an artery. He bled 
internally as well as externally. At every gasp, 
as his end drew near, the blood spirted from his 
breast. He expired at nine o'clock. Early in 
the day, when he became fully aware that he 
could not live long, he showed that he clung to 
life, and was loath to leave it ; but he cried : ' If 
I could only see my mother — if I could only see 
my mother before I die, I should be better satis- 
fied.' He was conscious to the last moment, al- 
most, and after reminding Mrs. Caldwell that 
there were several letters for his mother in his 
portfolio, she breathed words of consolation to 
him : ' You die in a glorious cause — you die for 
your country.' ' Yes,' replied he, ' I am proud 
to die for my country.' " 



An Old Woman's Welcome to the Flag. — 
A correspondent at Monticello, Kentucky, speak- 
ing of the manner in which the people received 
the national troops in the advance on that place, 
says, " One old lady, a mile beyond this place, 
said, as she saw the columns rushing on after 
the rebels, 'When I seed that old flag comin', 
I jist throwed my old bonnet on the ground 
and stomped it.' " 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



219 



"RICHMUN ON THE JEEMS." 

A SOLDIER, filled with Bourbon, lay puling in the 

street, 
From battle-field es-ca-ped, with swiftly running 

feet ; 
He'd fallen from too much " strychnine," and 

drowned all gallant schemes, 
And got as far as possible from Riehraun on the 

Jeems ! 

And one there lay beside him — his comrade in the 

flight ; 
They had been boon companions, and frequently 

got tight ; 
And side by side they lay there, indulging maudlin 

dreams. 
Far from the Libby Prison and Richmun on the 

Jeems ! 

One said: " Old feller, tell me, what think you of 

this war. 
Made by the boastin' rebels, our prosperous peace 

to mar ? 
Are Lee and Stonewall Jackson such thunderation 

teams. 
As to keep us out of Richmun, ole Richmun on the 

Jeems ? 

"Say, do you think that Hooker — they call him 

' Fightin' Joe ' — 
Who 'for the war committee run down McClellan 

so, — 
Will he cross the Rappyhannick, and carry out his 

schemes, 
And take us down to Richmun, ui^on the River 

Jeems ? 

" Why, when I left old Kaintuck, just eighteen 

months ago, 
My mam and sister Ruby both said I shouldn't go ; 
But I ax'd 'cm both, and Susan, to think of me in 

dreams, — 
For I'se bound to go to Richmun, old Richmun on 

the Jeems ! 

" You know, through tribulation, we marched on, 
night and day. 

Through woods, and mud, and dusty roads, and 
•■ fightin' in the fray ; 

By smoke-houses and chicken-coops, and where the 
b'iler steems, 

Which coolced our hard-earned rations tow'rd Rich- 
mun on the Jeems. 

" And now we're going homeward — me and the 
other scamp — 

Yet far from old Kentucky we are obleeged to 
tramp ; 

And him who's out of postage stamps, there's no- 
body esteems. 

E'en though he's been in Richmun, and seed the 
River Jeems ! 

" To hell with old Phiginny, and all her sacred sile ! 
She's made a heap of trouble, and kept it up awhile ; 
And if she's helped herself right much, 'tis like to 

them sunbeams 
The niggers squeeze from cucumbers, in Richmun 

on the Jeems ! " 



And then his boon companion convulsively turned 

o'er. 
And, grunting an affirmative, straightway began to 

snore, 
Oblivious to war's alarms or love's delightful 

themes, 
Or to the fact that Richmun still stands upon the 

Jeems ! 

Grow on, thou " sour apple-trcc," Avhere JefTy is to 

hang! 
Rejoice, ye running contrabands, for this is your 

chebang ! 
No more you'll stem tobacco, thresh wheat, or drive 

the teams 
Of rebels round the city — old Richmun on the, 

Jeems ! 



Incident of West Point. — James E. Mont- 
gomery gives the following narrative of his ex- 
perience at the battle of West Point, Virginia, 
which was fought in May, 1862 : " My own escape 
is wonderful, and, indeed, almost miraculous, and 
I forgot not to thank God for his watchfulness 
over me. It was about one o'clock P. M. when 
I received an order from General Newton to go 
forward into the woods to ascertain Vthether the 
rebels were falling back, and whether a certain 
regiment of ours held its position there. I went 
forward at once, as fast as my well-tried horse 
could carry me, and upon entering the woods 
moved cautiously until I reached a barricade, 
when, hearing voices beside me, I plunged into the 
woods, thinking, of course, it was one of our regi- 
ments. Thirty-first New York, and Avas surprised 
to find that I had gone right into a perfect nest 
of the Hampton Legion, from South Carolina, 
who were lying behind trees, standing behind 
bushes, and kneeling behind stumps, like bees. I 
at once perceived my mistake, and knew that 
nothing but the most consummate coolness would 
save me. I therefore saluted them, and they, 
taking me for a rebel ofiicer, asked me how far 
General Hampton was then. I answered with- 
out hesitation, and with rather more assurance 
than I thought I possessed, ' I left him about ten 
rods below here ; ' and added, * Now, boys, the 
General expects you to do your duty to-day.' I 
then turned my horse slowly to lull suspicion, and 
was congratulating myself on the probable success 
of my ruse, when, seeing the U. S. on my cap, 
they yelled out, ' That's a d — d Yankee son of a 
b — ! Give him h — ! ' On hearing tliis, I dashed 
the spurs into my horse, threw my head over his 
neck, and made for the road. A perfect volley of 
minie balls passed over and ai'ound me — killed 
my horse, who rolled over, carrying me with him, 
and left me down. Knowing that apparently 
nothing but time would save me, I lay with my 
head back in a ditch as I fell, and appeared dead 
for some ten minutes. I did not move a muscle 
or a feature, although the scoundrels »erc- swarm- 
ing around me, and threatening to ' end me.' I 
remained in this way until they came up to me, 
took away my pistol, and commenced ger;erai 
plundering ; and as they fingered away, I could 



220 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



not suppress a smile ; and then rising, I said, 
'•Well, men, I yield as a prisoner of war.' They 
said, ' You have been shamming, you d — d Yan- 
kee scoundrel, have you ? ' ' Certainly,' said I ; 
' everything is fair in war.' They then commenced 
to abuse me, as a d — d Y'ankee this, and a d — d 
Yankee that ; when I turned upon them, and said, 
' I have yielded as a prisoner of war ; I demand 
to be used as such. We in the North know how 
to treat dogs better than you do men ; now lead 
me to your commanding officer.' They gave me 
another volley of abuse, at which I merely smiled, 
and then a shell, fired by our artillei-y to the place 
where I was seen to enter, burst like the wind 
amongst us — skinning my nose, and scattering 
the rebel rascals like chaff". They seized their 
muskets, pointed two of them at me, and told me 
to * come along, you d — d Yankee ! ' I still talked 
with them to gain time, when another shell burst- 
ing amongst us, they moved on farther, calling 
to me to ' come on,' while I said, ' Go ahead, lead 
the way, quick.' I then saw a favorable moment, 
and preferring freedom to a Southern prison, I 
made one bound into the woods, and went back 
as fast as one leg would carry me. I felt very 
much exhausted, and was carried to the rear by 
some men and placed under a tree, Avhen, with 
whiskey and care, I soon felt stronger, although 
my leg was stiff'. They wished me to go in an 
ambulance to hospital, but I politely declined ; 
and calling for an extra horse, I was lifted on his 
back, and returned to the field, and reported to 
General Newton for duty. He kindly told me 
that I had distinguished myself enough this day, 
and requested me to keep quiet." 



The Fourteenth Tennessee. — This regi- 
ment, when the prospects of the Confederacy 
opened so brilliant in 1861, left Clarksville, Tenn., 
with nine hundred and sixty men. They were of 
the best families, and the pride of Montgomery 
County. Young men, of fine education, sur- 
rounded witli superior comforts, and who were 
marked for high positions in civil community, left 
their homes, pleasant associations, and all the en- 
dearments of the fireside — left the legal bar, the 
counting-room, and the hall of princely home on 
the plantation, to go into the Confederate ranks, 
and exterminate the cowardly legions of a t3'ran- 
nical North. Wily statesmen appealed to the 
chivalry of Southern hearts to break the bonds 
of Union, throw off" a despotism, and strike for 
liberty, independence, and the firesides of home. 
Ambitious fathers pointed to future glories of a 
Confederacy, and by acts, if not words, urged 
the son to go in defence of the Southern cause. 
Mothers kissed the parting boy oft without a 
tear, and with a burning appeal to die nobly on 
the battle-field, saw him depart from the child- 
hood home. x'X.nd girls, just budding into woman- 
hood, the fairy schoolmates and early friends of 
the young men, cheered them on to deeds of 
valor and glory. All was wild enthusiasm. Pop- 
ular frenzy ruled the hour, and he who refused to 
volunteer was coldly sneered at, and turned from 



as a coward, and unworthy the name of South- 
ron. Every household that boasted a son was 
robbed of its idol. The ranks swelled rap- 
idly, faces were missed from every corner, and 
from every home. And as the hurricane sweeps 
the stately foi*est before it, leaving sad destruc- 
tion in its track, so were the youth swept from 
their homes, and wildly cheered on to the bat- 
tle-fields, a sacrifice to the shrine of Ambition. 

Wildly, enthusiastically, they left their homes 
without one solid thought as to the true respon- 
sibilities of the undertaking. Their march to 
camp was more like going to the transient joys 
of a ball-room or festival, than to the cold reali- 
ties of the battle-field. They then thought the 
war would be of short duration — that the North- 
ern States would quail before the imposing array 
of the military and warlike South. They calcu- 
lated without the cost. They dreamed not that 
they would be sent from the States to protect the 
capital of the Confederacy, and participate in the 
sanguinary battles on the bloody fields of Virginia, 
while the homes they volunteered to defend, were 
left unprotected, and occupied by Federal troops. 

Two years and a half have flov.-n. A sad 
change has come over the prospect of the Con- 
federacy. The Fourteenth Tennessee has met a 
terrible fate. Ever thrown into the front, it has 
fought in all the bloody contests of Yu-ginia. 
The fickle Goddess of Fortune failed to smile 
upon the regiment. Each battle thinned their 
ranks ; and when night closed over each day's 
fearful fight they counted their numbers, and 
knew that carnage had reigned with an unsparing 
hand. Steadily they have met the shock of bat- 
tle, and O, how many hearts at home have been 
saddened by the results ! The bright stai; of 
their destiny has gradually faded ; and at the 
late fierce battle of Gettysburg, the orb, dimmed 
in lustre, sank behind the red storm-cloud of 
battle, on the field of disaster and blood. The 
regiment went into the fight with sixty men, all 
told, and in a desperate charge, where Federal 
cannon and volleys of musketry swept the rug- 
ged plain, the remaining sixty men of the once 
nine hundred and sixty were felled to the ground, 
dead, dying, wounded, and left in the hands of 
the enemy. We are told that in this charge only 
three men out of the sixty escaped ; all the rest 
were killed or wounded. 

Thus the band that once was the pride of the 
city of Clarksville has fallen. The rugged plains 
of Virginia are stained with their blood, and 
every battle-field furnishes a grave for some of 
the fallen. A gloom rests over the city; the 
hopes and aff'ections of the peojile were wrapped 
in the regiment. The idols have fallen, and a 
void is left within their hearts. Their forms 
sleep in a common grave, far from the scenes of 
home. Fathers, mothers, brothers and sisters 
now realize the terrible sacrifice that has been 
made ; and to know the victims were cheered on 
to the destiny, is a fact no less grievous than 
true. Their pulses are now numbered with sor- 
row ; and turning to the past, a vivid picture is 
drawn — a noble boy passing from the threshold 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



221 



)f his home, going to the field of battle with 
ilmost a smile on his face, passing out into night 
ind darkness forever ! 

The eai'Iy scenes of childhood and manhood 
ire treasured, and form a bright past to the pic- 
:ure ; but eternal night obscures the future. The 
oride of the household is fallen — fallen in a 
itrange land, on a field Avhere carnage held high 
revel. They only know that he is dead — mortal 
inows not where the form sleeps — the soldier's 
' sleep that knows no waking." Strange hands 
lave gathered the dead, and heaped the bodies 
together in one rude and common burial. Friends 
[nay visit the battle-ground in search of the lost 
loved, but return bewildered with the sickening 
icene, where a wilderness of trenches form a 
:;ommon grave for thousands of friend and foe. 

Yes, the sacrifice has been made; the heart 
is robbed of its idol ; death has claimed the vic- 
tim, and we know not where the loved one sleeps. 
He died with a ghastly wound, writhed in pain ; 
no mother soothed his brow ; no sister held the 
refreshing draught to his lips — rolled his glassy 
eyes heavenward ; no father knelt in prayer ; but 
alone — his ears filled with the roar of cannon, 
the rattle of musketry and the groans of fellow- 
wounded — his li])s parted, and parched in death 
agony ; and death and blood everywhere meet- 
ing the cold stare of his fading eyesight, the icy 
cliill steals over his body — one struggle — one 
^asp, and the soul is freed from the " prison- 
house of pain " ! The sacrifice is complete : am- 
bition is satisfied, and turns to gloat with fiendish 
delight over new victims. 

Ah ! what a terrible responsibility rests upon 
those that inaugurated this unholy war, and who 
have sacrificed so many lives for the accomplish- 
ment of their desires. May the pale shadows of 
their victims haunt their day dreams, and appear 
in ghostly form in all their night visions. May 
the cold stare of their accusing eyes haunt them 
continually, stagger their brain with wild fancies, 
and demons ever howl their guilt in their ears. 



forty of the detachment, being all that were will- 
ing to go. Arriving on the southern side, they 
surprised the rebel camp, fired a volley into the 
sleeping rebels, and created an utter stampede. 
They captured about twenty rebels, including one 
ofiicer. Then, destroying the camp, some stores, 
and four wagons of ammunition, they took all 
the pontoons over the river, and either burned 
or cut them to pieces. The balance of the bridge 
was destroyed, and the party came off M'ithout the 
loss of a man. Grenewald desired to perform 
the same tiling at Williamsport, but his party de- 
clined to back him up. He was one of the most 
daring and reliable of scouts, and performed 
great service. 

Sherman's Flank Movements. — General 
Sherman's strategy in flanking the rebels out of 
their strong positions puzzled the natives a good 
deal. A young woman said it was not fair to 
fight the Southern soldiers " on end." She then 
went on to say, that the day before General 
Bragg had formed " hvo streaks of fight " in 
their door-yard with " ivalking soldiers," and 
General Wheeler formed " one streak of fight 
with critter soldiers " — meaning cavalry — be- 
hind the house, but that Joe Hooker had come 
up and Jlankcd Bragg, and made him fall back, 
which he did in such a hurry, that he " upset 
dad's ash-hopper plant," M'hich cost two dollars 
and fifty cents in Atlanta ; and " dad was a-goin' 
to sue Bragg for waste." 



Leonard Grenewald. — The destruction of 
the pontoon bridge and train at Falling Waters, 
in July, 1863, was one of the most daring ex- 
ploits of the war, and the credit of it belongs main- 
ly to Leonard Grenewald, chief of the Gray Eagle 
Scouts, and formerly of the Jessie Scouts. Dur- 
ing previous trips, he had ascertained the strength 
of the ground and location of the bridge, and 
finally obtained from General French a detail of 
two hundred men from the First Vii-ginia and 
Thirteenth and Fourteenth New York cavalry, 
under Major Foley and Lieutenant Dawson, to 
undertake its destruction. They arrived at the 
Potomac in the morning, just at daylight, and 
found the character of the bridge to be part tres- 
tle work, with pontoons in the centre, Avhich were 
carefully floated out every evening, and taken to 
the Vu'ginia shore, rendering the bridge useless 
for the night. Lieutenant Dawson and Grene- 
wald then swam the river, and brought back sev- 
eral pontoons, with which they ferried over some 



The Death of General Lytle. — A sol- 
dier of Chickamauga relates the following : " The 
noble General died as a soldier loves to die, with 
his brave men around him, steadily fighting vastly 
superior numbers. A moment before he received 
the fatal wound, he said : ' Brave Wisconsin 
boys, I am proud of you ! ' and with renewed 
vigor they poured in their fire, though their num- 
bers were rapidly decreasing. And he was justly 
proud of them, for I never saw men stand up to 
their work so steadily and coolly, and I am glad 
to have the privilege of saying it to you, their 
old commander. How your heart would have 
swelled, and your eyes kindled, if you had seen 
them go in and stay, until unsupported on both 
flanks they were compelled to fall back, and not 
I then until poor Lytle had been carried away from 
i their immediate vicinity, where he had been sit- 
j ting on his horse, encouraging them by his cheer- 
1 ing words." 

The Spirit of Kentucky. — The Cleveland 
Plaindeal errehted the following incident, which 
transpired in the Kentucky Legislature _: 

" A venerable farmer, from a neighboring coun- 
ty, one of that kind for whom Kentucky has an 
instinctive veneration, appeared in the Legisla- 
tive Hall, uncovered his snowy locks, and sat 
down. At the first lull in the debate, he rose 
slowly, and said he had a word to say, but was 
aware it was out of order for him to speak before 
the Legislature while in session. His dignified 



222 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



and venerable appearance arrested attention, and 
* Go on,' ' Go on,' from several voices, seemed to 
keep him on his feet. Again expressing his diffi- 
dence at speaking, out of , propriety — ' Hear ! 
hear ! ' resomided generally over the room. The 
members' curiosity, as well as respect, for the ap- 
pearance and manner of the man was up, and si- 
lence followed the ' Hear ! hear ! ' when the old 
hero delivered the following eloquent, but laconic 
speech : 

" ' Gentlemen : I am delegated by my county 
to inform you, that if you hold a secret session 
here, as you threaten to do, not one stone of this 
Capitol will rest upon another twenty-four hours 
after. Good day ! ' and he left." 



Story of a North Carolina Negro. — A 
slave related this story to a member of the Twen- 
ty-seventh Massachusetts regiment, while at New- 
bern : 

"I was owned up the country [the western 
part of the State] by a man who had a large 
plantation, and four or five hundred slaves. I 
was well used, every way, by him, and one day 
he told me to carry a letter to a man in lialeigh. 
I knew this man was a speculator in slaves, and I 
was suspicious that all was not right ; but I could 
not believe my master would deceive me ; so I 
started. On my way, I met a free colored man 
that I was acquainted with, and he could read. I 
told him where I was going, and fur what. He 
asked to see the letter. It was not sealed, and 
he took it out and read it to me. It was a bill of 
sale, and I was one of the lot ; and we were sold 
to go to Alabama. My master had taken this 
way to deliver me, rather than have a ' scene,' as 
it is termed ; and this speculator Avas to seize me 
upon my appearance, and send me South. I had 
rather have died than gone ; so, after thinking it 
over, and consulting my colored friend, I, with his 
help, got a couple of knives and a good rifle, a 
few clothes and some provisions, and took to the 
bush [woods and swamps], where I could defy 
pursuit. There I lived and suffered seven years, 
relying upon my trusty rifle for food, and got so 
expert that I could kill a coon or bear*at forty 
rods every time. [Bears are, and were, some'-" 
what numerous here in the swamp.] 

"I heard when the war broke out, and heard 
when Burnside took Newbern ; so I made tracks 
for the Union people, and when I came in here, I 
went straight to Burnside's headquarters, and 
told him my story. He told me to take off my 
coat, which was nothing but rags, and he gave 
me one of his own coats, and called me a brave 
fellow." 

Morgan's Escape. — The following incident is 
connected with the remarkable escape of Morgan 
from his Northern imprisonment : 

Having made application to two respectable 
citizens of Clayton, Rabun County, Georgia, Tor 
a night's lodgings, and been refused because they 
thought he was an impostor, and recognized him, 
Mr. N invited him to lus house, where he 



spent the night. Meantime, it had been currently 
reported in the village and vicinity, that an im- 
postor, pretending to be John Morgan, was at 

the house of Mr. N . Next morning about 

twenty of the " Home Guards " assembled, and, 
under the direction of their efficient Captain, 
arrested him. He quietly submitted, and assured 
them that, if he failed to prove his identity, he 
would accompany them to Atlanta. About this 
time, one or two gentlemen, who had seen him, 
recognized him, and some facts were developed 
which satisfied the Home Guards that they had 
captured the veritable John H. Morgan ! Of 
course, he was at once released. Before leaving, 
he addressed the croAvd briefly, commending, in 
the highest terms, the vigilance they displayed ; 
advised them to arrest all persons who could not 
give a satisfactory account of themselves ; and 
closed with the playful remark that twenty men 
had accomplislied, in Rabun, what it required forty 
thousand in Ohio to do ! 

The crowd gave nine cheers for Morgan, and 
he proceeded on his way to Walhalla. 



Death of a Berdan Sharpshooter. — A cor- 
respondent of a Southern paper says : 

" A gentleman informs us of the death of one 
of McClellan's sharpshootei's, on the Peninsula, 
under circumstances which possess interest suf- 
ficient to give them to the public. Several of our 
men, it seems, were killed while going to a spring 
near by, but by whom no one could imagine. It 
was at last determined to stop this inhuman game, 
if possible, even at the cost of killing the hireling 
himself, who was thus in cold blood butchering 
our men. So a sharp lookout was kept for this 
sharpshooter, and the next time he fired the smoke 
of his rifle revealed the locality of his pit. 

" That night a pit was dug by the Confederate 
soldiers, commanding the position of the Yankee 
sharpshooter, and arrangements made to get rid 
of the annoying creature. For this purpose a 
young Kentuckian was placed in our pit, with a 
trusty rifle, and provisions enough to last him 
until the next night. Next morning early a man 
was despatched, as usual, Avith two buckets to go 
to the spring. He had proceeded about two hun- 
dred yards, when the Yankee marksman elevated 
himself, and placing his rifle to his shoulder, was 
about to pull trigger ; but the Kentuckian was too 
quick for him, for he pulled his trigger first, and 
simultaneously therewith the Yankee fell. 

" Upon repairing to the spot, which the Ken- 
tuckian did immediately, he discovered a riflepit, 
and a sturdy Yankee in it, in the last agonies of 
expiring nature. The pit was provided with a 
cushioned chair, pipes and tobacco, liquors and 
provisions. But the rifle Mhich had been used 
was really a valuable prize. It was of most su- 
perb manufacture, and supplied with the latest 
invention — an improved telescopic sight upon its 
end. The pit had been dug at night, and its oc- 
cupant had been provisioned at night ; so, but for 
a sharp lookout for the smoke of his gun, there is 
no saving how long this Yankee vandal would 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



223 



have enjoyed the luxury of killing Southern men, 
without even a chance of losing his own worthless 
life." 

An Incident of the Battle of the Forts. 
— Captain Boggs, of the Varuna, tells a story of 
a brave boy who was on board his vessel, during 
the bombardment of the forts on the Mississii^pi 
River. The lad, who answers to the name of 
Oscar, is but thirteen years of age, but he has an 
old head on his shoulders, and is alert and ener- 
getic. During the hottest of the fire he was busily 
engaged in jiassing ammunition to the gunners, 
and narrowly escaped death when one of the 
terrific broadsides of the Varuna's rebel antago- 
nist was poured in. Covered with dirt, and be- 
grimed with powder, he was met by Captain Boggs, 
who asked " where he was going in such a hurry ? " 
" To get a passing-box, sir ; the other one was 
smashed by a ball!" And so, throughout the 
fight, the brave lad held his place and did his 
duty. 

When the Varuna went doAvn, Captain Boggs 
missed his boy, and thought he was among the 
victims of the battle. But a few minutes after- 
wards he saw the lad swimming gallantly towards 
the wreck. Clambering on board of Captain 
Boggs' boat, he threw his hand up to his forehead, 
giving the usual salute, and uttering only the 
words, " All right, sir ; I report myself on board," 
and passed coolly to his station. 



BLACK TOM. 

Hunted by his*ebel master 

Over many a hill and glade, 
Black Tom, with his wife and children, 

Found his way to our brigade. 

Tom had sense, and truth, and courage, 
Often tried where danger rose — 

Once our flag his strong arm rescued 
From the grasp of rebel foes. 

One day Tom was marching with us 
Through the forest as our guide, 

When a ball from traitor's rifle 
Broke his arm and pierced his side. 

On a litter white men bcJre him 
Through the forest drear and damp, 

Laid him, dying, where our banners 
Brightly fluttered o'er our camp. 

Pointing to his wife and children. 
While he suffered racking pain. 

Said he to our soldiers round him, 
" Don't let them be slaves again! " 

" No, by Heaven ! " outspoke a soldier, - 
And tha^ oath was not profane, — 

" Our brigade will still protect them — 
They shall ne'er be slaves again." 

Over old Tom's dusky features 
Came and staid a joyous raj' ; 

And with saddened friends around him, 
His free spirit passed away. 



Incidents of Chattanooga. — " Captain Har- 
ris, of the Nineteenth Indiana battery, stood by 
his guns, after being twice wounded ; and when 
he became weak from loss of blood, he made his 
men support him while he sighted the guns. 

" A man, by the name of Brock, in the Eleventh 
Ohio regiment, was wounded through the neck 
and lower jaw, at Perryville. He had not been 
in the engagement over ten minutes, on Sunday, 
when a ball struck him in the same place, taking 
the same course with the other, making a horrible 
wound. 

"George Kizer, of the Seventy-fifth Indiana 
regiment, company F, was killed on the field. 
Before he was killed he had requested his mess- 
mate to send his photograph, with some other 
things, to his mother, in case he v/as killed ; but 
there is not often a chance to attend to such 
things on the field. On Saturday niglit therebels 
thought we were evacuating the place, and they 
threw forward their right to attack us. They 
soon found out their mistake. They were scooped 
in no time. We took thirty prisoners, and killed 
and -wounded as many more. On one of the dead 
rebs the Indiana boys found Kizer's knapsack, 
with his likeness and all his things, M'hich the 
boys have now sent to his mother. I saw the 
lilceness myself, and the boys were positive in 
the identity. 

" At one of our pickets and posts a shar{> 
shooter had annoyed the men for some time, and 
no one could find his whereabouts. At last one 
of the men thought he saw a small cedar tree 
move. The boys laughed at him, but he blazed 
away, and down came the bush. On examina- 
tion they found that a rebel had stuck cedar 
boughs in his boots and belt, so that he looked 
just like a small tree a little way off." — From a » 
correspondent. 

Diana Smith, the Heroine of the North- 
west. — She was born and raised in the County 
of Jackson, Virginia. Her father is a consistent 
member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and 
was leading a quiet, peaceful, and useful life, until 
his country was invaded, when he called his coun- 
tryman to amis, and raised the first company of 
guerrillas, which he commanded until last fall, 
when, by fraud and treachery, he was captured, 
and ever since has been confined in a loathsome 
dungeon at Camp Chase, Ohio, without hope of 
deliveiy, unless our government should interpose 
and procure his release. 

Diana, his only daughter, a beautiful girl, has 
been tenderly raised and well educated. She is 
also a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
and has always been regarded as very pious and 
exemplary. She is descended from a race of un- 
flinching nerve, and satisfied with nothing less 
than freedom, as xmrestraiued as the pure air of 
their mountain home. 

Her devotion to the cause of Southern rights, 
in which her father had nobly engaged, has caused 
her, too, to feel the oppressor's power. Although 
a tender and delicate floAver, upon whose cheek 
the bloom of sixteen summers yet lingers, she haa 



224 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



been five times captured by the Yankees, and 
marched sometimes on foot, in manacles, a pris- 
oner — once a considerable distance into Ohio, at 
which time she made her escape. She was never 
released, but in each instance managed to escape 
from her guard. She, too, has seen service ; she 
uas in several battles in which her father en- 
gaged the enemj-. She has seen blood flow like 
water. Her trusty rifle has made more than 
one of the vile Yankees bite the dust. She left 
her home in company with the Moccason Ran- 
gers, Captain Kesler, and came through the ene- 
my's lines in safety, and is now at the Blue Sul- 
phur Springs. 

She was accompanied by Miss Duskie, who has 
also earned the proud distinction of a heroine. 
On one occasion this fearless girl, surrounded 
by fifty Yankees and Union men, rushed through 
their ranks with a daring that struck terror to 
their craven hearts. With her rifle lashed across 
her shoulders, she swam the west fork of the 
Kanawha River, and made her way to the Moun- 
tain Rangers, preferring to trust her safety to 
those brave spirits, well knowing that her sex 
would entitle her to protection from these brave 
mountaineers. These young ladies have lain in 
the mountains for months, with no bed but the 
earth, and no coverhig but the canopy of heaven. 
They have shared the soldier's rough fare, his dan- 
gers, his hopes, and his joys. 

The great crime with which these daring young 
ladies are charged by the enemy, is cooking, wash- 
ing, mending and making clothes, and buying 
powder for the soldiers. We are informed that 
they are both ladies of the first rank at home, and 
are every way worthy of the highest place in any 
society Avhere virtue, integrity, and sterlmg prin- 
ciple give position. — Southern paper. 



Gallantry of Young Siialer. — A corre- 
spondent gives an account of the gallant conduct 
of Henry Shaler, of Indianapolis, Indiana, at the 
battle of Gettysburg, written by a son of Daniel 
Noble to his mother. Young Shaler more than 
equalled the mythical performance of the Irish- 
man who " surrounded " a half dozen of the 
enemy, and captured them. His parents live on 
South Alabama Street, in Indianapolis, Indiana. 
They are Germans. Young Noble says : " Harry 
is a brick ; he did more, that is, he took more 
prisoners, in' the battle of Gettysburg, than any 
other man in the army. He took in all twenty- 
five men — one lieutenant and eighteen men at 
one time. He took them by strategy that icas 
strategy ; he ' surrounded them,' and they had to 
give up. On the morning of the fourth he went 
out with his poncho over his shoulders, so that 
the rebs couldn't see his coat ; so they thought he 
■was one of their own men. He went up, and told 
them to lay down their arms, and come and help 
carry some wounded off the field. They did so. 
When he got them away from their arms, be rode 
up to the lieutenant, and told him to give up 
his sword. The lieutenant refused at first ; but 
Harry drew his pepper-box, and, like Crockett's 



coon, the lieutenant came down without a shot 
Harry then took them all into camp. He took a 
captain and five men at another time, making 
twenty-five in all, which is doing pretty well for 
a little Dutchman ; and he deserves to be remem- 
bered for it." 



Chickamauga, or the Ria-er of Death. — 

In the spring of 1858, while seeking the benefit 
of a change of climate and relaxation from labo- 
rious duties, I met the late Colonel "Whiteside at 
Chattanooga. Among the many interesting tra- 
ditions associated with various localities in this 
beautiful region of country, he related one in ex- 
planation of the meaning of the word " Chicka- 
mauga," and how it came to be applied to the 
two small streams which bear this name. A tribe 
of Cherokees occupied this region ; and when the 
small-pox was first communicated to the Indians 
of this continent, it appeared in this tribe, and 
made frightful havoc among them. It was the 
custom of the Indians, at the height of the dis- 
ease, to go by scores, and jump into the river to 
allay the tormenting symptoms. This of course 
increased the mortality, and the name " Chicka- 
mauga," or " River of Death," was applied t^ 
the two streams, M'hich they have borne ever 
since. The remnant of the tribe was also after- 
wards called the " Chickamauga tribe." We hope- 
General Bragg will call his great victory the 
Battle of Chickamauga, and not '•' Peavine Creek," 
or " Crawfish Springs," as is suggested in Rose- 
crans' despatch. He has certainly crawfished out 
of Georgia, but we. prefer "Chickamauga," or 
" River of Death." — Southern correspondent. 



An Interesting Incident. — In the freshman 
class at Harvard was a Washington, from Vir- 
ginia, the nearest relative of the General, bearing 
the name of George, and born on the 22d of Feb- 
ruary. He was a youth of excellent principles, a 
communicant in the Episcopal Church, and re- 
spected and beloved by his classmates. On the 
breaking out of difficulties, he left Cambridge, — 
not for any sj'mpathy with secession, for he was 
strongly against it in all his feelings, — but be- 
cause he thought it his duty to be near his mother, 
a widow, whose estate lay in the threatened por- 
tion of the border. Soon afterwards others of 
his class left college to join the Massachusett-s 
regiments. 

A few days after the battle of Winchester, one 
of these young men, Lieutenant Crowninshield, 
of the Massachusetts Second regiment, w^s walk- 
ing through the wards of the hospital, then filled, 
with rebel officers and soldiers, and heard his 
familiar college nickname, " Crowny, Crowny," 
called by a feeble voice from one of the beds. He 
went to it, and there — pale, faint, shot through 
the lungs by a musket ball — lay his classmate, 
young Washington. It is needless to say, that 
everything possible was done for him. The moth- 
er was allowed to take her son home for maternal 



ANECDOTES, EOETBY, AND INCIDENTS. 



225 



CHAUGE OF THE MULE BRIGADE. 

On the night of October 28, 1863, when Gen. 
Geary's division of the Twelfth corps repulsed 
the attacking forces of Longstreet at Wauhatchie, 
Tenn., a number of mules, affrighted by the noise 
of battle, dashed into the ranks of Hampton's 
Legion, causing much dismay among the rebels, 
and compelling many of them to fall back, under 
a supposed charge of cavalry. 

Capt. Thomas H. Elliott, of Gen. Geary's staff, 
gives the following rendition of the incident, 
which he gleaned from an interior contemporary. 
Its authorship is not known : 



Half a mile, half a mile, 

Half a mile onward, 
Right towards the Georgia troops. 

Broke the two hundred. 
" Forward, the Mule Brigade," 
'« Charge for the Rebs ! " they neighed ; 
Straight for the Georgia troops 

Broke the two hundred. 



" Forward, the Mule Brigade ! " 
Was there a mule dismayed ? 
Not when the long ears felt 

All their ropes sundered ; 
Theirs not to make reply ; 
Theirs not to reason why ; 
Theirs but to make them fly. 
On ! to the Georgia troops, 

Broke the two hundred. 



Mules to the right of them, 
Mules to the left of them, 
Mules behind them, 

Pawed, brayed, and thundered. 
Breaking their own confines. 
Breaking through Longstreet'sdines, 
Into the Georgia troops 

Stormed the two hundred. 



Wild all their eyes did glare, 
Whisked all their tails in air. 
Scattering the chivalry there. 

While all the world wondered. 
Not a mule back bestraddled. 
Yet how they all skedaddled I 

Fled every Georgian. 
Unsabred, unsaddled. 

Scattered and sundered, 
How they were routed there 

By the two hundred ! 



Mules to the right of them, 
Mules to the left of them, 
Mules behind them 

' Pawed, brayed, and thundered ; 
Followed by hoof and head. 
Full many a hero fled. 
Fain in the last ditch dead. 
Back from an " ass's jaw," 
All that was left of them. 
Left by the two hundred. 
15 



When can their glory fade ? 
O ! the wild charge they made ! 

All the world Avondered. 
Honor the charge they made. 
Honor the Mule Brigade, 

Lon"-eared two hundred. 



An Incident under a Flag of Truce. — 
Lieut.-Commander H. A. Adams, Jr., United 
States Navy, arrived at New Orleans, having 
been relieved of the command of the United 
States forces in Mississippi Sound by Lieut.- 
Commander Green. He recently sent his boat 
on shore, and desii-ed the officer in charge to say 
that if any military officer received the flag, he 
M-ould be glad to see him on board to arrange the 
business of the truce. As the boat returned, he 
saw an officer, who recognized him, but he could 
not make out who he was. When the boat came 
alongside, he went to the gangway to receive the 
stranger, and even helped him over the rail on 
deck, when he immediately found himself clasped 
in the arms of his own brother, one in command 
of the Confederate forces on shore, the other in 
command of the United States forces afloat. The 
meeting, under such circumstances, was, as you 
may imagine, a very painful one. After the busi- 
ness was over, and a brotherly chat had, they 
parted — the Confederate saying, as he got into 
the boat, " Whatever happens, Hal, recoflect one 
thing — we will always be brothers." 



General Grant obeys Orders. — General 
Grant was walking the dock at City Point, ab- 
sorbed in thought, and with the inevitable cigar 
in his mouth, when a negro guard touched his 
arm, saying, " No smoking on the dock, sir." 
"Are these your orders?" asked the General, 
looking up. " Yes, sir," replied the negro, cour- 
teously, but decidedly. "Very good orders," 
said Grant, throwing his cigar into the water. 



A Juvenile AVarrior of Experience.-— The 
town of Swanzey, in New Hampshire, is the home 
of George B. Mattoon, a young man only eigh- 
teen years old, who served three years in the 
Union army, had been in forty-three battles and 
twenty-seven skirmishes, had two horses shot 
under him, and during the whole time did not re- 
ceive a single injury, nor was he absent from duty 
a single day. 

A Contraband. — A soldier gives the follow- 
ing sketch of the appearance and peculiarities of 
one of the slaves met with by his regiment while 
marching South : 

" As I went into the yard I saw standing in the 
midst of the men an aged contraband, whose 
woolly pate was profusely mottled with gray, and 
a gray, woolly fringe ai'ound the base of his 
ebon face, gaxe him a most singular appearance. 
His enormous mouth, thick lips, and flattened 



226 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



nose of purely African stamp, and retreating fore- 
head, very low in height, would convey an idea 
of almost idiotic intellect within. As I ap- 
proached, his lower jaw slowly moved down- 
wards, and then upwards, like the first movements 
of the arm of a ponderous steam engine, and then 
from the expansive reservoir of his throat came 
forth a sound, and he began to sing a hymn. 
There was not much melody in his music, but he 
seemed to enjoy it as well as an Ole Bull or Pag- 
anini would their own performance. He was 
dressed in the cast-off uniform, overcoat, and 
pants of some rebel soldier ; and the coat half 
dropping from one shoulder, in a careless style, 
plainly indicated an innate ' cuffee.' He finished 
his hymn, and some one asked him if he wouldn't 
2)ray'. The old man paused for a moment, and 
then said : 

" ' De good book say dat when we worship God 
we mus do it Avid de speret and de troof, and I 
doesn't like for see sich tings treated lightly. 
Now, if ye'll all be quiet, and not larf, and pay 
attention, I'll do de bes I ken.' 

" Having promised good behavior, the old man 
knelt down. As he was kneeling, some one asked 
him to pray for the war to close. He commenced 
his ]n-ayer with an eloquence of language and 
propriety of expression absolutely astonishing, 
and I could hardly believe that in that apparently 
demented cranium could be stored an intellect 
which displayed itself in a manner indicating that 
nature had given it a power and utterance far 
above many of those who were looking upon the 
possessor as they would on a monkey or parrot, or 
some other natural curiosity. There was an ex- 
I)ression in his prayer which, in connection with 
the request to pray for the soldiers, was pecu- 
liarly noticeable. He prayed : 

" ' O Massa Lord God A'mity ! have mercy on 
all sogers, an eem's gwine to war. O Lord ! 
batter all dere big guns inter prowsheers, and 
dere swords inter prune hooks, and make peace 
come quick.' 

" This expression seemed an isolated one in his 
prayer, as having less propriety of expression 
than any other one. At the close of his prayer, 
he was asked where his master was, and re- 
plied : 

" ' O, he's done gone dis four months ; he 
wouldn't jine Mr. Linkum's company, so he had 
to leave, and go off way down Souf.' 

" ' 'Twould be a snug chance for him if he was 
at home here now — wouldn't it ? ' some one 
asked. 

" * Golly, massa, 'deed 'twould, I reckon,' laughed 
the sable chattel. ' He'd ben dead an buried up 
in de grave long time go, if he hadn't run ofi".' 

" He was asked if many soldiers came there, 
and replied that they came every day, in the 
morning, and that they had been there that morn- 
ing on horseback. He was asked what they were, 
and replied, — 

'"Can't tell, massa, 'deed I can't ; some say't 
dey's sesessongers, but 'pon my soul an body, 
massa, I can't tell one from t'other — 'deed I can't. 
But Fse on Mr. Linknrn's side — 'deed I is,' 



" He was then asked to preach, and finally con- 
sented, and commenced, taking for his subject 
the characters of Nicodemus and Hezekiah, and 
commenced in a manner displaying an astonish- 
ing depth of knowledge of Scripture history, and 
drawing logical deductions with a style of lan- 
guage and beauty of expression that need not be 
ashamed of as worthy the efforts of many an 
extemporaneous preacher in the most enlightened 
portions of civilized community in the free States. 

" As I listened, I thought what, but for the ac- 
cursed, soul-destroying influence of slavery, which 
binds its victims in shackles of ignorance, might 
not this man have been. Possessed of an intel- 
lect of uncommon wealth and vigor, though 
clothed in rags, and bound by the rankling shac- 
kles of an unjust oppression, which forbids it to 
wish even to rise to seek its own level among 
humanity, it breaks the bonds with the force 
which nature alone imparts, and rises, unaided 
by the acquirements of art, above the common 
herd around. To what eminence might it not 
have attained if cultivated and trained by the 
aids which the times now afford the free man ? " 



THE TAKING- OF POTOSI, MO. 

The Union men of Washington County having 
been threatened with extermination, and some 
of them having been driven from Potosi, the 
county seat, complaint was made to Gen. Lyon, 
of the St. Louis Arsenal, and that brave and 
gallant ofticer determined to give the Union men 
in that section of the country protection. Ac- 
cordingly an expedition was planned, and put 
under the command of Capt. Coles, of company 
A, Fifth regiment cf United States volunteers. 
At ten o'clock P. M., Tuesday, May 14, 1861, 
Capt. Cole's command, consisting of some one 
hundred and fifty men, left the arsenal on a 
special train for their destination. They arrived 
at Potosi at three o'clock, A. M., on Wednesday, 
and immediately threw a chain of sentinels 
around the entire town. Guards were then sta- 
tioned around the dwellings of the most promi- 
nent secessionists, and shortly after daylight, 
some one hundred and fifty men found themselves 
prisoners, and were marched off to the Court 
House. Here the prisoners were formed in line, 
and by the assistance of a gentleman who had 
been driven out of Potosi, who knew all the 
inhabitants of the place, the Union men were 
recognized, and released, amounting to over half 
of those taken prisoners. Some fifty of the se- 
cessionists were also released, on parole of honor, 
after subscribing to the usual oath not to take up 
arms against the United States, and nine of the 
leaders'were marched off to the cars. Tlie guard 
then made a descent on a secession lead manu- 
factory, and captured near four hundred pigs of 
that very useful article in time of war, which be- 
longed to a man who had been furnishing lead to 
the Southern rebels. The man's name is John 
Dean, and he is now a prisoner at the arsenal 
It appears he was not satisfied to simply sell the 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



227 



lead to the enemy, in defiance of the authoritj'' 
of the Government, but was engaged with his 
own team in hauling it to near the Arkansas line, 
where the traitors could get possession of it 
without danger. The guard captured several 
pistols, rifles, shot guns, and a quantity of seces- 
sion uniforms, most of them unfinished, and some 
uniform cloth. 

After being furnished with breakfast and din- 
ner, and very handsomely treated by the Union 
men of Potosi, and invited to stay a month in 
that place, at their expense, the command started 
for home. On their way back, the train made a 
halt at Dc Soto, in Jefl'erson County, where there 
was to be a grand secession " love-feast " and 
flag-raising. Here they found a company of se- 
cession cavalry drilling for the occasion, which 
took to their heels as soon as they got a sight 
of the United States troops. In their flight, the 
cavalry left some thirty of their horses, which 
were captured by the troops, and placed luider 
guard. The pole — one hundred feet high — on 
which the rebels were going to fly the secession 
flag was soon graced with the Stars and Stripes, 
amid the wildest enthusiasm of the Union men 
and Government troops. The next move was to 
capture the rebel flag, which was known to be in 
town J and for this agreeable duty, Captain Cole 
detailed a guard of six men, under command of 
Serg. Walker, accompanied by Dr. Franklin, 
Surgeon of the Fifth Regiment. The guard 
sun-ounded the house supposed to contain the 
flag, and Dr. Franklin and Serg. Walker entered. 
After searching in vain for some time, the Doc- 
tor thought he observed the lady of the house 
sitting in rather an uneasy position, and he very 
politely asked her to rise. At first the lady 
hesitated, but finding the Doctor's persuasive 
sauvity irresistible, she rose slowly, and lo ! the 
blood-red stripe of the rebel ensign appeared 
below the lady's hoops. The Doctor, bowing a 
graceful " beg pardon, madam," stooped, and 
quietly catching hold of the gaudy color, care- 
fully delivered the lady of a secession flag, thirty 
feet long, and nine feet wide. The Doctor bore 
off' his prize in triumph to the^ camp, where the 
troops greeted him with wild shouts, and charac- 
terized his feat as the crowning glory of the oc- 
casion. Here the troops captured another rebel 
leader, and after placing thirty men, under Lieut. 
Murphy, to guard the Union flag and the thirty 
horses, Capt. Cole's command started on their 
way. At Victoria, the train stopped a moment, 
when another secessionist came up hurrahing for 
Jefi" Davis ; and quick as thought the ardent 
rebel was surrounded by a half dozen bayonets, 
and marched into the cars a prisoner of war, and 
the train moved on. They arrived at the arsenal 
about six and a half o'clock P. M., where a crowd 
of soldiers and visitors awaited them. The spoils 
were unloaded, and the prisoners marched to safe 
and comfortable quarters. Gen. Lyon received 
them in the spirit of a true soldier, and the 
troops gave three cheers for Gen. Lyon, three 
for Col. Blair, and three for the Stars and Stripes, 
and then caught the secession flag, and tore it 
into shreds in a twinkling. 



NOT YET. 

BY WILLIAM CULLEN BRYANT. 

O COUNTRY, marvel of the earth ! 

O realm to sudden greatness grown ! 
The age that gloried in thy birth, 

Shall it behold thee overthrown ? 
Shall traitors lay that greatness low ? 
No ! Land of Hope and Blessing, No ! 

And we who wear thy glorious name, 
Shall we, like cravens, stand apart. 

When those whom thou hast trusted aim 
The death-blo-\v at thy generous heart ? 

Forth goes the battle-cry, and lo ! 

Hosts rise in harness, shouting, No ! 

And they who founded in our land 
The power that rules from sea to sea, 

Bletl they in vain, or vainly planned 
To leave their country great and free ? 

Their sleeping ashes from below 

Send up the thrilling murmur, No ! 

Knit they the gentle ties which long 
These sister States were proud to wear, 

And forged the kindly links so strong, 
For idle hands in sport to tear — 

For scornful hands aside to throw ? 

No ! by our fathers' memory. No ! 

Our humming marts, our iron ways, 

Our wind-tossed woods on mountain crest, 

The hoarse Atlantic, with his bays. 
The calm, broad Ocean of the West, 

And Mississippi's torrent-flow. 

And loud Niagara, answer, No ! 

Not yet the hour is nigh when they 
Who deep in Eld's dim twdlight sit. 

Earth's ancient kings, shall rise and say, 
"Proud country, welcome to the pit ! 

So soon art thou, like us, brought low ! " 

No ! sullen group of shadows, No ! 

For now, behold, the arm that gave 
The victory in our fathers' day. 

Strong as of old to guard and save, — 
That mighty arm which none can stay, — 

On clouds above, and fields below, 

Writes, in men's sight, the answer, No ! 



Incidents of Carrick's Ford. — In one of 
the Indiana regiments that took part in the fight 
at Carrick's Ford, was a Methodist preacher, said 
to be one of the very best shots of his regiment. 
During the battle, he was particularly conspic- 
uous for the zeal with which he kept up a con- 
stant fire. The Fourteenth Ohio regiment, in 
the thick of the fight, fired an average of eleven 
rounds to every man, but this parson managed 
to get in a great deal more than that average. 
He fired carefully, with perfect coolness, and al- 
ways after a steady aim, and the boys declare 
that every time, as he took down his gun, after 
firing, he added, "And may the Lord have mercy 
on your soul ! " Evidently he thought the hodij 
not worth praying for after the aim he had so 
carefully taken. 

Per contra : One of Steedmen's men (in the 



228 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



Fourteenth Ohio) was from Cheesedom, and 
didn't like the irreverent tone adopted by the 
Southern chivah-y in speaking of the " d — d 
Yankees." He took deliberate aim, but, unlike 
the parson, after every fire he added the invaria- 
ble formula, " Blast your secession souls, how do 
}'ou like the Yankees ? " 

Another, an Englishman, was wounded, 
man noticed him limping, and called out, 
are you wounded ? " " Yes, I'm 'it." " 
are you hit. Jack ? " " 0, I'm 'it in the 'ip, but 
— (in great anxiety lest Steedman should send 
him to the hospital) but it don't 'urt me. I'm 
only 'it in the 'ip ; it don't 'urt me ; " and away 
he blazed with another load, adding, " Confound 
you, I guess I paid you off that time." 



Steed- 
" Jack, 
Where 



Close Quarters. — At the battle of Charles- 
ton, Mo., in August, 1861, Lieut.-Col. Ransom, 
of the Eleventh Illinois regiment, was urging his 
men to the chai-ge, when a man rode up, and 
called out, " What do you mean ? You are kill- 
i]ig our own men." Ransom I'eplied, " I know 
what I am doing. Who are you?" The reply 
was, " I am for Jeff Davis." Ransom replied, 
'• You are the man I am after ; " and instantly 
two pistols were drawn. The rebel fired first, 
taking effect in Col. Ransom's arm, near the 
shoulder. The Colonel fired, killing his antag- 
onist instantly. 

As Brave as a Lion. — At the fight at Scary- 
town, Va., the soldier John Haven was wounded. 
He was a handsome, intelligent young man, as 
brave as a lion, and the pet of the company. 
Poor fellow ! his right hip was shot away just as 
he was passing a ball to his gun. When his 
Captain saw him fall, he ran and picked him up, 
and conveyed him in his own arms to a place of 
safety. " Never mind me, Captain," he cried ; 
" but don't let that flag go down ! " 



THE MARCH OF TllE SEVENTH REGI- 
MENT. 

BY FITZ JAMES O'BEIEN. 

The Capitol, Washington, ) 
Saturday, April 27, 1861. j 

We are here. Those three words sum up as 
much as Napier's " Peccavi," when he took 
Scinde, and we all feel somewhat as Mr. Csesar 
Augustus must have felt when he had crossed the 
Rubicon. 

It is almost unnecessary for me to detail to you 
the events of the day on which we left New York. 
The scene at the armory on Friday was one to 
he commemorated. For the first time since its 
formation, the Seventh regiment left its native 
city on active service. All day long, from an 
early hour in the morning, young men in uniforms 
or civilian's di-ess, might have been seen hurry- 
ing up and down Broadway, with anomalous- 
looking bundles under their arms. Dandies, who 
were the pride of club windows, were not above 



brown paper parcels ; military tailors were stormed 
and taken with considerable loss — to the pocket. 
Delmonico, calm and serene, superintended sand- 
wiches which were destined for the canteen. 
People in the streets looked with a sort of re- 
gretful admiration at the gray uniforms hurrying 
by. Hardware stores were ransacked of revolvers. 
A feverish excitement throbbed through the city 
— the beating of that big Northern pulse, so 
slow, so sure, and so steady. 

At three P. M., we mustered at the Armory, 
against which there beat a surge of human beings 
likes waves against a rock. Within, all was com- 
motion. Fitting of belts, wild lamentations over 
uniforms expected, but not arrived ; hearty ex- 
changes of comradeships between members of 
different companies, M'ho felt that they were about 
to depart on a mission which might end in death. 
Here and there flickered Spring bonnets, which 
enclosed charming faces, as the calyx enfolds the 
flower ; and, let me tell you, that on the faces of 
many of those dear blossoms there hung di-ops 
of mournful dew. At last the regiment was 
formed in companies, and we marched. Was 
there ever such an ovation ? When Trajan re- 
turned conqueror, dragging barbaric kings at his 
chariot- wheels, Rome vomited its people into the 
streets, and that glorious column, that will be 
ever immortal, was raised. But what greeted 
the Emperor at his outset? The marble walls 
of Broadway were never before rent with such 
cheers as greeted us when we passed. The faces 
of the buildings were so thick with people, that 
it seemed as if an army of black ants were march- 
ing, after their resistless fashion, throtigh the city, 
and had scaled the houses. Handkerchiefs flut- 
tered in the air like myriads of Avhite butterflies. 
An avenue of brave, honest faces smiled upon 
us as we passed, and sent a sunshine into our 
hearts that lives there still. In a prominent po- 
sition stood Maj. Anderson, who saluted us, and 
was welcomed as such a man should be welcomed. 
And so on to the ferry. 

Swift through New Jersey — against wliich no 
sneer be uttered evermore. All along the track 
shouting crowds, hoarse and valorous, sent to us, 
as we passed, their hopes and wishes. When we 
stopped at the dift'erent stations, rough hands 
came in through the windows, apparently uncon- 
nected with any one in particular until j'ou shook 
them, and then the subtle, magnetic thrill told that 
there were bold hearts beating at the end. This 
continued until night closed, and, indeed, until 
after midnight. 

Within the cars the sight Avas strange. A 
thousand young men, the flower of the North, in 
whose welfare a million of friends and relatives 
were interested, were rushing along to conjectured 
hostilities with the same smiling faces that they 
would wear going to a " German " party in Fifth 
Avenue. It was more like a festivity .than a 
march. Those fine old songs, the choruses of 
which were familiar to all, were sung with sweet 
voice. We were assured many times, in melodi- 
ous accents, that •' the whiskey bottle was empty 
on the shelf," and several individuals of that 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



229 



prominent, but not respectable class known as 
" bummers," were invited to " meet us on Canaan's 
happy shore." The brave old Harvard song of 
" Upi dee " was started, and, shameful to say, Mr. 
Longfellow's " Excelsior " seemed naturally to 
adapt itself to the tune. I do not think that 
"the pious monks of St. Bernard" would have 
been edified, had they heard themselves alluded 
to in that profane music. 

Our arrival at Philadelphia took place at four 
o'clock. We slept in the cars, awaiting orders 
from our Colonel ; but at daylight hunger — and 
it may be thirst — becoming imperious, we sallied 
out, and roamed about that cheerless neighbor- 
hood that surrounds the depot. Close by there 
was a small wooden shanty — let us say an Irish 
palace — which was presently filled by arid sol- 
diers. The prog in the larder of this sumptuous 
residence was, I regret to say, limited. I did not 
even see the traditional pig about, although 
heaven knows he would have been appropriate 
enough. Finding that we were likely to remain 
for some time in the city — although under the 
impression that we were to go straight tlu'ough 
to Baltimore — M-e wandered away from the 
Desert of the Depot and descended on civilized 
quarters. The superintendent of the Deaf and 
Dumb Asylum was a man for the emergency. 
He provided a handsome breakfast for all such 
members of tlie Seventh as chose to partake of 
it, and we commanded beefsteak on our fingers, 
and ordered tea by sign-manual. Great numbers 
of our regiment, being luxurious dogs, went down 
to the Continental and Girard hotels, where they 
campaigned on marble floors, and bivouacked on 
velvet couches. They are such delicate fellows, 
the Seventh regiment ! Farther on you will see 
what those delicate hands have done. 

We, of course, were entirely ignorant of our 
route, or how we were going. The general feel- 
ing of the regiment Avas in favor of pushing our 
way coute qui coute straight through Baltimore. 
Rumors came along that the city was in arms. 
The Massachusetts troops had to fight their way 
through, killing eighteen and losing two men. 
This seemed only to stimulate our boys, and the 
universal word was Baltimore. But as it turned 
out afterwards, we were under a wise direction, 
and the policy of our Colonel, to whom we per- 
haps are altogether indebted for bringing us safely 
here, was, I presume, to avoid all unnecessary 
collision, and bring his regiment intact into 
Washington. The rails were reported to have 
been torn up for forty miles about Baltimore, and 
as we were summoned for the defence of the Cap- 
ital, it follows, according to reason, that if we 
could get there without loss we would better fulfil 
our duty. As it happened afterwards, we had to 
run through more peril than Baltimore could 
have offered. 

There s^eemed but little enthusiasm in Phila- 
delphia. A city that washes every morning with 
soap and water is not easily roused into excite- 
ment. The Quaker placidity still prevails, and 
when you add to this the majestic stolidity of 
the German element, it is not wonderful that the 



Capital of the Keystone State should not be up- 
roarious. Still let me do Philadelphia justice. lun- 
derstand that the people were out in large numbers 
to see us enter, but our delay disappointed them, 
and they went home. During our stay a lethar- 
gic decorum prevailed. The prim beavers of the 
citizens were glossy and self-possessed. We came 
and went without a reception or demonstration. 

There was one peculiar diSerence that I noticed 
existing between the Massachusetts regiments 
that we met in Philadelphia and our men. The 
Massachusetts men — to whom all honor be given 
for the splendid manner in which they afterwards 
acted in a most trying situation — presented a 
singular moral contrast to the members of the 
Seventh. They were earnest, grim, determined. 
Badly equipped, haggard, unshorn, they yet had 
a manhood in their look that hardships could not 
kill. They were evidently thinking all the time 
of the contest into which they were about to enter. 
Their gray, eager eyes seemed to be looking for 
the heights of Virginia. With us it was some- 
what dilferent. Our men were gay and careless, 
confident of being at any moment capable of 
performing, and more than performing, their 
duty. They looked battle in the face with a 
smile, and were ready to hob-nob with an enemy, 
and kill him afterwards. The one was courage 
in the rough ; the other was courage burnished. 
The steel was the same- in both, but the last was 
a little more polished. 

On April 20, at 4 : 20 P. M., we left the Phila- 
delphia dock, on board the steamer Boston. The 
regiment was in entire ignorance of its destina- 
tion. Some said we were going back to New 
York, at which suggestion there was a howl of 
indignation. Others presumed that we were going 
to steam up the Potomac — a course which was 
not much approved of, inasmuch as we were cooped 
up in a kind of river steamer that a shot from the 
fort at Alexandi'ia might sink at any moment. 
We, however, — to make use of a familiar expres- 
sion, — " went it blind," and faces did not smile 
the less because our object was unknown. 

It was on board of this steamer that " Joe " 
came out. You, of course, don't know who 
" Joe " is. Well, you may rest contented, be- 
cause he will always remain " Joe " to you. I 
may, without transgression, however, give you his 
typograph. I will put him in position, level the 
lens, and — here he is. Imagine a well-built young 
fellow, about twenty-one, with mercury instead 
of blood in his veins, ever on the move, with a 
sort of quaint, joyous humor seething from him, 
as if he was al\>ays at boiling point. Joe's two 
specialties, like a winnowing machine that I once 
saw, are work and chaff. During the evening, 
on board the steamer, he distributed himself 
generally about, with a merry M-ord and a joke 
for every one. What immber of bad i)uns he 
made, or what horrible conundrums he made, my 
exhausted and horrified memory refuses to recall ; 
suffice it to say, that laughter and good-humor 
followed in his wake, as the white foam smiles 
astern of some sharp little cutter going before the 
wind. 



230 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



The first evening, April 20, on board the Bos- 
ton, passed delightfully. We were all in fii'st-rate 
spirits, and the calm, sweet evenings that stole on 
us as we approached the South, difl'used a soft 
and gentle influence over us. The scene on board 
tiie ship was exceedingly picturesque. Fellows 
fumbling in haversacks for rations, or extracting 
sandwiches from reluctant canteens ; guards pac- 
ing up and down with drawn bayonets ; knapsacks 
piled in corners, bristling heaps of muskets, with 
sharp, shining teeth, crowded into every available 
nook : picturesque groups of men lolling on deck, 
pipe or cigar in mouth, indulging in the dolcefar 
niente, as if they were on the blue shores of Capri, 
rather than on their way to battle ; unbuttoned 
jackets, crossed legs, heads leaning on knapsacks, 
blue uniforms everywhere, with here and there a 
glint of oflicer's red lighting up the foreground 
— all formed a scene that such painters as the 
English Warren would have revelled in. 

1 regret to say that all was not rose-colored. 
The steamer that the Colonel chartered had to 
get ready at three or fom- hours' notice, he having 
changed his ])lans, in consequence of the tearing 
up of the rails around Baltimore. The result 
was, that she was imperfectly provisioned. As 
the appetites of the men began to develop, the 
resources of the vessel began to appear. In the 
first place, she was far too small to accommodate 
a tliousand men, and we were obliged to sleep in 
all sorts of impossible attitudes. There is an 
ingenious device known to carpenters as " dove- 
tailing ; " and we were so tliick that we had pos- 
itively to dovetail, only that there was very little 
of the dove about it ; for when perambulating 
soldiers stepped on the faces and stomachs of 
the sleepers, as they lay on deck, the greeting 
that they received had but little flavor of the 
olive branch. 

Notwithstanding that we found very soon that 
the commissariat was in a bad Avay, the men were 
as jolly as sandboys. I never saw a more good- 
humored set of men in my life. Fellows who 
would at Delmonico's have sent back a turban de 
volaille aux triijD'es, because the truffles were 
tough, here cheerfully took their places in file 
between decks, tin plates and tin cups in hand, 
in order to get an insufficient piece of beef and 
a vision of coffee. But it was all merrily done. 
The scant fare was seasoned with hilarity ; and 
here I say to those people in New York who have 
sneered at the Seventh regiment as being dandies, 
and guilty of the unpardonable crimes of cleanli- 
ness and kid gloves, that they would cease to 
scoff', and remain to hless, had they beheld the 
square, honest, genial way in which these mili- 
tary Brummells roughed it. Farther on, you will 
see what they did in the way of endurance and 
activity. 

April 21 M'as Sunday — a glorious, cloudless 
day. We had steamed all night, and about ten 
o'clock were in the vicinity of Chesapeake Bay. 
At eleven o'clock A. M. we had service read by 
our chaplain, and at one P. M. we were seven 
miles from the coast. The day was calm and de- 
licious. In spite of our troubles with regard to 



food — troubles, be it understood, entirely una- 
voidable — we drank in with delight the serenity 
of the scene. A hazy tent of blue hung over 
our heads. On one side the dim thread of shore 
hemmed in the sea. Flights of loons and ducks 
skimmed along the ocean, rising lazily, and s])at- 
tering the waves with their wings, as they flew 
against the wind, until they rose into air, and, 
wheeling, swept into calmer feeding grounds. 
Now and then the calm of the hour was broken 
with the heavy tramp of men, and the metallic 
voice of the Cori)oral of the Guard relieving his 
comrades. At five o'clock P. M. we passed a 
light-ship, and hailed her, our object being to 
discover whether any United States vessels were 
in the neighborhood, waiting to convoy us up the 
Potomac River, We had heard that the forts at 
Alexandria were ready to open upon us if we 
attempted to pass vip, and our steamer was of 
such a build, that, had a shell or shot struck it, 
we would have been burned or drowned. It 
therefore behooved us to be cautious. The an- 
swers we got from the light-ship and other ves- 
sels that we hailed in this spot were unsatisfac- 
tory, and although the feelings of the men were 
unanimous in wishing to force the Potomac, 
wiser counsels, as it proved, were behind us, and 
we kept on. About this time a curious phenom- 
enon occurred. Some men in the regiment, who 
have fine voices, — and theii- name is legion, — 
had been singing, with all that delicious effect 
that music at sea produces, several of the finest 
l)salms in our liturgy. The ocean softens, and 
delicately repeats sound ; and those airs, trem- 
bling and sliding along the almost unrippled sur- 
face of the sea, were so melodious, that if the 
Southern- Cerberi had heard them, they would 
have slumbered at the gates of their own hell, 
AVhile we were singing, the moon swung clear 
into air, and round her white disk was seen three 
circles, clear and distinct — red, white, and blue! 
The omen was caught by common instinct, and 
a thousand cheers went up to that heaven that 
seemed in its visible signs to manifest its appro- 
val of the cause in which we were about to fight. 
All this time we were entu'ely ignorant of where 
we were going. The officers kept all secret, and 
our conjectures drifted like a drifting boat. On 
the morning of the 22d we were in sight of An- 
napolis, oft' which the Constitution was lying, and 
there found the Eighth regiment of Massachusetts 
volunteers on 1)oard the Maryland. They were 
aground, owing, it is supposed, to the treachery 
of the Captain, whom they put in irons, and want- 
ed to hang. I regret to say that they did not do it. 
During the greater portion of that forenoon we 
were occupied in trying to get the Maryland oft" 
the sandbar on which she was grounded. From 
our decks we could see the men in file trying to 
rock her, so as to facilitate our tugging. These 
men were without water and without food, were 
well conducted and uncomplaining, and behaved, 
in all respects, like heroes. They were under the 
command of Col. Butler, and I regret that that 
gentleman did not care more for the comforts of 
men whose subsequent pluck proved that nothing 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



231 



was too good for them. During the endeavors 
to get the Maryland afloat, we had some idle 
time on our hands, and your humble servant em- 
ployed some of it in " composing " a Seventh 
regiment song, which is now in rehearsal by the 
vocalists of the corps : 

THE SEVENTH. 

AiE — " Gilla Machree." 



OcH ! we're the boys 
That hearts desthroys 

Wid making love and fighting ; 
We take a fort, 
The girls we court, 

But most the last delight in. 
To fire a gun. 
Or raise some fun, 

To us is no endeavor ; 
So let us hear 
One hearty cheer — 

The Seventh's lads forever ! 
Chorus. — For we're the boys 

That hearts desthroys, 

Wid making love and fighting ; 
We take a fort, 
The girls we court, , 

But most the last delight in. 



There's handsome Joe, 

■NVhose constant flow 
Of merriment unfailing, 

Upon the tramp, 

Or in the camp. 
Will keep our hearts from ailing. 

And B and Chat» 

"SVho might have sat 
Por Pythias and Damon, 

Och ! whin they get 

Their heavy wet. 
They get as high as Haman. 
Choeus. — For we're the boys 

That hearts desthroys, &c. 



Like Jove above, 

We're fond of love. 
But fonder still of victuals ; 

Wid turtle steaks. 

An' codfish cakes, 
We always fills our kittles. 

To dhrown aich dish. 

We dhrinks like fish. 
And Mumm's the word we utther ; 

An' thin we swill 

Our Leoville, 
That oils our throats like butther. 
Chorus. — For we're the boys 

That hearts desthroys, Sec. 



We make from hay 

A splindid tay. 
From beans a gorgeous coffee ; 

Our crame is prime. 

With chalk and lime — 
la fact, 'tis quite a throphy. 



Our chickens roast, 

Wid butthered toast, 
I'm sure would timpt St. Pether. 

Now, you'll declare 

Our bill of fare 
It couldn't be complether. 
Chorus. — For we're the boys 

That hearts desthroys, &c. 



Now, silence all, 

While I recall 
A memory sweet and tender ; 

The maids and wives 

That light our lives 
With deep, enduring splendor — 

We'll give no cheer 

For those so dear, 
But in our hearts we'll bless them, 

Ajid pray to-night 

That angels bright 
May watch them and caress them. 
Chorus, — For we're the boys 

That hearts desthroys, 
Wid making love and fighting ; 

We take a fort, 

The girls we court, 
But most the last delight in. 

On the afternoon of the 22d we landed at the 
Annapolis dock, after having spent hours in try- 
ing to relieve the Maryland. For the first time 
in his life, your correspondent was put to work 
to roll flour-barrels. He was intrusted with the 
honorable and onerous duty of transporting stores 
from the steamer to the dock. Later still, he de- 
scended to the position of mess servant, when, in 
company with gentlemen well known in Broad- 
way for immaculate kids, he had the honor of 
attending on his company with buckets of cooked 
meat and crackers ; the only difi'erence between 
him and Co. and the ordinary waiter being, that 
the former were civil. 

After this, I had the pleasing duty of perform- 
ing thi'ee hours of guard duty on the dock, with 
a view to protect the baggage and stores. It 
was monotonous — being my first guard — but 
not unpleasant. The moon rose calm and white. 
A long dock next to the one on which I Avas sta- 
tioned, stretched away into the bay, resting on 
its numerous piles, until it looked in the clear 
moonlight like a centipede. All was still and 
calm, until at certain periods the guard challenged 
persons attempting to pass. There was a holy in- 
fluence in the hour, and somehow the hot fever 
of anxiety that had been over us for days seemed 
to pass away under the touch of the magnetic 
fingers of the night. 

We were quartered in the buildings belonging 
to the Naval School at Annapolis. I had a bunk- 
ing-place in what is there called a fort," which is 
a rickety structure, that a lucifer match would 
set on fire, but furnished with imposing guns. I 
suppose it was merely built to practise the cadets, 
because as a defence it is worthless. The same 
evening boats Avere sent off from the yard, and to- 
wards nightfall the Massachusetts men landed, 



232 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



fagged, hungry, thirsty, but indomitable. At an 
early hour there was a universal snore through 
the Naval School of Annapolis. 

The two days that we remained at Annapolis 
were welcome. We had been without a fair 
night's sleep since we left New York, and even 
the hard quarters we had there were a luxury 
compared to the dirty decks of the Boston. Be- 
sides, there were natural attractions. The grounds 
are very prettily laid out, and in the course of 
my experience, I never saw a handsomer or bet- 
ter bred set of young men than the cadets. They 

number about , only twenty having left the 

school owing to political conviction. The re- 
mainder are sound Union fellows, eager to prove 
their devotion to the flag. After spending a de- 
lightful time in the Navy School, resting and 
amusing ourselves, our repose was disturbed, at 
nine P. M., April 23, by rockets being thrown up 
in the bay. The men were scattered all over the 
grounds ; some in bed, others walking or smoking, 
all more or less undressed. The rockets being 
of a suspicious character, it was conjectured that 
a Southern fleet was outside, and our drummer 
beat the roll-call to arms. From the stroke of 
the drum, until the time that every man, fully 
equipped and in fighting order, was in the ranks, 
was exactly, bywatch, seven minutes. It is need- 
less to say anything about such celerity — it 
speaks for itself. The alarm, however, proved to 
be false, the vessels in the ofling proving to be 
laden with the Seventy-fii'st and other New York 
regiments ; so that, after an unpremeditated trial 
of our readiness for action, we were permitted to 
retire to our virtuous couches, which means, per- 
mit me to say, a blanket on the floor, with a 
military overcoat over you, and a nasal concert 
all around you, that in noise and number out- 
vies Musard's celebrated concerts monstres. 

On the morning of the 24th of April we started 
on what afterwards proved to be one of the hard- 
est marches on record. The secessionists of An- 
napolis and the surrounding district had threat- 
ened to cut us off in our march, and even went 
so far as to say that they would attack our quar- 
ters. This, of course, Avas the drunken Southern 
ebullition. A civiHan told me that he met in the 
streets of Annapolis two cavalry soldiers who 
came to cut our throats without delay, but as 
each brave warrior was endeavoring to hold the 
other up, my friend did not apprehend much 
danger. 

A curious revulsion of feeling took place at 
Annapolis, and indeed all through ^laryland, af- 
ter our arrival. 

The admirable good conduct which character- 
izes the regiment, the open liberality which it 
displays in all pecuniary transactions, and the 
courteous demeanor which it exhibits to all classes, 
took the narrow-minded population of this ex- 
cessively wretched town by suri:)rise. They were 
prepared for pillage. They thought we Avere go- 
ing to sack the place. They found, instead, that 
we were prepared and willing to pay liberal 
prices for everything, and that even patriotic pres- 
entations were steadily refused. While we were 



in the Navy School, of course all sorts of rumors 
as to our operations were floating about. It sur- 
prised me that no one suggested that we were to 
go off' in a balloon ; however, all surmises were 
put to an end by our receiving orders, the even- 
ing of the 23d, to assemble in marching order 
next morning. The da^vn saw us up. Knap- 
sacks, with our blankets and overcoats strapped 
on them, were piled on the green. A brief and 
insufficient breakfast was taken, our canteens filled 
with vinegar and water, cartridges distributed to 
each man, and after mustering and loading, we 
started on our first march through a hostile 
country. 

Gen. Scott has stated, as I have been informed, 
that the march that we performed from Annapo- 
lis to the Junction is one of the most remarkable 
on record. I know that I felt it the most fa- 
tiguing, and some of our officers have told me 
that it was the most perilous. We marched the 
first eight miles under a burning sun, in heavy 
marching order, in less than three hours ; and it 
is well known that, placing all elementary con- 
siderations out of the way, marching on a rail- 
road track is the most harassing. We started 
at about eight o'clock A. M., and for the first time 
saw the town of Annapolis, which, without any 
disrespect to that place, I may say, looked very 
much as if some celestial schoolboy, with a box 
of toys under his arm, had dropped a few houses 
and men as he was going home from school, and 
that the accidental settlement was called Annapo- 
lis. Through the town we marched, the people 
unsympathizing, but afraid. They saw the Sev- 
enth for the first time, and for the first time they 
realized the men that they had threatened. 

The tracks had been torn up between Annapo- 
lis and the Junction, and here it was that the 
wonderful qualities of the Massachusetts Eighth 
regiment came out. The locomotives had been 
taken to pieces by the inhabitants, in order to 
prevent our travel. In steps a Massachusetts 
volunteer, looks at the piecemeal engine, takes 
up a flange, and says coolly, "I made this engine, 
and I can put it together again." Engineers 
were wanted when the engine was ready. Nine- 
teen stepped out of the ranks. The rails were 
torn up. Practical railroad makers out of the 
regiment laid them again ; and all this, mind 
you, without care or food. These brave boys, I 
say, were starving while they were doing this 
good work. AVhat their Colonel was doing, I 
can't say. As we marched along the track that 
they had laid, they greeted us with ranks of 
smiling but hungry faces. One boy told me, with 
a laugh on his young lips, that he "had not eaten 
anything for thirty hours. There was not, thank 
God, a haversack in our regiment that was not 
emptied into the hands of these ill-treated heroes, 
nor a flask that was not at their disposal. I am 
glad to pay them tribute here, and mentally doff 
my cap. 

Our march lay through an arid, sandy, tobacco- 
growing country. The sun poured on our heads 
like liot lava. The sixth and second companies 
were sent on for skirmishing duty, under the 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS, 



233 



command of Capts. Clarke and Nevers, the latter 
commanding as senior officer. A car, on Avhich 
was placed a howitzer, loaded with grape and 
canister, headed the column, manned by the en- 
gineer and artillery corps, commanded by Lieut. 
Bunting. This was the rallying point of the 
skirmishing party, on which, in case of difficulty, 
they could fall back. In the centre of the col- 
umn came the cars laden with medical stores, and 
bearing our sick and wounded, while the extreme 
rear was brought up with a second howitzer, 
loaded also with grape and canister. The en- 
gineer corps, of course, had to do the forwarding 
work. New York dandies, sir — but they built 
bridges, laid rails, and headed the regiment 
through that terrible march. After marching 
about eight miles, during which time several men 
caved in from exhaustion, and one young gentle- 
man was sunstruck and sent back to New York, 
we halted, and instantly, with the Divine instinct 
which characterizes the hungry soldier, proceeded 
to forage. The worst of it was, there was no 
foraging to be done. The only house within reach 
was inhabited by a lethargic person, who, like 
most Southern men, had no idea of gaining money 
by labor. We offered him extravagant prices to 
get us fresh water, and it was with the utmost 
reluctance we could get him to obtain us a few 
pailfuls. Over the mantel-piece of his misei-able 
shanty I saw — a curious coincidence — the por- 
trait of Col. Duryea, of our regiment. 

After a brief rest of about an hour, we again 
commenced our march; a march which lasted 
until the next morning — a march than which 
in history, nothing but those marches in which 
defeated troops have fled from the enemy, can 
equal. Our Colonel, it seems, determined to 
march by railroad, in preference to the common 
road, inasmuch as he had obtained such secret in- 
formation as led him to suppose that we were 
waited for on the latter route. Events justified 
his judgment. There were cavalry troops posted 
in defiles to cut us off. They could not have 
done it, of course, but they could have harassed 
us severely. As we went along the railroad we 
threw out skirmishing parties from the second 
and sixth companies, to keep the road clear. I 
know not if I can describe that night's march. I 
have dim recollections of deep cuts through 
which we passed, gloomy and treacherous-looking, 
with the moon shining full on our muskets, while 
the banks were wrapped in shade, and we each mo- 
ment expecting to see the flash and hear the crack 
of the rifle of the Southern guerrilla. The tree 
frogs and lizards made mournful music as we 
passed. The soil on which we travelled was soft 
and heavy. The sleepers lying at intervals across 
the track made the march terribly fatiguing. On 
all sides dark, lonely pine woods stretched away, 
and high over the hooting of owls or the plain- 
tive petition of the whip-poor-will rose the bass 
commands of Halt ! Forward, march ! — and 
when we came to any ticklish spot, the word 
would run from the head of the column along the 
line, <' Holes," " Bridge — pass it along,'* &c. 

As the night wore on, the monotony of the 
march became oppressive. Owing to our having 



to explore every inch of the way, we did not make 
more than a mile or a mile and a half an hour. 
We ran out of stimulants, and almost out of 
water. Most of us had had no sleep for four 
nights, and as the night advanced our march was 
almost a stagger. This was not so much fatigue 
as want of excitement. Our fellows were spoiling 
for a fight, and when a dropping shot was heard 
in the distance, it was wonderful to see how the 
languid legs straightened, and the column braced 
itself for action. If we had had even the small- 
est kind of a skirmish, the men would have been 
able to walk to Washin^on. As it was, we went 
sleepily on. I myself fell asleep Avalking in the 
ranks. Numbers, I find, followed my example ; 
but never before was there shown such indom- 
itable pluck and perseverance as the Seventh 
showed during that march of twenty miles. The 
country that we passed through seemed to have 
been entii-ely deserted. The inhabitants, who 
were going to kill us when they thought we 
daren't come through, now vamosed their respec- 
tive ranches, and we saw them not. Houses were 
empty. The population retired into the interior, 
burying their money, and carrying their families 
along with them. They, it seems, were under 
the impression that we came to ravage and pil- 
lage, and they fied as the Gauls must have fled 
when Attila and his Huns came down on them 
from the north. As we did at Annapolis, we did 
in Maryland State. We left an impression that 
cannot be forgotten. Every thing was paid for. 
No discourtesy was offered J;o any inhabitant, and 
the sobriety of the regiment should be an example 
to others. 

Adventure of Captain Strong. — The fol- 
lowing account of the adventure of Captain W. 
E. Strong, of the Second regiment of Wisconsin 
volunteers, was given by that officer in an official 
report to Maj. Larrabee, dated at Camp Advance, 
September 7, 1861 : 

" In pursuance of your order of yesterday, I 
proceeded to examine the woods to the right of 
our exterior line, for the purpose of satisfying 
yourself whether the line should be extended. 
The last picket was stationed about four hundred 
yards from the river — being our outpost on our 
right exterior line — leaving a dense thicket of 
pine undergrowth between it and the river. From 
my means of observation up to that time, I had 
concluded that our pickets were not sufficiently 
advanced in that direction, as this space was 
wholly unoccupied. At least I thought the 
ground should be examined ; and in this you 
were pleased to fully concur. 

" You desired me to make a minute examina- 
tion of the ground, and be ready to report when 
you should return, at three o'clock P. ISI. of that 
day. Accordingly, after dinner I passed along 
the line until I reached the extreme outpost on 
the right, which consisted of Lieut. Dodge, Corp. 
Manderson, and three privates, and then pro- 
ceeded along over very rough and densely wooded 
ground to the river. I soon ascertained that these 
physical obstacles were so great that no body of 
troops could, in this direction, turn our right 



2S4 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



flank, and there was no necessity of extending 
our pickets. I then concluded to return ; and 
for the purpose of avoiding the dense under- 
growth, I turned back on a line about a hundi-ed 
rods in advance of the direction of our line of 
pickets. As I was passing through a thicket, I 
was surrounded by six rebel soldiers — four in- 
fantry and two cavalry. The footmen were 
poorly dressed and badly armed. Seeing I was 
caught, I thought it best to surrender at once. 
So I said, ' Gentlemen, you have me.' I was 
asked various questions as to who I was, where I 
was going, what regimen! I belonged to, &c., all 
of which I refused to answer. One of the foot- 
men said, 'Let's hang the d — d Yankee scoun- 
drel,' and pointed to a convenient limb. Another 
man said, ' No ; let's take him. to the camp, and 
then hang him.' One of the cavalrymen, who 
seemed to be leader, said, 'We'll take hira to 
camp.' They then mai'ched me through an open 
place — two in front, two in the rear, and a cav- 
ab'}Tnan on each side of me. I was armed with 
two revolvers and my sword. 

" After going some twenty rods, the Sergeant 
on my right, noticing my pistols, ordered me to 
give them up, together with my sword. I said, 
' Certainly, gentlemen,' and immediately halted. 
As I stopped, they all filed past me, and of course 
were in front. We were at this time in an open 
part of the woods, but about sixty yards to the 
rear was a thicket of undergrowth. Thus every- 
thing was in my favor ; I was quick of foot, and 
a passable shot ; yet the design of escape was not 
formed until» I brought my pistol pouches round 
to the front part of my body, and my hands 
touched the stocks. The grasping of the pistols 
suggested the thought of cocking them as I drew 
them out. This I did ; and the moment I got 
command of them, I shot down two footmen near- 
est me — about sixty feet off — one with each 
hand. I immediately turned and ran towai-ds the 
thicket in the rear. The confusion of my captors 
was apparently so great, that I had nearly reached 
cover before shots were fired at me. One ball 
passed through my left cheek, passing out of 
my mouth. Another one, a musket-ball, passed 
through my canteen. Immediately upon this vol- 
ley the two cavalrymen separated — one on my 
left and the other on my right — to cut off my 
retreat. The remaining two footmen charged di- 
rectly towards me ; I turned, when the horsemen 
got up, and fired three or four shots, but the balls 
flew wild. I ran on, got over a small knoll, and 
nearly regained one of our pickets, when I was 
headed off by both the mounted men. The Ser- 
geant called out to me to halt and sun-ender ; I 
gave no reply, but fired and ran in the opposite 
direction. He pursued and overtook me ; I turned, 
took good aim, pulled the trigger, but the cap 
snapped. At this time his carbine was unslung, 
and he was holding it with both hands on the left 
side of his horse. He fired at my breast without 
raising the piece to his shoulder, and the shot 
passed from the right side of my coat, through it 
and my shirt, to the left, just grazing the skin ; 
the piece was so near as to burn the cloth out the 
size of one's hand. I was, however, uninjured at 



this time, save the shot through my cheek. I 
then fired at him again, and brought him to the 
ground, hanging by his foot in the left stirrup, 
and the horse galloping towai-ds the camp. I saw 
no more of the other horseman, nor of the foot- 
men, but running on soon came to our own pick- 
ets uninjured, save the shot through my cheek, 
but otherwise much exhausted from my exer- 
tions." 

The Power of Slave Labor. — The follow- 
ing curious passage appears in a sermon preached 
by Rev. WilHam O. Prentiss, at three different 
times, twice by request repeated, in South Caro- 
lina, in 1860 : 

" Three hundred and fifty thousand white men 
directing the labor of less than four millions of 
African slaves, have furnished the material, out of 
which has been reared this colossal fabric, and it 
begins to topple to its fall at the first bright promise 
that their sustaining aid shall be withdrawn. If 
further proof be required that the labor to which 
I have alluded, has built up these vast, these im- 
portant interests, consult the statistics of our 
country ; study figures which no human inge- 
nuity can torture into the indorsement of a lie. 
History shows that the country makes no pal- 
pable improvement until the grand staple of the 
earth's necessities begins to be reared here, and 
that its advances are exactly proportioned to 
the amount and value of the African slave labor 
employed by us. The whole commerce of the 
civilized world is based upon this labor ; it feeds 
the hungr)'^, it clothes the naked, it employs the 
idler, it supports tottering thrones and starving 
paupers ; kings in theu" diadems, and beggars 
in their rags, all cry aloud to the god who feeds 
them, • Give us this day our daily cotton.' " 



Stonewall Jackson at Bull Run. — A 

Southern correspondent, who was present at the 
fii'st battle of Bull Run, relates the following : 

" General Jackson's brigade had been lying for 
hours sustaining with unflinching courage a most 
terrific fii'e. The general had his horse shot un- 
der him, and a finger of the left hand shot off; 
but, cool as a cucumber, he still urged his ' boys ' 
to be steady ; and steady they were, Avhen they 
charged and butchered the Fire Zouaves and oth- 
er regiments right and left. The General has a 
way of holding his head up very straight ; and 
his almost invariable response to any remark is, 
' Very well,' whilst his chin seems trying to get 
up towards the top of his head. The writer re- 
members, in the midst of the fight, to have seen 
the General rallying his men, while his chin 
seemed to stick out farther, and his ' Very wells ' 
seemed to sound more euphoniously than ever ; 
and when the writer wished to pour a little w-his- 
key upon the shattered finger, he was told that it 
was ' of no consequence ;' and away M'ent the Gen- 
ei'al, with a battery following him, to take posi- 
tion in some advantageous spot. If any one was 
ever entitled to a sobriquet, the General certainly 
deserved that of cooL" 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



235 



Anecdote of Genekal Wadsworth. — The 
following is one of the most beautiful and pathetic 
stories of the war : 

Paymaster Rochester, feeling his lips to be un- 
sealed by the death of General Wadsworth, tells 
that he always paid him from his entry into the 
service ; and that when the General called on him 
for money, on the eve of starting to the Missis- 
sippi Valley, on a special mission connected with 
the arming and organization of the slaves of that 
region, he casually remarked to him, that when 
he got to New Orleans he would find there Pay- 
master Vedder, to whom he would recommend 
him, as a gentlemanly officer, to apply for any 
moneys he might need. " No, sir," said General 
Wadsworth ; " I shall not apply to Maj. Vedder. 
While I am in the service I shall be paid only by 
you. And ray reason for that is, that I wish my 
account with the Government to be kept with one 
paymaster only ; for it is my purpose, at the close 
of the war, to call on you for an accurate state- 
ment of all the money I have received from the 
United States. The amount, whatever it is, I 
shall give to some permanent institution founded 
for the relief of disabled soldiers. This is the 
least invidious way in which I can refuse pay for 
fighting for my country in her hour of danger." 



General Lyon's Memory. — A soldier of 
Gen. Herron's division wrote from Springfield, 
Mo., as follows : 

" Gen. Lyon's memory is cherished by the sol- 
diers here as something holy. The Union men 
think that no man ever lived like him. The Third 
division visited the battle-field of Wilson's Creek 
on Thanksgiving Day, and each man placed a 
stone on the spot where Lyon fell, so that there 
now stands a monument some ten feet high, built 
by eight thousand soldiers, to point out to the 
visitor of this classic ground the place where the 
hero died." 

An Affecting Incident. — The State Milita- 
ry Agent of Michigan, at Nashville, L. B. Willard, 
relates the following affecting incident : 

" As I was passing by the post hospital, my 
attention was arrested by the singing, in a rather 
loud tone, of 'Rally round the flag, boys,' by 
one of the patients inside. While listening to the 
beautiful music of that popular song, I observed 
to a nurse standing in the doorway, that the per- 
son singing must be in a very merry mood, and 
could not be very sick. ' You are mistaken, sir,' 
said he ; ' the poor fellow engaged in singing that 
good old song is now grappling with death — has 
been dying all day. I am his nurse,' he contin- 
ued, ' and the scene so affected me that I was 
ibliged to leave the room. He is just about 
jreathing his last.' I stepped into the ward, and, 
true enough, the brave man was near his end. 
His eyes were already fixed in death. He was 
struggling with all his remaining strength against 
the grim monster, while at the same time there 
gushed forth from his patriotic soul, incoherently, 
the words, ' Rally round the flag, boys,' which 



had so often cheered him through his weary 
march, and braced him up when entering the 
field of blood in defence of his country. Finally 
he sank away into his death-slumber, and joined 
his Maker's command, that is marching onward 
to that far-off, better land. The last audible 
sound that escaped his lips was, ' Rally, boys ; 
rally once again ! ' As his eyes were closing, 
some dozen of his comrades joined in a solemn 
yet beautiful hymn, appropriate to the occasion. 
Take it altogether, this was one of the most af- 
fecting scenes I have ever witnessed in a hospital. 
It drew tears copiously from near one hundred 
of us. It occurred in the large Avard, which oc- 
cupies the entire body of the church on Cherry 
Street. The deceased was an lUinoisan, and had 
been wounded in one of the recent skirmishes." 



A Remarkable Escape. — Maj. K. V. Whaley, 
member of Congress from Wayne County, Va., 
was captui'ed at Guyandotte by H. Clay Pate, at 
the time of the massacre in that town, and carried 
to the vicinity of Chapmansville, two days' jour- 
ney distant. The prisoner and his captors stopped 
at a house near Chapmansville. Night coming 
on, Maj. Whaley, after hanging up his coat and 
hat by the fire to dry, went to bed with Capt. 
Wicher. In this room there were eight men, one 
of whom acted as a guard. About three o'clock 
in the morning Maj. Whaley awoke, and finding 
the guard nodding in front of the fire, and all the 
rest in deep slumber, determined to effect an es- 
cape. Leaving his bed as quietly as possible, he 
approached the guard, and, ascertaining that he 
was asleep, took Capt. Wicher's hat, picked up 
his own shoes, raised the latch of the door, and, 
seeing all clear outside, ran with all his might 
about two hundred yards down the Guyandotte 
River. Here he put on his shoes, and looked 
about for some drift wood upon which to cross 
the stream ; but, finding none, concluded to swim 
the river, which he did with considerable ease. 
He then proceeded down the river about a mile 
and a half, and commenced to ascend a mountain, 
the summit of which he reached just at daybreak, 
and just as Wicher was firing his guns as a signal 
of the escape. The firing was answered from all 
directions. Maj. Whaley, knowing it would be 
fatal to attempt to travel in daylight, sought a 
thicket of red oak brush, in which he found a sort 
of path. To and fro over this path he walked all 
day. A bleak wind was blowing ; and being wet 
through, and having no coat, he was compelled 
to walk rapidly in order to save his life. When 
night came on he started down the Guyandotte 
Valley, tracing the foot of the hills, a cUstance of 
two miles, when he came upon a camp of about 
one hundred cavalry ; and, knowing it would be 
folly to attempt to pass, retreated again to the 
mountains. The next day he took a circuit upon 
the top of the liills, to try and trace the valley 
and keep off the river, which he supposed would 
be guarded. 

At last he came upon Hart's Creek, and sup- 
posed himself to be in the vicinity of a Union set- 



236 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



tlement, at the head of Twelve Pole. He went 
up Hart's Creek, and inquired of an old lady 
named Adkins, who, with her son and son-in-law, 
were in the house, asking her to direct him to 
Kyer's Creek, which he knew to be one of the 
branches of Twelve Pole. Young Adkins finally 
agreed to show him the creek for two dollars ; and 
when they started, the Major observed that the 
son-in-law, Thompson, started in another direc- 
tion. The Major suspected that Thompson knew 
him, and feared pursuit ; so he hurried young Ad- 
kins along a good deal faster than that young 
gentleman desired to move. Arriving at the 
creek, the Major, having been robbed of all his 
money at Guyandotte on the night of the fight, 
could not comply with his contract with Adkins, 
but gave him twenty-five cents, all the money he 
had, and a new pair of soldier's shoes, taking in 
exchange the guide's old moccasons. The Major 
struck down the creek, along a very narrow road, 
passing two houses, at one of which he saw a lit- 
tle girl, but had not gone a great distance before 
he heard the tramp of the cavalry coming in pur- 
suit. The Major was about turning a bend in the 
road, and had barely time to jump over a fence, 
and lie flat upon his belly, when along dashed a 
company, led by the fellow Thompson, before 
mentioned. The Major was lying not six feet 
from wliere his pursuers passed, and could see 
their eyes peering anxiously forward in search of 
him. 

After the pursuers passed, he crawled up a ra- 
vine, and spent another twelve hours, exposed to 
the hardest kind of a rain, accompanied by the 
fiercest lightning and the loudest thunder. 

[The Major afterwards learned that the little 
girl whom he had seen had informed his pursuers 
that he had just gone around the bend in the 
road ; and in their anxiety to gain the bend and 
capture him, they never thought of looking to 
the right nor to the left.] 

Being exceedingly weak and feeble, in conse- 
quence of having gone three days without food, 
the Major determined to approach a house a short 
distance ahead, and ask for something to eat. He 
was answered by the man of the house, a llnion 
man, who recognized the Major almost attonce, 
and warned him not to remain a minute if he 
wanted to escape, as the cavalry had been there 
hunting for him. The Major ofiered the man five 
hundred dollars to conduct him to the Queen Set- 
tlement, and to the house of Absalom Queen. 
The man, although avowing himself a good Union 
man, refused the offer, stating that he would be 
killed by his cannibal neighbors if discovered. 
He, however, gave the Major a blanket to throw 
over his shivering shoulders, and directed him to 
the house of Queen. 

The Major plodded on, and at last reached the 
Iiouse of Queen, where he found a Home Guard 
of twenty- five men, who had assembled to keep 
the rebels from driving off the cattle from the 
Union settlement. Here was the first place he 
got anytliing to eat after making his escape. 
Queen and eleven of his men accompanied the 
Major, travelling only at night. 



The party reached the mouth of Big Sandy on 
Sunday at twelve o'clock, and there was great re- 
joicing all along the Ohio River, firing of can- 
non, &c. 

Absalom Queen was a brave soldier in the war 
of 1812, and as true and loyal a man as lives. 
There were about two hundred Union men in the 
settlement in which he resided, one hundred of 
whom, through his individual influence, joined 
Col. Zeigler's Fifth Virginia regiment. 



KENTUCKY! O KENTUCKY! 

John Morgan's foot is on thy shore, 

Kentucky ! Kentucky ! 
His hand is on thy stable door, 

Kentucky ! O Kentucky ! 
You'll see your good gray mare no more ; 
He'll ride her till her back is sore. 
And leave her at some stranger's door, 

Kentucky ! O Kentucky ! 

For feeding John j-ou're paying dear, 

Kentucky ! O Kentucky ! 
His very name now makes you fear, 

Kentucky ! O Kentucky ! 
In every valley, far and near, 
He's gobbled every horse and steer ; 
You'll rue his raids for many a year, 

Kentucky ! O Kentucky ! 

Yet you have many a traitorous fool, 

Kentucky ! O Kentucky ! 
Who still will be the rebel's tool, 

Kentucky ! O Kentucky ! 
Tliey'll learn to yield to Abra'm's rule 
In none but Johnny's costly school, 
At cost of every animule, 

Kentucky ! O Kentucky ! 



Scenes in the War. — Dick Boughton, of 
the Second Kansas regiment, in a letter to his 
sister, gives the following incidents : 

" It would be singular if, in a four or five 
months' arduous campaign, I should not be occa- 
sionally in a tight place, as well as the witness of 
some painful scenes. While the Kansas Second 
were stopping at St. Joseph, on their way home, 
in September, two persons were arrested, and 
placed under guard in one of the hotels in that 
city. On the evening of their arrest, and the 
following day, it chanced to be my turn at guard 
duty ; and I was one of the two placed at the 
door to guard the prisoners. Our instructions 
were to keep a sharp lookout, as one of them 
was a desperate character, arrested under the 
grave charge of shooting a Union man, and 
would probably attempt to get away. On the 
folloMing morning the mother of one of the 
prisoners, hearing of the arrest of her son, came 
up to the room in great distress. She told her 
story amid tears and sobs, persisting in saying 
that her son was a good Union man ; that he 
never carried anj" weapons, and had none when 
arrested, &c., &c. Poor woman ! she was under 
the impression that her son was about to be 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



237 



strung up to the nearest tree, without ceremony, 
by the Second Kansas boys, whose ferocity she 
had heard tell so much about. After her first 
burst of grief had subsided into comparative 
silence, I told her that, if what she said were true, 
she need Irnve no fears for the safety of her son ; 
and added that, when relieved from my post, I 
would see our Major, who would inquire into the 
matter; and I could assure her that he would 
ask only to know the circumstances of her son's 
arrest, without stopping to query upon opinions 
and sentiments. That evening he was honorably 
released, and I had the satisfaction of taking 
mother and son by the hand, and receiving their 
gratulation. 

" The case of the other prisoner was more 
serious and painful to me ; and I give it, not as 
one worthy of being singled out as especially 
sad, but only as one of many circiKiistances of an 
equally painful nature, with which the soldier in 
active service in this terrible war has become 
reluctantly familiar. While still dwelUng pleas- 
antly upon the consolation my words had given 
the old lady in the morning, a light footstep was 
heard on the stairs, and presently a young lady 
made her appearance in the hall leading to our 
room. Her countenance was so pale and sad, 
with traces of tears, that it would have drawn 
pity from a heart of stone. Her step was so 
feeble and uncertain that I involuntarily took her 
by the arm as she approached, and supported 
her into the presence of her husband. They 
embraced each other for some moments, the si- 
lence only broken by convulsive sobs. Presently 
the wife, making a strong effort to be calm, 
spoke : 

" ' Our child — our little Willie ! ' 

" The husband knew too well the terrible pur- 
port of her words. At the time of the arrest, 
their only child lay ill in its mother's arms, its 
little spuit hovering upon the verge of another 
world. When she could sufficiently command 
her emotions, she added : 

" ' Before he died, he rose in my arms, and 
called for you, Charles — ^ yes, he called for pa ! 
O Charles, Charles ! you could not come to us 
then.' She again sank upon her husband's bosom 
in uncontrollable anguish. Their tears mingled 
freely ; and I found the moisture collecting in my 
own eyes in inconvenient quantities as the ' sec- 
ond relief stationed themselves at our post, thus 
relieving us for a time. When we left the city, 
the prisoner pleaded very hard to be allowed to 
go with us 5 and I shall not soon forget his look 
of despair when it became necessary for our 
Major, despite his pleadings, to deliver him over 
to the command then stationed at that place. 

"At the hazard of being tedious, dear sister, I 
will relate a little circumstance which happened 
while guarding these same prisoners. We had 
just got fairly settled at our posts after the ar- 
rest, when the officer of the guard came around, 
full of importance, and talking loudly, as if he 
wished to be considered Lord Mogul, Gen. Jack- 
son, or some other distinguished individual. 

" * See here, guards ; keep an eye on that tall 



fellow there ; he's a d — d secesh. If he under- 
takes to get away, run your bayonet through 
him. We'll attend to his case directly ; ' and he 
took especial care that the prisoner should hear 
his remarks. I did not wish to conceal my re- 
sentment at such language upon such an occa- 
sion ; for I felt that he who used it disgraced the 
badge of distinction which rested upon his shoul- 
ders. It so chanced that a young lady, whose 
husband, a young lawyer, was off to the seces- 
sion army, often passed by our door in going to 
and from her room, which was near. She often 
paused in her vibrations to express her senti- 
ments on the secession question, which she did 
with great freedom, and with more unction at 
times than was compatible Avith her ladyship. I 
suppose somebody of sensitive nerves must have 
informed our officer of the guard that the lady 
was growing troublesome with her much talking. 
So when he came round again, he addressed 
himself to me in a voice full of authority, with : 

" ' If that woman comes around here with any 
more of her gab, just put her in that room there, 
and lock her in.' Sister, you know I am the 
coolest boy out, and can retain my linen with a 
grace under almost any circumstances ; but just 
at that moment I felt more savage than my 
words would indicate, as I very coolly returned 
in substance that I hoped I never should so far 
disgrace my manhood as to offer violence to a 
woman for any sentiments she might utter. 

" ' Obey my orders, sir,' was sung out with a 
pomp and emphasis intended to carry terror 
along with them, but which aroused in me feel- 
ings wickedly opposed to anything like fear. 
' You'll please excuse me, sir,' I immediately re- 
sponded, with just enough of tartness and accent 
to add impudence to disobedience. He then ad- 
vanced towards me in a rage, saying something 
about putting me under guard, and reaching out 
his hand as if to take me by the collar. 

" ' Hands off, if you please,' said I, as I brushed 
his hand aside Avith a spiteful movement. He 
passionately seized his pistol hanging at his side. 
I saw his thumb upon the hammer as he drew it 
forth, thundering out as he did so : 

" ' I'll shoot you down like — ' 

" I finished the sentence for him, as, springin^^ 
forward with an activity that astonished myselt, 
I planted a blow just over his left eye, which sent 
him reeling backwards towards the stairway ; 
and he seized the baluster to save himself. His 
pistol fell from his hand, and rattled down the 
stairs behind. This en-ded the interesting scene, 
for he flung up his arms, and crying hke a child, 
begged me not to strike again. 

" I was now left to the pleasant contemplation 
of my situation, and the penalty attached to 
striking an officer ; but my fellow-guard, when 
questioned, placed the matter in so favorable a 
light for me that I was not even arrested." 



Attack on the Ironsides. — One of the 
most daring and gallant naval exploits of the 
war, distinguished by the greatest coolness, pres- 



^^s 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



ence of mind, and intrepidity of the brave men 
associated in the enterprise, was performed Mon- 
day night, October 6, 1863. This was no less than 
an attempt to blow up the United States steamer 
New Ironsides, lying off Morris Island. Though 
not fully meeting the expectations of those who 
conceived the plan, and those who carried it into 
execution, it called forth unbounded admii'ation 
for the brilliant heroism of the actors in their 
dangerous but patriotic and self-sacrificing under- 
taking. 

The torpedo steamer David, with a crew of four 
volunteers, consisting of Lieut. Wm. T. Glassell, 
J. H. Toombs, chief engineer, and James Sullivan, 
fireman of the gunboat Chicora, with J. W. Can- 
non, assistant pilot of the gunboat Palmetto State, 
left South Atlantic Wharf between six and seven 
o'clock in the evening, for the purpose of rmming 
out to the Ironsides, exploding a torpedo under 
that vessel near amidships, and if possible blow 
her up. The weather, being dark and hazy, fa- 
vored the enterprise. The boat, with its gallant 
little crew, proceeded down the harbor, skirting 
along the shoals on the inside of the channel, un- 
til nearly abreast of their formidable antagonist, 
the New Ironsides. 

They remained in this position for a short time, 
circling around on the large shoal near the an- 
chorage of the object of their visit. Lieut. Glas- 
sell, with a double-barrelled gun, sat in front of 
Pilot Cannon, who had charge of the helm. Chief 
Engineer Toombs was at the engine, with the 
brave and undaunted Sullivan, the volunteer fire- 
man, when something like the following conver- 
sation ensued : 

Lieut. Glassell. " It is now nine o'clock. Shall 
we strike her ? " 

Pilot Cannon. " That is what we came for. 
I am ready." 

Engineer Toombs. " Let us go at her then, 
and do our best." 

Sullivan, fireman. " I am with you all, and 
waiting. Go ahead." 

The boat was now put bow on, and aimed di- 
rectly for the Ironsides. As the little steamer 
darted forward, the lookout on the L'onsides hailed 
them with : " Take care there ; you will run into 
us. What steamer is that ? " Lieut. Glassell 
replied by discharging one barrel at the Yankee 
sentinel, and tendering' the gun to Pilot Cannon, 
told him there was another Yankee, pointing to 
one with his body half over the bulwarks, and 
asked Cannon to take care of him with the other 
barrel. 

The next moment they had struck the Iron- 
sides, and exploded the torpedo about fifteen feet 
from the keel, on the starboard side. An im- 
mense volume of water was thrown up, covering 
the little boat, and going through the smoke-stack, 
entered the furnace, completely extinguishing the 
fires. 

In addition to this, pieces of the ballast had 
fallen into the works of the engine, rendering>it 
unmanageable at that time. Volley after volley 
of musketry from the crew of the Ironsides and 
from the launches began to pour in upon them. 



Lieut. Glassell gave the order to back, but it was 
found impossible. In this condition, with no 
shelter, and no hope of escape, they thought it 
best to surrender, and hailed the enemy to that 
efiect. The Yankees, however, paid no attention 
to the call. It was then proposed to put on their 
life-preservers, jump overboard, and endeavor to 
swim to the shore. All but Pilot Cannon con- 
sented. The latter, being unable to swim, said he 
would stay and take his chances in the boat. 
Lieut. Glassell, Engineer Toombs, and Sullivan 
the fireman, left the boat, the first two having 
on life-preservers, and the latter supporting him- 
self on one of the hatches thrown to him by the 
pilot. Engineer Toombs, becoming embarrassed 
with his clothing in the water, got back to the 
boat, and was assisted in by Cannon. 

The boat was then rapidly drifting from the 
Ironsides. He now fortunately found a match, and 
lighting a torch, crept back to the engine, discov- 
ered and removed the cause of its not working, 
and soon got it in order. Engineer Toombs and 
Cannon reached their wharf in the city about 
midnight, fatigued, and jn-esenting a worn-out 
appearance, but rejoicing at their fortunate and 
narrow escape. 

CAYALRY SONG. 

BY ELBBIDGE JEFFERSON CUTLER. 

The squadron is forming, the war-bugles play. 
To saddle, brave comrades, stout hearts for a fray ! 
Our Captain is mounted — strike spurs, and away ! 

No breeze shakes the blossoms or tosses the grain ; 
But the wind of our speed floats the galloper's mane, 
As he feels the bold rider's firm hand on the rein. 

Lo ! dim in the starlight their white tents appear ! 
Ride softly ! ride slowly ! the onset is near ! 
More slowly ! more softly ! the sentry may hear ! 

Now fall on the rebel — a tempest of flame ! 
Strike down the false banner whose triumph were 

shame ! 
Strike, strike for the true flag, for freedom and 

fame! 

Hurrah ! sheathe your swords ! the carnage is done. 
All red with our valor, we welcome the sun. 
Up, up with the stars ! we have won ! we have 
won ! 



The End of the Alabama. — A Confeder- 
ate soldier gives the following account of the sink- 
ing of that famous vessel and his subsequent ad- 
ventures : 

" I was with Semmes everywhere he went, in 
the naval brigade, and in blockade running, and 
was on the Alabama all the time he commanded 
her. I was with him when she sank, and was 
picked up when he was, by the Deerhound. A 
sharp fight it was, I assure you, but it wasn't 
altogether the eleven-inch guns of the Kearsarge 
that did the business. AVe never had a chance 
of success, and our men knew it ; and then we 
had no gunners to compare with the Kearsarge'B. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



239 



" Our gunners fired by routine, and wlien they 
liad a gun loaded, fired it off blind. They never 
changed the elevation of their guns all through 
the fight, and the Kearsarge was working up all 
the time, taking advantage of every time she 
was hid by the smoke to work a little nearer, and 
then her gunners took aim for every shot. "We 
never tried to board the Kearsarge, but, on the 
contrary, tried our best to get away, from the time 
the fight commenced. 

" We knew very well that if we got in range 
of her Dahlgren howitzers she would sink us in 
ten minutes. 

" Semmes never supposed he could whip the 
Kearsarge when he went out to fight her. He 
was bullied into it, and took good care to leave 
all his valuables on shore, and had a life-preserver 
on through the fight. I saw him put it on, and 
I thought if it was wise in him, it wouldn't be 
foolish in me to do the same. When Semmes 
saw that the ship was going down, he told us all 
to swim who could, and was one of the fu-st to 
jump into the water, and we all made for the Deer- 
nound. 

" I was a long way ahead of Semmes, and when 
I came up to the Deerhound's boat, they asked 
me if I was Semmes, before they would take me 
in. They would not take me in till I told them 
I was an officer on the Alabama, and as soon as 
they had Semmes aboard they made tracks as 
fast as they knew how, and left everybody else to 
be drowned or picked up by the Kearsage." 



Gen. Butler and the " Perfectionists." 
^In Norfolk there was a society called "Perfec- 
tionists," and in their behalf some ten or twelve 
of them addressed a letter to the Commanding 
General of that department, setting forth their 
objections to swearing allegiance to any earthly 
government. The subject was disposed of by Gen. 
Butler in the following characteristic manner : 

Hkadquarters of Eighteenth Army Corps, ) 
Fort Moskoe, Va., January 13, 1864. | 

J. F. Dozier, E. H. Beaseley, and others : 

Gentlemen : I have read your petition to Gen. 
Barnes, setting forth your objections to swearing 
allegiance to any earthly government. 

The first reason which you set forth is that 
" all human governments are a necessary evil, and 
are continued in existence only by the permission 
of Jehovah until the time arrives for the estab- 
lishment of his kingdom, and in the establishment 
of whichall others will be subdued unto it, thus 
fulfilling that declaration in the eighth of Daniel, 
fourteenth verse," &c. 

You therein establish to your own satisfaction 
three points : 

First. That government, although an evil, is a 
necessary one. Second. That for a time it is 
permitted to exist by the wisdom of Jehovah. 
Thu-d. That the time at which a period is to be 
put to its existence is not come. 

Therefore you ought to swear allegiance to the 
government of the United States : 



First. Because, though an evil, you admit it to 
be necessary. Second. Although an evil, you 
admit that it is permitted by the wisdom of Je- 
hovah, and that it is not for his creatures to 
question the wisdom of his acts. Third. You 
only claim to be excused when Jehovah's govern- 
ment is substituted, which period, you admit, has 
not yet arrived. 

Your obedient servant, 

Ben J. F. Butler. 



Five Days a Prisoner. — Lieutenant Charles 
O. Phillips was captured, with his orderly, on the 
morning of the 3d of April, 1865, during the 
advance on Richmond, and while under orders 
from General Weitzel, upon whose staff he was 
serving. " I was taken to General Geary," said 
he, " and questioned closely by him ; he finally 
concluded by telling me I was ' a d — d intelligent 
staff officer,' because I could not tell him the 
strength of our corps, who commanded it, nor 
even what troops were entering the city when I 
was captured. 

" The first day's march was twenty-eight miles 
on foot, with nothing to eat. I tried to escape 
that night, but was caught. The second day we 
marched twenty-three miles, and the rebels prom- 
ised to feed us at night, but did not. The third 
day we marched twenty-six miles, Sheridan after 
us. He took a train of three hundred wagons, 
with stores, and destroyed the whole. At night 
(the third) I found so much fault that they gave 
me two ears of corn to eat. This night I got 
permission to go to the river and bathe, my feet 
being very sore and chafed badly. I made ar- 
rangements with the guard to desert, but was 
caught, when the provost marshal told me he 
would shoot me if I attempted to escape again, 
at which I suggested whether it might not be as 
well to shoot me as to starve me to death. 

" The next day we marched twenty-five miles, 
and at four P. M. Sheridan was very close to us. 
I was so completely exhausted that I thought life 
was not worth much ; so down I sat in the road, 
my orderly doing likewise, determined not to 
march farther without rest. The Captain threat- 
ened to shoot me again, and I told him to act his 
pleasure, as Uncle Sam knew how, and had as 
many of their men as they had of ours. He 
finally chose what he thought was his best and 
most reliable man to leave as guard over myself 
and orderly, giving him instructions to keep us 
within their lines at all hazards. Soon I got on 
the right side of Johnny, and made arrangements 
to desert with him, whenever an opportunity 
could be gained. 

" At dusk we found ourselves in a little pine 
grove with rebels all around us. The bright moon 
plagued me considerably, and I feared my plan 
for escape would not result favorably ; but any- 
thing, I thought, was preferable to my present 
condition. At a time Avhen no one Avas watching 
us, I succeeded in concealing myself with my two 
comrades in a deep ravine, under a large cedar. 
Soon I heard voices, and looking out carefully, I 



240 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



saw a lieutenant and several men pass along. 
Creeping out, I folloAved them, and saw the officer 
post his men on picket surrounding the ravine. 
I then followed him to his reserve, ascertained at 
the next relief that the positions of the men 
were not changed each time, and then returned 
to our hiding-place to communicate the good 
news to the orderly and the Johnny. The latter 
began to be a little shaky, and I a little doubtful. 
It was a long time to wait till the moon went 
doAvn, and finally the guard fell asleep. He had 
previously agreed to let us go, and he would re- 
turn to his company, I demanding that lie should 
wait till we had started. Seeing him asleep, I 
changed my tactics, quietly took his rifle, &c., 
gently shook him by the shoulder, and informed 
him that during his short nap affairs had changed. 
He was now my prisoner, and would do precisely 
as I said, or his brains were worthless. He looked 
very much surprised, but saw there was no help 
for him. 

" At half past four A. M. it was a little cloudy, 
and I quietly informed Johnny that he was to 
take the lead, on his hands and knees, my orderly 
would go next, and myself with Johnny's musket 
in the rear. In this way we escaped through the 
enemy's picket line, and reached our friends in 
safety at half past six o'clock on the morning of the 
seventh. I turned the rebel guard over to Major 
Stevens, provost marshal of this (Twenty-fifth) 
corps, and he immediately took the oath, thanking 



Captain Cushing's Exploit. — One pleasant 
night, Avhile the blockading fleet lay off" Wilming- 
ton, young Gushing, of the gunboat Monticello, 
took a first cutter, with fifteen men and two offi- 
cers (Acting Ensign Jones and Acting Master's 
Mate Howard), and succeeded in passing the 
forts of the west bar at Wilmington, and started 
up the Cape Fear Hiver. After a narrow escape 
of being run over by one of the rebel steamers 
plying the river, he passed the second line of bat- 
teries, and continued his course until Old Bruns- 
wick was reached, where the rebels had a heavy 
battery, when he was hailed and fired upon, but 
succeeded in passing unscathed, by feigning to 
pass down the river, and crossing to the friendly 
cover of the opposite bank. He then continued 
his course up the river. By this artifice the 
rebels were deceived, and signalized to the forts 
to intercept him as he came down the river, 
which they supposed was the direction taken. 

At half past two the next morning the Captain 
had reached a point seven miles distant from 
Wilmington, where he caused the boat to be 
hauled on the banks, and concealed from view by 
bushes and marsh grass. Day had now dawned, 
and it became necessary to select a place of con- 
cealment, which was found in the brush on the 
banks. 

Soon after daylight, the rebel steamers, block- 
ade runners, and transports could be seen by the 
party plying up and doMn the river ; and, in fact, 
the flagship of the rebel Commodore Lynch 



passed by, pennant flying, the distinguished gen- 
tleman unconscious of the fact that a rifle in a 
steady hand could, and would, but for obvious 
reasons, have given him his quietus. Two block- 
ade steamers, of the first class, passed up, and 
one down, during the first twenty-four hours. 
When night had fairly set in, the Captain pre- 
pared to launch his boat, when two boats rounded 
the point ; and, as he supposed, having discovered 
his position, they designed to attack him ; but it 
proved to be a returned fishing party. The en- 
tire party were captured — eight in number. 
Compelling them to act in the capacity of guides, 
he proceeded to examine all the fortifications, 
river obstructions, and other objects of interest 
within three miles of Wilmington. Here he was 
compelled to pass through a creek, running 
through a cypress swamp, for several hours, 
through grass eight feet high, and immense cy- 
press trees on each side, whose shadow cast a 
dark gloom, only exceeded by darkness. 

By two o'clock that morning a road was reach- 
ed, which proved to be a branch of the main road 
to Wilmington, and joining it at a point two 
miles distant. The party were here divided, ten 
being left to hold this road ; and the Captain, 
taking the remaining eight men, took position at 
the junction of the roads, one of which was the 
main. Several prisoners were here captured, but 
none of importance. At about eleven o'clock in 
the morning, the rebel courier, with the mails 
from Fort Fisher and lower batteries, en route to 
Wilmington, whose approach was awaited, came 
duly Mong, and he, with his entire mail, was cap- 
tured. 

On examination, this proved to be a prize of 
value, there being upwards of two hundred docu- 
ments, private and official, and many of great im- 
portance. The party, having thus far labored suc- 
cessfully, experienced the necessity for refresh- 
ment for the inner man, and accordingly Master's 
Mate Howard garbed himself in the courier's 
clothes, and mounting the same worthy's horse, 
proceeded two miles to a store, and purchased a 
supply of provisions, with wliich he safely re- 
turned. The prices the mate thought exorbi- 
tant, but did not feel disposed, in his liberal 
mood, to haggle or beat down. 

Shortly after, more prisoners were captured, 
and all that was now required to add to the iclat 
of the achievement was to capture the com-ier 
and mail from Wilmington, whose advent was 
looked for at five P. M. The impatience of the 
party may be imagined, when it is stated that 
the mail would contain the day's papers issued 
at Wilmington at one P. M., and our nomadic 
friends were anxious to obtain the latest news 
early. 

The courier arrived slightly in advance of time ; 
but one of the sailors, having moved incautiously 
across the road, was seen by him, and taking 
alarm, he took to his heels at full speed. Capt. 
Cushing, like Paul Duval No. 2, awaited him on 
the road, with pistol cocked, put spurs to his 
horse, and pursued for about three miles. But 
the courier speeded on like a whirlwind, and the 




^ng^iyAttKitcliie- 



MA.J. GE.X.W T,S]lEHMA\v 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



241 



Captain, being rather farther from his base than 
he thought prudent, took to his line of retreat, 
and fell back in rapid, but good order. 

The telegraph wire leading to Wilmington M'as 
then cut for several hundred yards, and the part)', 
with prisoners and spoils, rejoined the squad left 
with the boat, and proceeding down the creek, 
reached the river about dark. The prisoners 
impeding the speed of the boats, measures were 
taken to dispose of them by depriving one of the 
fishing boats of oars and sails, and setting it 
adrift in the middle of the river, thus rendering 
it impossible for them to give the alarm until the 
tide floated them on some friendly bank. But 
while putting this plan into execution, a steamer 
approached rapidly, and detection was only avoid- 
ed by the party leaping into the water, and hold- 
ing on to the gunwales of the boat. The 
steamer passing, the prisoners and boat were 
sent adrift. 

Nothing of interest occurred on the route 
down the river, until at a point "between the 
batteries at Brunsvv'ick and Fort Fisher, when a 
boat was discovered making rapidly towards the 
shore. After an exciting chase she was over- 
taken, and her occupants, consisting of six per- 
sons, four of whom were soldiers, were taken on 
board, and the boat cut adrift. From them in- 
formation was obtained that the rebels were on 
the qui vive, having boats posted at the narrow 
entrance between the forts to intercept the re- 
turn. To understand the position of the party, 
it should be known that they were but three hun- 
dred yards distant from two forts, and this on 
a moonlight night. Capt. Gushing, on learning 
the rebels' designs, resolved to take a desperate 
chance of fighting his way through, supposing 
that in case there were but one or two boats, he 
might, by giving a broadside, escape in the con- 
fusion. On arriving at the mouth of the harbor, 
he perceived, as he imagined, one large boat, 
which, wonderfully prolific, soon gave birth to 
three more, which were afterwards increased in 
number by five from the opposite bank. 

This completely blocked up the narrow en- 
trance to the harbor. The helm was put hard 
aport to gain distance, and, seeing a large sail- 
boat filled with troops (seventy-five musketeers), 
it was decided that the only hope lay in outma- 
nceuvring them. The rebels, providentially, did 
not, during this interval, fire a shot, no doubt an- 
ticipating the certain capture of all. There be- 
ing another means of entrance into the harbor 
(the west bar), the only possible hope was in im- 
pressing the rebels with the opinion that he would 
attempt that, the only remaining chance of es- 
cape. Accordingly, apparently making for this 
point, the rebel boats were drawn together in 
pursuit, when, rapidly changing his direction, 
the Captain brought his boat back to the other 
entrance (the east bar), and, deeply loaded as 
she was (twenty-six in the boat), forced her into 
the breakers. The rebels, evidently foiled, dared 
not venture to follow, and the guns of the bat- 
teries, which were pointed to rake the channel, 
were unprepared to inflict damage. 
16 



Capt. Cushing arrived safely with his jmsoners 
and the mail, having performed one of the most 
hazardous and daring feats of the Avar, and ob- 
tained information of great value to the service. 



A Compliment. — " We have heard of an inci- 
dent which lately took place at a review of the 
army of the Potomac," says a correspondent of a 
Southern paper, " which should send a thrill of 
pleasure through the breast of every man, wo- 
man, and child in Florida. At the time when the 
Florida corps was passing. Gen. Hill turned to 
Gen. Lee, saying : ' That is the remnant of the 
gallant Florida brigade.' Gen. Lee immediately 
took ofl' his hat, and remained uncovered until 
the Florida brigade passed. It was a compli- 
ment which we do not remember ever to have 
seen paid by our gallant commander of the Po- 
tomac to any other corps. Gen. Lee never pays 
a compliment to any person or party of men 
without it is deserved." 



An Editor, announcing that he had been 
drafted, discoursed as follows : 

" Why should we mourn conscripted friends, 
Or shake at draft's alarms ? 
'Tis but the voice that Abr'am sends 
To make us shoulder arms." 



The Yankee Soldier. — Major Clark Wright 
obtained considerable prominence as a. scout and 
soldier. He moved from Ohio to Polk County, 
Missouri, in 1858, and buying a large amount 
of prairie, commenced the business of stock rais- 
ing. He was just before married to a woman of 
more than ordinary intelligence and determina- 
tion, who proved herself eminently fitted for the 
duties which their new life imposed upon them. 
He prospered greatly, and in a short time had 
erected a house, furnished in the best style pos- 
sible, had two young children, an amiable wife, a 
good home, and was adding rapidly to an original 
fortune. 

In the winter of 1860, when the roar of seces- 
sion came up from South Carolina, he heard it in 
common Avith others of his neighbors ; but while 
avowing himself in favor of sustaining the Union, 
he determined to attend strictly to his own busi- 
ness. He had no hesitation in expressing his 
sentiments of loyalty to the Government, but he 
did it quietly, and with a view not to give oflence. 
Soon after, at a Baptist meeting near his resi- 
dence, a few of the brethren, after refreshing their 
spiritual appetites in the sanctuaiy, took his case 
into consideration, and unanimously determined 
that he should be made to leave the country, ap- 
pointing a committee of three to inform him of 
their decision. 

One of the party, although an ardent seces- 
sionist, happened to be a personal friend of 
Wright, and hastening away, informed him of 
the meeting, and that the committee would wait 
on him the next day. Wright thanked his kind 



242 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



friend, and then, like a dutiful husband, laid the 
case before his v,ife, and asked her advice. She 
pondered a few moments, and then asked if he 
had done anything to warrant such a proceeding. 
Nothing. " Then let us fight ! " was the reply ; 
and to fight was the conclusion. Wright was 
plentifully supplied with revolvers ; he took two, 
and his wife another, loaded them carefully, and 
awaited further developments. 

Monday afternoon three men rode up and in- 
quired for Mr. Wright. He walked out, with the 
butt of a revolver sticking warily from his pocket, 
and inquired their wishes. The revolver seemed 
to upset their ideas. They answered nothing in 
particular, and proceeded to converse upon every- 
thing in general, but never alluded to their errand. 
Finally, after a half hour had passed, and the 
men still talked on without coming to their mis- 
sion, AVright grew impatient, and asked if they 
had any special business ; if not, he had a pressing 
engagement, and would like to be excused. Well, 
they had a little business, said one, with consider- 
able hesitation, as he glanced at the revolver butt. 

" Stop ! " said Wright ; " before you tell it, I 
•wish to say a word. I Jcnoio your business, and 
I just promised my wife, on my honor as a man, 
that I would blow h — 1 out of the first man who 
told me of it, and by the eternal God I'll do it ! 
Now tell me your eri-and ! " and as he concluded 
he pulled out his revolver and cocked it. The 
fellow glanced a moment at the deadly-looking 
pistol, and took in the stalwart form of Wright, 
who was glaring at him with murder in his eye, 
and concluded to postpone the announcement. 
The three rode away, and reported the reception 
to their principals. 

The next Sunday, after another refreshing 
season, the brethren again met, and took action 
upon the contumacy of Mr. Wright. The Cap- 
tain of a company of secessionists was present, 
and after due deliberation, it was determined 
that, upon the next Thursday, he should take his 
command, jn-oceed to Wright's, and summarily 
eject him from the sacred soil of Missouri. 
Wright's friend was again present, and he soon 
communicated the state of afiairs to Mr. AV., with 
a suggestion that it M'ould save trouble and blood- 
shed if he got away before the day appointed. 

Wright lived in a portion of the country re- 
mote from the church and the residence of those 
who were endeavoring to drive him out, and he 
determined, if possible, to prepare a surprise for 
the worthy Captain and his gallant force. To 
this end he bought a barrel of whiskey, another 
of crackers, a few cheeses, and some other pro- 
visions, and then mounting a black boy upon a 
swift horse, sent him around the country, inviting 
his friends to- come and see him, and bring their 
arms. By Wednesday night he had gathered a 
force of about three hundred men, to whom he 
communicated the condition of things, and asked 
their assistance. They promised to back him to 
the death. The next day they concealed them- 
selves in a cornfield, back of the house, and 
awaited the development of events. 

A little after noon, the Captain and some 



eighty men rode up to the place, and inquired 
for Mr. Wright. That gentleman immediately 
made his appearance, when the Captain informed 
him that, being satisfied of his Abolitionism, they 
had come to eject him from the State. 

" Won't you give me two days to settle up my 
affairs ? " asked Wright. 

" Two days be ! I'll give you just five 

minutes to pack up your traps and leave ! " 

" But I can't get ready in five minutes ! I 
have a fine property here, a happy home, and if 
you drive me oft', you make me a beggar. I have 
done nothing. If I go, my Avife and children 
must starve ! " 

" To with your beggars ! You must 

travel ! " 

" Give me two hours ! " 

"I'll give you just five minutes, not a second 
longer ! If you ain't out by that time (here the 
gallant soldier swore a most fearful oath), I'll 
blow out your cm-sed Abolition heart ! " 

" Well, "if I must, I must ! " and Wright tm-ned 
towards the house, as if in despair, gave a pre- 
concerted whistle, and almost instantly after, the 
concealed forces rushed out, and surrounded the 
astounded Captain and his braves. 

" Ah, Captain ! " said Wright, as he turned 
imploringly towards him, " won't you grant, me 
two days, — two,, hours, at least, — my brave 
friend — only two hours in which to prepare my- 
self and family for beggary and starvation — now 
do — Avon't you ? " 

The Captain could give no reply, but sat upon 
his horse, shaking as if ague-smitten. 

" Don't kill me ! " he at length found voice to 
say. 

" Kill you ! No, you black-livered coward, I 
won't dirty my hands with any such filthy Avork. 
If I kill you, I'll have one of my niggers do it ! 
Get doAvn from that horse ! " 

The gallant Captain obeyed, imploring only 
for life. The result of the matter Avas, that the 
whole company dismounted, laid doAvn their 
arms, and then, as they filed out, were sworn to 
preserve their allegiance inviolate to the United 
States. An hour after, INIr. Wright had organ- 
ized a force of tvro hundred and forty men for 
the war, and by acclamation Avas elected Captain. 
The next Sunday, he started Avith his command 
to join the national troops under Lyon, stopping 
long enough on his Avay to surround the Hard- 
shell Church, at Avhich had been inaugurated all 
his miseries. After the service Avas over, he ad- 
ministered the oath of allegiance to every one 
present, including the Reverend Pecksnin' Avho 
officiated, and then left them to plot treason 
and Avorship God in their- OAvn peculiarly pious 
and harmonious manner. 

He soon after became Maj. Wright, and con- 
tinued in command of the croAvd he enlisted at 
the beginning. 

Uj^ion Men at the South. — An Illinois 
soldier, Avho Avas captured at Shiloh, gives the 
foUoAving incident of his visit to Memphis, then 
in the hands of the Confederates : 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



243 



" A little good talking, mixed with the requi- 
site amount of 'cheek,' secured to Serg. Eddy, 
well known among the Chicago typos, and my- 
self, the privilege of a walk around town in com- 
pany with a couple of German home guards, 
who carried two of Fremont's ' needle gun ' for 
our protection. Our first stopping-place was the 
'Appeal' office, where we found eight or ten 
' comps,' and a score or so of ' secesh ' flags — 
all hands intensely bitter against the North, 
• secesh ' all over, and every man of them 
born outside of Dixie. One of them — I for- 
get his name, but shall never forget the man — 
asked : 

" ' Do you find as much Union sentiment as 
you expected ? ' 

" I answered that I felt sure that such senti- 
ment everywhere existed. 

" ' You are mistaken,' said he ; ' there is not 
to-day a Union man in Memphis — not one.' 

" Glancing at the guards, I saw evident signs 
of nervousness and anger, and thinking that per- 
haps, in the heat of debate, we had said too 
much, and should have a difficulty with them, 
my friend and I made prepai'ations to leave. 
Scarcely had the door closed behind us, when 
one of the guards brought his piece down with a 
thump on the iron step, exclaiming : 

" ' Dare ish no Union sentiment here, eh ? O, 
no ! We are all tamd " secesh " ! You comes 
mit me, I shows you. We all lay down our lives 
for dis Suturn Confederacy. O, yes \ We be 
glad to.' 

" We followed the guard to the outsku-ts of 
the town, and entered a blacksmith's shop, where, 
working at the forge, we recognized a couple of 
Chicago boys — they, too, belonged to the home 
guard. A sharp lookout was kept at the front 
and back doors ; presently the coast was an- 
nounced clear, and then you should have seen us 
making good time over back fences and through 
alleys, until we reached the abiding-place o^ ai^r 
guide — entering, a buxom German girl placed 
chairs for us to be seated. 

" ' Frau,' said the guard, as soon as he had re- 
covered sufficient breath to speak. ' Frau, here 
is a couple of tamd Yankees; you show dem 
we is good " secesh," eh.' ' Yes, I show dem ; ' 
and the ' Frau ' placed a table in the centre of 
the room, and then disappeared. Presently the 
hissing of the tea-kettle is heard, and in a few 
minutes coffee which cost one dollar and twenty- 
five cents per pound, bread made from flour cost- 
ing twenty dollars per barrel, and sausages from 
meat proportionately high, were served up to us. 
Our haversacks were filled, and then ' Frau ' 
grumbled because we would not accept more. 
They were poor, and we could not rob them. 
While we were eating, the guards amused them- 
selves by taking the main-springs out of then- 
gun-locks, and burning them in the stove. As 
we shook hands at our prison-house door, they 
whispered, ' We are all tam " secesh." ' We 
made arrangements with these men for a disguise 
to escape, but before they were again on duty, 
the * show ' was started for a new place." 



SONG OF THE CROAJiER. 

BY HORATIO ALGEK, JR. 

An old frog lived in a dismal swaijapi 

In a dismal kind of way ; 
And all that he did, whatever befell, 
Was to croak the livelong day. 
Croak, croak, croak, 
When darkness filled the air, 

And croak, croak, croak. 
When the skies were bright and fair. 

" Good Master Frog, a battle is fought, 
And the foeman's power is broke ; " 
But he only turned a greener hue, 
And answered with a croak. 
Croak, croak, croak, 
When the clouds are dark and dun. 

And croak, croak, croak, 
In the blaze of the noontide sun. 

" Good Master Frog, the fomeS i^ Right 

Are driving the hosts of Wrong ; " 
But he gives his head an ominous shake, 
And croaks out, ^'■Nous v err cms T' 
Croak, croak, croak, 
Till the heart is full of gloom, 

And croak, croak, croak, "^-y 
Till the worS' seems but a tome. 

To poisoii'the cup of life 

By ahvEf'ys dreading the worst, 
Is to makq of the earth a dungeon damp, 
And the happiest life accursed. 
Croak, croak, croak. 
When the noontide sun rides high, 

And croak, croak, croak. 
Lest the night come by and by. 

Farewell to the dismal frog : 

Let him croak as loud as he may, 
He cannot blot the sun from heaven, 
Nor hinder the march of day. 

Though he croak, croak, croak, 
Till the heart is full of gloom, 

And croak, croak, croak. 
Till the world seems but a tomb. 



A Philadelphia Welcome, — A soldier oi 
the Fourth New Hampshire regiment gives hit 
experience in Philadelphia a^ follows : 

" We arrived in the city at five o'clock on Sun- 
day morning, Sept. 29, 1861, and the regiment 
was welcomed in a manner better appreciated 
tlian described. Within five or six rods of the 
ferry are three or four hundred wash-bowls, with 
pipes of warm and cold water to supply them. 
Here a scene followed, which reminded me that 
' cleanliness is next to godliness.' Then we were 
marched to a building literally filled with nice 
bread, hot coffee, cold meats, pickles, cheese, and 
sour krout, and invited to partake of a Quaker's 
hospitality. After eating we were informed that 
stationery and every convenience for writing was 
at oiu" disposal, and not a few accepted the kind 
privilege of writing home. No pay would be 



244 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



received for postage stamps, -whicli were furnished 
as freely as -water. 

" As the good old matrons, with their three- 
cornered handkerchiefs and nicely ironed caps, 
glided among us, attending to our every want, 
inquiring after our health, wishing us God speed, 
S:c., many an eye was moistened, and emotions 
awakened, which, perhaps, had been sleeping in 
many for years. And as the Quaker guis shook 
our hands, and even kissed some of the Yankee 
boys, I know our New Hampshire girls wdl not 
be jealous if we say, and truthfully too, that for 
the time being we forgot them at home. Although 
it is said that on one or two occasions ' the Qua- 
kers didn't come out,' it is true they come out to 
meet every regiment that passes through their 
city in a manner that no other city can boast of." 



A Daeing Adventcke. — It was late in the 
summer of 1&64. ■ The veteran and heroic army 
of Sherman had commenced in May that wonder- 
ful series of battles and marches Avhich lasted 
while the rebellion continued, and which were the 
fatal and finishing blows by which the rebellion 
was crushed. By (J^grees, and after marking 
every mountain pass and almost every mile M'ith 
blood, the rebel army had been pushed back and 
dislodged from one position after another, till 
now they had settled sullenly aroujij;! the doomed 
city of Atlanta. The cautious and^ble Johnson 
was displaced in favor of the madcap and brain- 
less fighter. Hood, who, in the lafiguage of the 
insurgent chief, " was determined to strike one 
manly blow for Atlanta." While the antagonists 
lay thus at bay, and Sherman was perfecting the 
details of that splendid manoeuvre by which the 
stronghold became ours, a youthful soldier in the 
Union army, by the name of Ira B. Tuttle, with 
four of his men, performed a feat of military dar- 
ing, which equals the exploits of Morgan, or any 
of the famous raiders of the war. The small vil- 
lage of Villa Bica lies about twenty-seven miles 
south by west of Atlanta, and about ten miles 
south of- Dallas ; near it is another little village, 
not inappropriately called Dark Corner. 

In this village of Villa Hica the rebel Gen- 
eral had established a principal magazine of sup- 
plies. As the greater part of his force lay be- 
tween that point and the enemy, he regarded the 
point as entirely safe, and had left no guard on 
the spot, but only a Lieutenant-Colonel, a Cap- 
tain, and three issuing Sergeants, to deliver the 
subsistence stores to the army wagons as they 
came for them. Rebel camps were, in fact, all 
around the point, in front and in rear, not more 
than a mile distant. Tuttle and his four men, in 
their scouting adventures, had penetrated very 
near the place, and resolved on making a bold 
dash upon it, thus running an immense risk ; 
while, on the other hand, they might inflict on the 
enemy a great loss, and make good their escape. 
Putting sjjurs to their horses, they rode directly 
up to the largest building, where fifty thousand 
bushels of corn and a large amount of bacon were 
stored. The ofiicers and enlisted men at the 



magazine were taken wholly by surprise, not even 
having side arms. Tuttle made them mount their 
horses, while he and his men fired the buildings, 
and five wagons loaded with bacon for the army. 
As soon as the flames Mere well started, he or- . 
dered his five prisoners to ride on in front, while 
he with his four men rode behind, with hands on 
their pistol hilts. 

As they rode away with their prisoners, the 
smoke of the burning storehouses had been seen 
at the rebel camp a mile distant, and men were 
seen rushing to save them, if possible. But it 
was too late. The material was highly combusti- 
ble, the weather hot and dry, and water distant. 
While the astonished rebels Avere running towards 
the fire, in the vain hope of " saving their bacon," 
Tuttle and his brave companions, Mho had the 
fear of Andersonville before their eyes, put spurs 
to their horses, and drove their five prisoners be- 
fore them into the Union camp. 



Clara Barton. — The foUoM-ing is an extract 
of a letter from Brigade Surgeon James L. 
Dunn : 

" The Sanitary Commission, together with three 
or four noble, self-sacrificing women, have fur- 
nished everything that could be required. I mUI 
tell you of one of these M'omen, a Miss Barton, 
the daughter of Judge Barton, of Boston, INIass. 
I first met her at the battle of Cedar Mountain, 
where she appeared in front of the hospital at 
tM-elve o'clock at night, with a four mule team 
loaded with everything needed, and at a time 
when Ave M'ere entirely out of dressings of every 
kind ; she supplied us M'ith everything ; and M'hile 
the shells Mere bursting in every direction, took 
her course to the hospital on our right, Mhere she 
found everythmg M-anting again. After doing ev- 
erything she could on the field, she returned to 
Culpepper, where she staid dealing out shirts to 
the*uaked M'ounded, and preparing soup, and see- 
iflg It prepared, in all the hospitals. I thought 
tltat night if Heaven ever sent out an angel, 
she must be one, h^r assistance M'as so timely. 
Well, Me began our retreat up the Rappahannock. 
I thought no more of our lady friend, only that 
she had gone back to Washington. We arrived 
on the disastrous field of Bull Run ; and Mhile 
the battle M-as raging the fiercest on Friday, M-ho 
should drive up in front of our hospital but this 
same M^oman, M'ith her mules almost dead, having 
made forced marches from Washington to the ar- 
my. She M-as again a Melcome visitor to bpth tHe 
M'ounded and the surgeons. 

" The battle M-as over, our M-ounded removed en 
Sunday, and M-e M'ere ordered to Fairfax Station ; 
v>e had hardly got there before the battle of Chan- 
tilly commenced, and soon the Mounded began to 
come in. Here M-e had nothing but our instruments 
— not even a bottle of Mine. When the cars Mhis- 
tled up to the station, the first person on the plat- 
form was Miss Barton, to again supply us M'ith 
bandages, brandy, M'ine, prepared soup, jellies, 
meal, and every article that could be thought 
of. She staid there until the last wounded 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



245 



soldier was placed on the cars, and then bade us 
good by and left. 

" I MTote you at the time how we got to Alex- 
andria that night and next morning. Our soldiers 
had no time to rest after reaching Washington, 
but were ordered to Maryland by forced marches. 
Several days of hard marching brought us to 
Frederick, and the battle of South Mountain 
followed. The next day our army stood face 
to face with the whole force. The rattle of one 
hundred and fifty thousand muskets, and the fear- 
ful thunder of over two hundred cannon, told us 
that the great battle of Antietam had commenced. 
I was in a hospital in the afternoon, for it was 
then only that the wounded began to come in. 

" We had expended every bandage, torn up ev- 
ery sheet in the house, and e\'er)'thing we could 
find, when who should drive up but our old friend 
Miss Barton, with a team loaded down with di'ess- 
ings of every kind, and everything we could ask 
for. She distributed her articles to the different 
hospitals, worked all night making soup, all the 
next day and night ; and when I left, four days 
after the battle, I left her there ministering to the 
wounded and the dying. When I returned to the 
field hospital last week, she was still at work, sup- 
plj'ing them with delicacies of every kind, and ad- 
ministering to their wants — all of which she does 
out of her own private fortune. Now, what do 
you think of INIiss Barton? In my feeble estima- 
tion, Gen. McClellan, with all his laurels, sinks 
into insignificance beside the true heroine of the 
age — the anrjel of the battle-field" 



A PRIVATE in battery F, Fourth U. S. artillery, 
wrote the following epitaph for John B. Floyd : 

Floyd has died, and few have sobbed, 

Since, had he lived, all had been robbed : 

He's paid Dame Nature's debt, 'tis said, 

The only one he ever paid. 

Some doubt that he resigned his breath, 

But vow he has cheated even death. 

K he is buried, O, then, ye dead, beware ! 

Look to your swaddlings, of your shrouds take care. 

Lest Floyd should to your coffins make his way, 

And steal the linen from your mouldering clay. 



Songs upon the Battle-Field. — A brave 
and godly Captain in "one of our AVestern regi- 
ments told us his story as we were taking him to 
the hospital. He was shot through both thighs 
with a rifle-bullet — a wound from which he could 
not recover. While lying on the field he suffered 
intense agony from thirst. He supported his head 
upon his hand, and the rain from heaven was fall- 
ing around him. In a little while a little pool of 
water formed under his elbow, and he thought if 
he could only get to that puddle he might quench 
his thii-st. He tried to get into a position to suck 
up a mouthful of muddy water, but he was unable 
to reach within a foot of it. Said he, " I never 
felt so much the loss of any earthly blessing. By 
and by night fell, and the stars shone out clear 
and beautiful above the dark field, and I began to 



think of that great God who had given his Son 
to die a death of agony for me, and that he was 
up there — up above the scene of suffering, and 
above those glorious stars ; and I felt that I was 
going home to meet him, and praise him there; 
and I felt that I ought to praise God, even 
wounded and on the battle-field. I could not 
help singing that beautiful hymn : 

' When I can read my title clear 
To mansions in the skies, 
I'll bid farewell to every fear, 
And dry my weeping eyes.' 

" And," said he, " there was a Cliristian brother 
in the brush near me. I could not see him, but 1 
could hear him. He took up the strain, and be- 
yond him another and another caught it up, all 
over the terrible battle-field of Shiloh. That 
night the echo was resotmding, and we made the 
field of battle ring with the hymns of praise to 
God." 

The DrumjIEr Boy of the Rappahannock. 
— Recently, a bright boy, with dark eyes and 
ruddy cheeks, gave a brief history of his ad- 
ventures at the battle of Fredericksburg. He was 
neatly dressed in a military suit of gray cloth, and 
carried in his hands a pair of drumsticks ; his 
drum M'as destroyed by the fragment of a shell 
immediately after his landing on the river bank, 
in that hurricane of sulphury fire and iron hail on 
the 12th of December, 1862. 

The reader will distinctly remember that for 
several days a curtain of thick fog rose up from 
the waters of the Rappahannock, completely 
hiding from view the artillery that crowned the 
opposite hills, and the infantry that crowded the 
sheltering ravines; but the preparation for the 
great" fight, so hopefully commenced, was contin- 
ued amid the thunder of cannon and the volcanic 
eruptions of exploding batteries. 

The hazardous work of laying the pontoon 
bridges was frequently interrupted by the murder- 
ous fire of rebel sharpshooters, concealed in the 
stores and dwelling-houses on the bank of the 
river. To dislodge these men, and drive them out 
of their hiding-places, seemed an impossible task. 
At a given signal our batteries opened with a ter- 
rific fire upon the city, crashing through the walls 
of houses and public buildings, not sparing even 
the churches, in which treason had been taught 
as paramount to Christianity. In this stoi-m of 
shot and shell, which ploughed the streets and set 
the buildings on fire, the sharpshooters survived, 
like salamanders in the flames, and continued to 
pour a deadly fire upon our engineers and bridge 
builders. 

In this dilemma it became evident that the 
bridges could not be laid except by a bold dash. 
Volunteers were called for to cross in small boats ; 
forthwith, hundreds stepped forward and oftered 
their services. One hundred men were chosen, 
and at once started for the boats. Robert Henry 
Hendershot, the hero of our sketch, was then a 
member of the Eighth Michigan, acting as a drum- 
mer. Seeing a part of the Michigan Seventh 



246 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENIS. 



preparing to cross the river, he ran ahead and 
leaped into the boat. One of the officers ordered 
him out, saying he would be shot. The boy re- 
plied that he didn't care, he was willing to die for 
his country. When he (the boy) found that the 
Captain would not permit him to remain in the 
boat, he begged the privilege of pushing the boat 
off, and the request was granted. Whereupon, 
instead of remaining on shore, he clung to the 
stern of the boat, and, submerged to the waist in 
water, he crossed the Rappahaimock. Soon as he 
landed, a fragment of a shell struck his old drum 
and knocked it to pieces. Picking up a musket, 
he went in search of rebel relics, and obtained a 
secesh flag, a clock, a knife, and a bone ring. On 
opening a back door in one of the rebel houses, 
he found a rebel wounded in the hand, and or- 
dered him to surrender. He did so, and was 
taken by the boy soldier to the Seventh Michigan. 
^Vhen the drummer boy recrossed the river from 
Fredericksburg, General Burnside said to him, in 
the presence of the army, " Boy, I glory in your 
spunk ; if you keep on this way a few more years, 
)ou will be in my place." 

At the battle of Murfreesboro', where the 
Union forces were taken by surprise, before day- 
light in the morning, after beating the long roll, 
and pulling the fifer out of bed to assist him, he 
threw aside his drum, and seizing a gun, fired six- 
teen rounds at the enemy from the window of the 
court-house in which his regiment was quartered ; 
but the nationals were compelled to surrender, 
and they were all taken prisoners, but were im- 
mediately paroled, and afterwards sent to Camp 
Chase, Ohio. 

THE BONNIE BLUE FLAG. 

We are a band of brothers, and natives to the soil. 
Fighting for the property we gained by honest toil ; 
And when our rights were threatened, the cry rose 

near and far. 
Hurrah for the bonnie Blue Flag that bears the 

single star ! 



Hurrah ! hurrah ! for the bonnie Blue Flag 
Xhat bears the single star. 

As long as the Union was faithful to her trust, 
Like friends and like brothers, kind were we and 

just ; 
But now, when Northern treachery attempts our 

rights to mar. 
We hoist on high the bonnie Blue Flag that bears 

the single star. 

First, gallant South Carolina nobly made the stand; 
Then came Alabama, who took her by the hand ; 
Next quickly Mississippi, Georgia and Florida — 
All raised the flag, the bonnie Blue Flag that bears 
a single star. 

Ye men of valor, gather round the banner of the 

right ; 
Texas and fair Louisiana join us in the fight. 
Davis, our loved President, and Stephens, statesmen 

are; 
Now rally round the bonnie Blue Flag that bears a 

single star. 



And here's to brave Virginia ! The Old Dominion 

■ State 
With the young Confederacy at length has linked 

her fate. 
Impelled by her example, now other States prepare 
To hoist on high the bonnie Blue Flag that bears a 

single star. 

Then here's to our Confederacy ; strong we are and 

brave : 
Like patriots of old we'll fight, our heritage to save ; 
And rather than submit to shame, to die we would 

prefer ; 
So cheer for the bomiie Blue Flag that bears a single 
star. 

Then cheer, boys, cheer ; raise the joyous shout, 
For Arkansas and North Carolina now have both 

gone out ; 
And let another rousing cheer for Tennessee be given. 
The single star of the bonnie Blue Flag has grown 

to be eleven ! 



The Private Soldier. — Under this head 
the Jackson Mississippi Crisis pays the following 
tribute to the private soldier : 

Justice has never been done him. His virtu- 
ous merit and unobtrusive patriotism have never 
been justly estimated. We do not speak of the 
regular soldier, who makes the army his trade for 
twelve dollars per month. We do not include the 
coward, who skulks ; nor the vulgarian, who can 
perpetrate acts of meanness ; nor the laggard, 
who must be forced to fight for his home and 
country. These are not the subjects of our 
comment. We speak of the great body of citi- 
zen soldiery who constitute the provisional army 
of the Confederacy, and who, at the sound of a 
trumpet and drum, marched out with rifle or 
musket to fight — to repel their country's in- 
vaders, or perish on that soil which their fathers 
bequeathed, with the glorious boon of civil liberty. 
These are the gallant men of whom we write, 
and these have saved the country; these have 
made a breastwork of their manly bosoms to 
shield the sacred precinct of altar-place and fii-e- 
side. Among these private soldiers are to be 
found men of culture, men of gentle training, 
men of intellect, men of social position, men of 
character at home, men endeared to a domestic 
circle of refinement and elegance, men of wealth, 
men who gave tone and character to the society 
in which they moved, and men who for con- 
science' sake have made a living sacrifice of 
property, home, comfort, and are ready to add 
crimson life to the holy oifering. Many of these, 
if they could have surrendered honor and a sense 
of independence, could have remained in posses- 
sion of all these elegances and comforts. But 
they felt like the Roman who said, " Put honor 
in one hand and death in the other, and I will 
look on both indifferently." AVithout rank, with- 
out title, without anticipated distinction, animated 
only by the highest and noblest sentiments which 
can influence our common nature, the private 
labors, and toils, and marches, and fights ; endures 
hunger and thirst, and fatigue ; through watchings, 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



247 



and weariness, and sleepless nights, and cheerless, 
laborious days, he holds up before him: the one 
glorious pi'ize — " Freedom to my country ; " " In- 
dependence and my home ! " If we can suppose 
the intervention of less worthy motive, the officer, 
and not the private, is the man whose merit must 
commingle such alloy. The officer may become 
renowned — the private never reckons upon that ; 
the officer may live in history — the private looks 
to no such record ; the officer may attract the 
public gaze — the private does not look for such 
recognition ; the officer has a salary — the private 
only a monthly stipend, the amount of which he 
has been accustomed to pay to some field laborer 
on his rich domains ; the officer may escape 
harm in battle by reason of distance — the private 
must face the storm of death ; the officer moves 
on horseback — the private on foot; the officer 
carries a sword, the emblem of authority, and 
does not fight — the privates carries his musket, 
and does all the fighting. The battle has been 
fought — the victory won; and Lee, or Long- 
Btreet, or others, have achieved a glorious success ; 
but that success was attained by the private sol- 
dier, at the cost of patriot blood, of shattered 
bones, and torn and mangled muscle and nerves ! 
We do not mean to under-estimate the officer, or 
disparage his courage, or his patriotism. We 
draw the parallel for another purpose, and that 
is, to show, if other than the highest human mo- 
tive prompts the soldier to action, it is the officer, 
and not the private, who is not liable to feel its 
influence. 

We have often felt pained and annoyed at the 
flippant reference to the privates, while the un- 
reasoning speaker seemed to regard the officers 
as the prime and meritorious agents of all that 
is done. Why, in those ranks is an amount of 
intellect which Avould instruct and astonish a 
statesman. In those ranks the merit of every 
officer and every action is settled unappealably. 
In those ranks there is public virtue and capacity 
enough to construct a government, and administer 
its civil and military offices. The opinion of 
these men will guide the historian, and fix the 
merit of generals and statesmen. The opinion 
of these men will be, and ought to be, omnipotent 
with the people and government of the Confed- 
eracy. Heaven bless these brave, heroic men ! 
Our heart warms to them. Our admiration of 
their devotion and heroism is without limit. 
Their devotion to principle amounts to moral 
subHmitJ^ We feel their sufferings, and share 
their hopes, and desire to be identified in our 
day and generation with such a host of spirits, 
tried and true, who bend the knee to none but 
God, and render homage only to worth and merit. 



Marked Articles. — Some of the marks 
which were fastened on the blankets, shirts, &c., 
sent to the Sanitary Commission for the soldiers, 
show the thought and feeling at home. Thus — 
on a home-spun blanket, worn but washed as 
clean as snow, was pinned a bit of paper, which 
said : " This blanket was carried by Milly Al- 



di'ich (who is ninety -three years old), down hill 
and up hill, one and a half miles, to be given to 
some soldier." 

On a bed-quilt was pinned a card, saying : " My 
son is in the army. Whoever is made warm by 
this quilt, which I have 'worked on for six days 
and most all of six nights, let him remember his 
own mother's love." 

On another blanket was this : " This blanket was 
used by a soldier in the war of 1812 — may it keep 
some soldier warm in this war against traitors." 

On a pillow was written: "This pillow be- 
longed to my little boy, who died resting on it ; 
it is a precious treasure to me, but I give it for 
the soldiers." 

On a pair of woollen socks was written : " These 
stockings were knit by a little girl five years old, 
and she is going to knit some more, for mother 
says it Avill help some poor soldier." 

On a box of beautiful lint was this mark : 
" Made in a sick room, where the sunlight has 
not entered for nine years, but M'here God has en- 
tered, and where two sons have bid their mother 
good by as they have gone out to the war." 

On a bundle containing bandages was written : 
" This is a poor gift, but it is all I had ; I have 
given my husband and my boy, and only wish I 
had more to give, but I haven't." 

On some eye-shades were marked : " Made by 
one W'ho is blind. O, how I long to see the dear 
Old Flag that you are all fighting under ! " 



TO PRESIDENT LINCOLN. 

Proudest of all earth's thrones 

Is his who rules by a free people's choice ; 
Who, 'midst fierce party strife and battle groans, 
Hears, ever rising in harmonious tones, 
A grateful people's voice. 

Steadfast in thee we trust, 

Tried as no man was ever tried before ; 
God made thee merciful — God keep thee just ; 
Ee true ! — and triumph over all thou must. 

God bless thee evermore ! 



A Soldier's Story. — "Not long since," 
said a soldier, " a lot of us — I am a H. P., 
' high private,' now — were quartered in several 
wooden tenements, and in the inner room of one 
lay the corpus of a young secesh officer awaiting 
burial. The news soon spread to a village not 
far oft", and down came a sentimental, not bad- 
looking specimen of a Virginia dame. 

" ' Let me kiss him for his mother ! ' she cried, 
as I interrupted her progress. ' Do let me kiss 
him for his mother ! ' 

" ' Kiss whom ? ' 

" 'The dear little Lieutenant, the one who lies 
dead within. I never saw him, but, O ' 

" I led her through a room in which Lieut. 
, of Philadelphia, lay stretched out in an up- 
turned trough, fast asleep. Supposing him to be 
the article sought for, she rushed up, exclaiming, 
' Let me kiss him for his mother,' and approached 



248 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



her lips to his forehead. What was her amaze- 
ment, when the ' corpse ' clasped his arms around 
her, and exclaimed, ' Never mind the old lady, 
miss ; go it on your own account. I haven't the 
slightest objection.' " , 



Experience of a Wounded Soldier. — The 
folowing extract gives the experience of one shot 
iu battle : 

" I remember no acute sensation of pain, not 
even any distinct shot, only an instantaneous 
consciousness of having been struck; then my 
breath came hard and labored, with a croup-like 
sound, and with a dull, aching feeling in my right 
shoulder ; my arm fell powerless at my side, and 
the Enfield dropped from my grasp. I threw my 
left hand up to my throat, and withdrew it cov- 
ered with the warm, bright-red blood. The end 
had come at last ! But, thank God, it was death 
in battle. Only let me get back out of that 
deathly storm, and breathe away the few minutes 
that were left me of life in some place of compar- 
ative rest and security. It all rushed into my 
mind in an instant. I turned and staggered away 
to the rear. A comrade brushed by me, shot 
through the hand, who, a moment before, was 
firing away close at my side. I saw feeble reen- 
forcements moving up, and I recollect a thrill of 
joy even then, as I thought that the tide of battle 
might yet be turned, and those rebel masses 
beaten back, broken, foiled, disheartened. 

" But my work Avas done. I was growing faint 
and weak, although not yet half way out of range 
of fii'e. A narrow space between two massive 
bowlders, over which rested lengthwise the trunk 
of a fallen tree, offered refuge and hope of safety 
from further danger. I crawled into it, and lay 
down to die. I counted the minutes before I 
must bleed to death. I had no more hope of 
seeing the new year on the morrow than I now 
have of outliving the next centurj'. Thank God, 
death did not seem so dreadful, now that it was 
come. And then the sacrifice was not all in vain, 
falling thus in God's own holy cause of freedom. 
But home and friends ! O, the rush of thought 
then! 

" Let the veil be drawn here. The temple of 
memory has its holy place, into which only one's 
own soul may, once in a great season, solemnly 
enter. 

" And so I lay there, with my head pillowed on 
my blanket, while the battle swelled again around 
and over me — bullets glancing from the sides of 
stone that sheltered me, or sinking into the log 
above me, and shot and shell crashing through 
the tree-tops, and falling all about me. Two 
shells, I remember, struck scarcely ten feet from 
me, and in their explosion covered me with dirt 
and splinters ; but that was aU. Still I lived on. 
I smile now as I think of it, how I kept raising 
my left hand to see if the finger nails were grow- 
ing white and purple, as they do when one bleeds 
to death, and wondering to find them still warm 
and ruddy. Hemorrhage must have ceased al- 
most, and the instincts of existence said, ' Live ! ' 



Then came the agony of waiting for removal from 
the field. How I longed and looked for some fa- 
miliar face, as our men twice charged up into that 
wood, directly over me ! But they belonged to 
another division, and had other work to do than 
bearing off the wounded." 



Couldn't understand it. — A war-beaten 
veteran of Longstreet's coi'ps made a funny re- 
mark to a prominent politician who conversed 
Avith him v/hile coming in from the front. Said 
he, " I do not understand this ; Lee has won a 
big victory over Grant on the Kapidan, and told 
us so, and that night we retreated. Then he won 
another in the Wilderness, and told us so, and 
we retreated to Spottsylvania. Then he won 
another tre-?/ie?t-jus victory, and I got tuk pris- 
oner ; but I reckon he has retreated ag'in. Now, 
when he used to lick them, the Yanks fell back 
and claimed a victory, and we understood it. 
Now Lee claims victories, and keeps a fallin' 
back, and I can't understand it." 



A No-Sider. — A correspondent tells the fol- 
lowing storj'^ of one of the farmers in the vicinity 
of Culpepper, Mhose possessions lay in a district 
where both armies foraged. The old chap, one 
da}', while surveying ruefully the streaks in the 
soil where his fences once stood, remarked with 
much feeling : 

" I hain't took no sides in this yer rebellion, 
but I'll be dog-gorned if both sides hain't took 



A White House Anecdote. — An old farm- 
er, from the West, who knew President Lin- 
coln in days by-gone, called to pay his respects 
at the Presidential mansion. Slapping the Chief 
Magistrate upon the back, he exclaimed : " Well, 
old boss, how are you ? " Old Abe, being thor- 
oughly democratic in his ideas, and withal relish- 
ing a joke, responded : " So I'm an old boss — am 
I ? What kind of a boss, pray ? " " Why, an old 
draft boss, to be sure," was the rejoinder. 



BAKBARITIES OF THE SIOUX. 

MRS. HUKD's NAHRATIVE. 

On the 2d of June, 1862, Mr. Phineas B. Hurd, 
with another man, left home, at the north end of 
Sheteck Lake, Minnesota, on a tri]) to Dacotah 
Territory, to be absent a month, taking a span of 
horses and wagon, and such other outfit as would 
be required upon such an expedition, leaving Mrs. 
Hurd alone with her two children and a jNIr. 
Voight, who had ciiarge of the farm. On the 
morning of the 20th of August, about five o'clock, 
while Mrs. Hurd was milking, some twenty In- 
dians rode up to the house and dismounted. Mrs. 
Hurd discovered among the horses one of their 
own that was taken away by Mr. Hurd. Mrs. 
H. got into the house before the Indians, who 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



249 



entered and began smoking, as was their custom. 
Five of these she knew, one being a half-breed 
who could speak English. Her children were in 
bed, and, at the time of the entrance of the In- 
dians, asleep. The youngest, about a year old, 
awoke and cried, when Mr. Voight took it up and 
carried it into the front yard, when one of the In- 
dians stepped to the door and shot him through 
the body. He fell dead with the child in his 
ai-ms. At this signal some ten or fifteen more 
Indians and squaws rushed into the house, — they 
having been concealed near by, — and commenced 
an indiscriminate destruction of everything in the 
house, breaking open trunks, destroying furni- 
ture, cutting open feather beds, and scattering the 
contents about the house and yard. 

Mrs. Hurd, in her uncommon energy and in- 
dustry as a pioneer housewife, had, with a good 
stock of cows, begun to make butter and cheese, 
and had ou hand at the time about two hundred 
pounds of butter and twenty-three cheeses. These 
the Indians threw into the yard and destroyed. 
While this destruction was going on, Mrs. Hurd 
was told that her life would be spared on the con- 
dition that she would give no alarm, and leave 
the settlement by an unfrequented path or trail, 
leading directly east across the prairie, in the di- 
rection of New Ulm, and was ordered to take her 
children and commence her march. Upon plead- 
ing for her children's clothes, they having on only 
their night clothes, she was hurried off, being re- 
fused even her sun-bonnet or shawl. She took 
the youngest in her arms, and led the other, a 
little boy of a little over three years, by the hand ; 
and being escorted by seven Indians on horse- 
back, she turned her back on her once prosperous 
and happy home. The distance across the prai- 
rie, in the direction which she was sent, was sixty 
or seventy miles to a habitation. The Indians 
went out with her three miles, and before taking 
leave of her, repeated the condition of her release, 
and told her that all the whites were to be killed, 
but that she might go to her mother. Thus was 
she left with her two children almost naked, her- 
self bareheaded, without food or raiment, not 
even a blanket to shelter herself and children from 
the cold dews of the night or storm. 

After the Indians left her, three miles from her 
home, on the prairie, " we took our way," said 
Mrs. Hurd, "through the unfrequented road or 
trail into v.hich the Indians had conducted us. It 
was clear, and the sun shone Avith more than usual 
brightness. The dew on the grass was 'heavy. 
My little boy, William Henry, being barefooted 
and thinly clad, shivered with the cold, and press- 
ing close to me, entreated me to return to our 
home. He did not know of the death of Mr. 
Voight, as I kept him from the sight of the corpse. 
He did not understand why I insisted upon going 
on, enduring the pain and cold of so cheerless a 
walk. He cried pitifully at first, but after a time, 
pressing my hand, he trudged manfully along by 
my side. The little one rested in my arms, un- 
conscious of our situation. Two guns were fired 
when I was a short distance out, which told the 
death of my neighbor, Mr. Cook. I knew well 



the fearful meaning. There was death behind, and 
all the horrors of starvation before me. But 
there was no alternative. For my children, anj-- 
thing except death at the hands of the merciless 
savage ; even starvation on the prairies seemed 
preferable to this. 

" About ten o'clock in the forenoon a thunder- 
storm suddenly arose. It was of unusual vio- 
lence ; the wind was not high, but the lightning, 
thunder, and rain were most terrible. The vio- 
lence of the storm was expended in about three 
hours, but the rain continued to fall slowly until 
night, and at intervals continued until morning. 
During the storm I lost the trail, and walked on, 
not knowing whether I was right or wrong. 
Water covered the lower portions of the prairie, 
and it was with difficulty that I could find a place 
to rest when night came on. At last I came to 
a sand-hill or knoll ; on the top of this I sat down 
to rest for the night. I laid my chikben down, 
and leaned over them to protect them from the 
rain and chilling blast. Hungry, weary, and wet, 
William fell asleep, and continued so until morn- 
ing. The younger one worried much ; the night 
wore away slowly, and the morning at last came, 
inviting us to renewed eff'orts. As soon as I 
could see, I took my little ones and moved on. 
About seven o'clock I heard guns, and for the 
first time became conscious that I had lost my 
way, and was still in the vicinity of the lake. I 
changed my course, avoiding the direction in which 
I heard the guns, and pressed on with increased 
energy. No trail was visible. As for myself, I 
was not conscious of hunger ; but it was harass- 
ing to the mother's heart to listen to the cries of 
my precious boy for his usual beverage of milk, 
and his constant complaints of hunger. But there 
was no remedy. The entire day was misty, and 
the grass wet. Our clothes were not dry during 
the day. Towards night William grew sick, and 
vomited, until it seemed impossible for him longer 
to keep up. The youngest child still nursed, and 
did not seem to suffer materially. 

" About dark on the second day I struck a road, 
and knew at once where I was, and to my horror 
found I was only four miles from home. Thus 
had two days and one night been passed, travel- 
ling, probably, in a circle. I felt almost exhausted, 
and my journey but just begun ; but as discoura- 
ging as this misfortune might be, as the shades of 
night again closed around me, the sight of a 
known object was a pleasure to me. I was no 
longer lost upon the vast prairies. 

"It was now that I felt for the first time it 
would be better to die at once ; that it would be 
a satisfaction to die here, and end our weary jour- 
ney on this travelled road, over which we had 
passed in our happier days. I could not bear to 
He down with my little ones on the unknoAvn and 
trackless waste over which we had been wander- 
ing. But this feeling was but for a moment. I 
took courage and started on the road to New 
Ulm. When it became quite dark I halted for 
the night ; that night I passed, as before, without 
sleep. 

" In the morning early I started on. It wa.s 



250 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



foggy, and the grass wet ; the road, being but little 
travelled, was grown up vnih grass. WiEiam was 
so sick that morning that he could not walk much 
of the time ; so I was obliged to carry both. I was 
now sensibly reduced in strength, and felt ap- 
proaching hunger. My boy no longer asked for 
food, but was thirsty, and drank frequently from 
the pools by the wayside. I could no longer car- 
ry both my children at the same time, but took 
one on at a distance of a quarter or half a mile, 
laid it in the grass, and returned for the other. 
In this way I travelled twelve miles, to a place 
called Dutch Charlie's, sixteen miles from Lake 
Sheteck. I arrived there about sunset, hav- 
ing been sustained in my weary journey by the 
sweet hope of relief. My toils seemed almost 
at an end, as I approached the house, with a heart 
full of joyous expectations ; but what were my 
consternation and despair when I found it emp- 
ty ! Every article of food and clothing was re- 
moved ! My heart seemed to die within me, and 
I sank down in despair. The cries of my child 
aroused me from my almost unconscious state, 
and I began my search for food. The house had 
nol been plundered by the Indians, but abandoned 
by Its owner. I had promised my boy food when 
we arrived here, and when none could be found 
he cried most bitterly. But I did not shed a tear, 
nor am I conscious of having done so during all 
this journey. I found some green corn, which I 
endeavored to eat, but my stomach rejected it. I 
found some carrots and onions growing in the 
garden, which I ate raw, having no fire. My old- 
est child continued vomiting. I offered him some 
carrot, but he could not eat it. 

" That night we staid in a cornfield, and the 
next morning at daylight I renewed my search 
for food. To my great joy I found the remains 
of a spoiled ham. Here, I may say, my good for- 
tune began. There was no more than a pound 
of it, and that much^decayed. This I saved for 
my boy, feeding it to him in very small quanti- 
ties ; bis vomiting ceased, and he revived rapidly. 
I gathered more carrots and onions, and with 
this store of provisions, at about eight o'clock on 
the morning of the tliird day, I again set forth on 
my weary road for the residence of Mr. Brown, 
twenty-five miles distant. This distance I reached 
in two days. Under the effects of the food I was 
able to give my boy, he gained strength, and was 
able to walk all of the last day. When within 
about three miles of the residence of Mr. Brown, 
two of our old neighbors, from Lake Sheteck set- 
tlement, overtook us under the escort of the mail 
carrier. Both of them had been wounded by the 
Indians and left for dead in the attack on the set- 
tlement. Thomas Ireland, one of the party, had 
been hit with eight balls, and, strange to say, was 
still able to walk, and had done so most of the 
way. Mrs. Estleck, the other person under es- 
cort, was utterly unable to walk, having been 
shot in the foot, once in the side, and once in the 
arm. Her husband had been killed, and her son, 
about ten years old, wounded. The mail carrier 
had overtaken this party after the fight with the 
Indians at the Lake, and placing Mrs. Estleck 



in her sulky, he was leading his horse. As the 
little party came in sight I took them to be Indians, 
and felt that after all my toil and suffering I must 
die, with my cliildi-en, by the hands of the savage. 
I feared to look around, but kept on my way un- 
til overtaken, when my joy was so great at seeing 
my friends alive, I sank to the eartii insensible. 

" This was a little before sunset, and we all 
arrived at the residence of Mr. Brown that week. 
Ihis house was also deserted and empty, but 
being fastened up, we thought they might come 
back. Our company being too weak and desti- 
tute to proceed, we took possession of the house, 
and remained ten days. There we found pota- 
toes and green corn. The mail carrier, accom- 
panied by Mr. L-eland, lame as he M^as, proceeded 
on the next morning to New Ulm, where they 
found there had been a battle with the Indians, 
and one hundred and ninety-two houses burned. 
A party of twelve men were immediately sent 
with a Avagon to our rehef. It was now that we 
learned the fate of J\Ir. Brown and family — all 
had been murdered ! We also learned of the 
general outbreak, and massacre of all the more 
remote settlements, and the sad, sickening thought 
was now fully confhmed in my mind, that my 
husband was dead! my fatherless children and 
myself made beggars ! " 

Mrs. Hurd had resided at the Lake three 
years, and was well acquainted with many of the 
Indians — could speak their language, and had 
always treated them with much friendship. It is 
to this fact that she attributed their mercy in 
saving her life. But who can bring back to her 
the murdered husband — the beauty, loveliness, 
and enjoyment that surrouneded her on the 
morning of the 20th of August, 1S62, or blot 
from her memory those awful, di'eary nights of 
watching, alone upon the broad prairie, in the 
storm and in the tempest, amid thunderings and 
hghtning ? Or who can contemplate that moth- 
er's feelings as her sick and helpless child cried 
for bread, and there was none to give, or as she 
l)ore the one along the almost trackless waste, 
and laid it down amid the prahie grass, and then 
returned for her other offspring ? 

The Mantuan bard has touched a universal 
chord of human sympathy in his deep-toned de- 
scription of the flight of his hero from the burn- 
ing city of Troy, bearing his " good father," An- 
chises, on his back, and leading " the little 
Ascanius " by the hand, who, ever and anon fall- 
ing in the rear, would " follow with unequal step." 
The heroine of Lake Sheteck bore her two As- 
canii in her arms, but unequal to the double 
burden, was compelled to deposit half of her 
precious cargo in the prairie grass, and returning 
for the other, to repeat for the third time her 
painful steps over the same. This process, re- 
peated at the end of each quarter or half mile, 
extended the fearful duration of her terrible 
flight through the lonely and uninhabited prahie. 

The force of nature could go no farther, and 
maternal love has no stronger exemplification. 
But for the plentiful showers of refreshing rain, 
sent by a merciful Providence, these poor wan- 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



251 



derers -w-ould have fainted by the way, and the 
touching story of the heroine of Sheteck Lake 
would have been forever shrouded in mystery. 



An Incident at Chattanooga. — At one 
point there was a lull in the battle. At least, it 
had gone scattering and thundering down the 
line, and the boys were as much " at ease " as 
boys can be on whom at any moment the storm 
may roll back again. To be sure, occasional 
shots, and now and then a cometary shell, kept 
them alive ; but one of the boys ran down to a 
little spring, and to the woods where the enemy 
lay, for water. He had just stopped and swung 
down his canteen — " tick," and a minie ball 
struck it at an angle, and bounded away. He 
looked around an instant, discovered nobody, 
thought it was a chance shot — a piece of lead, 
you know, that goes at a killing rate without 
malice prepense ; and so, nowise infirm of pur- 
pose, he bent to get the water. Ping ! a second 
bullet cut the cord of his canteen, and the boy 
'•' get the idea " — a sharpshooter was after him, 
and he went on the right-about, on the double- 
quick, to the ranks. A soldier from another 
part of the line made a pilgrimage to the spring, 
was struck, and fell by its brink. But where 
was the marksman ? Two or three boys ran out 
to draw his fire while others watched. Crack 
went the unseen piece again, and some keen- 
eyed fellow spied the smoke roll out from a little 
cedar. This was the spot, then. The reb had 
made him a hawk's nest, — in choice Indian, a 
Chattanooga in the tree, — and drawing the 
green covert around him, was taking a quiet 
hand at " steeple-shooting " at long range. 

A big blue-eyed German, tall enough to look 
into the thhd generation, and a sharpshooter 
withal, volunteered to dislodge him. Dropping 
into a httle run-way that neared the tree diago- 
nally, he turned upon his back, and worked him- 
self cautiously along ; reaching a point perilously 
close, he whipped over, took aim as he lay, and 
God and his true right hand " gave him good 
deliverance." Away flew the bullet, a minute 
elapsed, the volume of the cedar parted, and 
" like a big frog," as the boys described it, out 
leaped a grayback — the hawk's nest was empty, 
and a dead rebel lay under the tree. It was 
neatly done by the German. May he live to tell 
the story a thousand times to his moon-faced 
grandchildren ! 



A Southern Girl thus wrote to her cousin, 
who was a prisoner at Camp Morton, Indianapo- 
lis: 

" I will be for Jeft'davise till the tenisee river 
freazes over, and then be for him, and scratch on 
the ice 

Jeffdavise rides a white horse, 

Lincoln rides a mule, 
Jeffdavise is a gentleman, 

And Lincoln is a fule." 



THE SHARPSHOOTER'S LAMENT ON THE 
BANKS OF THE POTOMAC. 

"The sunlight is yellow and pleasant ; 

What darkens your spirit, Jem Trty; ? " 
" Ay, Sergeant, it's bright for the present, 

And I know it looks mean to be blue, 
Squattin' here, like a draggle-tailed pheasant ; 

But what's a poor fellow to do ? 

"Nary shot since I left the ' peraries,' 

And 'listed in sarch o' big game. 
It's a rule that must work by contraries, 

That inveigled me on till I came 
To this ground without even canaries 

Or chippies to warrant an aim. 

"Misfortin' comes crowdin' misfortin', 
And between 'em old Jem is nigh beat, 

For here comes the news of the sportin' 
As has come to them chaps on the fleet ; 

And, bless yer, they're greenies for courtin' 
The shrews of grim death as they'll meet. 

" Why, there isn't one cove in a dozen, 
For all they're stout as you'll see, 

As distinguishes well 'twi.\t the buzzin' 
Of a bullet and that of a bee ; 

And among 'em there's Billy, my cousin — 
He shakes ' on a rest' like a flea. 

" And Toby, though brave as a lion. 
His intentions his in'ards confound ; 

When to jerkin' the trigger he's nigh on, 
The vartigo bobs him around ; 

And that bully old sinner, O'Ryan,. 

He's cross-eyed, and shoots at the ground. 

"While here's the old boy as can jingle 
Any button as shines on a breast. 

With a pill as can operate single 

At eight hundred yards and ' no rest ; ' 

He's left for his cusses to mingle. 

Like a eagle what's glued to his nest. 

" 'Twas only last night, when on duty, 
A sightin' them pickets o' theirs. 
That I drew a true bead on a ' beauty,' 

With a greasj' old coon on his ears. 
< O beautiful varmint ! I'll shoot ye,' 
I whispered aloud unawares. 

" ' No, you won't,' says my comrade, old Dan'l; 

' The orders keep pickets from harm.' 
' Well, I'll rip up them stripes of red flannel 

What so sarcily shine on his arm/ 
I pleaded ; but ' No,' says old Dan'l, 

' The orders keep pickets from harm.* 

" Sech orders my heart's disappointin' — 

'Twasn't sech as inveigled me in 
To clap my mark down to the writin' 

The recruiter said glories would win. 
O, when fellers is gathered for fightin', 

Say, why can't the scrimmage begin ? 

" O, I'm sick of this lazy black river, 
Where forever we're likely to stay. 

Whj', the Capital's saved, if it ever 
Will be, and it can't run away ! 

Can't we leave it a spell ? are we never 
To sport in these diggins here -^ say ? 



252 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



" Must a cove as can ring up his twenty 
At twelve hundred yards on a ' string,' 

Get his hand out when varmints is plenty, 
Like a watch-works what hasn't no spring ? 

Must a screamer be mum when he's sent t'ye 
In voice for his sweetest to sing ? 

•« I cares not for fierce adversaries, 
If for fighting we wasn't so slow. 

Sergeant ! it's waitin' that varies 
The misery that hangs on me so. 

1 longs for my darlin' ' peraries,' 
And that's why my feelin's is low." 



Colonel Willicii's Victory. — Chaplain 
Ganter, of the Fifteenth Ohio regiment, gives the 
following account of the fight that took place near 
Camp George Wood, Kentucky, on the 17th of 
December, 1861 : 

" The noted Texas Rangers have been for some 
time dodging, sneaking, dashing about us in a 
desperate manner. Sunday last we had a skir- 
mish with them in which Colonel WilJich had 
two men wounded and one sergeant taken pris- 
oner. Yesterday (Tuesday, 17th,) Colonel Wil- 
lich sent over one, or two companies to watch 
them. About noon the trumpeter came to the 
bank on the opposite side of the i-iver and blew 
the signal for reenforcements. Immediately four 
or five companies (of Colonel Willich's regiment) 
crossed the river at double-quick (across the 
bridge which they had just completed). They 
ran in eagerness to fight, stimulated to rage, to 
revenge their wounded comrades of Sunday last. 
When they crossed the river they deployed as 
skirmishers and double-quicked it over fences, 
through the woods, v.'hen all at once one of their 
men cried halt, and seeing a horse in the woods 
near by, he fired, and the horse fell. Immediately 
a yell echoed through the woods, and about one 
hundred and fifty Rangers issued forth, and came 
within ten feet of the muzzles of the guns of our 
men. Here they halted, and did not stir or 
budgs one inch until each one of their number had 
fired fourteen shots, being armed with a pair of 
revolvers and double shot gun apiece. But while 
this was going on our men were not idle. Ran- 
gers dropped — Rangers yelled, groaned, and 
cursed — horses Rangerless, riderless, were gal- 
loping in all tlu-ections. When the Rangers had 
performed their shooting in a cool, careless way, 
they just as coolly turned round and retired. 
They had no sooner disappeared, and our men were 
once more advancing — than another company 
of Rangers galloped up, and performed the same 
remarkable fourteen-shot feat in the same cool, 
determined manner, and were met by the same 
sturd}^ brave German square. Once more Ran- 
gers and Germans mingled dying groans — when 
atlength, after the Rangers had gone through 
this exact programme several times, three or four 
hundred of them made one grand rush, with the 
evident intention of breaking the German carrere, 
or square. They came up with the same dash, 
and fired their shots with the same apparent 
neglect of life — some were literally lifted from 



their horses on the point of the bayonet — some 
were knocked ofi" with butts of the guns. It be- 
came a hand-to-hand fight — Rangers retreating 
and Germans following up. Lieutenant Saxe at 
this point of the fight was somewhat in advance. 
He was surrounded by Rangers ^ they asked him 
to surrender — but instead of replying he rushed 
at the man who made this request, but before he 
reached the object of his attack dropped dead in 
his tracks, receiving five bullets in the chest and 
about twenty buckshot in the abdomen. Then the 
struggle became fiercer and hotter, when all at once 
the Germans found themselves in a net. On the 
right came the firing from concealed infantry ; on 
the left the boom of cannon from a masked battery 
startled the heroes. Seven hundred cavalry at once 
came into view in front. We could see the whole af- 
fair from the high bluS'on this side of Green River. 
Reenforcements were hurried across — Cotter's 
batteries opened from our bluff — Germans slowly, 
but unwillingly, retired to the woods, and just by 
chance, the merest in the world, escaped from a 
dreadful slaughter. The Forty -ninth Ohio and 
Thirty-ninth Indiana formed in line of battle, and 
double-quicked it over the field ; but the enemy 
had retired. Now let me give you the results 
and objects of this fight ; and what I teU you may 
be relied upon, especially with regard to numbers. 
Our loss was eleven killed, twenty-one wounded, 
and five missing (when I say wounded, I mean 
severely). Among the killed was one officer, 
Lieutenant Saxe, a Jew, an old country soldier, 
and a brave man. The loss of the enemy (I am giv- 
ing you the lowest figures) was thirty- three killed ; 
wounded we cannot positively tell, for they were 
all carried off" the field. Colonel Terry, their 
brave and celebrated Colonel of Rangers, was 
killed. And now with regard to numbers en- 
gaged : We had about five huncbed men (all of 
Colonel AVillich's command) actually engaged at 
one time or another. They had seven hundred 
Rangers, one regiment of infantry (six hundred 
men), and four cannon. The fight: well, you 
may judge from my description, that there was 
'no discount' on that from either side. The 
Germans acknowledge that they never saw ' Reg- 
ular Cavalry' in the old country wars, surpass 
the Rangers in daring, bravery, and apparent in- 
sensibility to danger and death. They describe 
them as swarthy complexioned, a mixture of Cre- 
oles, trappers, desperadoes, with long haii* and 
shaggy whiskers, and even when lying woundsd 
upon the ground exhibiting the fierceness of a 
wounded tiger. I visited all the wounded to-day. 
Number one has his ear shot off", number two is 
minus the bridge of his nose, four or five wounded 
in the arms, four or five in the legs, four in the 
chest, one in the abdomen, anotlier has a quantity 
of buckshot in his side. I saw the latter gentle- 
man as the doctor was cutting out the shot. He 
remarked ' tat dey didn't shoot mit buckshot in 
de old country,' but he hoped the rebels would 
' shoot buckshot all de times.' They all took 
great pleasure in explaining their wounds, and 
most of them did not wince under the doctor's 
dressing. One poor fellow comforted himself 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



253 



•with the reflection that if he had to lose his leg 
he ■would join the cavah-j'. This morning I went 
to see the dead ; they -were laid out in the field, 
neatly dressed ; graves were dug on the top of a 
knoll, in a semicircle. The regiment formed 
around them. The Colonel made a speech, and 
then remarked, * that as their brave comrades 
had fallen in the struggle for human rights and 
Hberty, and were now on their journey to immor- 
tality, they would give them three cheers ; ' and 
cheer they did, and then the band played the 
Marseilles Hymn, and the soldiers marched 
around the graves, each throwing a handful of 
earth into each of the graves. No salutes Avere 
fired on account of the close proximity of the 
hospital." 

A Squad of Indiana volunteers, out scouting, 
came across a female in a log cabin in the moun- 
tains. After the usual salutations, one of them 
asked her, "Well, old lady, are you a secesh?" 
" No," was the answer. " Are you Union ? " 
" No." " What are you, then ? " "A Baptist, an' 
always have been." The Hoosiers let down. 



A SINGULAR Spectacle in Battle. — At the 
battle of Stone River, while the men were lying 
behind a crest, waiting, a brace of frantic wild 
turkeys, so paralyzed with fright that they were 
incapable of flying, ran between the lines, and en- 
deavored to hide among the men. But the frenzy 
among the turkeys was not so touching as the 
exquisite fright of the birds and rabbits. When 
the roar of battle rushed through the cedar thick- 
ets, flocks of little birds fluttered and circled 
above the field in a state of utter bewilderment, 
and scores of rabbits fled for protection to the men 
lying down in line on the left, nestling under 
their coats, and creeping under tlieir legs in a 
state of utter distraction. They hoi^ped over the 
field like toads, and as perfectly tamed by fright 
as household pets. Many officers witnessed it, 
remarking it as one of the most curious specta- 
cles ever seen upon a battle-field. 



Time to Leave. — One of the " contrabands," 
who found his way to Boston with returning 
txoops, related his experience on the battle-field 
as follows : " Ye see, massa, I was drivin' an am- 
bulance, when a musket-ball come and kill my 
horse ; and den, pretty soon, the shell come along, 
and he blow my wagon all to pieces — and den I 

got of!" 

Sol. Meredith. — A pleasant story is told by 
a correspondent, of Colonel Sol. Meredith, of 
Wayne County, Indiana, commanding the Nine- 
teenth Indiana, on the Potomac. 

At the Lewinsville skirmish, the Colonel was 
at the head of his men, as they were formed in 
line of battle, under the fire of the enemy. As 
the shells exploded over them, his boys would in- 
voluntarily duck their heads. The Colonel saw 
their motions, and in a pleasant way exhorted 



them, as he rode along the line, to hold up their 
heads and act like men. He turned to speak to 
one of his officers, and at that moment an eigh- 
teen-pounder shell burst within a few yards of him, 
scattering the fragments in all directions. In- 
stinctively, he jei'ked his head almost to the sad- 
dle-bow, while his horse squatted with fear. 
" Boys," said he, as he raised up and reined his 
steed, " you may dodge the large ones ! " A 
laugh ran along the line at his expense, and after 
that no more was said about the impropriety of 
dodging shells, 

"Most tear." — During the march of Mc- 
Clellan's army up the Peninsula, from York- 
town, a tall Vermont soldier got separated from 
his regiment, and was trudging along through 
the mud, endeavoring to overtake it. Finally, 
coming to a crossing, he was puzzled as to which 
road he should take ; but on seeing one of the " na- 
tives," his countenance lighted up at the prospect 
of obtaining the desired information, and he in- 
quired, " Where does this road lead to ? " " To 
hell ! " was the surly answer of the " native." 
" Well," drawled the Vermonter, "judging by the 
lay of the land, and the appearance of the inhab- 
itants, I kalkerlate I'm most thar." 



An Easy Capture. — Captain Wood, of the 
Fourth Rhode Island regiment, was sailing around 
alone, a day or two after the occupancy of Caro- 
lina City, N. C, and seeing a suspicious schooner 
coming down towards the fort, he sailed along- 
side, and the following colloquy ensued : 

" What kept you so long ? " queried the Cap- 
tain. 

" Well, bad weather, &c., &c.," responded the 
unsuspicious Skipper, adding, " have the Yan- 
kees got down this way yet ? " 

" O, no ! They're up towards Newbern, I 
hear." 

The Captain ingratiated himself, and told them 
his " nice new clothes " were the uniform of 
Branch's men (rebels), who now were encamped 
at Carolina City. 

He learned their cargo was salt, &c. : they had 
a mail, despatches, money, &c., for Colonel 
White, and finally, under pretext of seeing the 
'• General " at the depot, got them to make fast 
to the railroad pier. The Skipper introduced 

Mr. , who piloted lots of vessels through our 

blockade, and two other men. The Captain chat- 
ted, and drew them unsuspiciously into the depot, 
where, fortunately. General Parke was, and in- 
troduced the four to the General. 

" Well ! I'm blowed if that ain't the smartest 
Yankee trick yet! Well, I'll have to gin in," 
was the Skipper's ejaculation. 



Beauregard's Advice. — Beauregard, on a 
visit to the "Response " battalion, after shaking 
hands with the " boys," addressed them as fol- 
lows : 

" Boys, be patient. The spider is patient ; it 



254 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



takes him a long time to weave his web, but he 
never fails to catch his fly. We must imitate the 
spider ; our web is nearly complete. In a few 
days you will have work to do. My advice to 
you is, to keep cool ; don't be in too great a 
hurry ; take your time when the fight comes, 
which I think will be in a few days ; load and 
shoot slow, and aim low. Follow this, and his- 
tory will have another victory to record for you." 
After another warm shake of the hands, and 
a cordial " God bless you," the General left, 
amid the wildest applause. 



A Scotch Traveller, on a visit to the United 
States, furnished the following anecdote of Gen- 
eral Grant : 

" The day before Grant attacked Fort Donel- 
son, the troops had had a march of twenty miles, 
part of it during a bitter cold night. Grant called 
a council of war, to consider whether they should 
attack the fort at once, or should give the troops 
a day or two's rest. The officers were in favor 
of resting. Grant said nothing till they had all 
given their opinion ; then he said : ' There is a 
deserter come in this morning — let us see him, 
and hear what he has to say.' When he came in, 
Grant looked into his knapsack. * Where are 
you from ? ' ' Fort Donelson.' ' Six days' ra- 
tions in your knapsack, have you not, my man ? ' 
' Yes, sir.' ' When were they served out ? ' ' Yes- 
terday morning.' 'Were the same rations served 
out to all the troops ? ' ' Yes, sir.' ' Gentlemen,' 
said Grant, ' troops do not have six days' rations 
served out to them in a fort if they mean to stay 
there. These men mean to retreat — not to 
fight. We will attack at once.' " 



Anecdotes of General Buford. — Major- 
General Buford, than whom probably no com- 
mander was so devotedly loved by those around 
him, was offered a Major-General's commission 
in the rebel army, when in Utah. He crushed 
the communication in his hand, and declared that 
he would live and die under the flag of the Union. 
A few hours before his death, and while suffering 
from delirium, he roundly scolded his negro ser- 
vant ; but, recovering himself temporarily, he 
called the negro to his bedside, and said to him : 
" Edwai'd, I hear I have been scolding you. I 
did not know Avhat I was saymg. You have been 
a faithful servant, Edward." The poor negro sat 
down and wept as though his heart was broken. 
When General Buford received his commission 
as Major-General, he exclaimed ; " Now I wish 
that I could live." His last intelligible words, 
uttered during an attack of delirium, were : " Put 
guards on all the roads, and don't let the men 
run back to the rear." This was an illustration 
of the ruling passion strong in death, for no trait 
in General Buford's character was more conspicu- 
ous than his dislike to see men skulking or hang- 
ing on the rear. 



VERSES. 

Supposed to bo written by General Jolin Morgan, on 
siirvcyJDg- his solitary abode in liis cell, la the Ohio Peni- 
tentiary at Columbus. 

I AM monarch of all I survey ; 

My right there is none to dispute ; 
Naked walls, a stone floor, a tin traj-, 

Iron spoon, checkered pants, and clean suit. 

I am out of Jeff. Davis's reach, 
I must finish my journey in stone, 

Never hear a big secession speech — 
I start at the sound of my OAvn. 

O solitude ! strange are the fancies 
Of those who see charms in thy face ; 

Better dwell in the midst of the Yankees, 
Than reign in this horrible place. 

Ye steeds that have made me your sport. 

Convey to this desolate cell 
Some cordial, endearing report 

Of the thefts I have practised so well. 

Horse- stealing, bridge-burning, and fight, 

Divinely bestowed upon man ; 
0, had I the wings of a kite, 

How soon would I taste you again ! 

My sorrows I then might assuage 

In the work of destruction and raiding ; 

Might laugh at the wisdom of age, 
Nor feel the least pang of upbraiding. 

• Rebellion ! what music untold 
Resides in that heavenly word ! 
It helps me to silver and gold, 
And all that the earth can afford. 

But the sweet sound of burning and plunder 
These prison- walls never yet heard, 

Never echoed the chivaby's thmider, 
Nor mocked at the Union's grand bird. 

How fleet is a glance of the mind 

Compared with the speed of my flight ! 

But Shackelford came up behind, 
So I found 'tAvas no iise to fight. 

The Buckeyes that gave me a race 

My form with indifference see ; 
They are so light of foot on the chase, 

Their coolness is shocking to me. 

When I think of my dear native land, 

I confess that I wish I was there ; 
Confound these hard stone walls at hand, 

And my bald pate, all shaven of hair. 

My friends, do they now and then send 

A wish or a thought after me ? 
Like Burbeck, that quick-coming friend ? 

For a friend in need truly was he. 

But the sea-fowl is gone to her rest, 
The beast is laid down in his lair ; 

Y"ct not like John Morgan unblest. 
As I to my straw-bed repair. 



How Fort Sumter was Provisioned. — The 
traitor Floyd took great pains to jjut the United 
States forts in Charleston harbor into the hands 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



255 



of the South Carolinians, -without expense of men 
or money. For this purpose he refused the con- 
stant entreaties of Colonel John L. Gardner, the 
officer in command at Fort INIoultrie, for troops. 
Just at the time the danger Avas becoming immi- 
nent, he sent, instead of soldiers for defence, a 
body of laborers, who, under the direction of an 
engmeer, were ordered to repair the fort in such 
a way and at such a time as to render the fort 
defenceless against the seceders. These labor- 
ers were to be fed from the supplies at the fort. 
This made it necessary to purchase provisions in 
Charleston from week to week, so that, in the 
event of a siege, the garrison would be starved 
out in a few days. By desperate efforts the re- 
pairs were finished in such a way that the forty- 
five men in the fort could make some defence ; 
but being dependent on Charleston for food, the 
South Carolinians and Floyd well knew that the 
fort was completely in their power whenever they 
should see fit to cut off supplies from the city. 

In this dilemma Colonel Gardner practised the 
piece of strategy which finally enabled Anderson 
to hold the fort and make his defence. Colonel 
G. wrote to an old friend, the chief of the com- 
missary department, to send him provisions for 
one hundred men for six months ; at the same 
time significantly hinting to him that he could 
obey this requisition in the ordinary discretionary 
routine of his duty without consulting with the 
Secretary of War. He added also the further 
request that the transport should be ordered ,to 
land her cargo at Fort Moultrie immediately on 
her arrival in the harbor, and before she should 
go to Charleston. The patriotic commissary offi- 
cer, Colonel Taylor, the brother of the late Presi- 
dent Taylor, understood the hint conveyed, and 
the reason for it, and took the responsibiHty of 
acting on Colonel Gardner's requisition. The 
provisions were thus safely landed at Fort Moul- 
trie, the traitor Secretary being not a whit the 
wiser for the operation. These were the provis- 
ions wliich were gradually carried over to Fort 
Sumter in the engineer's boats, and suj^ported 
Major Anderson and his gallant command during 
the memorable siege. Floyd, not knowing the 
ruse that had been played upon him by Colonel 
Gardner, expected every day that hunger would 
do the business for the little garrison, which he 
intended to hand over, bound hand and foot, to 
the enemy. 

While "these matters were going on, Floyd sent 
down a young officer to look after the carrying 
out of his plans, and to represent to Colonel G., 
by various indirect processes, the Secretary's idea 
of an officer's duty in command at Fort Moultrie. 
Colonel Gardner had reported to the Secretary 
that, though he had but one man for each great 
gun, he was determined to defend the place to the 
utmost against Avhatever force should be sent 
against it. Floyd's spy found Colonel Gardner's 
men at work day and night adding to the de- 
fences of the place. He found even the brick 
quarters within the fort loopholed for a stand with 
musketry, in case of an escalade by a sudden rush 
of a lorge number of men. All this was evidently 



directly the opposite of the Secretary's policy, as 
represented in various indirect ways by the offi- 
cer whom he had sent. He was shown all the 
preparations for a desperate defence, which Col- 
onel Gardner had made, and was told that they 
would be used against any force which should 
march from Charleston, as soon as they came 
within range of the guns. He was, moreover, 
requested to tell the Secretary all that he had 
seen and heard. The consequence was, that the 
commandant, disposed to do his duty too loell, 
was suspended, and an officer of Kentucky bu'th, 
who had married in Georgia, was put in command. 
From Major Anderson's birth and connections 
Floyd evidently supposed that he had obtained a 
pliant tool for his purposes. A few days' obser- 
vation convinced Major Anderson that he had 
been sent there to sacrifice his honor, and that he 
could save it only by carrying out the desperate 
measures of defence already begun by Colonel 
Gardner. The retreat to Fort Sumter, its repair, 
its siege, and boml^ardment were the natural se- 
quel. All these events, so important already in 
history, turned upon the ruse by which Colonel 
Gardner's requisition for provisions was met by 
Colonel Taylor and kept secret from Floyd. This 
is a scrap of history well worth remembering, and 
is given on the best of authority. 



Buck Travis' Capture. — In the early days 
of the rebellion, ere the keen edge of Southern 
chivalry was blunted by contact with the mudsills 
of the North, Buck Travis raised a regiment 
among the young bloods of Henry County, in 
West Tennessee. The regiment was organized 
by the election of Travis as Colonel, and the cel- 
ebrated J. D. C. Atkins as Lieutenant-Colonel. 
Travis lost no time in putting himself at the head 
of his gallant band, and " starting forth on mar- 
tial deeds intent," they approached Union City, 
Tennessee, just at the time when Pillow was 
transferring military stores, ordnance, &c., to Co- 
lumbus, Kentucky. They arrived at the depot 
simultaneously with a train from the South, bear- 
ing several pieces of artillery. These, by some 
strange mistake, were at once seized by Travis 
as Lincoln guns, and a telegram was immedi- 
ately sent to Atkins, who had remained behind at 
Paris, announcing the brilliant achievement. The 
despatch was handed to him on the Square, sur- 
rounded by a crowd of citizens. He glanced at 
its contents, and looked around for the most eli- 
gible -site for a rostrum. Discovering a pile of 
boxes on the corner, he made for them, followed 
by the eager crowd. INIounting the box, he lifted 
his voice and announced the glorious intelligence. 
" My countrymen ! " he said, " this is a proud day 
for Henry County and for the State. I am proud 
to announce to you that your gallant sons, under 
the lead of the indomitable Travis, have already 
wreathed their brows with an imperishable fame. 
The murderous artillery with which the tyi-ant 
Lincoln sought to enslave our people, has been 
wrested from the tyrant's hands, and — " Here 
another despatch was handed to the speaker, and 



256 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



he was heard to remark, with an oath, " Buck al- 
ways was a d — d fool. Boys, them was our guns, 
after all." 

Stonewall Jackson administers the Sac- 
rament. — On the morning of a battle near Har- 
jjer's Ferry, after a sermon by one of his chaplains, 
Stonewall Jackson, who was an elder in the Pres- 
byterian Church, administered the sacrament to 
the church members in his army. He invited all 
Christians to participate in the ceremony. A 
Baptist, the straitest of his sect, thoroughly im- 
bued with the idea of close communion, was seen 
to hesitate ; but the occasion, and the man Avho 
presided, overcame his scruples ; and thus it has 
happened that the prospect of a fight and the elo- 
quence of Jackson made a Baptist forget that 
baptism is the door into the church. In all Jack- 
son's aimy an oath was rarely uttered. A reli- 
gious enthusiasm pervaded it, which made every 
man a hero. Conscious of the justice of his 
cause, and imbued with the strongest convictions 
of patriotism, his men -were irresistible. In this 
incident we have an explanation of General Jack- 
son's invincibility ; and we are thus enabled to 
understand why his men were heroes, and why 
they endured without a murmur the severest 
hardships to Avhich any troops were subjected 
during the war. 



ADVENTURES AT BULL RUN. 

BY EDWIN S. BAllRETT. 

This narrative of personal adventures before 
and at the battle of Bull Pam commences with 
the night preceding the action : " On Saturday 
evening, the 20th of July, I heard we were to start 
at half past two the following morning, and our 
line was to be in readiness at that early hour. We 
had occupied the camp at Centreville since Thurs- 
day night. Wrapping my blanket around me, at 
ten o'clock I stretched myself upon the bare 
ground to sleep. The night was cool, and at 
twelve o'clock I awoke, feeling very cold, and, un- 
able to sleep more, I anxiously waited to hear the 
signal to prepare. At two o'clock one drum 
sounded through the camp, and was repeated 
through the numerous camps around us, and in 
half an hour forty thousand men stood ready to 
battle for the Union. 

" The Fifth Massachusetts regiment, which I 
accompanied, was in the division under Colonel 
Heintzelman, acting Major General, and our regi- 
ment was third in the column. The First Minne- 
sota, under Colonel Gorman, led, followed by the 
Massachusetts Eleventh, Colonel Clarke ; then 
the Fifth, Colonel Lawrence, with the regular cav- 
alry, and a battery of artillery leading the ad- 
vance. We waited, in marching order, from half 
past two o'clock until after six before the order 
was given to advance, and then we learned that 
Colonel Hunter, with eight regiments, including 
Governor Sprague's command, had preceded us, 
and we M-ere to follow. General McDowell and 
staff now headed our division. 



" Mounted on a secession horse, which I had cap- 
tured two days previously, I followed in the rear 
of the regiment, in company with Quartermaster 
Billings and Surgeon Hurd. From Centreville 
we took the extreme northern road, leaving the 
Warrenton road on our left, which General Tyler 
had taken with his division. Passing through a 
forest of heavy oak timber, some three or four 
miles in length, we emerged into the open coun- 
try, with a wide intervale on our left, and the 
Blue Ridge Mountains chstinctly visible on our 
right. We had heard an occasional cannon shot 
during the morning, but not until ten o'clock was 
there any sound of a general engagement. The 
heavy cannonading on our left and in front caused 
the march to be hastened, and our men could 
hardly be restrained, so eager were they for the 
fight. About a mile and a half before we reached 
the field, the men began to throw away their 
blankets, haversacks, and all unnecessary append- 
ages — the diff'erent regiments trying to throw 
them into a pile, or as near together as jjossible, 
without halting. I tied my horse near the hos- 
pital headquarters, and hastened to the head of 
the column, which advanced in double-quick time 
till they came within reach of the enemy's guns. 
The fight was raging on our left and in front, a.s 
our division came on to the field. I could see 
that the enemy's batteries were posted on a long 
ridge, with woods extending on either flank, and 
separated from us by a valley. It was now about 
half past eleven o'clock. General jMcDowell or- 
dered one brigade, under Colonel FranhJin, con- 
sisting of the First Minnesota, Eleventh and Fifth 
Massachusetts, and a Pennsylvania regiment, to 
advance down the hill and take a position in the 
vallej', on a slight elevation directly in front of 
the rebel batteries. I followed on some distance, 
but the shot rattled about me, and I halted near 
General McDowell and staff", while the brigade 
swept past me and down the hill. I watched for 
some time the colors of the Fifth with intense in- 
terest. The regiment reached the valley, and de- 
ploying to the right on to a slight knoll, fell flat 
on then* faces, while the shot from the rebel bat- 
teries mostly passed over their heads. A battery 
swept past me to take a position. I followed it 
along some distance, when the Major galloped 
back to me, and called out, ' Friend, tell Captain 
F. to hurry up my supports.' I did not know 
Captain F., but hastened back and met an order- 
ly, of whom I inquired where he was. He pointed 
him out to me, near a regiment of infantry. I 
rushed up to him and gave my message. He re- 
plied, ' They are coming riglit along.' And on 
double-quick the regiment followed after the bat- 
tery. The rifle-cannon shot, shells, and bullets, 
struck all. around me, and men were falling in 
every direction. Seeing a high persimmon tree 
standing alone, a short distance down the hill, I 
determined to climb it. The top of it was dead, 
and about thii-ty feet from the ground. From this 
elevation I had an unobstructed view of the whole 
line, and I could see into the enemy's intrench- 
ments, where the men looked like so many bees 
in a hive ; and I could plainly see their officers 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



257 



riding about, and their different columns moving 
hither and thither. Their batteries on the right 
and left were masked with trees so completely, 
that I could not distinguish them except by the 
flash from their guns ; and a battery in a corn- 
field, on our extreme left, was so completely 
concealed by the cornstalks placed so naturally 
about it, that our men came -suddenly upon it, 
never dreaming of one so near. The cannon 
balls struck the ground continually close to the 
tree, and bounded along for a quarter of a mile to 
the rear. I felt that I was above the range of 
these, but the rifle balls whistled about my head, 
striking the tree in a way anything but pleasant. 
Just after I had reached the top of the ti'ee, a New 
Hampshire regiment, close at my left, had suc- 
ceeded in driving the rebels from the woods in 
front, and, with three cheers, they fell back into 
line. AVhen the line was formed, three cheers 
were given for Colonel Marston, who had fought 
gallantly and received two severe wounds. Sher- 
man's battery then commenced firing, on my right, 
within thirty rods of me, and at the first dis- 
charge the men cheered, and watched the effect 
of the shell, which exploded inside the enemy's 
intrenchments. The men cheered again, to see 
that they got the range so quickly, and continued 
to fire with great rapidity, while the enemy re- 
turned the fire with equal vigor and precision, the 
cannonading being kept up incessantly for an 
hour. 

" The shot and shell from this battery must liave 
done the rebels great damage, as every shot took 
effect witliin their intrenchments. Still men and 
horses kept falling near our guns, and the infan- 
try lines were parted in many places by their can- 
non balls. The valley for nearly one half a mile 
in front of the enemy's works was filled with our 
infantry, extending to some patches of woods 
on our right. Our batteries were placed on va- 
rious eminences on the flank and rear, shifting 
their positions from time to time. The fire from 
our lines in this valley was terrific, and as they 
kept slowly advancing, firing, retreating to load, 
and then advancing again, it was a sight which 
no words could describe. For thi'ee long hours 
we poured into their intrenchments this terrible 
fire, and whenever the enemy showed themselves 
on the flanks they were driven back with great 
slaughter. During all this time our men were 
subjected to a CTOss-fire from the enemy's infan- 
try stationed in the woods on our left. At one 
time the ' Stars and Stripes ' were waved in these 
woods, and men dressed much like our own called 
out not to fire that way. Our men gradually 
drew up towards the flag, when immediately the 
secession flag was thrown out, and the rebels 
poured a volley into our men so unexpectedly 
that they were for the time driven back, but we 
soon regained the ground. 

"General McDowell now ordered a battery for- 
ward to take a position near a house on our 
right ; the Fire Zouaves were ordered to support 
it. The position appeared to me, from my look- 
out, like a strong one, as it was on a hill on a 
level with the rebel batteries. Our battery started, 
17 



the horses running at the top of their speed, and 
shortly began to ascend the eminence, the Zouaves 
following closely ; but scarcely had the battery 
halted and fired, before the enemy opened ui)on 
them from new masked batteries, and a terrific 
fire of musketry from the woods, and our artil- 
lery were driven back, many of their men and 
horses being killed. The Zouaves stood their 
ground manfully, firing in lines and then falling 
on their faces to load. Their ranks were becom- 
ing dreadfully thinned, yet they would not yield 
an inch ; when suddenly out dashed the Black 
Horse Cavalry, and charged furiously, with up- 
lifted sabres, upon them. The Zouaves gallantly 
resisted this furious onset without flinching, and 
after firing their muskets — too sorely pressed to 
load — would fight furiously with their bayonets, 
or any weapon they could seize, and in some in- 
stances di-ag the riders from their saddles, stab- 
bing them with their knives, and mounting their 
splendid black horses, gallop over the field. Nev- 
er, since the famous chai'ge of the Light Brigade, 
was a cavalry corps more cut to pieces. There 
is a bitter animosity existing between the Black 
Horse Cavahy and Ellsworth's Zouaves. A great 
many of the cavalry are citizens of Alexandria 
and Fairfax County, and they resolved to kill ev- 
ery Zouave they could lay their hands upon, to 
avenge the death of Jackson ; and the Zouaves 
were equally determined to avenge the murder of 
Ellsworth ; so no quarter was expected by them. 

" I had now been in the tree some two hours, 
and all this time a continuous stream of wounded 
were being carried past me to the rear. The soldiers 
would cross their muskets, place their wounded 
companions across, and slowly carry them past ; 
another soldier would have a wounded man with 
his arm around his neck, slowly walking back ; and 
then two men would be bearing a mortally wound- 
ed comrade in their arms, who was in convulsions 
and writhing in his last agonies. These were to 
me the most affecting scenes I witnessed, and I 
could hardly keep back the tears, while I could 
look upon the dead unmoved. Picking a couple 
of persimmons as a remembrance, I descended the 
tree, startling two soldiers leaning against it, by 
requesting them to move their guns so that I 
could get down. They looked up in astonish- 
ment at hearing a voice, and no doubt their first 
thought was that I might be a rebel spy ; but the 
' U. S.' on my belt, and my anxious inquiries af- 
ter their regiment, soon reassured them. 

" Leaving the tree, I went along over the field to 
the left, the bullets whistling about me, and the 
cannon balls ploughing up the ground in every di- 
rection, when I came across two of our men with 
a prisoner, who said he belonged to a South Car- 
olina regiment. I asked him some questions, but 
he was dogged and silent, and did not appear to 
be disposed to reply to my inquiries. The shot 
fell so thick, and shells bursting around me, I 
hardly knew which way to turn. A musket ball 
whizzed past my ear, so near that I felt the heat, 
and for a moment thought I was hit. The ground 
was strewed with broken guns, swords, cartridge- 
boxes, blankets, haversacks, gun-carriages, to- 



258 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



J 



gether with all the paraphernalia of warfare, min- 
gled with the dead and wounded men. I saw 
here a horse, and his rider under him, both killed 
by the same cannon ball. Seeing a small white 
house still towards the left, with a well near it, I 
started for some water, and getting over a wall, I 
discovered lying beside it a number of our dead 
svith their haversacks drawn over their faces. 
I lifted the cover from then* faces, thinking, per- 
ha]js, I might come across some of my friends ; 
but they were all strangers, or so disfigured that 
I could not recognize them. I went to the well 
for a drink, and as I drew near the house, I heard 
loud groans ; and such a scene as was there pre- 
sented, in that little house of two rooms, and on 
the grass around it, was enough to appaU the 
stoutest heart. 

" The rooms were crowded, and I could not get 
in ; but all around on the gi-ass were men mor- 
tally wounded. I should think there w'ere at least 
forty on that greensward within twenty rods of 
the house, and such wounds — some with both 
legs shot oft" ; some with a thigh shot away ; 
some with both legs broken ; others with horrid 
'flesh wounds made from shells. I saw one man 
with a wound in his back large enough to put in 
my fist ; he was fast bleeding to death. They lay 
so thick around me, that I could hardly step be- 
tween them, and every step was in blood. As I 
walked among them, some besought me to kill 
them, and put an end to their agony ; some were 
just gasping, and some had died since they had 
been brought there, and the dying convulsions of 
these strong men were agonizing in the extreme. 
Some were calling for the surgeon, but the hos- 
pital was more than a mile off", and there were but 
two surgeons here. 

" I left the house, and bore off to the right, 
towards some low pine woods, about a hundred 
rods distant, and scattered along were the dead 
bodies of our men. On reaching the wood, I 
found the ground Hterally covered with the corpses 
of the enemy, and I counted, in the space of 
about ten rods square, forty-seven dead rebels, 
and ten mortally wounded, and scattered all 
through the woods, still farther back, were any 
number more. I talked with several of the 
wounded, and they told me they belonged to the 
Eighth Georgia regiment, Colonel Bartow, and 
had arrived at Manassas, from Winchester, the 
day before, where they had been with General 
Johnston. They told me their whole regiment 
was posted in this pine wood. One young man 
told me he was from Macon, and that his father 
was a merchant. I asked another where he was 
from. He replied, defiantly, ' I am for disunion 
— opposed to you.' This man had both thighs 
broken. 

" I heard one of our soldiers ask a wounded 
Georgian if their orders were to kill our wounded. 
He answered, ' No.' Our soldiers carried water 
to these wounded men, and as they lay there 
writhing in agony, a cup of water was put within 
their reach. The convulsions of one of these was 
awful to look upon. He appeared to have been 
shot in the lungs, as he vomited blood in large 



quantities, and in his struggles for breath, would 
throw himself clear from the ground. I noticed 
among this heap of bodies an officer dressed in 
light blue uniform, with green stripes on his 
pants, — a fine-looking man, — whom I took to 
be a captain. I also saw one of our soldiers take 
sixty dollars from the body of a dead Georgian, 
and their knives, revolvers, &c., were appropri- 
ated in the same Avay. This I looked upon as le- 
gitimate plunder for the soldiers, but as a citizen, 
I forbore to take anything from the fiald. 

"I think the fight in this wood must have 
been fiercer than in any part of the field, except 
it may be on our right, where the Zouaves were. 
This wood was near the enemy's right, and where 
the fight commenced in the morning with Hunter's 
division, and as Heintzelman's division came into 
action, the rebels were giving way at this point, 
under the galling fire of Colonel "Marston's regi- 
ment, while the Rhode Island troops and some 
New York regiments had driven back their ex- 
treme right. Passing through these pine woods, 
I still bore to the right, towards our centre, and 
crossed a cleared space, and came to some heavy 
wood, on the edge of which I perceived a num- 
ber of dead scattered about, and seeing several 
wounded men, I went up to one of them, and 
found he was a rebel belonging to an Alabama 
regiment. He told me he joined the regiment 
the 13th of April. He pointed to a dead horse 
close to us, and said, ' There is my Colonel's 
horse, and I suppose you have taken him pris- 
oner.' 

" Most of these rebels had gray suits, with 
black trimmings — very similar to the uniforms 
of some of our men. Scattered all through this 
wood were our men and the Alabamians, dead 
and wounded mingled together. I noticed a 
splendid bay horse nibbling the leaves from a 
tree, and was thinking what a fine animal he was, 
when I saw that one fore leg was shot off, clean 
as though cut by a knife, and bleeding a stream. 
Until this time I supposed that everything was 
being swept before us, as the fire from the bat- 
teries had been nearly silenced on their right, 
and only an occasional discharge was heard. On 
the enemy's left, the firing Avas not nearly as 
vigorous as half an hour previous. I came out 
of the woods, and to my utter astonishment, saw 
our whole body retreating in utter confusion and 
disorder — no lines, no companies, no regiments, 
could be distinguished. I stood still a few mo- 
ments, unable to comprehend the extraordinary 
spectacle. 

" I heard my name called, and turning round, 
a Lieutenant of the Massachusetts Fifth came 
towards me. ' My God, Ed. ! what are you here 
for ? ' he exclaimed. Without replying, I asked 
if the Fifth had suffered much. He said it had, 
and that the Colonel was dangerously wounded. 
I waited to find others of my friends, but the 
whole line was drifting back through the valley. 
I fell in with them, and went slowly uj) the hill, 
occasionally halting and looking back. 1 stopped 
on the brow of a hill while the volume drifted 
by, and I can compare it to nothing more than a 



ANECDOTES. POETRY, AND INCIDENTS, 



259 



drove of cattle, so entirely broken and disorgan- 
ized were our lines. The enemy had nearly 
ceased firing from the batteries on their right 
and centre, but still, on our extreme right, be- 
yond a patch of woods, the fight was going on, 
and their cannonading was kept up with vigor. 

" The line where the main battle was fought 
was a half to three quarters of a mile in length, 
the ground uneven and broken by knolls and 
patches of wood. At no time did we have a fair 
chance at the enemy in the open field. They 
kept behind their intrenchments, or under cover 
of the woods. Our comparatively slight loss 
may be attributed to the fact that the great body 
of our troops were posted in the valley in front 
of the enemy's batteries, but by keeping as close 
to the ground as possible, the enemy's shot passed 
over their heads, while the cross fire of infantry 
from their fianks caused us the most damage. 

" I did not leave the hill until the enemy's in- 
fantry came out from their intrenchments, and 
slowly moved forward, their guns gHstening in 
the sun ; but they showed no disposition to 
charge, and only advanced fi short distance. 
Had they precipitated their columns upon our 
panic-stricken army, the slaughter would have 
been dreadful, for so thorough was the panic, 
that no power on earth could have stopped the 
retreat, and made our men turn and fight. They 
were exhausted with twelve hours' marching and 
fighting, having had little to eat, their mouths 
paixhed with thirst, and no water in their canteens 
— what could be expected of them then ? Our 
men did fight like heroes, and only retreated 
when they had no officers to control and com- 
mand them. 

" I found my horse tied to the tree where I 
left him in the morning. Mounting him, I rode 
up to the hospital headquarters, and stopped 
some time watching the ambulances bringing 
their loads of wounded, fearing I might discover 
a friend or acquaintance. As these loads of 
wounded men were brought up, blood flowed 
from the ambulances like water from an ice cart, 
and their mutilated limbs proti'uding from the 
rear had no semblance of humanity. 

" I left these scenes of blood and carnage, and 
fell into this reti'eating mass of disorderly and 
confused soldiery. Then commenced my retreat. 
None who dragged their weary limbs through 
the long hours of that night will ever forget it. 
Officers of regiments placed themselves in front 
of a body of their men, and besought them to 
halt and form, for if they did not make a stand, 
their retreat would be cut off. But they might 
as well have asked the wind to cease blowing. 
The men heeded them not, but pressed on in re- 
treat. The regiments two or three miles to our 
rear, which had not been in action, exhorted our 
men to halt, as we drifted by, but all to no pur- 
pose. No power could stop them. The various 
regiments tried to collect as many as possible by 
calling out the number of their regiment and 
their State. In some instances, they collected 
together two or three hundred men. 

" At a naiTow place in the road the baggage 



wagons and artillery got jammed together in a 
dead lock, and in trying to get through I was 
hemmed in so completely that for fifteen minutes 
I could not move in either direction, and in this 
way I became separated from a remnant of the 
Fifth, and did not see them again till I reached 
Centreville. I finally extricated myself by break- 
ing down a rail fence, and driving my horse over 
it, struck across a large cornfield, thus cutting 
oflF considerable distance and reaching the road at 
a point where it entered the oak forest. Shortly 
after entering the woods the column in front of 
me suddenly broke and ran into the woods on the 
left ; the panic spread past me, and soldiers ran 
pell-mell into the woods, leaving me alone on my 
horse. I was afraid that in their fright they 
might shoot me, and I shouted lustily, ' False 
alarm.' 

" Turning my horse about, not a man could I 
see ; but soon a soldier thrust his head from behind 
a large oali. I asked him what the matter was. 
He replied, * The enemy are in front.' Somewhat 
provoked at the scare, I made some reflection on 
his courage, and shouted again still louder, * False 
alai-m," which was soon taken up along the road, 
and in five minutes we were going along as be- 
fore. This was between five and six o'clock in 
the afternoon. Shortly after I overtook two sol- 
diers helping along a disabled Lieutenant ; they 
asked me to take him up behind me, to which I 
readily assented, although my horse was already 
encumbered with, a pair of saddle-bags and sev- 
eral blankets. The poor man groaned as they 
lifted him up behind me. I was fearful he might 
fall ofl', and I told him to put both arms around 
me and hold on tight. Leaning- his head upon 
my shoulder, we started on. 

" He soon felt better, gave me his name, and 
informed me that he was a First Lieutenant of 
the Marines, and belonged in Connecticut. He 
stated that they had in the fight four companies, 
of eighty men each, and that Lieutenant Hitch- 
cock (a very dear friend) was killed by his side. 
A cavalry officer, with his arm in a sling, came 
riding along, and drawing up near to me, I asked 
him if he was much hurt. He replied, that he 
had received a rifle ball through the fleshy part 
of his arm. He also told me that during the fight 
he had two horses shot under him, and the one 
on which he was then riding he caught on the' 
field. I questioned him as to the cause of our 
disaster, and he answered, that our light troops 
and light batteries could make no headway against 
the heavy guns of the enemy, strongly intrenched. 
I asked him how the enemy's works could have 
been carried ; with characteristic faith in his 
branch of the service, he replied, 'By allowing 
the cavalry to charge, supported by infantry.' 
He also informed me that we had about one 
thousand cavalry in the field during the battle. 

"As we continued our retreat through the 
wood, the men, overcome with weariness, dropped 
by the roadside, and immediately fell asleep: 
some, completely exhausted, begged to be carried, 
the wagons being already overloaded with those 
unableto walk; and some shrewd ones quietly 



260 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



bargained with the driver of an ordnance wagon 
for a seat by his side. Passing out through this 
wood, we came in sight of the hills of Centreville. 
I noticed that the column mostly left the road, 
and bore off through an open field, leaving the 
bridge we had crossed in the morning some dis- 
tance on our right. I could not account for this 
deviation from the morning's course, and I left 
the main body and continued along some distance 
farther, determined to keep the main road, as I 
knew of no other way to cross the creek, except 
by the bridge we had crossed in the morning ; but 
coming up to a line of broken-down wagons, it 
occurred to me that the bridge might be blocked 
up, as I recollected the passage Avas quite naiTow. 
I then started off to the left, across a level field, 
but upon looking back I perceived that the wag- 
ons still continued on towards the bridge ; in fact, 
there was no other way for them to cross. I fol- 
lowed the crowd of soldiers through the field ami 
into some low woods. 

" Here they scattered in every direction, as 
there was no path, and each one was compelled 
to choose his own route. I picked my way among 
the tangled underbrush till I came to the creek ; 
the bank down to the water was very steep, and 
I feared my horse could not carry us both down 
safely ; so, dismounting, I led him slowly down, 
and then, mounting, I drove into the stream. 
The bottom was soft and miry, and my horse sunk 
in to his belly. I began to think that we should 
all be soon floundering in the stream ; then urg- 
ing him to his utmost strength, we reached the 
opposite bank in safety. Twice my gallant horse 
started up the banlt and fell back. After cross- 
ing this creek I came into a cornfield, and soon 
struck a road leading into CentrevUle, which vil- 
lage I soon reached, and there my companion 
met with his captain, and he then dismounted. 
Never was a man more grateful for a favor than 
was this Lieutenant. With tears in his eyes, he 
thanked me a thousand times, and, wringing my 
hands, walked away with his friends. 

" From Centreville I could see the disordered 
army winding along for some two miles ; a por- 
tion of the men, and all the wagons and artillery, 
took the road over the bridge, while another por- 
tion came in nearly the direction I had taken. It 
was now nearly eight o'clock, and as it grew 
darker, our retreating army kept the main road 
over the bridge. About two miles from Centre- 
ville, on the southern road, was a rebel battery, 
where the fight had taken place the Thursday 
previous. This battery commanded the bridge 
above mentioned. Suddenly a cannon shot was 
fired from the battery and struck our column, 
crowding across this narrow bridge. The utmost 
consternation was created by this fire. In their 
haste, wagons and gun-carriages Avere crowded 
together and overturned ; the drivers cut their 
horses loose, who galloped they scarcely knew 
whither. Our men plunged into the stream, waist 
deep, and were scattered in every direction, and 
some who were seen up to this time have not been 
heard of since. 

" The enemy still firsd from the battery, but 



did not dare to sally out, as they were kept in 
check by our reserve on the heights of Centre- 
ville. I reached our camp that we had left in the 
morning a little after eight o'clock, and found 
that a few of the Fifth had arrived before me. I1 
was then expected we should encamp for the 
night ; but about nine o'clock we received orders 
to march to Alexandria. We had already trav- 
elled from ten to twelve miles, and now our weary 
soldiers were ordered to march twenty-five or 
thirty miles farther. 

" Slowly the fragment of our regiment fell into 
line and began this dreadful night march. I took 
a sick man behind me and followed in the rear 
of our regiment, and crossing a field to the main 
road we fell in with the drifting mass. A friend 
of mine from the Fifth, who could hardly walk, 
approached me. I offered him my horse if he 
would hold the sick man who was groaning at 
every step. To this he readily assented ; so I 
dismounted. I saw no more of my horse till 
morning, but trudged along all night without 
once sitting down to rest, only occasionally stop- 
ping to get water. 

" I felt comparatively fresh when compared with 
my companions. The dust was intolerable, and, not 
having any canteen, I suffered exceedingly from 
thirst. Men dropped down along the road by 
scores ; some, completely exhausted, pleaded pit- 
eously to be helped along ; some took hold of 
the rear of the wagons, which was considerable 
support to them, and many a horse had two men 
on his back, with another helped along by his 
tail ; in fact, a horse carrying but one was an 
exception. I assisted one fine fellow along for a 
long distance, who told me he was taken with 
bleeding at the lungs while on the field ; he was 
very weak, and in vain I tried to find an oppor- 
tunity for him to ride, but he bore up manfully 
through the night, and I saw him the next day in 
AVashington. 

" After passing Fairfax Court House some of 
the regiments, or such a portion as could be col- 
lected together, bivouacked for the night, but the 
men Avere so scattered that I doubt if half a regi- 
ment halted at any one spot. I still walked on, 
never once resting, fearing if I did I should feel 
worse when I again started. Towards morning 
my feet began to be blistered, and the cords of 
my legs worked like rusty wires, giving me great 
pain at every step. Gladly did I hail the fu'st 
faint streak of light in the east. 

" At daylight we were within five miles of Alex- 
andria. About this time we came to where the 
Washington road branches off' from the main 
road to Alexandria, and here our column divided. 
I continued on towards Alexandria, and in about 
an hour came in sight of Shuter's hill. I then 
felt my journey Avas nearly accomplished, but the 
last tAvo miles seemed endless. 

" I stopped at a small house just back of Fort 
EllsAVorth, and asked the old negro Avoman for 
some breakfast. Tavo Zouaves Avere there Avhcn 
I entered, and soon four more came in. She 
kncAV them all, as they had paid her frequent vis- 
its Avhile encamped in that neighborhood. She 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



261 



gladly got us the best she had, and these six 
Zouaves and myself, nearly famished as we were, 
sat down to that breakfast of fried pork, hoe 
cake, and coffee, served to us by this old slave 
Moman, M'ith greater delight, than ever a king 
seated himself at a banquet. 

" The Zouaves each had their story of the battle 
to relate, but the charge of the Black Horse Cav- 
alry was their especial theme. One of them, 
pulling a large Colt's pistol from his pocket, said, 
' There, I gave that fellow h — 1, and he wasn't the 
only one either.' I coveted this pistol, and soon 
bargained for it, and now have it in my posses- 
sion; one barrel only had been fired. The Zouaves 
gradually dropped off, and after paying the slave 
woman for the meal, I started over the hill to the 
camp of the Fifth, where I arrived about half 
past eight o'clock, and found that my horse with 
his riders had arrived, safely some time before." 



A PSALM OF LIFE. 

As chanted bij Gideon J. Pilloto and his boys on re- 
treating from Lafayette, Georgia, June 24, 1864. 

Tell me not, in boastful twaddle, 
Yankees five by one " Confed " 

Are unnerved and made skedaddle, 
With coat-tail as high as head. 

"Feds" will fight — a bold defender 
Is each member of their ranks ; 

That they readily surrender, 

Can't be spoken of the " Yanks." 

'Twas enjoyment, and not sorrow, 
That we hoped to reap to-day ; 

Certain that before the morrow 
We should march the Yanks away. 

Without bloodshed, without battle, 

In their bivouac so nice. 
We would pen them like dumb cattle, 

'Gobble all up in a trice. 

But their bullets now remind us 
We should all be making tracks. 

And, departing, leave behind us — 
Far behind — those deadly " cracks." 

Deadly, and perhaps some other 
Fell shots may increase our slain ; 

Slany a fallen, war- wrecked brother 
Never can take aim again. 

'Stride our horses let's be jumping, 
While our hearts we thought so brave, 

Like unmuffled drums, are thumping, 
And our knees are like to cave. 

Trust no shelter, howe'er pleasant ! 

Let the Yankees bury our dead ! 
Run ! run ! in this dreadful present, 

Bullets whizzing overhead ! 

Let us, too, continue going. 

Spur our "plugs " to fastest gait : 

For the bhie-coats are pursuing. 
And we've had "enough" of late. 



A Brave Irishman. — One of the Indiana 
regiments was fiercely attacked by a whole bri- 
gade, in one of the battles in Mississippi. The 
Indianians, unable to withstand such great odds, 
were compelled to fall back about thirty or forty 
yards, losing, to the utter mortification of the offi- 
cers and men, their flag, which remained in the 
hands of the enemy. Suddenly, a tall Irishman, 
a private in the color company, rushed from the 
ranks across the vacant gi'ound, attacked the 
squad of rebels who had possession of the con- 
quered flag, Avith his musket felled several to the 
ground, snatched the flag from them, and returned 
safely back to his regiment. The bold fellow was, 
of course, immediately surrounded by his jubilant 
comrades, and greatly praised for his gallantry. 
His Captain appointed him to a sergeantcy on the 
spot ; but the hero cut everything short by the 
reply, " 0, never mind, Captain, — say no more 
about it. I dropped my whiskey flask among the 
rebels, and fetched that back, and I thought I 
might just as well bring the flag along ! " 



" It is my Mother ! " — An interesting anec- 
dote, though of doubtful authenticity, is related 
of FrankHn, who, it is alleged, in order to test the 
parental instinct existing between mother and 
child, introduced himself as a belated traveller to 
his mother's house after an absence of many years. 
Her house being filled with more illustrious guests 
than the unknown stranger, she refused him shel- 
ter, and M'ould have turned him from her door. 
Hence, he concluded that this so-called parental 
instinct was a pleasant delusive belief, not suscep- 
tible of proof. 

The opposite of this lately occurred in Wash- 
ington. In one of the fierce engagements with 
the rebels near Mechanicsville, in May, 1864, a 
young Lieutenant of a Rhode Island battery had 
his right foot so shattered by a fragment of shell 
that, on reaching Washington, after one of those 
horrible ambulance rides, and a journey of a 
week's duration, he was obliged to undergo am- 
putation of the leg. He telegraphed home, hun- 
dreds of miles away, that all was going well, and 
with a soldier's fortitude composed himself to 
bear his sufferings alone. 

Unknown to him, however, his mother, one of 
those dear reserves of the army, hastened up to 
join the main force. She reached the city at 
midnight, and the nurses would have kept her 
from him until morning. One- sat by his side 
fanning him as he slept, her hand on the feeble, 
fluctuating pulsations which foreboded sad re- 
sults. But what woman's heart could resist the 
l^leadings of a mother then? In the darkness 
she was finally allowed to glide in and take the 
place at his side. She touched his pulse as the 
nurse had done ; not a word had been spoken, 
but the sleeping boy opened his eyes and said, 
" That feels like my mother's hand; who is this 
beside me ? It is my mother ; turn up the gas 
and let me see mother ! " 

The two dear faces met in one long, joyful, sob- 
bing embrace, and the- fondness pent .up in each 



2G2 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND I-NXTDENTS. 



heart sobbed and panted, and wept forth its ex- 
pression. 

The gallant fellow, just twenty-one, liis leg am- 
putated on the last day of his three years' service, 
underwent operation after operation 5 and at last, 
Avhen death drew nigh, and he was told by tearful 
friends that it only remained to make him com- 
fortable, said he had " looked death in the face 
too many times to be afraid now," and died as 
gallantly as did the men of the Cumberland. 



The Flight from Bull Run. — A corre- 
spondent gives the following account of the panic 
and flight at the battle of Bull Eun : " I was near 
the rear of the movement, with the brave Captain 
Alexander, who endeavored, by the most gallant 
but unavailable exertion's, to check the onward 
tumult. It was difficult to believe in the reality 
of our sudden reverse. ' What does it all 
mean ? ' I asked Alexander. ' It means de- 
feat,' was his reply. ' We are beaten ; it is a 
shameful, a cowardly retreat ! Hold up, men!' 
he shouted ; ' don't be such infernal cowards ! ' 
and he rode backwards and forwards, placing his 
horse across the road, and vainly trying to rally 
the running troops. The teams and wagons con- 
fused and dismembered every corps. We were 
now cut off from the advance body by the ene- 
my's infantry, who had rushed on the slope just 
lei't by us, surrounded the guns and sutlers' wag- 
ons, and were apparently pressing up against us. 
' It's no use, Alexander,' I said ; ' you must leave 
with the rest.' ' I'll be d — d if 1 will,' was the 
sullen reply ; and the splendid fellow rode back 
to make his way as best he could. Meantime, 
I saw officers with leaves and eagles on their 
shoulder-straps. Majors and Colonels, who had 
deserted their commands, pass me, galloping as 
if for dear life. No enemy pursued just then ; 
but I suppose all were afraid that his guns would 
be trained down the long, narrow avenue, and 
mow the retreating thousands, and batter to 
pieces army wagons and everything else which 
crowded it. Only one field-officer, so far as my 
observation extended, seemed to have remem- 
bered his duty. Lieutenant-Colonel Speidel, a 
foreigner, attached to a Connecticut regiment, 
strove against the current for a league. I posi- 
tively declare that, with the two exceptions men- 
tioned, all efforts made to check the panic before 
Centreville was reached, were confined to civil- 
! ms. 1 saw a man in citizen's dress, who had 
ujTOwn off his coat, seize a musket, and was try- 
ing to rally the soldiers who came by at the point 
of the bayonet. In reply to a request for his 
name, he said it was Washburne, and I learned 
he was the member by that name from Illinois. 
Tiie Hon. Mr. Kellogg made a similar effort. 
Both these Congressmen bravely stood their 
ground till the last moment, and were servicea- 
ble at Centreville in assisting the hrdt there ulti- 
mately made. And other civilians did what they 
could. 

" But what a scene ! and how terrific the onset 
of that tumultuous retreat ! For three miles, hosts 



of Federal troops — all detached from then- regi- 
ments, all mingled in one disorderly rout — were 
fleeing along the road, but mostly through the 
lots on either side. Army wagons, sutlers' teams, 
and private carriages, choked the passage, tum- 
bling against each other, amid clouds of dust, 
and sickening sights and sounds. Hacks, con- 
taining unlucky spectators of the late afiray, 
were smashed like glass, and the occupants were 
lost sight of in the debris. Horse-;, fljing wildly 
from the battle-field, many of them in death ago- 
ny, galloped at random forward, joining in the 
stampede. Those on foot, who could catch them, 
rode them bareback, as much to save themselves 
from being run over, as to make quicker time. 
Wounded men, lying along the banks, — the few 
neither left on the field nor taken to the captured 
hospitals, — appealed, with raised hands, to those 
who rode horses, begging to be lifted behind, but 
few regarded such petitions. Then the artillery 
— such as was saved — came thundering along, 
smashing and overpowering evei'ything. The 
regular cavalry (I record it to their shame) joined 
in the melee, adding to its terrors, for they rode 
down footmen without mercy. One of the great 
guns was overturned, and lay amid the ruins of a 
caisson. As I passed it, I saw an artilleryman 
running between the ponderous fore and after 
wheels of his gun-carriage, hanging on Avith both 
hands, and vainly striving to jump upon the ord- 
nance. The drivers were spurring the horses ; 
he could not cling much longer, and a more ago- 
nized expression never fixed the features of a 
drowning man. The carriage bounded from the 
roughness of a steep hill Leading to a ci-eek ; he 
lost his hold, fell, and in an mstant the great 
wheels had crushed the life out of him. Who 
ever saw such a flight? Could the retreat at 
Borodino have exceeded it in confusion and tu- 
mult ? I think not. It did not slack in the 
least until Centreville was reached. There the 
sight of the reserve — Miles' brigade — formed 
in order on the hill, seemed somewhat to reas- 
sure the van. But still the teams and foot sol- 
diers pu.shed on, passing their oavu camps, and 
heading swiftly lor the distant Potomac, until, 
for ten miles, the road over which the grand 
army had so lately passed southward, gay with 
unstained banners, and flushed with surety of 
strength, was covered with the fragments of its 
retreating forces, shattered and panic-stricken in 
a single day. From the branch route, the trains 
attached to Hunter's division had caught the 
contagion of the flight, and poured into its al- 
ready swollen current another turbid freshet of 
confusion and dismay. AVho ever saw a more 
shameful abandonment of munitions, gathered at 
such vast expense? The teamsters, many of 
them, cut the traces of their horses, and galloped 
from the wagons. Others threw out their loads 
to accelerate their flight, and grain, picks, and 
shovels, and provisions of every kind, lay tram- 
pled in the dust for leagues. Thousands of mus- 
kets strewed the route, and when some of us 
succeeded in rallying a body of fugitives, and form- 
ing them in a line across the road, hardly one but 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



2G3 



had thrown awaj' his arms. If the enemy had 
brought up his artillery, and served it upon the 
retreating train, or had intercepted our progress 
with five hundred of his cavalry, he might have 
captured enough supplies for a week's feast of 
thanksgiving. As it was, enough was left be- 
hind to tell the story of the panic. The rout of 
the Federal army seemed complete." 



Incidents op Shiloh. — Early on Monday 
morning. General Nelson despatched an orderly 
from a cavalry company to the river with a mes- 
sage. The General waited in vain for an answer, 
and the day wore away without heari.ig from the 
messenger. General Nelson was furious, and 
directed, the following day, a search to be made 
for the orderly. He was, after some trouble, 
found, and taken immediately to headquarters. 
He was called upon for an account, and said, in 
a brief, off-hand manner, that when he got to the 
river, he found several thousand skulkers, and 
six hundred of these agreed to go into action if 
they could find a leader. The young cavalryman 
promptly offered himself, and as promptly led 
the men into the hottest of the fight. He re- 
ported to General Crittenden, was assigned a 
position which he maintained all day, losing from 
his impromptu command ten men killed and fifty 
wounded. The General was so well pleased with 
the young man and his gallant conduct, that he 
immediately sent his name to General Buell, and 
instead of being a private, he is now a commis- 
sioned officer. 

A begrimed individual, face several shades 
blacker than the ace of spades, and continually 
deepening in color from a contact with powder, 
hurriedly ran up to Captain Pick Russell and 
asked for a few rounds of cartridges. " Give me 
some, for God's sake. Captain ; right down here 
I have a bully place, and every time I fu'e, down 
goes a secesher." He was accommodated, and 
w^hile the Captain was filling his cartridge-box, 
the fellow was loading his piece. After being 
supplied, he dashed to the left and disappeared 
in the woods. A roar of musketry in the direc- 
tion he took was kept up all day, but whether he 
escaped or not has not been ascertained. 



A Gallant Band. — A soldier gives the fol- 
lowing account of one of the most brilliant exhi- 
bitions of bravery and daring that occurred during 
the war : 

" When the advance of the rebel cavalry arrived 
at Manassas Junction, on the evening of the 26th 
of August, 1862, about fifty stragglers belonging 
to different regiments in Pope's and McClellan's 
commands gathered around the railroad depot, 
with loaded muskets, uncertain whether to run or 
stay by and try to defend the place. Among the 
number was one Samuel Conde, a member of the 
Eleventh New York battery, who for the previous 
two months had been on duty at General Pope's 
headquarters, and was then on his way to Wash- 
ington. Finding there was no commissioned 



officer to take command, and that the rebels were 
close upon us, this brave young man seized a 
musket, and calling upon his comrades to rally 
and follow him, he posted his little company at a 
short distance from the railroad, near an old 
rebel fortification, and awaited Avith fixed bayonets 
the approach of the enemy. The first that ap- 
peared was a squadron of cavalry, who dashed up 
furiously towards the depot. No sooner had they 
passed us than our little band, led by their new 
commander, charged with a shout at the enemy, 
scattering them in all directions. On reaching 
the depot, we were surrounded by a whole regi- 
ment of rebel infantrj', who commanded us to 
surrender. ' Never,' shouted our brave leader, 
and with the words ' come on, boys,' we dashed 
through their ranks, only to find ourselves still 
further surrounded by a large force of cavalry. 
Here, for a moment, we faltered ; but hearing our 
leader still urging us on, we pushed forward 
through a heavy volley of musketry, and soon 
passed the enemy's lines with the loss of more 
than half -of our little band, including our brave 
commander. Finding it folly to remain longer in 
that vicinity, we took to the woods, and arrived 
at Fairfax Station early the next morning. It 
would be impossible for me to give the names of 
any of this little band, for we were all strangers 
to each other, and I can only bear testimony to 
the fearless bravery of our leader, who, I fear, 
has fallen a victim to a rebel bullet, hoping that, 
if this ever meets the eye of any of his friends, 
they may have the gratification of knowing that 
he died a hero." 

The Clothes-line Telegraph. — In the ear- 
ly part of 1863, when the Union army was en- 
camped at Falmouth, and picketing the banks 
of the Rappahannock, the utmost tact and inge- 
nuity were displayed, by the scouts and videttes, in 
gaining a knowledge of contemplated movements 
on either side ; and here, as at various other 
times, the shrewdness of the African camp at- 
tendants was very remarkable. 

One circumstance, in particular shows how 
quick the race are in learning the art of commu- 
nicating by signals. 

There came into the Union lines a negro from 
a farm on the other side of the river, known by 
the name of Dabney, who was found to possess 
a remarkably clear knowledge of the topography 
of the whole region ; and he was employed as 
cook and body servant at headquarters. When 
he first saw our system of army telegraphs, the 
idea interested him intensely, and he begged the 
operators to explain the signs to him. They did 
so, and found that he could understand and re- 
member the meaning of the various movements 
as well as any of his" brethren of paler hue. 

Not long after, his wife, who had come with him, 
expressed a great anxiety to be allowed to go over 
to the other side as servant to a " secesh woman," 
Avhom General Hooker was about sending over to 
her friends. The request was granted. Dabney's 
wife went across the Ptappahannock, and in a few 
days was duly installed as laundress at the head- 



264 



ANECDOTES, POETRY. AND INCIDENTS. 



quarters of a prominent rebel General. Dabney, 
her husband, on the north bank, was soon found 
to be wonderfully well informed as to all the rebel 
plans. Within an hour of the time that a move- 
ment of any kind was projected, or even discussed, 
among the rebel generals. Hooker knew all about 
it. He knew which corps was moving, or about 
to move, in what direction, how long they had 
been on the march, and in what force ; and all 
this knowledge came through Dabney, and his 
reports always turned out to be true. 

Yet Dabuey was never absent, and never talked 
with the scouts, and seemed to be always taken 
up with his duties as cook and groom about head- 
quarters. 

How he obtained his information remained for 
some time a puzzle to the Union officers. At 
length, upon much solicitation, he unfolded his 
marvellous secret to one of our officers. 

Taking him to a point where a clear view could 
be obtained of Fredericksburg, he pointed out a 
little cabin in the suburbs near the river bank, 
and asked him if he satv that clothes-line with 
clothes hanging on it to dry " Well," said he, 
" that clothes-line tells me in half an hour just 
what goes on at Lee's headquarters. You see my 
wife over there ; she washes for the officers, and 
cooks, and Avaits around, and as soon as she hears 
about any movement or anything going on, she 
comes down and moves the clothes on that line 
so I can understand it in a minute. That there 
gray shirt is Longstreet ; and when she takes it 
off, it means he's gone down about Richmond. 
That white shirt means Hill ; and when she moves 
it up to the west end of the line. Hill's corps has 
moved up stream. That red one is Stonewall. 
He's down on the right now, and if he moves, she 
will move that red shirt." 

One morning Dabney came in and reported a 
movement over there. " But," says he, " it don't 
amount to any thing. They're just making be- 
lieve." 

An officer went out to look at the clothes line 
telegraph through his field-glass. There had 
been quite a shifting over there among the army 
fiannels. " But how do you know but there is 
something in it ? " 

"Do you see those two blankets pinned to- 
gether at the bottom ? " said Dabney. " Yes, 
but what of it? " said the officer. " Why, that's 
her way of making a fish-trap ; and when she 
pins the clothes together that way, it means 
that Lee is only trying to draw "us into his 
fish-trap." 

As long as the two armies lay watching each 
other on opposite banks of the stream, Dabney, 
with his clothes-line telegraph, continued to be 
one of the promptest and most reliable of General 
Hooker's scouts. 



.\rkansas Tactics. — An Arkansas Colonel 
had the following order for mounting his men : 

First order. — Prepare fer tur git onto yer 
creeters ! 

Second order. — GiT ! g 



THE OLD SERGEANT. 

BY FORCEYTIIE WILLSON. 

The carrier cannot sing to-day tho ballads 

With which he used to go 
Ilhyming the grand rounds of the Happy New 
Y'ears 

That are now beneath the snow ; — 

For the same awful and povtentous shadow- 
That overcast the earth, 

And smote the land last year with desolation, 
Still darkens every hearth. 

And the carrier hears Beethoven's mighty dead- 
march 

Come up from every mart, 
And he hears and feels it breathing in his bosom, 

And beating in his heart. 

And to-day, like a scarred and weather-beaten vet- 
eran. 

Again he comes along, 
To tell the story of the Old Year's struggles, 

111 another New Year's song. 

And the song is his, but not so with the story ; 

For the story, you must know 
Was told in prose to Assistant- Surgeon Austin, 

By a soldier of Shiloh ; — 

By Robert Burton, who was brought up on the 
Adams 

With his death-wound in his side. 
And who told the story to the Assistant- Surgeon 

On the same night that he died. 

But the singer feels it will better suit the ballad, 

If all should deem it right. 
To sing the story as if what it speaks of 

Had happened but last night. 

"Come a little nearer, Doctor — Thank you! let 
me take the cup ! 

Draw your chair up! — draw it closer — just an- 
other little sup ! 

May be you may think I'nl better, but I'm pretty 
well used up — 

Doctor, you've done all you could do, but I'm just 
a going up. 

" Feel my pulse, sir, if you want to, but it is no use 
to try." 

"Never say that," said the Stu-geon, as he smoth- 
ered down a sigh ; 

"It will never do, old comrade, for a soldier to say 
die ! " 

" What you say will make no difference, Doctor, 
when you come to die. 

" Doctor, what has been the matter ? " " Y'ou were 

very faint, they say ; 
Y'ou must try to get to sleep now." " Doctor, have 

I been away ? " 
" No, my venerable comrade." " Doctor, will you 

please to stay ? 
There is something I must tell you, and you n'on't 

have long to stay ! 

" I have got my marching orders, and am ready now 

to go ; 
Doctor, did you say I fainted ? — but it couldn't 

have been so — 



ANECDOTES. POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



265 



For as sure as I'm a Sergeant and was wounded at 

Shiloh, 
I've this very night been back there — on the old 

field of Shiloh ! 

"You may think it all delusion — all the sickness 

of the brain : 
If you do, you are mistaken, aftd mistaken to my pain ; 
For upon my dying honor, as I hope to live again, 
I have just been back to Shiloh and all over it again ! 

" This is all that I remember ; the last time the 

Lighter came, 
And the lights had all been lowered, and the noises 

much the same, 
He had not been gone five minutes before something 

called my name — 
' Okderly - Sergeant - Robert - Burton ! ' — just 

that way it called my name. 

" Then I thought, who could have called me so dis- 
tinctly and so slow — 

It can't be the Lighter, surely ; he could not have 
spoken so ; 

And I tried to answer, ' Here, sir ! ' but I couldn't 
make it go, 

For I couldn't move a muscle> and I couldn't make 
it go! 

" Then I thought it all a nightmare — all a humbug 

and a bore ! 
It is just another grapevi7ie, and it won't come any 

more; 
Eut it came, sir, notwithstanding, just the same 

words as before, 
• Orderly - Sergeant - Robert - Burton ! ' more 

distinctly than before ! 

•' That is all that I remember, till a sudden burst of 
light, 

And I stood beside the river, where we stood that 
Sunday night. 

Waiting to be ferried over to the dark blufi's oppo- 
site. 

When the river seemed perdition, and all hell seemed 
opposite ! 

" And the same old palpitation came again with all 

its power. 
And I heard a bugle sounding, as from heaven or a 

tower ; 
And the same mysterious voice said : ' It is — the 

eleventh hour ! 
Ordekly-Sergeant — Robert Burton — it is 

the eleventh hour ! ' 

" Dr. Austin ! — what day is this ? " — "It is 

Wednesday night, you know." 
"Yes ! To-morrow will be New Year's, and a right 

good time below ! 
What time is it, Dr. Austin ? " — "Nearly twelve." 

— " Then don't you go ! 

Can it be that all this happened — all this — not an 
hour ago ! 

" There was where the gunboats opened on the dark, 

rebellious host. 
And where Webster semicircled his last guns upon 

the coast — 
There were still the two log-houses, just the same, 

or else their ghost — 
And the same old transport came and took me over 

— or its ghost ! 



"And the whole field lay before me, all deserted far 

and wide — 
There was where they fell on Prentiss — there 

McClernand met the tide ; 
There was where stern Sherman rallied, and where 

Hurlbut's heroes died — 
Lower down, where Wallace charged them, and 

kept charging till he died ! 

"There was where Lew Wallace showed them he 

was of the cannie kin — 
There was where old Nelson thundered, and where 

Rousseau waded in — 
There McCook ' sent them to breakfast,' and we aL 

began to win — 
There was where the grape-shot took me just as we 

began to win. 

" Now a shroud of snow and silence over everything 

was spread ; 
And but for this old, blue mantle, and the old hat 

on my head, 
I should not have even doubted, to this moment, I 

was dead ; 
For my footsteps were as silent as the snow upon 

the dead ! 

" Death and silence ! Death and silence ! starry 

silence overhead ! 
And behold a mighty tower, as if builded to the 

dead, 
To the heaven of the heavens lifted up its mighty 

head ! 
Till the Stars and Stripes of heaven all seemed 

waving from its head ! 

"Round and mighty-based, it towered — up into 

the infinite ! 
And I knew no mortal mason could have built a 

shaft so bright ; 
For it shone like solid sunshine; and a winding 

stair of light 
Wound around it and around it till it wound clear 

out of sight ! 

' ' And, behold, as I approached it with a rapt and 
dazzled stare — 

Thinking that I saw old comrades just ascending the 
great stair — 

Suddenly the solemn challenge broke, of, ' Halt ! ' 
and ' Who goes there ? ' 

'I'm a friend,' I said, ' if you are.' — 'Then ad- 
vance, sir, to the stair ! ' 

" I advanced — that sentry. Doctor, was Elijah Bal- 

lantyne — 
First of all to fall on Monday, after we had formed 

the line ! * 

• Welcome ! my old Sergeant, welcome ! Welcome 

by that countersign ! ' 
And he pointed to the scar there under this old 

cloak of mme ! 

" As he grasped my hand, I shuddered — thinking 

only of the grave — 
But he smiled, and pointed upward, with a bright 

and bloodless glaive — 
' That's the way, sir, to headquarters.' — • What 

headquarters ? ' — 'Of the brave ! ' 
' But the great tower r ' — ' That was builded of the 

great deeds of the brave ! ' 



266 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



" Then a sudden shame came o'er me at his uniform 
of light — 

At my own so old and tattered, and at his so new 
and bright: 

' Ah ! ' said he, ' you have forgotten the new uni- 
form to-night ! 

Hurry back, for you must be here at just twelve 
o'clock to-night ! ' 

" And the next thing I remember, you were sitting 
there, and I — 

Doctor ! it is hard to leave you — Hark ! God bless 
you all ! Good by ! 

Doctor! please to give my musket and my knap- 
sack, when I die, 

To my son — my son that's coming — he won't get 
here till I die ! 

" Tell hira his old father blessed him as he never 

did before — 
And to carry that old musket — " Hark ! a knock 

is at the door ! — 
"Till the Union"— see! it opens! — ''Father! 

father ! speak once more ! " — 
" Bless you 1 " gasped the old, gray Sergeant, and 

he lay and said no more ! 

When the Surgeon gave the heir-son the old Ser- 
geant's last advice — 

And his musket and his knapsack — how the fire 
flashed in his eyes ! — 

He is on the march this morning, and will march 
on till he dies — 

He will save this bleeding country, or will fight 
until he dies ! * 



Pbesident Lincoln's Tribute to the Loy- 
al Women of America. — At the close of the 
Patent Office Fair in Washington, Mr. Lincoln, 
in answer to loud and continuous calls, made the 
following remarks : 

" Ladies and Gentlemen : I appear, to say but 
a word. This extraordinary war in which we are 
engaged falls heavily upon all classes of people, 
but the most heavily upon the soldier. For it has 
been said, 'AH that a man hath will he give for 
his life ; ' and while all contribute of their sub- 
stance, the soldier puts his life at stake, and often 
yields it up in his country's cause. The highest 
merit, then, is due to the soldier. 

" In this extraordinary war extraordinary de- 
velopments have manifested themselves, such a^ 
have not been seen in former wars ; and among 
these manifestations nothing has been more re- 
markable than these Fairs for the relief of suffer- 
ing soldiers 'and their families. And the chief 
agents in these Fairs are the women of America. 

" I am not accustomed to the use of language 
of eulogy ; I have never studied the art of paying 
compliments to women ; but I must say, that if 
all that has been said by orators and poets since 
the creation of the world in praise of woman were 
applied to the women of America, it would not do 
them justice for their conduct during this war. I 
will close by saying, -God bless the women of 
America." 

* This very remarkable poem was distributed on 
the first day of the year, 1863, by the carriers of the 
Louisville Journal. 



The Loyal Virginia Girl, and how She 

SAVED THE WaR MaPS FOR THE UnION ScOUTS. 

— During the winter of 1861-2, when McClel- 
lan's grand army lay along the Potomac, and be- 
fore it had been decided to try an advance by 
the Peninsula, it became a matter of the utmost 
importance to the Union Generals to obtain ac- 
curate and thorough maps of all North-eastern 
Virginia, the region destined to be the theatre 
of movements so important. 

With that view, a number of intelligent and 
scientific scouts, armed with minute pocket com- 
passes and small boxes of drawing materials, 
fearlessly pushed their way through the lines, 
and as they were apparently rambling about 
among the hills and through the woods as non- 
belligerents and in the dress of citizens, were 
collecting and tracing down on maps a very 
complete topographical history of all they saw. 

Southern surveyors and draughtsmen were en- 
gaged in the same work, and as they had every 
facility in their operations, and were directed by 
an engineer no less skilful than Beauregard, 
their maps were of inestimable value to the Fed- 
eral officers, and for the service of preserving 
and delivering them to the Union scouts, we are 
indebted to the coolness, presence of mind, and 
loyalty of Miss , a Virginia girl of fourteen. 

The topographical corps sent out by Beaure- 
gard had established their headquarters at her 
father's house, and were there busy in ])lotting 
down their surveys, when this girl, who was 
watching at the window, gave the alarm, " The 
blue-coats are coming down the road." Without 
stopping to save a paper, they all rushed the 
other way, out at the back door, and hid in the 
woods adjacent. The little squad of Union 
scouts rode quickly down the road, but mistrust- 
ing some mischief, soon turned back, and rode 
away. 

Meantime this young girl had gathered up all 
the maps into one great roll, and taken it into 
the attic, and hid it in a hole in the chimney. 

In time the alarm subsided, and the topogra- 
phers came cautiously back from the bushes, but, 
to their great astonishment and chagrin, found 
not a vestige of their work. 

They inquired of the girl what had become of 
their maps. 

"0,"said she, "do you think I was stupid 
enough to let them Yanks get hold of them? 
No, indeed. When I saw them riding down the 
road, those maps were going up the chimney ! " 

" Good for you ! " was the reply. " We'll have 
them all to draw over again, but that's better 
than for those confounded blue-coats to get 
them." 

Considering the situation somewhat perilous, 
they withdrew ,- and a day or two after, a Union 
scout came in, and found a prompt welcome. 

He requested her to watch at the window for 
him, while he pulled out a secret roll of paper, 
and commenced to map out the country through 
which he had been wandering. 

" So it's maps that you are making too. I 
think I can give you some that I reckon you 
never saw before." So saying, she ran up stairs, 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS 



267 



and brought down the roll from the hole in the 
chimney, and told him how she saved them, and 
how entirely satisfied the other party had been 
that their maps had gone up the chimney in a 
very different sense. 



"Didn't see it." — A correspondent gives 
the following instance of Vermont pluck : " In 
Kilpatrick's last ' On to Eichmond ' was a soldier 
boy by the name of Edwin A. Porter, whose 
mother lives in Wells, Vt. In one of the skir- 
mishes, he rode up fearlessly to a squad of rebels. 
The officer demanded of him to surrender. He 
replied, coolly, ' Don't see it ; ' and suiting his 
actions to his w^ords, he instantly drew his sabre, 
with which he cleft the head of the officer, at the 
same instant wheeling his horse to join his com- 
pany, the rebels firing a volley at him, of which 
shower the lad carried off in his person four bul- 
lets, joining his company, G. He kept his sad- 
dle for more than one hour, and is now doing 
weU." 



The American Flag in Nashville. — The 
following letter, on the joy of seeing the Ameri- 
can flag in Nashville, was written by a young lady : 

" Rejoice with me, dear grandma ! The glorious 
Star-spangled Banner of the United States is 
again floating above us ! O, how we have hoped 
for, longed for, prayed for this joyous day ! I 
am wild, crazed almost, with delight. I am still 
fearful that I shall awake, and find our deliver- 
ance, our freedom, is aU a dream. I cannot be- 
lieve that it is a positive fact, it has come upon 
us so unexpectedly, this successful move of the 
Union army. Grandma, I cannot write connect- 
edly at all. Forgive me all faults of composi- 
tion, for I can see the Stars and Stripes of my 
ever-loved floating from the State House — the 
first time my eyes have been gladdened by such 
a sight for nearly a year. So great is my ecstasy, 
1 cannot sit still — I cannot keep my eyes on the 
paper — indeed, I cannot do anything but sing, 
whistle, or hum ' Yankee Doodle,' ' Hail Colum- 
bia,' ' The Star-spangled Banner,' and feast my 
eyes on those victorious colors. 

" O grandma ! you cannot imagine our happi- 
ness at this sudden change in the aspect of pub- 
Uc affairs. The morning that Fort Donelson 
surrendered, there seemed to be such an intense 
feeling of bitterness here against the Union men ! 
The papers (how little did they imagine that that 
would be their last issue !) came out on that Sun- 
day morning with maledictions and threats the 
most inhuman against them, saying that if such 
n fiendish villain remained in our midst, he must 
•nd should be dealt with instantly as a traitor of 
ohe deepest dye. 

".We have had so much to bear since I wrote 
you ! My father and brother have been taunted, 
sneered and hissed at, threatened by every one, 
until endurance was becoming impossible. But 
nothing (I am so proud to say it, and thank God 
for it), nothing could make them play the hypo- 



crite. They believed the Federal cause was just 
and right, and they would, in spite of our prayers 
and tears, express their opinions openly, and de- 
nounce secession boldly. We have been warned, 
since Zollicofier's death, that there was imminent 
danger here for them ; and the hatred towards 
Union men was becoming so intense that both 
ma and I have been in an agony of suspense. 
We could not leave home, as Ave never did, with- 
out being insulted. I have had to sit quietly by, 
and hear my father and brother denounced as 
traitors. My temper is quick, and the curb that 
I have been obliged to keep upon it has been a 
galling one — indeed, sometimes I have thought 
all that was gentle and womanly in me was turned 
into bitterness and hate. 

" For my idolized brother I have felt more keen- 
ly than for anything else. He is naturally sensi- 
tive, and of such delicacy of feeling that he has 
suffered deeply. Being drafted, he procured a 
substitute ; and, though displaying so much moral 
courage, he has been hissed at as a coward ever 
since, until he would vow to escape and join the 
Federal army, and several times endeavored to 
do so ; but pa, discovering his plans, prevented 
him from it, by showing him the ruin he would 
bring upon us all by such a step. The cloud Avas 
lowering over us, growing darker and darker day 
by day, and I thought the silver lining never 
Avould ajjpear; but it is here! — even now beam- 
ing upon us so brightly that we can scarcely 
credit the reality. 

" Can you wonder that, in the state of feeling 
I was in that Sunday morning, dear grandma, 
when Tom knocked at the door, and called out to 
me that Fort Donelson was surrendered, and the 
Federal army would soon be in Nashville, I be- 
came perfectly frantic with joy ? 

" I ran screaming over the house, knocking 
down chairs and tables, clapping my hands, and 
shouting for the ' Union,' until the children were 
terrified, and ma and pa thought I was delirious ! 
I rushed into the parlor and thundered ' Yankee 
Doodle ' on the piano in such a manner as I had 
never done before. I caught little Johnny up in 
my arms, and held him over the porch railing up 
stairs until he hurrahed for the Star-spangfed 
Banner, Seward, Lincoln, and McClellan ! The 
little fellow thought his sister was going to kill 
him, she looked so wild, and would not come near 
me again for several days. 

" Just in the midst of these rejoicings, intelli- 
gence came that Johnston's army from Bowling 
Green had evacuated the place, and Mas even 
then passing on the turnpike to Nashville. Could 
it be possible ? Yes, indeed ! There they Avere 
retreating most valiantly. Grandma, you never 
saAV such a frightened set of men ! They could 
not get over the river fast enough ! I never bade 
the Southern army 'God-speed' but that once, 
and then- 1 did it Avith my Avhole heart. May their 
present advance be successful even to the Gulf 
of Mexico itself! 

" If you could have seen Breckinridge ! the 
meanest, the most doAvnfallen looking specimen 
of humanity imaginable. The army did not stop 



268 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



in Nashville one day, but went on as swiftly as 
possible. The citizens here were mortified and 
exasperated to the quick by this surrender. Floyd 
remained in Nashville a few days after his brave 
escape from Fort Donelson. After the army had 
gone, and the city had sent commissioners to sur- 
render, he had both bridges destroyed, though he 
could give no reason for it, and though it was 
against the prayers and protestations of the citi- 
zens. He is a Avicked wretch. Is it wrong to 
wish that he may soon meet the fate he deserves ? 

" It was not until a week after Donelson's fall 
that the Federals came in. We, whose all de- 
pended upon theii- speedy ai'rival, had begun to 
think that they were not coming, after all, and our 
freedom was not yet at hand ; but on a Sunday 
afternoon, my brother came in, the picture of hap- 
piness, with the intelligence that Buell would be 
here in a few days ; that he had ridden up and 
met his advanced guard, and that now at last we 
could rejoice. Buell came in at night. The 
troops were in perfect discipline, and completely 
amazed the poor duped people here by their or- 
derly behavior. For the people believed that the 
soldiers would not stop till they had murdered the 
women and eaten the children ; but when it was 
seen that they took nothing without x>ajj, the 
people were rejoiced to sell, for money of any 
kind has long been a marvellous sight here. 

" But O, grandma, I have not told you what did 
me more good than anything else — the pariic 
here on the 16th. Away flew the citizens without 
stopping for anything ! The brave city regiments 
who on the 15th took their stand on the square 
with Andrew Ewing at their head, and vowed to 
die there, fighting even against myriads of the 
' barbarians,' should they ever reach Nashville, 
heard at twelve o'clock on the 16th of the sur- 
render of Donelson, and at eight o'clock in the 
evening of that same day, not 07ie of the gallant 
determined braves was to be found within miles 
of Nashville. Didn't I clap my hands and shriek 
for joy when it was told on Monday that not one 
editor remained in our city! that their wicked 
threats had been published for the last time here ? 

" The town is almost deserted, so many fami- 
li(ls have left their homes, and fled, panic-stricken, 
away. It is so distressing to think of the suff'er- 
ings they have brought upon themselves so need- 
lessly. The Federals have interfered with no one 
whatever, and have behaved much better than 
the rebel army. The Governor and Legislature 
left the very day Donelson surrendered. May 
they never return ! 

" Grandma, you will think me a heartless girl 
to write thus, and I know it is wrong, but you 
would excuse me if you knew what we had to 
contend with. I speak the truth when I say that, 
notwithstanding our former social position and 
popularity here, there is not now one family of 
all our friends who would cross our threshold, 
or bid us welcome to theirs. My noble uncle is 
always an exception. He and pa have stood 
firmly together, enduring the tempest, and noth- 
ing now should ever divide us. Mr. • , too, 

has never Mtered in his allegiance. When the 



death of his only son was told him, his exclama- 
tion was, ' Would to God he had died in a nobler 
cause ! ' 

" But I tremble when I think of the possibility 
of a reverse — that the Confederates should ever 
get back here. Then our doom is spoken — either 
flight — beggary — or, remaining, death. 

" O that the United States troops would push 
onward rapidly, and make an end to the rebellion 
while the Confederates are quaking Avith fear and 
dismay. Give them no time to rally. 

" Now that the railroad and telegraph will soon 
be opened, we will be again in a civilized country ; 
and surely we have cause to rejoice, for we have 
been living in utter darkness a long, weary time. 
If you could see my father it would do you good. 
He looks happy again ! The gloomy, sad brow 
of two weeks ago is once more smoothed Avith 
content ! Three cheers for the sight of the old 
banner ! " 

" Dabney," the Colored Scout. — He was 
emphatically what the old Southern advertise- 
ments used to call a " smart, likely negro fel- 
low ; " and after he had left his secesh master, 
who lived on the south bank of the Rappahan- 
nock, above Fredericksburg, General Hooker 
found his minute and reliable knowledge of the 
country and the character of its inhabitants of 
great importance to him. 

On one occasion, just before the battle of 
Chancellorsville, a scouting party had come in, 
who reported a certain locality entirely free of 

the enemy ; they had talked with Mr, D , a 

farmer, who said there were no Southerners any- 
where near him, and had not been for several 
days. Dabney heard the report of the scouts, 
and warned the General not to believe a word of 
Avhat they heard Mr. D say. 

"You must take him just conti'ariwise from 
what he talks," said Dabney. " If he says there 
are no rebs there, you may be sure there are 
plenty of them all about, and got their big guns 
all readj^" 

But considerable faith Avas attached to Avhat 
the scouts had reported, and a force Avas sent to 
feel in that neighborhood, and see Avhat there 
might be there. 

Dabney Avent at the head of the column as 
pilot, though all the time protesting that, instead 
of taking that man at his Avord, they should be 
prepared for the Avorst. Dabney Avas Avell mount- 
ed, and felt no little pride as he moved along, at 
the head of a poAverful column, over roads Avhich 
he had so often trod Avith the dejected air and 
clouded spirit of a slaA-e. 

" I know that man very aa^cII," he kept saying. 
" He's my ole mass'r, and he's a man you have 
to take just contrary to Avhat he says." 

Soon the head of the column a])proached the 
locality ; and, sure enough, the rebels were there 
in force, and opened Avith a storm of grape and 
canister. The Union force soon got guns in po- 
sition, and a brisk skkmish Avas going on, in the 
midst of Avhich Dabney's fine horse fell under 
him, pierced by a grape-shot. But he Avas not to 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



269 



be dismounted as easily as that, and while the 
fight was quite lively, and his old master was 
fully occupied with the stirring scene, Dabney 
slipped down to the river, swam across, went to 
the stables, and taking the finest horse there, 
mounted him, dashed down to the river, swam 
him across, and came back to the Union lines, 
all the time under fire, saying, as he rode up, " I 
told you you couldn't depend on what that man 
said about the rebs not being there ; but never 
mind, it has given me a chance to 'fiscate a 
mighty fine horse." 

After that adventure, as he was finely mounted, 
and his knowledge of the inhabitants was shown 
to be reliable, he was constantly employed as a 
pilot to the scouting parties. 



» 



PADDY ON SAMBO AS A SOLDIER. 

BY PRIVATE MILES O'REILLY. 

Air: '■'■The IjnO'Backed Car " 

Some tell us 'tis a burning shame 

To make the naygurs fight, 
An' that the thrade of bein' kilt 

Belongs but to the white ; 
But as for me, upon my sowl ! 

So liberal are we here, 
I'll let Sambo be murdered in place of myself 
On every day in the year ! 
On every day in the year, boys, 

And every hour in the day, 
The right to be kilt I'll divide wid him, 
An' divil a word I'll say. 

In battle's wild commotion 

I shouldn't at all object 
If Sambo's body should stop a ball 

That was comin' for me direct ; 
And the prod of a Southern bagnet, 

So liberal are we here, 
I'll resign, and let Sambo take it. 
On every day in the year ! 

On every day in the year, boys. 

And wid none of your nasty pride. 
All my right in a Southern bagnet prod 
Wid Sambo I'll divide. 

The men who object to Sair.bo 

Should take his place and fight ; 
And it's better to have a naygur's hue 

Than a liver that's wake an' white. 
Though Sambo's black as the ace of spades. 

His finger a thrigger can pull, 
And his eye runs straight on the barrel-sights 
From under his thatch of wool ! 
So hear me all, boys, darlings, — 

Don't think I'm tippin' you chaff, — 
The right to be kilt I'll divide wid him. 
And give him the largest half ! 



_ Incidents of Bull Run. — The famous Sixty- 
ninth Irish regiment, sixteen hundred strong, 
who had so much of the hard digging to perform, 
claimed the honor of a share in the hard fighting, 
and led the van of Tyler's attack, followed by tho 
Seventy-ninth (Highlanders) and Thirteenth New 
York and Second Wisconsin. 



It was a brave sight — that rush of the Sixty- 
ninth into the death-sti-uggle ! With such cheers 
as those Avhich won the battles in the Peninsula, 
with a quick step at first, and then a double quick, 
and at last a run, they dashed forward, and along 
the edge of the extended forest. Coats and knap- 
sacks Avere thrown to either side, that nothing 
might impede their work ; but we knew that no 
guns would slip from the hands of those deter- 
mined fellows, even if dying agonies were needed 
to close them with a firmer grasp. As the line 
swept along, Meagher galloped towards the head, 
crying, " Come on, boys ! you've got your chance 
at last ! " 

Colonel Bartow's horse had been shot from 
under him. It was observed that the forces with 
which his movement was to be supported had not 
come up. But it was enough that he had been 
ordered to storm the battery ; so, placing himself 
at the head of the Seventh Regiment, he again 
led the charge, this time on foot, and gallantly 
encouraging his men as they rushed on. The first 
discharge from the enemy's guns killed the regi- 
mental color-bearer. Bartow immediately seized 
the flag, and again putting himself in the front, 
dashed on, flag in hand, his voice ringing clear 
over the battle-fields, and saying, " On, my boys ! 
we will die rather than yield or retreat." And on 
the brave boys did go, and faster flew the enemy's 
bullets. The fire was awful. Not less than four 
thousand muskets were pouring their fatal con- 
tents upon them, while the battery itself was 
dealing death on every side. 

The gallant Eighth regiment, which had al- 
ready passed through the distressing ordeal, again 
rallied, determined to stand by their chivalric 
Colonel to the last. The more furious the fire, 
the quicker became the advancing step of the 
two regiments. At last, and just when they were 
nearing the goal of their hopes, and almost in 
the arms of victory, the brave and noble Bartow 
was shot down, the ball striking him in the left 
breast, just above the heart. Colonel Bartow died 
soon after he was borne from the field. His last 
words, as repeated to me, were : " They have 
killed me, my brave boys, but never give up the 
ship — we'll whip them yet." And so we did ! 



The One Hundred and Fifth Rhode Isl- 
and. — One of the Rhode Island boys out on 
picket near Yorktown, Va., found himself in close 
proximity to one of the enemy's pickets, and, 
after exchanging a few shots without availing 
anything, they mutually agreed to cease and go 
to dinner. " What regiment do you belong to ? " 
asked our inquisitive Yankee friend of his neigh- 
bor. " The Seventeenth Georgia " was the re- 
sponse ; " and what regiment do you belong to ? " 
asked Secesh. " The One Hundred and Fifth 
Rhode Island," answered our Yankee friend. Se- 
cesh gave a long, low whistle, and — evaporated. 



Anecdote of Peesident Lincoln. — A lieu- 
tenant, whom debts compelle J to leave his father- 



170 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



land and service, succeeded in being admitted to 
the late President Lincoln, and, by reason of his 
commendable and winning deportment and intel- 
ligent appearance, was promised a lieutenant's 
commission in a cavalry regiment. He was so 
enraptured with his success, that he deemed it a 
duty to inform the President that he belonged 
to one of the oldest noble houses in Germany. 
" O, never mind that," said Mr. Lincoln ; " you 
will not find that to be an obstacle to your ad- 
vancement." 

Patriotism. — Orpheus C. Kerr says : " Pa- 
triotism, my boy, is a very beautiful thing. The 
surgeon of a Western regiment has analyzed a 
very nice case of it, and says it is peculiar to the 
hemisphere. He says it first breaks out in the 
mouth, and from thence extends to the heart, 
causing the heart to swell. He says it goes on 
raging until it reaches the pocket, when it sud- 
denly disappears, leaving the patient very consti- 
tutional and conservative." 



TO AND FROM LIBBY PRISON. 

BY JOHN F. HILL. 

For the satisfaction of the friends,* I shall 
give a brief statement of our capture, prison life, 
and of the escape of three of our members from 
the Danville prison, with an account of their safe 
arrival within our Union lines. 

The post my regiment was assigned to, at the 
great battle of Chickamauga, on the 20th of Sep- 
tember, 1863, was one which it required great 
coolness and bravery on our pait to hold against 
the heavy masses that were from time to time 
hurled against us. It was past the middle of the 
day when we Avere brought into action. We had 
been held back in the forenoon on the reserve, 
and, when we went into the fight, the original line 
had become broken, and was falling back in con- 
siderable confusion. The rebels came charging 
down upon us, but our boys stood the fii-e nobly. 
We would be compelled at times to fall back, but 
we would rally again, and regain the ground we 
had lost. We had orders to hold the ground to 
the last possible moment, so as to allow our line 
of battle to fall back and re-form. For over five 
hours we kept three times our number at bay, 
fighting them from behind trees and logs, and 
lying down on the ground. Our ammunition 
began to fail at last, and we had to resort to the 
cartridge-boxes of the slain for more. Half of 
our men had been killed, wounded, or fallen back 
to the rear. Darkness was coming on ; still we 
despaired not. General Granger had been on the 
ground, and promised to send us reenforcements. 

A column of infantry was seen at our right, 
coming directly towards us, but it was so dark 
that we could not discern who they were. At the 
distance of one hundred yards our men com- 
menced firing into them, when our Colonel or- 

* Written especially for the Eighty-ninth Ohio regi- 
ment, and published in the Scioto Gazette. 



dered us to cease firing, for they were friends. 
At the distance of fifty yards our Colonel hailed 
them, asking who they were, and they replied, 
" Friends ; " but in a moment we saw who they 
were ; for they were rebels coming at charge 
bayonet. Our Colonel hallooed out, " I know 
who you are." Their rebel commander demanded 
with an oath, " Do you never intend to sur- 
render ? " to which Colonel Carlton asked, " Is 
there a possibility of an escape ? " to which the 
rebel commander replied : " None, for we have 
our lines thrown entirely around you." With- 
out further ceremony we soon found ourselves 
divested of guns and cartridge-boxes, and under 
guard by our victors — the Fifty-Fourth Vir- 
ginia infantiy. Out of three hundred and thirty 
of our regiment that went into the fight, only 
one hundred and seventy were captured, the re- 
mainder having been either killed, wounded, or 
straggled back to the rear, early enough in the 
day to make good their escape. Of commissioned 
ofl[icers they got a good sprinkle, including Col- 
onel Carlton, Lieutenant-Colonel Glenn, Captains 
Day, Barrett, Adams, Gatch, and Glenn ; Lieu- 
tenants Edmonson, Harrison, Scott, Baird, and 
Fakfield, and Assistant-Surgeon Purdum. 

We were taken directly to the rear that night, 
and passed directly over the battle-ground of Sat- 
urday. Here we noticed that none of the dead 
had been interred, or even the wounded attended 
to ; and many a poor fellow cried piteously to us 
for help. There they had been lying for thirty- 
six hours, suffering from painful wounds, in a 
hot sun, parching up for want of water ; and the 
woods were in several places on fire, threatening 
them with the most horrible death. 

We found our captors very kind and gentle- 
manly to us, doing everything in their power to 
make us feel happy and contented with our lot. 
We acknowledged to them that they were victors ; 
but they said they had nothing to boast of, for 
they had bought us at a dear price of life and 
blood. 

They hurried us that night to General Buck- 
ner's headquarters, where we rested about an 
hour, and then were sent on farther to the rear, 
and it must have been two o'clock Monday morn- 
ing, when they permitted us to lie down and 
sleep till sunrise. We were then marched to 
Tunnel Hill. There we were robbed of our knap- 
sacks, gum blankets, and canteens. The next 
day they marched us to Dalton, where, on the 
morning of the 23d, we took the cars to Atlanta, 
Ga. There the authoi'ities and citizens were very 
saucy and insulting to us, calling us by all kinds 
of names and asking us : " When is old Rosy 
coming again to Georgia ? and how we liked 
Chickamauga." But our boys would give them 
half-a-dozen for six, and ask them when old Lee 
was going up into Pennsylvania again, or how 
they liked Gettysburg, &c. There they robbed 
us again of our woollen blankets, and also, by an 
order from Howell Cobb, Provost Marshal, they 
took all of our penknives, in retaliation, they 
said, for the way the North had served John Mor- 
gan and his men. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



271 



There we were put aboard the cars again, and 
after six days' and nights' travel, found our- 
selves in the rebel capital, and shortly afterwards 
inmates of one of the Libby prisons, known as 
the warehouse of Crew & Pemberton, tobacco- 
nists. The buUding was a substantial brick, four 
;tories high. In this they thrust twenty-one hun- 
dred of us. There were seven rooms of about 
forty by one hundred feet, with three hundred 
men to each room. There, almost crowded to 
death, commenced a life that will be forever im- 
pressed ujwn our minds ; and I am fearful that 
some of us will have the effects of that prison 
life so imi)ressed into our systems that it will hur- 
ry us to our graves. The horrors of those pris- 
ons I will leave for future historians to paint ; 
but I will attempt, in my plain and simple style, 
to bring a few items to the public gaze — now 
while humanity, charity, and Christianity ai-e the 
boast of the great Southern Confederacy. 

The first day after we had been thrust into this 
modern bastile, a rebel officer by the name of Cap- 
tain Turner came in and had us all drawn up into 
lines, and there we had to stand under guard. 
He then proceeded to tell us that we had to give 
up all our greenbacks. He said that he had a 
book there in which he would enter our names, 
company, and regiment, and the amount, and 
that Mhen we left the prison, exchanged or pa- 
roled, we would have all our money refunded to 
us ; and moreover, if we refused to give our mon- 
ey up thus voluntarily, we should be searched, 
and all moneys and valuables found about us 
would be confiscated. We saw the dilemma we 
were in, and concluded that we would take the 
matter as easy as possible, swearing vengeance 
would be ours some day. The boys were thus 
robbed of several thousand dollars, and I have 
not the least idea that they will ever see one cent 
of it again. 

We were also robbed of almost everything 
else we had, save the clothes on our "backs, and 
they were poor and thin, for we had worn them 
for the last eight months (not having drawn our 
winter suits yet). Some had no shirts, others no 
blouses, some barefooted,- others bareheaded, 
and our pants all full of holes. With this thin 
clothing, and no blankets, we were compelled to 
stretch ourselves upon the hard floor to sleep and 
rest, and that too in rooms where there was not 
the least spark of fii'e. You may have some idea 
of our sufiering at that season of the year ; but 
your imaginations can never realize the true state 
of things. To say we slept would only be in 
imagination, for I am confident of myself that I 
never enjoyed a nap of over half an hour's du- 
ration at one time during my whole stay in prison. 
And wlien we slept, it was nothing but a doze, 
filled with pleasant dreams of home and friends, 
of well-spread tables and inviting victuals. I 
have often awoke, catching myself in the very 
act of feeling for the bed covering ; and then im- 
agine my feelings, when I found myself disap- 
pointed and compelled to lie there shivering. 
Our bones would become so sore that we were 
compelled to be turning from side to side the 



whole night long. Through the coldness of the 
room, and the hardness of the floor, we would 
often be compelled to get up in the night and 
walk up and down the room to keep ourselves 
warm. And I have seen at the hour of midnight 
one third of the men in the room pacing the 
floors to and fro, so as to pass off the long, weary 
hours of the night. How many a poor suS"erer 
in after life will trace back the cause of his dis- 
ease to seeds sown in this cold, desolate prison ! 

But the darkest part of my story remains yet 
to be told. Man may suffer with cold, pass 
through incredible hardships, endure fatigue, and 
never murmur — but let hunger prey upon his 
vitals, and he becomes mad, frantic, and raving. 
He loses all patience, humanity, and sympathy 
for others, and will then stoop to acts which he 
would at other times have shunned with disdain. 

At first, our daUy allowance was one half 
pound of bread per day, and two ounces of taint- 
ed beef, and that without salt. I do not remem- 
ber of our ever getting any fresh meat all the 
time we were there. It generally was so bad 
that we could smell it as soon as it was brought 
into the room. At times we had some bacon is- 
sued to us, and it was strong, old, and maggot- 
eaten, looking like a honey-comb, it having been 
saved and cured with ashes and saltpetre, and the 
meat then had a slimy look, like soft soap. At 
last we got some kind of meat we could not fairly 
account for. It was neither beef, pork, mutton, 
veal, nor venison. It was a tough, lean, black- 
looking kind of flesh ; and it was the decided 
opinion of all that it was mule meat. Hard as it 
was, we were very thankful to get even that. 
From off this mingled lot of corrupted flesh they 
would furnish us a pint of soup. No, I will not 
class it with that much-favored dish — it was 
mere dish slop. 

You may ask if we relished this, and that with- 
out salt. Yes, the crumbs that fall from your ta- 
ble, and the slop of your swill-tubs, could be 
eaten there without asking any questions. At 
last, meat was entirely " played out," and then for 
two days we got one gill of rice, and then one day 
we got two sweet potatoes, and then at last had 
nothing but bread alone, and that from half a pound 
had been also reduced to a small corn " dodger," 
about the size of a saucer, and hard enough to 
knock a negro down, and so strong with alum — 
instead of salt — as to fairly burn our throats. AVe 
became so starved at last that we fell upon some 
bran that we found in a cellar under our prison. 
Of this we helped ourselves freely. AVe gener- 
ally managed it so as to keep a good supply of 
this stuff on hand. We took the di-y bran and 
put it in our tin cups, and then poured enough 
water upon it to mix it into a dough, and of this 
we ate freely ; and to satisfy hunger we thought 
it answered remarkably well. It looked distress- 
ing to see us eating this weak diet with our fin- 
gers, relishing it as if it was food supplied from 
a king's tabic. 

We were also compelled by starvation to sell 
the guards all of our jewelry, including our 
watches, gold pens and holders, finger-rings, and 



272 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



pocket-books ; and some even sold the shoes 
from off their feet, for a small pittance to keep 
soul and body together. Starvation caused us to 
resort to a great many means to procure the ne- 
cessaries of life ; and although we were closely 
confined, and strictly guarded, we often played 
off some pretty sharp jokes and tricks on the 
Southern Confederacy. 

Some of the boys, that had smuggled some 
money through, would take one-dollar bills 
(greenbacks), and have them altered to tens. 
These they would take, after night, and pass off on 
the guards for bread and tobacco. And I know of 
one instance where one of our new copper cents 
was passed off for a two and a half gold dollar 
piece. This may look too much like roguery ; 
but w^hat will not a man do before he will starve ? 
All of our trading had to be done after dark, for 
the guards v/ere not allowed to speak to us. They 
even had orders to shoot us, if we even put our 
heads out of the windows. But after dark, when 
there was no rebel officer near, we could approach 
the guard, and trade freely ; but ere this time, 
their trading times are over, for their resources 
have long ago failed. 

There is one joke that we played off on the 
rebel authorities that I must not forget to men- 
tion. It looks like a gigantic thing, but it can 
be well vouched for by hundreds of prisoners. 
It was nothing less than stealing a great quantity 
of sugar and salt in the rebel capital. We had 
a large cellar under our prison, and it was strong- 
ly locked and bolted ; and we soon mistrusted 
that there might be something under there that 
we could use to advantage. fSo we went to work 
and cut a hole through the lower floor, and let 
ourselves down into the cellar after night. And, 
io ! there we found it filled with sugar and salt. 
We made daily draws upon it for a week, until 
the authorities found it out, when they cut off our 
supplies by removing their commissariat. You 
may judge Ave lived upon the " fat of the land " 
for one week, if Ave did suffer for it afterAvards. 
The joke was a good one, and the rebels felt 
completely sold over it. By a statement, shortly 
afterwards, in the " Dispatch" they called us 
" gray rats, that had dug a hole into their cellar, 
and carried off over nine thousand pounds of 
sugar, and thirty-five hundred pounds of salt." 
Upon this 1 need add no comments, for every 
one will say, " Well done." 

We had no regular prison rules, only what we 
made of our own. We di'CAV rations only once a 
day ; sometimes that Avould be at nine o'clock 
A. M., and then sometimes not until eight o'clock 
at night. That Avas indeed a long time to fast, 
but Ave had to bear it all with patience. We 
, would ahvays be so hungry that we would devour 
it all at one meal, and then be compelled to go 
twenty-four hours Avithout tasting another mouth- 
ful of food. 

Amidst all our suffering Ave had also another 
enemy to contend against — that was the vermin. 
We soon became so covered Avith these living 
creatures that it took several hours of our daily 
life to rid ourselves of them. It Avas to me an 



undesired job, but I had to do it, or be literally 
eaten up alive. This may look, in some people's 
eyes, like laziness or negligence on our part to get 
so, but I Avill defy any person to be put a feAV 
weeks in prison Avithout getting so infested. 

It always appeared to me that the rebel au- 
thorities tried to make our sojourn Avith them as 
miserable as they possibly could. They Avould 
agree to no terms of a parole or exchange. It 
appeared as if they intended to keep us there for 
the purpose of punishing us, and to kill us all 
inch by inch. We never could receive a civil an- 
swer from the authorities to any question Ave 
might ask them. When we avouIcI ask them for 
bread, they would threaten to give us lead. Ev- 
ery sentence Avould be accompanied with an ttath 
and epithets of abuse, calling us invaders, negro 
stealers, Lincoln hirelings, &c., saying Ave were get- 
ting better treatment than we deserved. Of the 
soldiers that guai'ded us, we have no complaint to 
make. They treated us with a great deal of hu- 
manity and respect. They would run great risks 
to try to accommodate us, and often made them- 
selves liable to the severest punishment in trying 
to smuggle us in a little bread, tobacco, or some 
newspapers. 

I talked with a great many of them, Avho said 
they were tired of the Avar, and that they had not 
the least hope of success. And a great many told 
me that they knew they were fighting on the 
wrong side, and conti'ary to their own principles ; 
they had not gone voluntarily, having been con- 
scripted ; and they said if they ever got near 
enough to some of our armies, they were going 
across the lines. I can truthfully say, that one 
third of the soldiers that guarded us were good 
Union men, but had been dragged into the rebel 
ranks, and Avere too fearful to make an attempt 
to escape. They knew their doom, if caught at- 
tempting to escape to our lines, Avould be death. 
The guards acknowledged also to us, that they 
were also in nearly a starving condition. They 
drew the same quality of rations that Ave did, only 
a little more. The inhabitants of Richmond 
showed signs of being in a starving condition. 

In the month of October there Avere tAvo bread 
riots in the city. The women collected together 
in masses, and proceeding to the rebel commissa- 
ries, burst open the doors, and helped themselves. 
There is no doubt that there are thousands of 
helpless families in the South in as bad a condi- 
tion as our OAvn Union prisoners. 

A rebel soldier's pay is only one hundred and 
thii-ty-two dollars per year ; now on this small 
sum, hoAV is he to support a family, where every- 
thing is selling at such extravagant prices ? Flour 
at one hundred dollars per ban-el, corn ten dol- 
lars per bushel, pork two dollars per pound, calico 
tvA-elve dollars per yard, and cotton five dollars, 
and Avool ten dollars per pound. Imagine, ye 
Northern sympathizers, the fruits that folloAv a 
rebellious people, and you Avill soon come to the 
conclusion that the way of the transgressor is 
hard. Of the two most horrible prisons in llich- 
mond, we are so fortunate as to knoAV but little. 
One is Belle Island, said to be a dreaiy, sandy, 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



273 



bleak place. On it are generally put our Eastern 
troops, whom the rebels have a greater hatred for 
than Western troops. The suffering on that 
island it is impossible for me to picture. If you 
could see some of those miserable prisoners there, 
in their tattered clothing, and Avith dejected coun- 
tenances, on a cold, bleak morning in November, 
hovering over some smouldering embers, it would 
melt the hardest heart Avith compassion. Castle 
Thunder is also another prison of considerable 
note. There they put their own deserters and 
criminals, and also our own incorrigible " Yan- 
kees " that they cannot so easily manage in the 
Libby prisons. The treatment and fare in Castle 
Thunder are said to be worse than were ever known 
in any half-civilized nation on the globe. There 
are said to be men within that prison who have 
not a particle of clothing, and have for their beds 
piles of saw-dust, in which they nestle down to- 
gether like hogs. They are there denied all priv- 
ileges of comfort — no lights, or water to Avash 
with, just only a little food, barely to sustain na- 
ture. 

They had also three large hospitals filled Avith 
our sick soldiers. These Avere said to be most 
horrible places. The accommodations and treat- 
ment Avere nothing better than what Ave received 
at the prisons. Hundi-eds upon hundreds have 
died in these filthy pens, who would this day have 
been living if they had been under the hands of 
humane nurses, and at a place Avhere they could 
have received good healthy nourishment and 
proper remedies. We had a surgeon, Avho made 
a call once a day at our rooms, would make a 
short examination of our sick, but would gen- 
rally go oft" without giving them any medicine, 
making the excuse that he had none of the proper 
kind. A man Avould have to get almost helpless 
before they Avould remove him to the hospital, 
and probably Avhen he got there he Avould not 
survive more than a day or so, and then he Avould 
pass aAvay from his troubles here to his final rest. 

The number of Union prisoners in Richmond, 
at the date of November 13, Avas about thir- 
teen thousand ; something near one thousand 
of these Avere officers, and they Avere confined in 
what is knoAvn as Old Libby, the same building 
they used Avhen the rebellion broke out. To 
Belle Island all of the prisoners from the Poto- 
mac are sent. They number noAv about five 
thousand, and some of them have been there ever 
since the battle of Gettysburg. 

Our Western troops are all put in large tobacco 
factories, which could be made comfortable if they 
Avould only give them good clothes and blankets, 
and furnish them with plenty of fuel. 

At times great excitement Avould prevail in the 
city. Every time General Meade Avould make a 
movement toAvards the rebel capital, we would 
notice it by a great bustle on the streets. And 
at times I thought they were fearful, also, of the 
prisoners, for it had more than once been whis- 
pered around that we were all going to make a 
general outbreak, fire the city, and make our es- 
cape. The thing could have been once easily done 
if we could only have had a little help from outside. 
18 



There Avere fcAv troops in the city. We were 
guarded principally by artillerymen from the for- 
tifications. 

As for the rebel currency, it is nothing but 
mere trash ; the Avhole country is overfloAving 
with it. The rich are putting it all off on the 
poor, buying up their stock and grain at extrav- 
agant prices ; so that Avhen their rotten Confeder- 
acy goes doAvn, the poor class Avill have the Avorth- 
less pictures on hand, and they Avill only be Avorth 
about tAvo cents per pound (the price of rags), 
and the rich will have all the produce. But I 
think they Avill not have their own Avay much 
longer. Uncle Sam Avill soon go doAvn amongst 
them ; and 1 judge then the Avhole drama Avill be 
changed, the oppressed and doAvntrodden Avill 
arise and shake off their shackles, and be made 
once more to rejoice under our old banner of 
freedom. 

Friday, NoA'ember 13. — This morning Ave 
Avere aroused an hour before daylight, by the 
guards, with orders to prepare to move immedi- 
ately. Great hilarity existed among the boys, 
and W'B Avere making great calculations on a 
speedy trip around to the North, Avhere Ave Avould 
get plenty to eat, and meet once again with the 
loved ones at home. But our bright hopes were 
soon blasted, and we Avere made to feel more 
despaii'ing, Avhen Ave learned that our removal 
Avas to another prison. They issued to us that 
morning a small loaf of corn bread, weighing 
about ten ounces. We all considered that it was 
intended for our breakfast ; so we ate it all, they 
promising us that they Avere going to take us to 
a place where we Avould get plenty to eat, and 
that there would be a supper ready for us on 
our arrival that evening at Danville, N. C, our 
destined place. The sun was just peeping up 
from behind the eastern fortifications of the capi- 
tal of Rebeldom Avhen Ave bade adieu to the Libby 
prisons, and soon found ourselves safely stored 
away in box cars, and rolling along at the speed 
of elcA'en miles per hour. We arrived safe at 
Danville that night, by eight o'clock P. M., and 
were soon incarcerated in another " Tobacco 
Prison." Danville is south-west of Richmond, 
distance one hundred and forty miles, and is lo- 
cated on the south bank of Dan River, a tribu- 
tary of the Roanoke. It contains about tAvelve 
or fifteen hundred inhabitants, with some pretty 
snug buildings, and is in one of the best tobacco 
regions in the State. It also is the terminus of 
the Richmond and Danville Railroad. Our prison 
there Avas another brick building, forty by sixty 
feet, and three stories high ; and our train load 
of seven hundred prisoners filled the building full 
enough to be comfortable. But to our disap- 
pointment (and not much either, for we had lost 
all faith in their promises), we had to lie down to 
sleep without anything to eat. But such things 
we had got so used to that w'e acquiesced ■with- 
out a murmur. 

Saturday, November 14. — Daylight came, 
but nothing to eat. Noon came, but still no 
food. Night came, and nothing yet. No won- 
der we looked up some desperate effort to better 



274 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



our condition. Thoughts had been in my head, 
from the time I had been in Libby one week, to 
make my escape if the thing was in any way pos- 
sible ; I had even felt sorry that I had let so 
many opportunities slip, when they were bring- 
ing us to Richmond, which I could have done a 
hundred times, from the carelessness of our 
guards. While in Richmond, it was continually 
upon my mind, but the thing looked like an im- 
possibility there. Probably I could have got out 
of the prison, but I never could get out of the 
city, and pass their line of pickets and fortifica- 
tions. We also thought of making the attempt 
when we run down on the cars to Danville, but 
before dark set in they came around and locked 
us all safe up in the cars. The &st thing I did 
on that morning, when I got up, was to take a 
general survey of the place, and see what the 
prospect was for making an escape. I saw things 
looked pretty favorable ; and I soon found an 
accomplice in the Sergeant-Major of the Nine- 
teenth Regulars, a brave and dashing young 
man. 

We two put our heads together, and laid a 
scheme for making a general outbreak, by burst- 
ing open all three of our prison doors, overpow- 
ering the guards, capturing the town, destroying 
the railroad bridge across Dan River, cutting the 
telegraph, destroying all the commissary stores, 
securing all the arms and horses that we could, and 
then making all speed for the mountains. The 
whole thing could have been easily effected, for we 
were seven hundred strong in the building, and 
there were seven hundred more expected about 
eight o'clock that night, and that, then, would make 
a considerable force. The rebels had not more 
than one hundred soldiers there, and no more 
troops nearer than Richmond, and they had only 
nine on duty at a time. When night cam^, it 
set in dark and rainy, and guards that were not 
on duty were rambling about the town. We had 
selected the time when the cars would come in 
to make the move. We were to divide into three 
squads. One was to capture the guards as qui- 
etly as possible, and then go to their headquar- 
ters and pick up all there, and then break out 
into the town, and take and destroy everything 
valuable. We had assigned for this four hun- 
dred men. Then two hundred more were to 
make for the railroad bridge, and burn it, and 
then one hundred were to go to the telegi'aph office 
and demolish it. We were then to burn the en- 
tire train, depot buildings, &c. ; and then, as soon 
as we could mount and arm seventy-five or one 
hundred men, we were to start them off to the 
East Tennessee and Virginia Railroad to cut the 
telegraph, and destroy the track by burning some 
bridges at and near Salem, in Roanoke County, a 
distance of sixty miles, which they could make 
in twelve hours ; and then for them to go on and 
notify our forces in Western Virginia to come to 
our assistance, and meet us in the mountains. 

After having everything completed, we set to 
work to talk with the men, and to enlist every 
one in the enterprise. We labored hard and 
faithfully that day among the men, and could 



only get sixty men out of seven hundred to go 
into it. They said they would not go out if we 
threw the doors wide open. They were so weak 
and feeble from their sufferings for want of clothes 
and food that they could never reach our lines, 
and were certain we would be captured ; and then 
they judged we would all have to fare harder 
than ever. This might have been the case, but 
I viewed it in a different light ; for to remain 
there much longer would be death, and it could 
not be worse than death to make the attempt. 
So when we found out that we could not effect a 
general stampede, we concluded that it would be 
the best policy to get out as secretly as possible, 
and get as far away as we could before the au- 
thorities would find it out. After dark we went 
to work and cut a hole through the fence. It 
was a pine board one inch thick and one foot 
broad ; Ave cut it off about eighteen inches from 
the ground. It was done with an old table knife 
that had been broken oft' two inches short. It 
was not more than the work of half an hour, 
and all was ready ; but we waited so as to let the 
people in town settle down. About half past 
seven o'clock we commenced going out in small 
squads of three and four men. We had to pass 
Avithin ten feet of one of their guards, but he did 
not appear to pay any attention to us. I should 
judge he was a good Union man, or well bribed, 
and how it turned out with him I have never 
learned. A little before eight o'clock three of us, 
Sergeant Solomon Stookey, Corporal Henry 
Thompson, and myself, all being members of the 
same company, started, and in a moment were 
through the orifice and once more in free air. 

We knew we had undertaken a very hazardous 
enterprise — but it was life or death. We had 
not tasted any food for thirty-six hours, and were 
almost frantic with hunger. As soon as we found 
ourselves safely out, we made for the banks of 
the river, distant about fifty yards. By the time 
we reached the river we heard the guards crying 
the rounds of the night, and when it came to the 
guard that we passed, we distinctly heard him 
halloo out, " Post number nine, eight o'clock, 
and all's well." I could not help laughing to my- 
self, and thought, " Old soldier, you did not tell 
the truth that time." 

We hurried up the river bank on a fast run, 
but as it was raining and the ground slippery, I 
fell down almost every rod, being weak and ex- 
hausted ; but my two comrades would hurry me 
along. About half a mile from the prison we 
came to a small meadow, and fomid in it a per- 
simmon tree ; we pitched into it and ate over 
one pint of the fruit apiece, and I thought they 
did us a great deal of good by giving us strength. 
We could have eaten a great many more, but I 
urged the boys on, for we were not yet out of 
sight of the lights of the town. I had been se- 
lected as the guide, and it was my intention to 
take a north-west course, as anything between 
north and west would bring us into our lines at 
some place in Western Virginia. 

My first object was to get across Dan River as 
quick as possible, for I knew our escape would he 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



275 



found out, and they would hotly pursue us, and 
that all ferries would soon be guarded for the 
purpose of recapturing us. We made up the 
river as fast as we could tra\Tl, reaching what is 
known as Wilson's Ferry. There the Danville 
Pike crosses, going to the Blue Ridge. Thei'e 
we worked for two hours, trying to break the 
locks or draAv the staple, but could not effect 
anything. We felt a great interest in getting the 
boat loose for the purpose of crossing, and also 
of setting the ferry boat afloat so as to retard 
our pursuers. Finding all our efforts fruitless, 
we abandoned it and moved up the river about 
three miles, and as it was raining very hard and 
dark, we became so exhausted that we could not 
proceed any farther. We lay down in a pine 
thicket to rest, but there was no rest for us. We 
were so famished, and the weather so wet and 
cold, that hope almost fled. There was Dan River 
we must cross early in the morning if we had to 
swim. Delay would be dangerous. The whole 
thing kept my mmd excited so that I could not 
rest. 

Sunday, November 15. — We felt very blue this 
morning, but by daylight we were up and off. 
We proceeded right up the banks of the river, 
gathering some raw corn and turnips to subsist, 
on. AVe had not gone very far until we found a 
canoe tied up to a tree, and half full of water. 
We went to work and soon had it baled out, and 
with a piece of a root for a paddle, we managed to 
get across, the canoe turning around some half 
a dozen times in the middle of the stream. As 
soon as we were safely across, we " broke for 
timber," but had not px'oceeded far, when, as we 
were going out of a ravine to the top of a hill, 
we espied three armed men in advance of us. 
Two of them were on horseback, and they had a 
Jdnd of an ugly look. We ordei-ed a retreat, 
and fell back half a mile unobserved by them, 
hid ourselves in some thick undergrowth, consid- 
ering that it would not be best to travel in the 
daylight. We lay by the balance of the day and 
slept some, and as soon as it began to get dark 
started again. We took our direction through 
bush and M-oods and over fields until about nine 
o'clock, when it became so dark that we could 
not see how to travel, and as I used the moon 
and stars for my guide, we were obliged to halt 
and camp. In doing so we gathered a few leaves 
into a fence corner ; into this we nestled down 
and tried to sleep, but no sleep closed our eyelids 
that night. Everything was wet and cold, and 
we did nothing but lie there and shiver. God 
forbid that I should ever pass through such an- 
other night. Death would then have been a 
welcome visitor. I then despaired, and told my 
two partners we never could make it. Here Me 
were three days without anything to eat, save a 
little raw corn and turnips, and that was doing us 
more harm than good. O, ye rich and opulent 
of the North, when you lie down on downy beds, 
do you think what the poor soldier has to pass 
through at times to save your country, your home, 
and your wealth ? 

Monday, November 16. — We arose this morn- 



ing in despair ; we did not care which way the scale 
turned. We had lost all energy to push forward, 
and the only thing that engrossed our mind was 
something to eat. We looked around and espied 
a small cabin at a short distance in a small clear- 
ing. We took it to be a negro hut, and we would 
make a venture to it, let the consequences be 
what they would. It was agreed that but one 
should make the venture, and if all was not safe 
the other two could escape. It was put upon me 
to make that venture. I proceeded to the house, 
caring but little what the consequences might be, 
so that I got something to eat. When I came to 
the yard, a white woman came out ; it frightened 
me a little, but I thought I would go ahead, let 
Avhat might follow. I told her not to be alarmed, 
that I was a " Yankee," and had escaped from a 
Confederate prison, and was making an effort to 
reach my home in Ohio. She looked suspiciously 
at me for a while ; but after talking a few mo- 
ments, she believed my story. I then told her I 
was famishing for something to eat. She then 
bade me come in, and said she would do the best 
she could, although she knew she was running a 
great risk, for if the rebel authorities should find 
it out they would severely punish her for harbor- 
ing and assisting their enemy. I then told her 
of my two comrades, and she bade me call them in, 
and said Ave were welcome to the best she had. 
We enjoyed ourselves around a warm, blazing 
fire, for it was the first Me had seen or felt for 
eight Meeks. Mrs. Corban (for that was the good 
woman's name) went to M'ork and hastily prepared 
us a good warm breakfast of stewed chicken, but- 
ter, cabbage, cofiee (Confederate), and corn bread. 
You need not ask us whether M'e did justice to 
the smoking dishes befoi-e us. There is one thing 
certain, we had very grateful hearts. At the ta- 
ble Mrs. Corban informed us M'ho she was. She 
said she M'as as good a Union M'oman as M'e ever 
saw, and that she had a husband, who was in the 
rebel army at that time, but M'as as good a Union 
man as M-as ever in Ohio. But he, like thousands 
more of his unfortunate class, had been con- 
scripted, but M'as going to cross the lines at the 
first favorable opportunity. 

After breakfast she took us to a deep forest, 
M'here a couple of deserters were hid. We found 
them in their hermit home, and she left us M-ith 
them there, while she went off to find a good 
Union man to help us, one Avho had some knowl- 
edge of the country, so as to get us on safely 
without falling into the hands of the enemy. She 
returned late in the evening, bringing with her a 
nice dinner of beef, potatoes, corn bread, and 
pumpkin pies, and also the good intelligence that 
she had found a man by the name of Yates, an 
overseer on a plantation, who M'as true Union, 
and Milling to do all in his poM'er to make us 
comfortable and to assist us on our journey. 
How devoted and true is a loyal woman to the 
cause of our country ! Such heroines are not 
rare, and that, too, in the very heart of the South- 
ern Confederacy. Noble M'oman ! As M'e Avere 
parting, she Avent into the house and brought us 
the best quilt she had, and gave it to us. 



276 



ANECDOTES, POETEY, AND INCIDENTS. 



Xow consider one moment : that woman was 
poor, and she had five helpless children, her hus- 
band in the rebel ranks ; most of her subsistence 
she had to draw weekly from the Confederate 
Government, and you may plainly see Avhy we call 
her a heroine. Do not such people — lajing 
aside the great interest of our countiy — demand 
protection ? Can we not bravely fight for such, 
and redeem them from the thraldom of tyrants ? 
After dark the two deserters (who were Union to 
the core also) piloted us to the house of Mr. Yates. 
We found him a thorough Union man, who was 
glad to receive us, and gave us a hearty supper 
and a warm bed under his hospitable roof. He 
was one of those bold, dashing men who did not 
care what he said ; and he remarked to us that 
the Confederate authorities were more afraid of 
him than he was of them. Of his being a Union 
man, almost every man knew it, and yet he re- 
mained unmolested. About midnight three more 
of our runaway boys came to his house and craved 
liis hospitality, which he freely gave by treating 
them the same as he did us. This is another 
proof of the loyalty of the downtrodden people 
of the South. What would have been that man's 
fate if the rebels had caught us all in his house ? 
Was there any doubt of true loyalty there ? 

Tuesday, November 17. — Long before daylight 
we were up and had our breakfasts, and then our 
good friend advised us that it would not be safe 
for us to remain at his house that day, for proba- 
bly the rebel soldiers would be there and search 
his house for some of us. He then took us to a 
nice pine thicket adjacent to his house, Avhere we 
passed the day quietly. At noon his son brought 
us our dinner, and after dark the old gentleman 
came, bringing us our supper and one day's ra- 
tions. Then we learned for the first time that 
sixty of our men had actually efi"ected their es- 
cape, and that the whole country was swarming 
with cavalry in hot pursuit, and that six of our 
boys had been captured that day in front of his 
door. I could not pity them much, for they were 
too foolhardy and careless in attempting to travel 
in the daylight, and that, too, upon a public high- 
way ; and moreover to let one man capture the 
whole of them ! 

We ate our supper, and bade our good friend 
adieu ; and as the shades of night were closing in, 
we set out again to the " land of promise," with a 
determination to go through now or die in the at- 
tempt. I set out as guide about one hundred 
yards in advance of my two comrades. On that 
night, through woods and over fields, and wading 
one considerable stream, we travelled about twelve 
miles in a proper direction, when the moon went 
down and it became dark. We travelled on, but 
I soon found I was making a circle, as I had lost 
my way; so after midnight, we raked together 
some leaves and slept till morning. 

Wednesday, November 18. — We ate our break- 
fast at a widow woman's by the name of Smith, 
who was true and loyal. We slept in the woods 
near by all day, and as soon as it was dark we 
were off. This night we took through woods and 
fields again, keeping our course, and by two 



o'clock in the morning were across Avhat is known 
as Turkey ^Mountain, and entered a poor man's 
house by the name of Carder, who allowed us to 
sleep on the floor iir front of the fire. He would 
not believe we were Yankees, but took us to be 
rebel detectives, and I could not exactly find him 
out. 

Thursday, November 19. — Mr. Carder was not 
able to give us our breakfast ; so we had to go on 
half a mile to a Mrs. Pteynolds, who was as good a 
Union woman as any in Old Virginia. She has- 
tily prepared us a warm meal ; and as she was in 
the kitchen cooking it, a rebel soldier came into 
the sitting-room where ^e were. He immediately 
asked us if we were not runaway Yankee ])rison- 
ers. We answered in the affirmative. He then 
said he took us to be such, for he had heard of 
our escape from Danville, and two of our boys 
had been along there the day before ; and as they 
were somewhat astray, he piloted them a couple 
of miles ; but he had not more than left them be- 
fore they were recaptured by some rebel cavalry. 
He then advised us not to attempt to get any far- 
ther, for it was impossible for us to get through, 
as the cavalry and citizens had turned out to the 
number of five hundred, and were ranging the 
country all around for us. He said it would go 
easier Avith us if we would voluntarily give our- 
selves up to him, and he would take us to where 
we would be well treated and get plenty to eat. 
We gave him to understand we did not put much 
faith in his promises, and also we did not intend 
to surrender ourselves to one man. Here our 
conversation was interrupted by breakfast being 
ready. At the table Mrs. Ileynolds informed us 
that the rebel soldier was her brother, but for us 
to pay no attention to him, and advised us to go 
ahead at all hazards. She deeply sympathized 
with us in our perilous undertaking, but wished 
us God speed. 

After breakfast, the rebel soldier volunteered 
his services to pilot us to some secluded spot, 
where we might rest in safety through the day. 
I politely thanked him. I had undertaken that 
job myself, and I did not wish his assistance. I 
saw what he was fishing after, for there was three 
thousand dollars reward for each of us, and he 
was after Confederate legal tender. We left, hnn 
very unceremoniously, and broke for a cliair. .£ 
small hills and mountains. That cursed imp jf 
rebeldom caused me a great amount of imeasi- 
ness, and we travelled nearly the whole day, so 
as to get as far away as possible. By sundown 
we were over another small mountain called Snow 
Creek, at the foot of which we entered a man's 
house' and got our supper. He was good Union, 
although he had a son in the rebel ranks. He in- 
formed us then that we were in Franklin County, 
and within fifteen miles of the county seat (Rocky 
Mound). He said that it was directly on our road 
to the Blue Ridge, but advised us to leave it to 
the right or left, as it was not safe for us to go 
through, as there were two companies of cavalry 
always stationed there. We thanked him for his 
information, and proceeded on, crossing another 
small mountain called Chestnut Ridge, and then 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



277 



for the first time took the road. When we thought 
we were near Rocky Mound, and had come to a 
fork in the road, we aimed to take the road that 
would not take us through that place. But we 
took the wrong road, and directly we crossed a 
river on a bridge, and found ourselves right in 
the heart of a considerable sized town. It was 
too late to back out ; so we moved on as noise- 
lessly as cats. We looked every moment for some 
one to halt us ; but, thank God, we went through 
undisturbed. We learned next day that we had 
actually come through Rocky Mound. We trav- 
elled on that night, crossing Grassy Mountain 
and Blackwater River, wading it, and turned into 
a house for breakfast just at daylight. 

Friday, November 20. — We felt very sore, 
having walked thirty-five or forty miles in the 
last twenty-four hours, and not having slept any. 
There was none but a woman and children in the 
house, and she took us to be rebel deserters, and 
we said nothing to the contrary'. We ate our 
breakfast, and then went into a thicket and slept 
sweetly all daj*. At dark we went to a house 
near by, where we got our supper. There Ave 
were taken for rebel deserters again, and the old 
man let on to be a rebel himself; but I have 
since thought him to be a good stanch Union 
man. But he was fearful of us. We were soon 
off again, and took the main road, and by mid- 
night reached the Blue Ridge. There we passed 
some splendid natural scenery ; but we did not 
waste much time in stopping to admire it. This 
night we were j)ursued by a wildcat or cata- 
mount for over three mUes. The mischievous 
little creature gave us a great deal of uneasiness, 
for we had no arms to defend ourselves. We 
then proceeded safely, and about three o'clock it 
set in to rain, and we were compelled to stop and 
talie shelter under some pine bushes. 

Saturday, November 21. — It rained all day. 
This morning we had to go without any thing to 
eat. All the houses looked too fine for us to 
make a venture. We got into an old barn, and 
hid ourselves in some hay, so as to see and not 
be seen. We noticed through the day several 
rebel soldiers pass the road, but we felt safe. In 
the afternoon, as it was raining so hard that there 
was no travel, we ventured out, and went back 
from the road a mile, and found a house where 
we got some bread and beef, and also learned 
that we were within three miles of the East Ten- 
nessee Railroad. We proceeded on cautiously 
through the rain, and got within half a mile of 
the railroad, and then waited for the shades of 
night, so as to pursue our way. As soon as it 
was dark enough, we proceeded on, and every 
place was a sea of water and pretty cold. We 
crossed Roanoke River by wading, and the rail- 
road half a mile south of what is known as Lick 
Spring Station. We then proceeded up the valley 
parallel to the railroad, and through one of the 
finest and the most fertile and well improved sec- 
tions that I had seen in the Confederacy. The 
plantations were large, and appeared in the high- 
est state of cultivation. After going up the valley 
about eight miles, we were compelled by hunger 



to enter a small cabin for something to eat. We 
then learned that we were in Roanoke County, 
within a mile or so of the county seat, Salem ; 
and were advised to flank the town, as it was not 
safe for us to pass through, and also to avoid the 
road over Salem Mountain (a spur of the AUe- 
ghanies), as it was constantly watched, night and 
day, to catch rebel deserters who were making 
for the Union lines. We also learned that Salem 
was one of the hottest nests of secession in the 
whole valley, that it was their principal depot for 
army stores, and that there was at that time on 
hand an abundance of corn, flour, meat, &c. But 
since our visit there I have learned that General 
Averill has been in there and damaged their hive, 
to their great discomfiture. 

We proceeded on that night, making direct to 
the mountain. We soon reached its foot, and 
began our weary ascent, through brush, and over 
ledges of rocks, and climbing places almost per- 
pendicular ; and the night was as dark as pitch, 
besides being wet and cold. Our lot was then a 
trying one, so much so that we at last became 
completely bewildered. We called a halt and 
camped for the night, building a large fire out of 
dry chestnut, and contrived to dry ourselves, but 
slept none. 

Sunday, November 22. — As soon as it was 
light enough, we fell back about half a mile, and 
found a house in which we had a very welcome 
breakfast set before us by a good old Quakeress, 
who appeared as if she could not do enough for 
us. After eating and thanking the good woman, 
we made for the top of Salem Mountain, which 
we reached after a two hours' walk, climbing 
nearly the whole way by pulling ourselves up by 
the bushes. We built a fire, and spent the day 
in returning thanks to Almighty God for his pro- 
tection in our perilous undertaking. We slept 
some through the day, but always kept one out 
on guard while the other two would sleep. From 
our refuge we could see all around for miles. It 
was a beautiful sight ; we could see directly down 
into the rebel town of Salem, and see the people 
promenading the streets. Little dreamt they that 
they were watched by Yankees ; but, as for us, 
we felt secure, for I felt as if a kind Px'ovidence 
had a hand in our escape. We began our descent 
an hour before sundown, and dark found us again 
in the road making pretty good headway for Yan- 
keedom. 

Our course led about ten miles up that valley 
(Catawba). This was also very fertile, and, in 
travelling along the road, we had to pass near 
some very fine houses. All these we endeavored 
to avoid by taking across the fields. And, as a 
general thing, we never went near a house but 
what a dozen dogs would come baying out after 
us, and they would keep up their yelping as far 
as we could hear. I often remarked to my com- 
rades that I could never have any more friend- 
ship for the canine creatures. That night a man 
chased us for nearly two miles with his dogs. 
We would have stood and given battle, but we 
did not want to leave any tracks behind. We 
crossed another small mountain knowa as Ca- 



278 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS, 



tawba, and came into Craig Valley. After mid- 
night it became cloudy, and, as our road led up 
Craig Creek, and we had to wade it in several 
places, and it turned cold, and as we were wet 
and very much fatigued, we began to look around 
for some place to sleep and rest. But, as every 
place was wet and muddy, we could do no better 
than to chase some pigs from their bed, and, for 
the time being, take military possession of their 
snug and comfortable quarters — comfortable, if 
we did rise up covered with creepers. But we 
were willing to do or pass through anything to 
regain our freedom. 

Monday, November 23. — We rose feeling 
pretty well, except our empty stomachs ; but we 
soon found a nice warm breakfast at the house 
of a Mrs. Brill hart. While at the table, she in- 
formed us of a band of deserters which was near 
by, who, she thought, would do all in their power 
to aid and assist us in getting through. AVe got 
the direction, and found their headquarters about 
noon. Wc wei'e cordially received, and treated 
with the best they had. The news of our arrival 
spread fast, and by dark not less than twenty per- 
sons came in to see us. They thought it was a 
great curiosity to see " live Yankees " in their 
midst. We found them all true Union men in 
principle, and would be so in action, if it was not 
for the iron rule of tyrants that keeps them down. 

There we found deserters from the rebel ranks 
who had been there, hid in the mountains, for 
over eighteen months. We were assigned a room 
that night in the stable loft, and received visitors 
until nearly midnight. I was heai'tily glad when 
they quit coming, for I needed some rest. I 
slept that night as sweetly, and felt as safe, as if 
I had been at home. I knew I was among friends, 
and that not a few. 

Tuesday, November 24. — We arose in great 
glee. A Squire Somebody had sent us a bottle 
of home-made liquor, which Ave did not object to, 
as we thought a little refreshment would not go 
amiss, if it did cost six dollars a pint. Visitors 
came flocking in all day, and I was getting fear- 
ful, lest the thing was getting too public, and 
might arouse suspicion. We coaxed four de- 
serters to fix up and go along with us, for we 
knew they would be excellent pilots, from their 
knowledge of the country. 

We also found that they had been running de- 
serters from that place across to our lines. And 
for doing this, they had established a route with 
a number of posts on it — a kind of an under- 
ground railroad. And besides this, they had a 
secret organization, with its grips, signs, and 
passwords ; and for a person to be a member, he 
had to sign an obligation, and take a solemn oath, 
the punishment for violation of which M'as death. 

Under an old shed near by, we were all three 
of us initiated into this mystic lodge ; and there- 
after we could tell our friends at first sight ; and 
it was a great help to us during the balance of 
our sojourn in Dixie. We found there men of 
all ages — from the beai'dless youth to the gray- 
hcuded old man — praying day and night that the 
Yankees might come and take possession of their 



country. They had felt the gall and bitterness 
of secession — they knew its aim — the subjuga- 
tion of the poor, and to lift up the rich into des- 
potic chaii-s. O ye butternuts of the North, who 
voted for exiles, and outlaws, and friends of se- 
cession, if you could but half feel the fruits of 
disunion, how soon you would change your prin- 
ciples ! We spent one happy day in the Confed- 
eracy. They brought us in great baskets of pro- 
visions. It appeared as if they could not do enough 
for us ; and when we went to start, they filled our 
haversacks to overflowing, and gave us also fifteen 
doUai's in money (Confederate). Everything 
being in readiness, and with many adieus and 
God speed you well, from both men and women, 
we started ofl', accompanied by the four deserters 
and about twenty of the citizens, who went with 
us a couple of miles. Such true types of Union- 
ism are hardly found here in our midst — cer- 
tainly no better. 

The deserters went ahead as our guides. Vie 
were .soon across Craig Mountain, and in the Sink- 
ing Creek Valley, and were proceeding along, as 
we thought, in all security. As we were going 
down a small creek, which led out to a public 
road, we had not more tlian got out into the road, 
when all in an instant we heard the words, " Halt, 
halt, halt! " coming from a sentinel not over twen- 
ty-five yards in front of us. We then saw, to the 
right of the road, eight or ten camp fires, and saw 
in an instant our danger. We made oil' at full 
speed, and ran on for a mile luitil we were com- 
pletely exhausted. The sentinel never fired at 
us, nor made the alarm in camp. 1 have always 
thought that he did not suspect who we were. It 
was a narrow escape, and also a lesson of caution. 

After getting over our fright, we made oil again, 
over fields and through woods, wading Sinking 
Creek, and then over Sinking Creek Mountain, 
through the brush ; then across John's Creek Val- 
ley, and wading John's Creek, which was very 
deep and cold, and made the top of John's Creek 
Mountain by daylight. 

Wednesday, November 25. — We took a good 
day's rest, and were ofl' again at dark, down across 
a large valley, thence over Peter's Mountain ; the 
last and highest of the Allcghanies. This night 
was very cold, and we sufl'ered, for our clothes 
were so thin, and my shoes were now about gone ; 
and I was compelled to tear up some of my other 
clothes to keep my feet safe, for I knew our suc- 
cess depended upon them. We stopped that night 
about midnight at the house of a jMr. Smith, at 
the west foot of Peter's Mountain. This was a 
post on our route, and as the next one was twen- 
ty-five miles ahead, Ave wanted to take a whole 
night for it. Mr. Smith gave us a very hospitable 
reception, but informed us that it would be im- 
possible for us to get through, as General Averill 
had been pitching into the rebels at Lewisburg, 
and had scattered them all along down the Green- 
brier country, — and we also had in our pathway 
the two bushwhacking companies, commanded l)y 
William and Philip Thurman, who were doing 
great mischief, taking their spite out on the Union 
men in the country for their defeat at Lewisburg. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



279 



His tales were so horrible that we could not 
persuade the rebel deserters to come another foot 
with us ; they started back immediately that 
night. Their courage failed them after coming 
forty miles with us, and we were then within 
eighty miles of our lines. 

Thursday, November 26. — After a good nap 
on the floor, and a warm breakfast before day- 
break, we went into a thicket and lay concealed 
there all day in perfect security. ^Ir. Smith went 
ahead that day several miles to learn the true 
state of things, as to the safety of our going for- 
ward, and returned at night with the news, that 
it might be barely possible. At night, after a 
hearty supper, we set forward to make Greenbrier 
River before daylight, with a recommendation to 
a Mr. L. Guinn, our next post. That night's 
travel took us directly through Monroe County, 
and our road led through Uniontovvn, the county 
seat, and as that Avas another hot secesh hold we 
were told to flank it. We came in sight of the 
town about ten o'clock. As there were a great 
many lights there, Ave struck off" to the left, and 
by so doing got upon the wrong road, but did not 
find our mistake until we had gone eight miles. 
We then altered our course, and made Greenbrier 
a little before daylight. I entered a cabin, and 
inquired for a man by the name of L. Guinn. 
I Avas informed that a man by the name of Lay- 
ton Guinn lived a mile doAvn the river. Without 
stopping to ask Avhether he was Union or not, Ave 
started down the river to Mr. Guinn's. We soon 
came in sight of the house ; and as it Avas Ser- 
geant Stookey's turn to make the venture, the 
other two of us lay hid. Sergeant Stookey Avent 
up to the yard fence, as it Avas breaking day. 
The folks of the house Avere up. He hallooed, 
and a man came out. Stookey asked him " if 
Mr. Guinn lived there," to AS'hich the man replied, 
that Avas his name, and residence, but he had only 
got home the night before, for he belonged to one 
of Thurman's independent companies — a kind 
of genteel name for busliAvhackers. Stookey soon 
saw the dilKculty he Avas in, but gathered up 
courage and played off". He immediately replied 
that he Avas the very man he " Avanted to find, for 
he Avanted to enlist in one of them independent 
companies," and probably now he could get some 
information hoAV to get to them. This appeared 
to please the man, and he immediately asked, 
"Who are you? a deserter? What regiment. 
Twenty-second, Forty-fifth, or Sixtieth Virginia ? " 
Stookey ansAvered him that he used to belong to 
the army, but as his regiment Avas a long Avay off", 
he thought he Avould try one of his companies for 
a while. To this Mr. Guinn proceeded to inform 
him Avhere the two companies Avere. One Avas 
at such a ferry on Ncav Iliver, and had scouts 
scattered here and there, &c., the other one AA'as 
up on Muddy Creek, Avith directions how to go 
to it, Avhere to cross the river, and Avhat roads to 
take, &c. Just the very kind of information we 
so greatly desired. He then invited Stookey to 
come in and get his breakfast. Stookey politely 
thanked him, as he had plenty in his haversack ; 
BO he bade him good morning, and hastily rejoined 



us. After this news, we set our wits to work to 
make the best of it. We had struck the wrong 
man, and to make any more ventures Ave thought 
would not be safe, and Ave must manage to get 
across Greenbrier the best Ave could. We made 
immediately for the river, and went doAvn it a 
mile, to a place Avhere there Avere no houses in 
sight. There we built a fire. We were com- 
pelled to do so, for it Avas a very cold night, and 
I had my feet and fingers partially frost-bitten. 
After Ave had thaAved out a little, and eaten the 
last mouthful in our haversacks, Ave began to look 
for some Avay to cross the river. In a pile of 
drift-A\"ood there was an old canoe. This Ave got 
out and launched, and all three of us got into it, 
and began to paddle over, but Avere not more than 
one third over when the little, frail thing upset, 
and thrcAV us into the water. It was a cold bap- 
tism, and Ave SAvam back, dripping Avith wet and 
trembling Avith cold. We re])uilt our fire, Avrung 
and dried our clothes, and in two hours Avere 
ready to try it again. This time Stookey Avent 
over in the canoe alone, and Thompson and my- 
self Avent doAvn about half a mile to a riffle, strip- 
ped, and Avaded. It Avas a bitter pill, but there 
Avas no alternative. After being safely over Ave 
made for the Snell Mountains, Avhose summit we 
reached a little after dark. A bed was soon made 
out of some leaves, in Avhich we snugly slept all 
night. 

Saturday, November 27. — Hunger drove us 
this morning to a cabin for something to eat. 
We met, as usual, Avith a good Union man. We 
Avere noAV aiming for Ncav River, and he advised 
us to keep along the top of the Snell Mountains, 
and that they Avould take us there in fourteen 
miles. We started off, but as it Avas raining and 
sleeting Ave made poor headAvay, stopping at sev- 
eral houses, and keeping ourselves Avell posted as 
to the dangers of the country. 

By the middle of the afternoon Ave had reached 
the residence of Mr. Thomas Richmond, one of 
the best Union men in the country, and a man of 
Avealth. He advised us to go no farther in day- 
Hght, but told us to stay Avith him until midnight, 
Avhen he Avould go Avith us as far as Ncav River; 
then he thought Ave should be safe. We passed 
our time very much at home at Mr. Richmond's, 
Avho Avas a Avhole-souled gentleman. He inter- 
ested us by giving an account of his family and 
connections, Avhich Avere very numerous, and good 
Union. But they had suffered severely from the 
hands of the bushAvhackers. His brother, Avho 
OAvned a ferry on New River, had been shot dead 
in his OAvn yard, and his tAvo sons taken thirty 
miles off" and shot. He also had one brother Avho 
had been in Castle Thunder for over tAvo years, 
and he did not knoAV Avhether he was alive or 
not. Besides, a great many of the family had to 
flee to the North, leaving all of their possessions 
behind. It Avould make any one shudder to lis- 
ten to his tales of the sufTerings of the loyal 
people. He told me there Avould be a great many 
old grudges to settle after this Avar Avas over, be- 
tween them and the treacherous and murderous 
rebel busliAvhackers of the country. 



280 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS* 



Sundaj', November 29. — This was the third Sab- 
bath we had passed in making our escape from 
Rebeldom. By three o'clock we were up, had our 
breakfast, and were off, Mr. Ilichmond acting as 
our guide. By daylight we were at New River, 
at what is known as Ilichmond's Ferry. There 
Mr. liichmond parted with us. We proceeded 
down on the right hand bank of the river for ten 
miles, and then got a man to take us across in his 
canoe, and then down the left bank, travelling 
pretty briskly until dark, when we stopped with a 
man by the name of Samuel Kincade, who turned 
out to be a notorious bushwhacker. When we 
entered the house he took us to be men of his own 
order. He proceeded to tell us about the success 
of the freebooters in that part of the country, &c. 
He was getting under pretty good headway, when 
Sergeant Stookey told him he had better be care- 
fiil how he was talking, for we were Yankees. 
This put the old fellow " on nettles ; " he was 
restless all night, and was not very communica- 
tive thereafter. 

Monday, November 30. — We were up pretty 
early, and our old rebel host appeared rather cool. 
He charged us a dollar apiece for our lodging — the 
first and only man that took a cent from us. They 
generally Avould rather give us something than 
take anything from us. If we had had any kind 
of weapons we would have marched this Mr. Kin- 
caid into Fayetteville that day. AVe left him 
deeply absorbed in thought as to who we actually 
were. 

We walked very rapidly for ten miles down the 
river, and then took oft' across the country for 
Fayetteville. The nearer yva got to our lines, the 
more uneasy I felt, to think, after coming so far, 
and through so many hardships, and then that we 
might be " gobbled up " in sight of our haven of 
rest. We also knew our doom would be death 
if we fell into the hands of the bushwhackers. At 
last I thought we could not travel fast enough, I 
was so impatient to get through. 

About thi-ee o'clock P. M., as we made a bend 
in the road, we espied off ahead of us a blue over- 
coat ; it was a picket post. Can I describe our 
feelings at that time ? I am not capable of the 
task. I only refer you to the indescribable joy 
of Pilgrim when he crossed the River Jordan. At 
the post we met some of the boys from the Nine- 
ty-first Ohio infantry. After they learned who 
we were, they were overjoyed to see us. A cou- 
rier was sent in immediately to Colonel AVhite, 
commander of the post at Fayetteville. An order 
was sent out to have us brought in. You may 
imagine we had not a very prepossessing appear- 
ance. Our clothes were hanging all in tatters 
and rags. I was nearly barefooted, and my feet 
were so bruised and sore that I could but just 
hobble along. We also looked dirty and mangy, 
and our countenances had a sallow, haggard look. 
Indeed, we were hard-looking specimens of hu- 
manity. Colonel White very hosjjitably received 
us, and furnished us with new suits of clothes. 
And the noble and generous boys of the Twelfth 
Ohio volunteers, shall we ever forget them ? They 
took us in as strangers, and fed us ; and not sat- 



isfied with doing that, they gave us thirty dollars 
in money. Brave, generous fellows : may your 
future be a bright and happy one. We now felt 
ourselves at home ; we had run the blockade ; we 
had for once, as common soldiers, out-generalled 
the rebels, and made good our escape. We were 
sixteen days and nights making the trip of two 
hundred and fifty miles, over a dozen mountains, 
wading streams of all sizes, suff'ering from cold, 
and all manner of hardships. Always in danger, 
scarcely saw a moment that we felt safe, making 
ventures all the time for something to eat. We 
entered twenty-two houses ; nineteen of them were 
Union. We ate nineteen meals in houses, and 
slept three nights in houses. To the good loyal 
people of the country, and the All-wise Creator, 
that rules the nations, we owe our success. 
, We remained at Fayetteville two days, and then 
proceeded with letters to General Scammon, at 
Charleston, West Virginia. He very cordially re- 
ceived us, and sent us on, with passes, through 
the lines of his department. 



IsHMAEL Day. — This determined old hero 
gives the following account of the attack on liis 
flag, at his house in Baltimore Countv, ISIaryland, 
on Monday, July 11, 1864 : 

" On Sunday evening, the 10th, I heard that 
Dulaney's Valley was filled with rebels, stealing 
horses and cattle ; did not believe it, but thought 
they were Federal troops pressing horses. About 
sundown, the same day, I heard the rebels were 
on the Harford Pike, about a mile distant, the 
people living thereon being much excited. I went 
to bed, leaving my lamp dimly burning all night, 
and arose early on Monday morning, and ran up 
the glorious old Stars and Stripes rather earlier 
than usual. I then sat down in my front j)orch, 
and was soon accompanied by Mrs. Day. About 
six o'clock A. M. my little colored girl told her 
mistress that she heard soldiers up the road hur- 
rahing. I still thought they were our troops. In 
a few minutes my wife said she heard the sound 
of horses' feet coming down the road ; and look- 
ing up the road, said, ' There they are,' two of 
them coming in full tilt. A little while after, they 
were before the door, and I moved down on the 
lower step to see if there were any more near; 
and seeing none, resumed my seat. By this time 
the foremost one had dismounted, seized hold of 
the bottom of the flag, jerked it down, and broke 
the rope, cursing and calling it a ' damned old rag.' 
I then coolly asked him, ' What do you mean ? 
What are you about ? ' and, without waiting a 
reply, ran immediately up stairs, seized one of my 
two guns, already loaded in my bed-room, and 
shot the foremost one of them, out of the second 
story window, which was already up, while he was 
in the act of folding up the flag for his departure. 
He then raised his hands and fell back, exclaim- 
ing, ' I am shot.' I then seized the other gun, 
ran down stairs, when I was met by Mrs. D. cry- 
ing, imploring me not to shoot again, or they 
would kill me. I, however, pressed out into the 
yard to take a shot at the other; but he was 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



281 



among the missing, having clapped spurs to his 
horse on the fall of his companion, which I re- 
gretted very much, as he did not give me an op- 
portunity of giving him his bitters also ; and see- 
ing none of the squad at the time, I walked up 
to the wounded man, and said, ' You rebel rascal, 
I will now finish you,' and cocked the gun for 
that purpose, but he asked for mercy, and sur- 
rendered ; and knowing that he ht^d received the 
whole charge, I was satisfied that he could not 
live, and, therefore, did not shoot him again. By 
this time I heard the whole troop coming down 
the road ; I returned to my bed-room, got my six- 
barrelled revolver, and with the loaded gun started 
for my hiding-place, about two hundred and fifty 
yards north-east of my house, and hardly had done 
so before they were all at the house, and fii-ed all 
my buildings, except a small corn and hen-house. 
Everything was burnt, including all my personal 
property, and thirty-five dollars in money, which 
was either taken by the rebels or consumed by the 
fire ; after which I went to one of my nearest 
neighbors to get my breakfast, and went to a sec- 
ond one to get dinner, and was conveyed to Bal- 
timore on the same day. On Thursday after, I 
had my name enrolled in the Company of the Aged 
Guard of 1862, commanded by Captain Child, for 
the defence of Baltimore ; and on the same day 
obtained a guard from headquarters to bring in 
the wounded rebel, whom I took to West's Hos- 
pital, where he has since died." 



THE PATRIOT ISHMAEL DAY. 

BY W. II. HAYWARD. 

Come forth, my muse, now don't refuse ; 

Assist me, in this lay. 
To sing of one — " My Maryland's " son — 

The patriot Ishmael Day. 

One Monday morn, at early dawn, 

The hour when good men pray, 
A rebel host, with threats and boast, 

Came on to scare old Day. 

He soon had word — the noise he heard 

In the distance far away — 
That Gilmore's men were coming then 

To capture Ishmael Day. 

•• That's what's the matter — 0, what a clatter I 

I'll keep them awhile at bay, 
Till I hoist my flag, of which I brag," 

Said the brave old Ishmael Day. 

On rushed the crowd with curses loud, 

Begrimed with dust and gray ; 
" My flag I'll nail to the garden pale, 

And die by it," said Day. 

The thieving horde came down the road — 

They had no time to stay. 
" Our flag is here — touch it who dare ! " 

Shouted old Ishmael Day. 

A trooper rushed, with whiskey flushed. 

Swore he'd take that rag away. 
•' Let any man dare try that plan, 

I'll shoot him," says old Day. 



He feared the cock of his old flint-lock 
Might miss, so this prayer did say : 

That a load of duck-shot might pepper him hot 
Bj' the hands of Ishmael Day. 

On the raider came — old Day was game ; 

Reb swore that flag shouldn't stay ; 
With a curse and a frown, cried, " Down with it, 
down ! " 

Bang ! blazed away Ishmael Day. 

Flint-lock he could trust, for down in the dust 

The traitorous rebel lay, 
Crying, <' Spare my life, I'm tired of this strife." 

" So am I," said Ishmael Day. 

Now let each loyal heart in our cause take a part, 
Do his duty, watch, fight, and pray ; 

Shoulder his gun, stand by, never run. 
And imitate Ishmael Day. 

Then we boldly say, a few men like Day, 

With guns, ammunition at hand. 
We need not be afraid of Gilmore's next raid 

On the soil of " My Maryland." 

I now close my song, for fear it's too long ; 

On this subject I could much more say ; 
Let us all shout hosanna to the Star-spangled 
Banner, 

And hurrah for brave Ishmael Day. 



Incident of Williamsburg. — During the 
battle, one of the Louisiana Tigers went up to 
one of the wounded Union soldiers, who played 
dead for fear of being bayoneted, and commenced 
searching his pockets, when a Tennessee soldier 
came up, and saying to him, " Will you rob a 
dead man ? " shot him dead on the spot. Another 
rebel came up to a wounded soldier, and was in 
the act of bayoneting him, when another rebel 
came up, and knocked the fellow down with his 
musket, and gave the soldier a drink from his 
canteen. In bringing in a boat load of wounded 
rebels from Williamsburg, a rebel swore that he 
would kill every Yankee he saw, if he could, and 
threw a large knife at one of the doctors, injur- 
ing him slightly, when the doctor drew his re- 
volver and shot him through the heart. 



The Glory of Philadelphia. — An accom- 
plished and brilliant woman gives the following 
account of that noble institution in Philadelphia, 
the Volunteer Refreshment Saloon, in a letter 
dated October, 1861 : 

" On Thursday last I spent a day, that, if I live, 
I hope many a time to describe to my grand- 
nieces and nephews. Emily and I were sitting 
knitting by our cheery glass door, through which 
a warm October sun was pouring a flood of red, 
and yellow, and pui-ple light, when Me heard two 
cannons fired. It was a signal that soldiers were 
to pass through the city. By the same impulse, 
Emily and I both proposed that we should go 
down and see them land, and be entertained at 
the Volunteer Eefreshment Saloon. Off we start- 
ed, on the spur of the moment, went down to 



282 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



Helen's a recruiting — got her to join us — took 
the cars, and soon found ourselves at the corner 
of Prince and Front Streets, where the Refresh- 
ment Saloon stands. 

" When we entered, we were met by a dapper, 
smart little man — a real handsome fellow — 

looking very much like , such beautiful 

features and bright eyes. He belonged to the 
class of mechanics, but, with our American facili- 
ty, had picked up most excellent manners and 
address. We asked Avhether we had properly in- 
terpreted the signal of firing the cannons, and if 
a regiment Avere shortly expected. It appeared 
we had made a mistake, the firing we heard be- 
ing in another direction, where they were trying 
the range of a new piece. However, a regiment 
was expected in the afternoon, and two during the 
evening. Our dapper friend invited us to look 
over the estabhshment. But let me stop a min- 
ute to give you some little accoimt of what the 
Volunteer Refreshment Saloon is. When the war 
first broke out, and thousands and tens of thou- 
sands of soldiers were passing through our city 
daily, we found there was great deficiency of 
means of providing an immediate meal for them. 
Sometimes they would have to wait for hours, 
sometimes go away hungry. In Southwark, some 
dozen or so of the women joined heads and 
purses, and put up a little street corner refresh- 
ment place, just boards propped up against the 
sides of the houses, where they served hot coflfee 
and other things, as they could aff'ord it, free of 
charge to the soldiers, as they landed at the foot 
of Prime Street to proceed to the Baltimore de- 
pot. The thanks and blessings of the weary and 
hungry soldiers, who went away refreshed, in- 
cited these patriotic women to renewed efi'orts, 
and the thing has taken form and system. I will 
describe it to you as our little friend showed it to 
us, with many a bow and flourish, last Thursday. 
We entered a long, low room, rather poor-look- 
ing, and with marks of partitions having been 
knocked away to make it. In it were ranged, 
along the Avhole length, five long tables, about 
breast high, so that the soldiers might conven- 
iently stand and eat. These were neatly spread 
witha white cloth, and set with plates, tin cu]is-, 
castors, &c. At the upper end of the room were 
two rather handsomely laid tables for the officers. 
In this room they make a spread for five hundred 
at one time. The scrupulous cleanliness and 
neatness of the whole strike you. From the 
eating-room we went into the larder and cook- 
ing-room. In the larder we saw abundance of 
ham, corned beef, fresh mutton and beef, cheese, 
pickles, cold slaw, and most beautiful butter and 
bread, sweet potatoes, tomatoes — in short, all 
the vegetables of the season. Everything the 
very best of its kind. Up stairs is a retiring 
room, where they take any sick or wounded. 
There are comfortable lounges all around it, and 
in the middle a table with writing materials, and 
envelopes all ready stamped, if any one wants to 
despatch a letter. There is a bed or two, if any 
become sick and want to be nursed a day or two 
before rejoining their company. Now, remember 



this thing is wholly the work of the middle class 
Southivark women. There are now about twenty 
men and twenty-five women who are actively 
employed in it. Only one person is a paid em- 
ployee. All the others' labor is voluntary. The 
young man, who was our guide, said that he had 
been at work since three o'clock in the night, and 
did not expect to get any rest until after mid- 
night, as they had three thousand men to give 
supper to. It works on tliis wise : they take 
turns among themselves for one man and woman 
to remain all day on the spot. When they re- 
ceive a despatch that a regiment is coming, a 
cannon is fired as a signal, and within half an 
hour every member is bound to make his apj)ear- 
ance, or send a substitute, never mind what hour 
of day or night it is. Well ! we were so inter- 
ested and stirred up by the sight of so much 
patriotism, that we determined to return in the 
evening, and see a thousand New Hampshire 
boys take their supper. When we were going 
out, I said to our bright and hearty little guide, 
' Now you people must remember all you are do- 
ing, and write it down, for it will make an inter- 
esting page in history one day.' ' Why, miss, 
that is just what I'm thinking myself. When 
one thing or another happens, I say to myself, I'll 
remember that, and maybe when I'm an old man, 
and they're making books about it, I can help 
them to a thing or two.' Then he Avent on to 
tell two or three incidents of some poor little 
boys in the neighborhood who set to work pick- 
ing and selling chips till they had five dollars to 
give for the soldiers ; and of a little five-yein- old 
boy, whose mother had given him a ten-cent piece 
for the Fourth of July. Five he laid out in irre- 
sistible fire-crackers, the other five he came and 
offered to feed the soldiers. The committee laid 
by that five-cent piece, and intend to keep it. 

" In the afternoon. Doctor and Sallic, Matty, 
Emily, and myself, made a party, and went down 
there again. What a hive it was, to be sure ! 
Nice young girls, and plump, hearty materfa- 
millas bustling about with meat and cheese, and 
all good things, a real tempting meal. And ! 
the cofi"ee : the delicious aroma almost brought 
tears to the eyes of us outsiders, who had to con- 
tent ourselves with the smell alone. 

" By and by, after a half hour's waiting, a signal 
gun was fired, and the cry, ' They come ! They 
come ! ' went forth from mouth to mouth. Sarah, 
I can't give you any idea of the intense excite- 
ment and enthusiasm of that moment — the tap- 
ping of the drum ; the tramp, tramp, tramp ; the 
ringing order, " Halt ; " and then they began fihng 
in, company by company, in perfect quiet and 
order, ranging themselves along the table, till the 
great room was one dense mass of soldiers ; un- 
less you were here, and had caught the enthusiasm 
of our war spirit, you cannot know how the sight 
of a thousand armed men moves one. I wanted 
to embrace the whole regiment. I wanted to put 
my hands on their heads and bleSs tliem. I 
wanted to beat the drum, and sing, ' Hail Colum- 
bia.' I wanted to turn myself inside out, gener- 
ally, and not being able to do any of these things, 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



283 



I shed some tears on my bonnet strings, much 
to then- detriment, and rushed oflF and gave five 
dollars, that I don't know how I can possibly 
spare. Sarah, they were a magnificent looking 
set of men. Never tell me the Yankees are an 
ugly race, after seeing those five hundred hand- 
some New Hampshire boys. They Avere mostly 
farmers, and scarcely a small man among them. 
You never saw so quiet and orderly a meal ; no in- 
decent haste or snatching, no raised voice or word 
of swearing ; perfect courtesy to the women, in 
most cases turning to thank them before leaving, 
They were supplied with newspapers, while eat- 
ing, and it was remarkable to see how many made 
haste to finish and have a few minutes .to read 
their papers. I do not believe there was ever 
such an intelligent army in the world as ours. 
Our farmers, our mechanics, the very bone and 
sinew of our nation, are going forth, intelligently 
and determinedly, to fight the cause of freedom 
against slavery, liberty against tyranny, civiliza- 
tion against barbarism. 

" Let me wind up my rather long description by 
saying that these people have fed one hundi-ed 
and twenty thousand soldiers, and that it takes 
one hundred dollars to each thousand, and sup- 
ported entirely by voluntary subscription. One 
more remark and I have done. I never wished 
more heartily than at that blessed moment to be a 
mother, and then I wished for six big sons, that 
I might send them all to fight their country's bat- 
tles. I even gave vent to the sentiment in a way 
that shocked some of my auditory. I had been 
looking long and admiringly at a very handsome 
six-foot youth, an officer. He was very like 

, only even handsomer, with a clear, 

pure, truthful face. He ate with a hearty, 
manly appetite, and when risen from the table, 
shook hands with two or three common-looking 
Southwark dames, in a respectful, courteous way, 

just as gracefully as Avould have done 

it, saying, ' I thank you, ladies ; I thank you for 
your hospitality.' I could not help exclaiming, 
' I wish that boy were my son.' I am glad that 
I am living history. It is a fine thing to read it, 
but a far better thing to live history. I am going 
to do everything I can, and connect myself as 
much as possible with what I believe to be a 
great era in our history. I should be disappointed 
to die before I saw it through. They are going 
to open the Girard House as a hospital here, and 

if I can possibly get to accede to it, and 

I can make satisfactory arrangements, I shall go 
as a volunteer nurse. In Baltimore the nurses 
have a uniform, — a black or brown merino dress, 
tight sleeves, no hoops, tiny linen collar and cuff's, 
and a white tarleton cap. Wouldn't that be 
'cute'? Imagine me flying ai'ound with a little 
tarleton cap on, reading and doing the sentimen- 
tal part of the nursing — soothing their brows — 
and grapes — and jelly — and talking about their 
mothers, and so on. 

" What do you think ! ; the 

elegant ; of the club, and red mustache, has 

been doing. Forgive me , if I have ever 

done thee any injustice, even in my thoughts. I 



do revere thee now. Seriouslj'-, has been 

doing the work of a hero. You know he has a 
gem of a little house up in Place, so ele- 
gantly furnished, where he watches over his little 

children like a mother. Well, could not 

leave his little brood to go to the war; so all 
summer long he has sought out sick and wounded 
soldiers, taken them to his house, and there 
nursed them. All his beds have been filled, and 
during the summer he has nursed about a hun- 
dred men. There, who will say that war does not 
develop fine virtues ? You have heard, of course, 
that I am taking care of my country's toes, corns, 
and bunions, in the way of knitting stockings. I 
have sent ninety pairs to the Quartermaster, four 
knit by my own fingers. I have one hundred and 
ten pairs out, in process of being knit. I am 
going to accomplish four hundred before I begin 
anything else. Helen is employed in collecting 
luxuries for the hospitals — jellies, farina, gelatin, 
(S:c. She will despatch a large box to-morrow, 
and still expects enough material for another. 
So you see we are all, according to our ability, 
spending and being spent for our dear old mother 
country. 

" One word more for our country, and I have 
done. We are at our wits' ends for blankets. 
With five hundi'ed thousand men under arms in 
the Northern States, it is no easy thing to provide 
them all v/ith blankets ; and as this is no wool- 
growing country, there is no store or supply to 
fall back upon. Government has put forth stir- 
ring appeals to the loyal women to come to the 
rescue, and give or sell their hoards of household 
blankets to the army : you may be sure this was 
generously responded to ; and yet there is great and 
pressing need. Many women I know have cut up 
their drugget and half worn ingrain carpets, bound 
them, and sent them off". I do believe the gen- 
erosity of this people, noAV and here, has no par- 
allel in history. Helen sent two pairs of good 
bed blankets, and my sisters out at Darley (you 
know their limited means) sent ten — almost all 
they possessed. I mean to send some drugget. 
I can't well send my only two pairs of blankets, 
as they are old rose rehcs. If the need continues, 
however, I shall make the sacrifice. You under- 
stand it is no little economy in Government. It is 
because there is not enough wool in the country. 
Money cannot get them ; so they must be got for 
love. Now, my darling, you can perhaps perceive 
what my hobby is now. If you were here, you 
would be death on patriotism too. Dr. Board- 
man's church is the very head of all good works 
for the country ; you would find it would cost as 
much labor and money to keep up with them, as 
travelling among the Alps does. . . . Do j'ou 
know, Sarah, it is fashionable here to be traitor- 
ous ; not exactly to say, I am a secessionist, but 
to call one's self a ' peace man' — an anti-adminis- 
tration man — just as in the days of the Revolution 
it was fashionable to be Tories. It is the legiti- 
mate ofi"spring of the spirit of trade, whose cry is, 
' Give us prosperity ; only give us prosperity in 
our day, and apres nous le deluge.^ It is willing 



284 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



that the South should pull our noses, and that all 
nations under heaven should spit in our faces for 
cowards, rather than have wealth and trade, ease 
and comfort, interfered with. It is only in the 
great cities, and among the wealthy, that you meet 
this demoralization. Throughout the country, 
and among the great middle classes, patriotism is 
warm and earnest. . . . We had a stirring 

talk last night at , on the times. We 

there all beheved that the North was too back- 
ward about facing the subject of slavery. We 
have been in the habit so long of protecting it, 
and of .so hating the word Abolitionist, that now 
we are afraid to face the great question that Provi- 
dence is thrusting upon us. We are willing to 
kill our white brethren, if need be, burn their cit- 
ies, and yet are squeamish about their slave jjrop- 
erty. We acknowledge it to be an evil, and a 
burden to the land ; and yet, in this time of great 
uprooting and regeneration, we are afraid to say 

this thing shall be purged away. Mr. said 

he believed there was a special Providence in our 
panic at Bull Run ; that if we had been victorious, 
and taken Pdchmond, and patched a hasty peace, 
we would have shirked the whole question — 
skinned over the cancer that would have broken 
out again. W said that he thought Provi- 
dence had taken the whole matter out of the hands 
of man, and by showing the world the necessity 
of growing cotton elsewhere, had given the death- 
blow to slaverj'. When the American cotton 
King is deposed, Cufiee is free." 



Colonel Montgomery's Escape. — The fol- 
lowing story of the escape of Colonel Montgomery 
from the Confederate authorities at Vicksburg, 
was given by him at the Union League Rooms at 
Washington, in April, 18G4 : — 

" One year ago last November I was in jail in 
Vicksburg, condemned to be shot. I escaped one 
day ; I ran home to my wife and little ones. It 
was about noon ; a train would leave the city at 
three o'clock. I told my wife to pack up our 
trunks, and we must go. She packed them, and 
sent them to the depot by a negro, and then fol- 
lowed with our little girl, and boy, while I went 
around outside the town, met the train going 
through a cut, jumped aboard, and all went well 
till we got to Holly Springs. I must go to Mem- 
phis, fifty miles, and no railroad, and most of the 
way through rebel pickets. I must get a pass 
and a conveyance if I could. I went to the Gen- 
eral's office ; he was away, but his Adjutant was 
there, and said it was of no use to ask for a pass ; 
if I was Jefferson Davis' son, and had my mother 
with me, I could not be passed in that direction. 
I talked with him about other things ; I asked 
him down to take a drink. He drank, and I 
talked. I told him how many adjutants I had 
known, and what smart men they were, and that 
I thought him the smartest of all, and was sure, 
when his merits were known, he would be at the 
head of all the adjutants in the Confederacy. The 
General came at last, and the Adjutant begged 
him to grant a pass to this very loarticular friend 



of his, to take his wife and children to Memphis 
and return. I was particular about the return. 
He gave the pass, but it did not cover a convey- 
ance, and there was none to be had. Then the 
telegraph brought news of my escape, and orders 
to have me sent back to be shot. The Adjutant 
had the order, and he told me to git. Do you 
know what git means ? Well, I tell you, in such 
a case it means to — git! The Adjutant had 
indorsed me as his friend ; he was afraid he had 
his foot in, so he wanted me to git, and I did. 
My wife made a bundle of what clothes the chil- 
dren must have. I put it on my back, took my 
little boy by the hand, she took the little girl, and 
we started on foot for Memphis. It was a day 
of scorching heat ; the thermometer above 90° ; 
the burning sand six inches deep ; my little ones 
both barefooted ; my little boy with no hat ; and 
my wife with only thin-soled slippers on, worth 
about forty cents, but for which I paid ten dollars 
hard cash. There was no getting out of that 
burning sun and burning sand ; and, as we went 
on, O my God ! tlie screams of those little chil- 
dren ! the red, fiery streaks ran up their white 
ankles ; every step was agony, and every breath. 
We dragged them on. Every moment we ex- 
pected to hear the couriers behind, coming for 
me. My wife and little girl were before me, the 
little boy was too young to keep up with them. 
At every rise of ground my wife would turn and 
look to see if a messenger were coming for me. 
One time, as she stood so, my little boy reached 
her, his poor feet all red and blistered, his curls 
matted to his head with perspiration, with both 
hands clinging to her dress, and his dusty, tearful 
face lifted to hers, he cried out, ' O mamma, can't 
you see our home now 2 ' 

" So we went on all one day. At night we 
stopped at an overseer's house, where we were 
permitted to stay. They Avere poor, but kind. A 
bed was made on the floor for us, but the agony 
the children suffered was so great they could not 
sleep, exhausted as they were. We bound their 
little feet in cloths, and I sat by all night to keep 
them wet with cold water ; then they could sleep. 
If in my stupor and exhaustion I chanced to 
forget myself, their shrieks quickly wakened me 
again. In the morning we had to start ; thei'e 
was no staying here. Those poor little feet, 
burnt all day and soaked all night, looked as if 
they had been parboiled ; yet blistered as they 
were, swollen till shapeless, and streaked with red 
and purple and blue, they must go into that 
burning sand again. O my God ! my God ! those 
cries ! will thine avenging angel gather up the 
tears that bedewed that fiery path, tears from 
those helpless little ones in their awful agony ! 
[He covered his face with his hand an instant, 
and then resumed.] But we dragged them on \ 
I don't know how it happened that I did not 
notice when the little hand slipped from mine, 
but, from whatever distraction of mind I was in, 
I was startled by a shriek that is ringing in my 
ears yet, and looking back I saw my little boy 
lying in the sand in the road behind me. He 
could not walk another step, and thought I had 



ANECDOTES, POETKY, AND INCIDENTS. 



285 



left him to die, I put my pack over on one 
shoulder, and laid him across the other with his 
burning cheek to mine, and his hot breath fan- 
ning my face. His mother and sister had gone 
on, and were sitting on the grass under a tree 
waiting for us. Little Freddy saw them, and 
said : 

" ' Papa, do mamma and sister see our home 
now?' 

" I said, ' Yes.' 

•' ' Well,' said he, ' if Ponto sees them, he'll 
know I'm coming, and he'll ruii past them, and 
I'll call him, and get on his back, and ride home, 
and then you won't have to carry me — will you, 
papa ? ' Ponto was a great dog we had at home. 

" I laid the child down on the grass beside his 
mother ; she told me then that she could go no 
farther. There we were. Presently my wife saw 
a cloud of dust in the distance. I saw it too. 

" ' It is the courier coming for you,' she said. 
' He will take you from us ; and what will be- 
come of you ? what will become of us ? ' 

" I looked and saw that the man was in a small 
buggy — just room enough for him and me — no 

E revision for my family. My poor wife was on 
er knees. Her face Avas white as marble, and 
cold. She was trying to pray, but she only 
repeated over and over again, ' O my God ! O 
my God ! ' Not another word would come. I 
put my hand on her shoulder, and said, ' My 
dear, there is but one man, and no one man takes 
me from you to-day ! ' 

" The man in the buggy drove up. He stopped 
and looked at us. Said he, ' I see you are trav- 
elling.' ' No, sir,' said I ; ' travelling and I have 
quit.' 'Well, you don't live hereabouts.' 'No.' 
' What is your name ? ' ' Montgomery.' 

" He looked at the feet of my little ones, 
lying on the grass. ' Have those children got 
the small pox ? ' • No.' ' The measles ? ' ' No.' 
' Well, what have they got ? ' ' My dear sir, they 
have got just as near nothing as it is possible for 
a human being to get.' I found he was the 
rebel mail carrier. I showed him my pass, 
and asked -what he would charge to take my 
wife and children through the lines. He said, 
' Fifty dollars in gold.' My wife and her mother 
had saved fifty dollars in gold, and fifty cents 
in silver, all of which I had, and it Avas all. I 
put my wife in the seat beside him, the little 
boy in her lap, the little girl at her feet, my bun- 
dle under the seat, gave the man the fifty dollars 
in gold, put the fifty cents in my pocket, and 
they drove off. I followed. When I came to a 
picket, I showed my pass, and asked about the 
buggy. The answer was always, ' Yes ; the mail 
carrier, with a woman and two children, went by 
about an hour and a half ago, and reported a man 
coming with a pass covering the woman and chil- 
dren. All right.' I went on. At last I asked, 
' How many more picket stations are there ? ' 
'Only one.' 'How far is it?' 'Three miles.' 
' That is the last ? ' * Yes.' I had on such boots 
as the slaves wear. I had paid thirty dollars for 
them, and I made them earn every cent of the 
money in that three miles. I came in sight of 



the picket so soon that I was frightened. I 
thought of the telegraph wires. What might 
they not have told before this ? Who knew but 
that man held my life in his hands ? There was 
no help for it. I walked up to him as he sat on 
his horse, and handed up my pass, and asked 
about the buggy. Yes, it had gone by an hour 
and a half ago. But why did the man not give 
me back my pass ? Would he never be done 
reading it ? — or, instead of giving it back, would 
he level his pistol and shoot me ? There I stood, 
on the border of Ilebeldom. The United States 
was before me — the free, glorious United States, 
and M'ife and little ones ; and what was behind ? 

God ! would the man never be done reading 
that little scrap of writing? That flag, our flag 
was before me, and freedom. My heart beat so 
loud I was afraid the man would hear it. I tried 
to stir. Was he reaching down his hand to shoot 
me ? No ; it Avas only to give back the pass, as 
he said, ' All right ! ' and I was a free man 
again — free, and in the United States, and un- 
der the flag of stars ! I was not long in getting 
to St. Louis Avitli my family. We walked the 
streets of that city barefooted. There Avas a 
political meeting that night — a republican one. 

1 happened in. The chances are that something 
Avas said. The next morning the copperhead pa- 
per stated that there Avas such a meeting, and 
that it Avas entertained by the blatant ravings of 
a southern renegade. That meant me. Since 
then, I have been in many of your Northern cities 
and States, and without a pass. Here is the 
difference : at the South you cannot turu round, 
cross the street, kiss your wife, or go to market, 
Avithout a pass. Here, Avhere Abraham Lincoln 
tj'rannizes like a military despot, — Avhere he 
usurps all the people's rights and puts them in 
his pocket, — cA'ery one can go Avhere he pleases, 
like sheep without a shepherd. Jeff Davis takes 
better care of the liberties of his people ! 

" NoAV I must say a word about that little Avife 
of mine. I am going to take her home to die ! 
[Here the tears almost choked his utterance ; 
but he crushed them back, and went on. His 
simple, touching narrative had already brought 
tears to many eyes, and there Avas scarcely a dry 
one in that crowded room.] Yes, I am going to 
take her home to die ! The doctors have told us 
she cannot Ha'o long, and she Avants to die and be 
buried among her own people ; so Ave are going. 
The ladies of one of your Northern cities have 
given her a beautiful silk flag — a flag Avith all 
the stripes and all the stars upon it. We will 
take that Avith us, and if our old home is stand- 
ing, the flag shall float above it. If it is not 
standing, then Ave will plant the flag upon its 
ruins, or over the place where it once Avas ; and 
as Ave sit beneath its folds, Ave Avill think, Avith 
tears of gratitude, of all the kindness of these 
free and happy Northern people to the wandering, 
homeless refugees." 

A White Soldii;e, at the camp of the Fif- 
teenth regiment of colored troops, in Nashville, 
Tenn., Avliile deprecating the employment of ne- 



286 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



groes as soldiers, boasted that he could make the 
grand rounds on the colored boys, and capture a 
musket or baj-onct. Accordingly, he approached 
a sable guard, drew him into conversation, and 
kindly requested to see his musket, which the 
guard refused. He then wished to look at his 
bayonet, but the guard stood on his orders. lie 
then tried intimidation, and, pretending to be 
insulted, assumed a fighting attitude ; but the 
guard ordered him to retire or he would shoot. 
The fooHsh fellow advanced, and was promptly 
shot, and the loss of an arm was the penalty of 
his imprudence. 



Humors of the Camp. — A soldier at the 
headquarters of the artillery brigade of the Fifth 
corps, at Culpepper, Va., gives the following ac- 
count of the amusements in camp : 

" Almost the only diversion the soldiers have 
nowadays, is derived from the new recruits, 
constantly arriving. They are the butt of all 
jokes, and the easy prey of all sells and tricks. 
No class of men enjoy fun more heartily than 
the soldiers. They squeeze sport out of every- 
thing, and seem to have acquired the faculty of 
ascertaining, intuitively, where most of it is to be 
found. On drill, a new recruit is always sure to 
get his toes exactly where a ' Vet.' wishes to put 
the butt of his musket, as he ' orders arms ; ' and 
if there is a mud-puddle within a yard of him, he 
is sure to ' dress ' into it. Captain lleynolds, of 
Battery ' S,' First New York artillery, has got a 
large number of new recruits, and some of the 
jokes that the Veterans play on them are very 
amusing. The recruits are constanjtly sighing 
over departed luxuries, and are very easily duped 
into any sell, where the inner man is concerned. 
A mischievous ' Vet.' got a whole squad of them 
out in line the other day, when it was raining 
quite hard, to receive their ration of * warm 
bread.' One fellow, greener than the rest, was 
sent to the Captain's quarters for his ' ticket for 
butter.' Another one went to the Company Clerk 
with a two-quart pail for his ' three days' ration 
of maple sugar.' Some of them have very funny 
ideas of discipline in the army. In a newly ar- 
rived squad, a few days since, was one of these, 
who thought he would ingratiate himself with the 
Captain by making him a call in the evening. 
Accordingly, he rapped at the door, walked in, 
took off his hat, made a very low bow, and re- 
placed his hat on his head. 

"' Well, what do you want?' said the Cap- 
tain. 

" * O, nothing,' says the fellow, at the same 
time seating himself in a chair opposite the Cap- 
tain. ' I thought I would come down and have a 
little chat with you.' 

" ' O, that's it,' said the Captain. ' Well, that 
isn't the way they do in the array. When a sol- 
dier comes into an officer's quarters, he takes off 
his hat and stands at " attention," with his heels 
together, his toes at an angle of forty-five de- 
grees, hands at his side, and eyes to the " front." 
He does not take a seat unless asked to, and 



when he has done his business, salutes the oflfi- 
cer, makes an " about face," and — leaves' 

" The fellow did not M'ait for further instruc- 
tions, but took his departure, having received 
his first lesson in the ' school of the soldier.' " 

In repartee and fun our soldiers are not be- 
hind any class of men living, and they have a 
most keen appreciation of the ludicrous and sar- 
castic. Chapman tells a good story : 

" A few days ago, two soldiers were sentenced, 
for some trivial offence, to ten days in the guard- 
house ; but they were taken out occasionally to 
do police duty about camp. Doing police duty, 
you must know, is not in the army what it is in 
the city ; but consists in going about under guard 
and cleaning up the camp. These soldiers were 
put to cleaning away the mud from the front of 
the Colonel's quarters. They were from a New 
York city regiment, and to judge from their dia- 
lect, might have been named Mose and Sykesy. 
At any rate, I shall call them so in the recital. 
They had worked well, and finally seated them- 
selves on a log to await the arrival of the Ser- 
geant of the Guard to relieve them, when the 
following conversation took place : 

" Mose — ' Say, Sykesy, what you going to do 
when yer three years up ? Goin' to be a Vet. ? 
Say.' 

" Sykesy — ' Not if I know myself, I ain't ; no ! 
I'm goin' to be a citizen, I am. I'm goin' back 
to New York, and am goin' to lay oft' and take 
comfort, bum around the engine-house, and run 
wid der machine.' 

" Mose — ' Well, I tell yer what I'm agoin' to do. 
I've jest been thinkin' the matter all over, and got 
the whole thing fixed. In the first place, I'm 
goin' home to New York, and as soon as I get 
my discharge, I'm goin' to take a good bath, and 
get this Virginia sacred soil off me. Then I'm 
goin' to have my head shampooed, my hair cut 
and combed forward and 'iled, and then I'm goin' 
to some up-town clothing store, and buy me a 
suit of togs. I'm agoin' to get a gallus suit, too 
— black breeches, red shirt, black silk choker, 
stove-pipe hat, with black bombazine around it, 
and a pair of them shiny butes. Then I'm goin' 
up to Delmonico's place, and am goin' for to or- 
der jest the best dinner he can get up. I'm 
goin' to have all he has on his dinner ticket, you 
can bet. What ? No ! I guess I won't have a 
gay old dinner, much ; for I'll be a citizen then, 
and won't have to break my teeth o^ gnawin' 
hard tack. After I've had my dinner, I will call 
for a bottle of wine and a cigar, and all the New 
York papers, and then- I'll jest set down, perch 
my feet up on the table, drmk my wine, smoke 
my cigar, read the news, and wonder why the 
devil the army of the Potomac don't move.' " 



Scenes in the Hospital. — The editor of 
The American Wesleyan relates the following as 
a portion of his experience among the wounded 
in the hospitals : 

" Not long since I was called to witness the 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



287 



following, which I will call ' The Dying Soldier's 
Dream of Childhood.' 

"He was brought in mortally wounded, al- 
though by a false feeling of kindness one or two 
of the surgeons told him his wound was severe, 
but not dangerous. I thought it my duty to un- 
deceive him ; and so, sitting down beside his lowly 
pallet, and taking his hand in mine while I brushed 
back the dark curls from his high, open brow, I 
tried to lead him easily into such a channel of 
conversation as I desired. I had not conversed 
long with him when he suddenly inquired what I 
thought of his prospects of recovery. Rather 
avoiding for the time giving a direct answer, I 
inquii-ed how he felt himself in regard to that 
matter. He answered with considerable hesita- 
tion, that the surgeons told him he would get 
along nicely ; but that he himself felt afraid that 
he would never recover. I noticed, too, that his lips 
quivered, and he drew a long, deep sigh. Then 
he turned his youthful, open face full upon me ; 
he sighed again ; there was a choking, fluttering 
sensation which told the intensity of his feelings, 
and he said, ' If I was only at home ! ' Poor 
boy ! Many a hill, and valley, and mountain 
gorge, and broad river, lay between him and his 
home ! And the loving ones there were all un- 
conscious of his deep distress ; and even before 
his name would appear in the list of killed and 
wounded of some daily paper, he would already 
be ' where the wicked cease from troubling, and 
the Meary are at rest.' I spoke to him of the 
tender sympathy of the infinite Father, of the 
all-sufRcient Savior, who was wounded for our 
transgressions and bruised for our iniquities, and 
how that a full and free salvation was ofiered to 
all through the death and suff'erings of the Lord 
Jesus. I could not get him to say much, and so, 
after praying with him, I left him for a time. In 
a few hours I called to see him again, and in the 
course of conversation endeavored to press home 
the momentous truths of salvation. At last he 
opened his mind freely, told me he thought he 
was once a Christian, that he sought an interest 
in Christ when a boy, and felt happy in the belief 
that he loved the Savior — that his happiest hours 
were spent in the Sunday school, and that he used to 
take delight in prayer and reading the Scriptures. 
' I remember, too,' said he, ' how my father 
prayed — O Chaplain ! I had a good father — he's 
in heaven now — how he prayed for me, that I 
might always be good. I remember the night 
that he died — and how happy he was, and how 
he sung " On Jordan's stormy banks I stand," and 
how he put his hand on my head and told me to 
serve God and meet him in heaven. O, if I was 
as good as my father was, it would be better with 
me now ! I have forgotten my promises, I have 
turned my back on Christ. What shall I do ? 
what shall I do? I'm dying — I know I'm dy- 
ing, and I am afraid to die ! O Jesus, have mercy 
on me a sinner ! ' 

" I did not interrupt him till he had given full 
and free vent to his feelings, and then tried to 
point him to the all-sufficient Savior. 

" ' Do you think God will have mercy on my 



poor soul?' he exclaimed in' such a piteous tone 
of voice and Avith such genuine earnestness, that 
my own feelings nearly overcame me, and I could 
barely say, ' Yes, dear brother, God is ready now 
to bless you, to forgive you all j'our sins, and 
make you happy in the enjoyment of his love.' 

" ' But I have neglected prayer and backslidden 
from God ; I sinned against light and knowledge ; 
I knew better. Chaplain, I knew better, for my 
conscience troubled me ; it was God's Spirit striv- 
ing with me, — yes, I knew better, for I once 
loved Jesus, O Jesus, have mercy on a poor 
sinner ! ' 

" * Hear God's own answer to your question,' 
said I. " If any man sin, we have an Advocate 
with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous ; and 
He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for 
ours only, but also for the sins of the whole 
world." " God so loved the world that He gave 
His only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth 
in him might not perish, but have everlasting 
life." Now, these Avords are as much addressed 
to you as if there were not another sinner upon 
earth. Take them as God's own words to your- 
self, and remember that that dear Savior whom 
you say that you once served, loves you yet, 
loves you now, and is yearning over you with 
the deepest sympathy. He waits to take away 
the heavy burden from your heart, and give you 
joy and peace in believing. Just come back as a 
poor wanderer, weary and helpless ; and remem- 
ber you are coming to your own God and Savior, 
who knoAvs just Avhat you need, and how you feel, 
and is more Avilling to receive you and forgive 
you than you are to return to him.' 

" ' O, if I was just as happy as I once Avas ! but 
now I'm here Avounded and dying — and O, this 
aAvful pain — what Avill I do — Avhat Avill I do — 
Jesus, Jesus, what Avill I do ! ' he exclaimed in 
the deepest agony of body and mind. 

" ' Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, cast your 
poor troubled soul upon the Savior, just place 
yourself as a poor helpless sinner in His hands, 
and you will be saved,' said I, trying to lead his 
mind to the one only source of comfort. 

"The agony of this poor boy Avas terrible. 
His pitiful groans sunk into my very heart, and 
made me feel as if I Avas entirely poAverless to do 
him good. 

" Sometimes it Avas difficult to tell Avhether 
his bodily or mental anguish Avas greater. Fre- 
quently the deep, agonizing groan of bodily pain 
would end in a most pathetic cry for mercy, or a 
child-like petition to be received into the favor of 
his heavenly Father. Sometimes he turned upon 
me such a pitiful, helpless look, such a look as a 
drowning chUd might cast towards its mother ; a 
look of unutterable meaning, but Avhich plainly 
said, ' I'm dying, — won't you help me ? ' Seeing 
that to all appearance he Avas rapidly sinking, I 
urged him to accept the free offer of reconcilia- 
tion to God through the atonement of Christ, 
and after again praying Avith him, I left him for 
a little time. An hour, perhaps, had elapsed, 
when I again was beside him. The first words he 
uttered were ; 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



" * I'm trying to come back to God, and I think 
that he will not cast me off; but I'm afraid.' 

" ' I am going to ask you one question,' said I ; 
' but you must not answer it till you thinlv over 
it. It is this : Do you think that God loves 
you ? ' 

" He seemed to ponder the question a little, and 
then answered, — 

" ' I think — I think He does." 

*' * Yes,' I said, ' He loves you dearly, and sym- 
pathizes with you in your great distress, and is so 
very anxious for your soul's salvation that He is 
waiting even now, this moment, to forgive you all 
your sins and make you happy in His love. Can 
you not take your own heavenly Father's word, 
that "Avhosoevcr believeth on the Lord Jesus 
Christ shall be saved!" Just trust in him; just 
throw yourself as you are, — a poor, helpless sin- 
ner, — into His hands, and you will be saved.' 

" ' Is that all I'm to do ? ' said he, musingly ; 
* and yet what else can I do ? Yes, yes ; I think 
I see it all ; I have been afraid to trust in the 
promises of God, I feel myself to be so unwor- 
thy ; but now, Jesus, Savior, I come to thee, a 
poor, helpless sinner. 

" Here, Lord, I give myself to thee — 
'Tis all that I can do." 

Yes, Lord, it is all that I can do ! ' 

" Then followed a scene I shall never forget to 
my dying day. It was night. The temporary hos- 
pital was in an old, dark, dingy house. The can- 
dle burned dimly, and seemed, by its flickering, 
uncertain light, to make the gloomy surroundings 
all the more gloomy. The poor mangled soldier 
boy lay rolling uneasily from side to side. Large 
drops of cold sweat stood like beads on his open 
brow. A quivering sensation seemed to pass 
through every nerve and fibre of his body ; and 
there was a long, deep, shivering sigh, which told 
of the very extremity of mortal anguish. His 
large bright eye grew dim, and seemed as if look- 
ing up from a great depth ; and that mysterious 
change of color and feature took place, which tells 
that the wheels of life are about to stand «till. 
Suddenly he threw out his arms and clasj^ed. me 
tightly round the neck as I stooped over him, and 
exclaimed, ' What shall I do, O Chaplain, what 
shall I do ? ' 

" * Put your trust in Christ, your own Savior, 
who died for you,' I replied. 

" ' I do believe in Jesus,' he said, ' and I think 
He will save me ; yes, He will save me ! But 
O, what is this ? am I dying now ? Tell me, am 
I dying?' 

" ' Yes, you are dying, dear brother,' I answered ; 
' you will soon be in the spirit world. Is Jesus 
near you ? Have you peace of mind ? ' 

" ' It's all over now,' he whispered. ' God has, 
for Christ's sake, forgiven me, a poor sinner ; and 
he will take me to himself. Good by, Chaplain ; 
good by.' 

" He fell into a kind of stupor, or what might be 
called an uneasy slumber, and I sat by his side 
waiting and watching. He dreamed. He seemed 
to be again at home, mingling with loved ones, 



for he whisperod the name of mother. Then he 
seemed to be praying, as if, a child again, he knelt 
at a parent's knee and repeated his evening 
prayer. I stooped over him and listened atten- 
tively to every whisper. At last I caught a few 
disjointed sentences, as follows: 'Our Father — 
who art — this night — I lay me — do^vn — O Jesus 
— my Savior — take me — to heaven. Hallowed' 
be — thy name — ' There Avas then a pause, and 
a deep sigh. The angel of death had come ! The 
golden bowl was broken, and the wheel stood still 
at the cistern I Poor mangled sufferer ! he had 
found Christ ; and his dream of childhood's devo- 
tions gave place, we trust, to the brighter visions 
of glory and the songs of salvation ! " 



CONFEDERATE SONG OF FREEDOM. 

BY EMILY M. "WASHINGTON. 

March on, ye children of the brave — 

Descendants of the free ! 
On to the hero's bloody grave, 
Or glorious liberty ! 

On, on — with clashing sword and drum ; 
The foe ! — they come ! they come ! — strike 
home ! 
For more than safety, or for life, — 
For more than mother, child, or wife. 
Strike home for Liberty ! 

Charge, charge ! nor shed the pitying tear ; 

Too long hath mercy plead I 
Charge, charge ! and share the hero's bier, ^ 
Or strike the foeman dead ! 

Charge, charge ! for more than vital gains, 
Strike home, and rend the freeman's chains ; 
For more than safetj', or for life, — 
For more than mother, child, or wife, 
Strike home for Liberty ! 

Draw, draw — by every hope this hour 

That animates the brave ! 
Draw ! — strike ! — and rend the foeman's power, 
Or fill the patriot's grave ! 

Strike — die — or conquer with the free ! 
Strike home, strike home for Liberty ! 
For more than glory, safety, life, — 
For more than mother, child, or wife, 
Strike home for Liberty ! 



Colonel Gillem was one day reprimanding 
one of his soldiers, who was sHghtly intoxicated 
at the time. After the Colonel had concluded, 
the soldier remarked, " Yez wuddint have occasion 
to talk to me so ef I had a pistol." The Colonel, 
much astonished, asked, " Well, sir, what would 
you do if you had a pistol ? " " Why, I'd shoot 
— myself, sir." 

" Our Rights." — The following conversation 
occurred at Normandy, Tennessee, between a Con- 
federate prisoner, captured at Knoxville, and the 
correspondent of a Northern paper : 

" Are you going to take the oath ? " 

" No ; I'll rot in prison first." 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



289 



" AVhat are you fighting for ? " 

" Our rights." 

" What are your rights ? " 

"Well," — hesitating, and attempting to clear 
his throat, — " well, 1 can't 'xactly tell yer ; the 
fact is, I can't read ; but there's them that does 
know." 

, A Negro's Prayer, — The fcUowing is a prayer 
offered by a colored man at a funeral, and reported 
by Dr. Calkins, Surgeon of a Mass. regiment : 

" Massa Jesus, like de people ob de ole time, 
de Jews, we Aveep by de side ob de ribber, wid de 
strings ob de harp all broke ; but we sing ob de 
broken heart, as dem people could not do. Hear 
us. King, in de present state ob our sorrow. You 
know. King Jesus, honey, we just got from de Red 
Sea, and wander in de wilderness, a poor, feeble 
portion ob de children ob Adam, feeble in body, 
feeble in mind, and need de help ob de good Al- 
mighty God. 0, help us, if you please, to homes, 
for we's got no homes, Massa Jesus, but de shel- 
ter ob de oak tree in de daytime, and de shelter 
ob de cotton tent at night. Help us for our own 
good and de good of God's blessed Union people, 
dat want all people free, whatsomebber be de 
color. Massa Jesus, you know de deep tribula- 
tions ob our hearts, dat sickness is among us, dat 
our children is dyin' in de camp ; and as we tote 
'em from one place to tudder, and bury dem in 
de cold ground, to go in spirit to de God ob de 
people whar de soul hab no spot nor color. Great 
King ob Kings, and Doctor ob Doctors, and God 
ob battles ! help us to be well ; help us to be able 
to fight wid de Union sogers de battle for de Un- 
ion ; help us to fight for liberty, fight for de coun- 
try, fight for our owii homes, and our own free 
children, and our children's children. Fotch out, 
God ob battles, de big guns wid de big bustin' 
shells, and gib dem God-forsaken secesh, dat 
would carry to shame our wives and daughters. 
O, mighty Jesus ! if you please, a right smart 
charge ob grape and canister ; make 'em glad to 
stop de war and come back to shoes and de fat- 
ted calf, and de good tings ob de Union. No 
more murderin' brudder ob de Norf States. No 
more ragged, bare feet. No more slave-whippers 
and slave-sellers. No more faders ob yellow skins. 
No more meaner as meanest niggers."' 



A Classic Soldier. — A Lieutenant in the 
Twelfth Indiana relates the following : 

Being out on a scout with a squad of his men, 
and becoming fatigued, they stopped at a house 
to see if they could get some buttermilk to drink. 
In their squad Avas a young man who had been 
highly educated, but who had become dissipated 
before entering the army, and had the appearance 
of one very low in life. When they entered the 
house, there were two young ladies sitting in the 
room, very busily engaged in reading, and did not 
seem to take any notice of them whatever. After 
gettin'g their buttermilk, the young man, supposed 
to be an ignoramus, walked to one of the ladies, 
and very politely asked her what' book she was 
19 



reading. Thinking his question impertinent, she 
indignantly replied, " You would not know, if I 
should tell you." " That may be true," says he ; 
"*till, I would like very much if you would tell 
me." "Well," says she, "if you must know, I 
am reading Virgil." " Ah ! Virgil ! And how do 
you like it ? " " Very well ; but I have come to 
a hard, knotty sentence here, that I cannot trans- 
late." " Well, perhaps I can assist you about it, 
if you will alloM' me." " You assist me ! It is 
Latin that I am reading ! " " Very well, miss. 
Will you be so kind as to let me see if I cannot 
assist you with it? " Somewhat softened by his 
kind and gentlemanly manner, she handed him the 
book, when, to her utter astonishment, he trans- 
lated the difficult sentence with great ease. She 
now addressed him politely. " Are you an ofB.- 
cer, sir?" "0, no, miss; I am only a private. 
If I had had a little better education, I do not 
know but I might have been an officer in the 
Federal army." Surprised still more, she re- 
plied, " I am astonished ! I thought I was a 
good Latin scholar. Here is a boy in the Fed- 
eral army who can read Latin better than I can, 
and yet he says he is not well enough educated 
to be an officer. Why, sir, what kind of an army 
have you ? " " Well, miss, we have a very intel- 
ligent army ; one that knows what they are fight- 
ing about, and what they are fighting for. We 
have an army of men who will continue to fight 
until this wicked rebellion you intelligent South- 
erners have stirred up is crushed. Good by, miss." 



Capture on Mosby's Horse. — Captain J. S. 
Graham, of the Twenty-first New York cavalry, 
detailed the following : 

" One hundred and fifty of the Twenty-first 
cavalry were sent out from Halltown, Va., on a 
three days' scout. At night they stopped about 
five miles above Berryville. Sergeant Wetherbee 
and Corporals Simpson and Van Antwerp went 
about a mile from the camp to a house to get sup- 
per. After eating, they concluded to stay there 
all night, and so put their horses in the stable. 
Having safely, as they thought, secured thebi ani- 
mals, they sat down in the house by the fire to 
warm their feet and make themselves as comfort- 
able as possible. Just then the door opened, and 
three men, with revolvers in hand, marched in 
and demanded a surrender. There was no alter- 
native. Having disarmed their prisoners, the 
guerrillas took them to the stables to get their 
horses. While in the stable Van Antwerp no- 
ticed a hole in the floor, into which he dropped 
and concealed himself. Mosby (for he rras the 
leader of the party) supposed that Van Antwerp 
had run away, and gave him no further tkought. 
He took the other prisoners and hurried them 
away into the Loudon INIountains to a littlft place 
called Paris. Stopping at a house, Moslvy dis- 
mounted, and told his prisoners to do lil.ewise, 
and follow him into a house. Simpso.i dis- 
mounted, and while pretending to tie his horse, 
snatched a pistol from the holster on IS' >sby's 
saddle, shot the Lieutenant who stood f x the 



290 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



other side of the horse, mounted Mosby's horse, 
fired a shot at Mosby, and away he flew as fast 
as the horse could carry him. Mosby returned 
his fire, but without efi'ect, and Simpson rode at 
full gallop towards the Shenandoah. "W'etherbee, 
who had not dismounted, took advantage of the 
occasion to take the same course, and both got 
safely into the Federal camp, — Simpson with 
Mosby's famous gray horse." 



The Charge at Port Hudson. — A soldier 
who participated in the storming of Port Hudson, 
on the 14th of June, 1863, gives the following 
account of that unfortunate aff'air : " I have 
been in many battles, but I never saw, and never 
wish to see, such a fire as that poured on us on 
June 14th. It was not terrible — it was hor- 
rible. 

•' Our division (Second) stormed about a mile 
from the Mississippi. We left our camp at twelve 
o'clock, midnight, on the 13th, and proceeded to 
the left, arriving just at daylight, Avhere the bal- 
ance of our brigade (Second) awaited us. 

" Colonel Benedict arrived from opposite Port 
Hudson on the 12th, and our regiment was trans- 
ferred from the First to the Second brigade, and 
he placed in command. The movement to the 
left took all by surprise ; but we got in shape be- 
hind a piece of woods which concealed the ene- 
my's works, and rested. The First brigade went 
in first, and Ave followed — the Third brigade be- 
ing a reserve. I saw the First brigade file left 
and move on, but saw no more of it. When the 
order came to move on, we did so in ' column of 
company,' at full distance. Ask some good mili- 
tary man what he thinks of a brigade moving to 
a chai'ge in that manner. The One Hundred and 
Sixty-second leading, the One Hundred and Sev- 
enty-fifth (Bryan's) after us ; then the Forty- 
eighth Massachusetts, and Twenty-eighth Maine. 
We were in a road parallel to the enemy's works, 
and had to change direction to, or file left round 
the coiuier of the woods, and then started for- 
ward by a road leading up. The ground rose 
gradually, and away above, the rebel works were 
in plain sight. The moment we turned into the 
road, shot, shell, grape, and canister fell like 
hail, in, amongst, and around us. But on we 
went. A little higher, a new gun opened on us. 
Still farther they had a cross-fire on us — O! 
such a terrible one; but on we went, bending 
as, with sickening shrieks, the grape and canister 
swept over us. Sometimes it fell in and about 
us ; but I paid no heed to it. 

" After the first, my whole mind was given to 
the colors, and to keep my men around them ; 
and they did it well. I wonder now, as I think 
of it, how I did so. I walked erect, though from 
the moment I saw how they had us, I was sure I 
M'ould be killed. I had no "thought (after a short 
prayer) but for my flag. I talked and shouted. 
I did all man could do to keep my boys to their 
' colors.' I tried to draw their attention from the 
enemy to it, as I knew we would advance more 
rapidly. The brave fellows stood by it, as the 



half-score who fell attest. The ' color-bearer ' 
fell, but the ' flag ' did not. Half the guard fell, 
but the 'flag' was there. Ask (if I never come 
home) my Colonel or Lieutenant-Colonel if any one 
could have done better than I did that day. I do 
not fear their answer. When about three hun- 
dred yards from the Avorks, I Avas struck. The 
pain Avas so intense that I could not go on. I 
turned to mj' Second Lieutenant, Avho was in com- 
mand of company C, as he came up to me, and 
said : ' Never mind me, Jack ; for God's sake, 
jump to the colors.' I don't recollect any more, 
till I heard Colonel B. say : ' Up, men, and for- 
Avard.' I looked, and saAV the rear regiments 
lying flat to escape the fire, and Colonel B. stand- 
ing there, the shot striking all about him, and he 
never flinching. It Avas grand to see him. I Avish 
I Avas of ' iron nerA^e,' as he is. When I heard 
him speak, I forgot all else, and, running forward, 
did not stop till at the very front and near the 
colors again. There, as did all the rest, I lay 
doAvn, and soon learned the trouble. Within tAvo 
hundred yards of the Avorks was a ravine parallel 
with them, imperceptible till just on the edge of 
it, completely impassable by the fallen timber in 
it. Of course Ave could not move on. To stand 
up Avas certain death ; so Avas retreat. Nought 
was left but to lie down Avith what scanty cover 
we could get. So Ave did lie down, in that hot, 
scorching sun. I fortunately got behind tAvo 
small logs, Avhich protected me on two sides, and 
lay there, scarcely daring to turn, for four hours, 
till my brain reeked and surged, and I thought I 
should go mad. Death would have been prefera- 
ble to a continuance of such torture. Lots of 
poor fellows were shot as they Avere h'ing doAvn, 
and to lie there and hear them groan and cry Avas 
aAvful. Just on the other side of the log lay the 
gallant Colonel Bryan, with both legs broken by 
shot. He talked of home, but bore it like a 
patriot. Near him Avas one of my oAvn brave 
boys, with five balls in him. I dared not stir, 
my hand ached so, and it Avould have been death 
also. Well, the Colonel got out of pain sooner 
than some, for he died after two hours of intense 
agony. Bullets just grazed me as they passed 
over, and one entered the ground Avithin an inch 
of my right eye. I could not go that. Our boys 
had run back occasionally, but got a volley as 
they did so from the rebels, who Avould curse 
them. I Avaited till our cannon fired a round at 
them, then up and ran across the road, and fell 
flat behind some low bush or weeds ; and Avell I 
did. They saAV my sAVord, and fired several vol- 
leys after me. As my hand was very lame, I 
craAvled several rods back, then under a big log, 
got behind it, and, for the first time in five hours, 
' sat up. I bathed my hand, and after a Avhile 
I made my way to the rear, got it dressed, and Avas 
• on my Avay back, Avhen I learned that the men 
I Avere to Avork in, by one and tAVOs ; so I staid. 
I then learned of poor Bryan's fate, and one by 
one came the tidings of my own men, and Avhen 
the Avord came of them I cried like a child. 
Some of theiji passed me on the Avay to have 
their Avounds dressed, and blessed me as they 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



291 



passed by. "When night came, the troops came 
in and line was formed, and a small one we had. 
The Major's body was brought in to be sent 
home, and my pet favorite. Sergeant Fred. Mitch- 
ell (who, as a favor to me. Colonel Benedict had 
made an acting Lieutenant — he was so good a 
soldier, and handsome and talented), the last 
I saw of him, was his sword flashing in the sun- 
light as he urged the men forward ; but he was 
brought in with half liis head torn off, and it was 
hard to recognize him. But God bless him ! He 
Avas true, for his right hand grasped his sword 
firmly in death. I have it stored to be sent to 
his friends. Colonel B. and Lieutenant-Colonel 
B. came out safe. The Lieutenant-Colonel had 
been sick for some time, and this finished him. 
So I took command of the regiment, brought it 
to the mortar batter)-, and bivouacked for the 
night." 

The true Story about Colonel Dahl- 
gren's Body. — It was not until the war was 
over, that all the facts of this somewhat mysteri- 
ous case could be cleared up ; and now it is aji- 
pareut that a loyal Virgiliian, living near Rich- 
mond, rescued his corpse from its obscure and 
ignominious burial-place, and reinterred it in a 
place whence it could easily be recovered by his 
friends. 

After having been stripped and plundered, by 
the roadside, near Richmond, two men Avere or- 
dered to take the corpse away and burj' it where 
none would ever know the spot, or be able to re- 
cover the remains. But a loyal Virginian, not 
far from whose house he had been shot, deter- 
mined to watch their operations, and know the 
place of the grave. 

It was midnight, and they took him, in the 
stillness and gloom, across the city, to the other 
side of the James River, and to the outer cor- 
ner of an obscure burial-place, in the skirt of the 
forest, where common soldiers who had died in 
the hospitals had been interred. He could only 
observe them at a distance, and was able to rec- 
ognize only the vicinity of the spot where they 
buried him. When he went there afterwards, he 
found three graves all fresh, and Avith no mark 
of any land to indicate which was Dahlgren's. 

Determined, however, not to abandon his ef- 
forts, he only waited a favorable time. Pickets 
were much more numerous and particular at 
night than during the day ; and he accordingly 
determined to put a bold front on the enterprise. 
So, taking a small cart, he drove out in midday, 
and went directly over to the grave-yard, in the 
dress, and apparently on the errand, of a laborer. 
The first body he exhumed had a leg missing, 
and the hair, and eyes, and figure, answered to 
the description of Dahlgi'en. Laying him in the 
cart, he proceeded to dig up and lay over him 
quite a number of young peach trees, with dirt 
enough to cover the body, and with this very 
peaceful-looking and unsuspicious load he passed 
all the sentries, and through the streets of Rich- 
mond, without challenge. Arriving home, he 
dug another grave for his body in the corner of 



his own door-yard, and only a few steps from his 
door. Here, in silent sympathy, and loyal re- 
gret at the death of the brave but unfortunate 
young soldier, his body, mutilated in battle, and 
msulted by the country's foes, was laid. 

Not long after, a boat, with a flag of truce, 
went up the James, and requested of the Con- 
federate authorities to know the place of his 
burial. A party was sent out to the cemetery 
where they had buried him, and to their great as- 
tonishment, the corpse was not there, and his 
unhappy friends had almost despaired of ever 
receiving his body back again to give it a Chris- 
tian and a soldier's burial, when the above facts 
became known to an officer on General Meade's 
staff, and they were at once communicated to the 
Government. 

About the same time, the Union army lines 
were advanced so near Richmond as to take in 
the farm of the loyal Virginian who had dis- 
played such praiseworthy zeal in securing the re- 
mains from ignominy. 

For a second time he was disinterred, and 
upon removal to Washington, the third time 
buried, being finally laid to rest, with full mili- 
tary honors, among those who loved and admii-ed 
him in life, and bewailed his premature but glo- 
rious death. 

The Spirit of Illinois. — Governor Yates, 
of Illinois, received a letter from a town in the 
south part of the State, in which the wi'iter com- 
plained that traitors in his tOAvn had cut down 
the American flag, and asked what ought to be 
done in the premises. The Governor promptly 
Avrote him as follows : " Whenever you raise the 
flag on your own soil, or on the public property 
of the State or county, or at any public celebration, 
from honest love to that flag, and patriotic devo- 
tion to the country which it symbolizes, and any 
traitor dares to lay his unhallowed hand upon it 
to tear it down, then I say, shoot him down as 
you would a dog, and I will pardon you for the 
off'ence." 

While Mr. Buchanan was President, the 
Pottstown Bank came into existence, and out 
of compliment to him the notes contained his 
portrait. But during the war, the bank received 
so many mutilated notes, with the words " traitor," 
" Judas Iscariot," &c., inscribed under the portrait, 
that it was resolved to call in all the notes bear- 
ing the likeness, and re-issue new ones. 



The Doctor know'd what he giv' him. — 
During the war, one of those lovely ladies, who 
devoted themselves to relieving the sufiierings of 
the soldiers, was going through a ward of a 
crowded hospital. There she found two conva- 
lescent soldiers sawing and hammering, making 
such a noise that she felt it necessary to interfere 
in her gentle way. 

"Why," she said, "what is this.!* — what are 
you doing ? " 



292 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



" What we doin' ? ]\Iakin' a coffin — that's 
what." 

"A coffin? mcleed, and M'hom is it for? " 

"Who for? that feller over there " — pointing 
behind him. 

The lady looked, and saw a man lying on his 
■white bed, yet alive, who seemed to be watching 
what was being done. 

" Why," she said, in a low voice, " that man 
isn't dead. He is alive, and perhaps he won't 
die. You had better not go on." 

" Go on ! Yes, yes, we shall. The doctor he 
told us. He said, make the coffin ; and I guess 
he know'd what he giv' him." 



" GREENBACKS." 

The following was written across the back of one of those 
bills. 

Green be thy back upon thee ! 

Thou pledge of happier days, 
"When bloody-handed treason 

No more its head shall raise ; 
But still, from Maine to Texas, 

The Stars and Stripes shall wave 
O'er the hearts and homes of freemen, 

Nor mock one fettered slave. 

Pledge — of the people's credit, 

To carry on the war. 
By furnishing the sinews 

In a currency at par ; 
With cash enough left over. 

When they've cancelled every note. 
To buy half the thrones of Europe, 

With the crowns tossed in to boot. 

Pledge — to our buried fathers, 

That sons of patriot sires, 
On Freedom's sacred altars, 

Relight their glorious fires — 
That fortune, life, and honor 

To our country's cause we give ; 
Fortune and life may perish. 

Yet the Government shall live. 

Pledge — to our unborn children. 

That, free from blot or stain, 
The flag hauled down at Sumter 

Shall yet float free again ; 
And, cleansed from foul dishonor, 

And rebaptized in blood. 
Wave o'er the land forever, 

To Freedom and to God ! 



Scenes at Fort Donelson. — The following 
incidents were given in a narrative sermon preached 
by Rev. Robert Collyer, at Chicago, a few days 
after the terrible battle at Fort Donelson : 

" After leaving home our great desire was, of 
course, to get to Fort Donelson and to our work 
in the shortest possible time ; and I am sure you 
will not thank me for a full account of Cairo, his- 
torical and descriptive. I will merely say, when 
you want to solicit a quiet place of retirement in 
the summer, do not even go to look at Caho. I 
assui-e you, it- will not suit. It is notable here 



only for being the first point where we meet with 
traces of the great conflict. The first I saw were 
three or four of those long boxes, that hold only 
and always the same treasure ; these were sheila 
nailed together by comrades in the camp, 1 sup- 
pose, to send some brave man home. As I went 
past one lying on the sidewalk in the dreary rain 
and mud, I read on a card the name of a gallant 
officer who had fallen in the fight ; and as I stood 
for a moment to look at it, the soldier Avho had 
attended it came up, together with the brother of 
the dead man, who had been sent for to meet the 
body. It seemed there was some doubt whether 
this might not be some other of the half dozen 
who had been labelled at once, and the coffin 
must be opened before it was taken away. 

" I glanced at the face of the living brother as 
he stood and gazed at the face of the dead ; but 
I must not desecrate that sight by a description. 
He was his brother beloved, and he was dead ; 
but he had fallen in a great battle, where treason 
bit the dust, and he was faithful unto death. He 
must have died instantly, for the wound was in a 
mortal place ; and there was not one line or fur- 
row to tell of a long agony, but a look like a quiet 
child, which told how the old confidence of He- 
brew David, ' I shall be satisfied when I wake in 
thy likeness,' was verified in all the confusion of 
the battle. God's finger touched him, and he 
slept; and 

' The great intelligences fair 

That range above our mortal state, 
In circle round the blessed gate, 
Received and gave him welcome there.' 

" One incident I remember, as we were de- 
tained at Cairo, that gave me a sense of how 
curiously the laughter and the tears of our lives 
are blended. I had hardly gone a square from 
that touching sight, when I came across a group 
of men gathered round a soldier wounded in the 
head. Nothing would satisfy them but to see the 
hurt; and the man, with perfect good nature, re- 
moved the bandage. It was a bullet wound, very 
near the centre of the forehead ; and the man de- 
clared the ball had flattened, and fallen off. ' But,' 
said a simple man, eagerly, * why didn't the ball 
go into your head ? ' * Sir,' said the soldier, 
proudly, ' my head's too hard ; a ball can't get 
through it ! ' 

" A journey of one hundred and sixty miles up 
the Ohio and Cumberland Rivers brought us to 
Fort Donelson, and we got there at sunset. I 
went at once into the camp, and found there dear 
friends, who used to sit in these pews, and had 
stood fast through all the thickest battle. They 
gave us coffee, which they drank as if it were 
nectai", and we as if it were senna. 

" A body of men drew up to see us, and de- 
manded the inevitable ' few remarks ; ' and we 
told them, through our tears, how proud and 
thankful they had made us, and what great tides 
of gladness had risen for them in our city, and 
wherever the tidings of victory had run ; and 
how our hands gave but a feeble pressure, our 
voices but a feeble echo of the mighty spirit that 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



293 



was everywhere reaching out to greet those that 
were safe, to comfort the suffering, and to sorrow 
for the dead. 

" The ' own correspondents ' of the new&papers 
describe Fort Donelson just as if a man should 
say that water is a fluid, or granite a solid. I 
have seen no printed description of it that will 
make a picture in the mind. I think there is a 
picture graven on some silent soul that will get 
itself printed some time. But it took years to 
get a word-picture of Dunbar, and it may take as 
long to get one of Donelson. If you take a bow 
and tighten the string until it is very much over- 
bent, and lay it down on a table, with the string 
towards you, it will give a faint idea of the breast- 
works — the river being to them what the cord is 
to the bow. At the right hand corner, where the 
bow and cord join, is the famous water battery, 
commanding a straight reach in the river of about 
a mile, where the gunboats must come up ; and 
at the other end of the cord, up the river, lies the 
town of Dover. 

" It was my good fortune to go over the entire 
ground with a number of our friends, and to wan- 
der here and there alone at rare moments besides. 
The day I spent there was like one of our sweet- 
est May-days. As I stood in a bit of secluded 
woodland, in the still morning, the spring birds 
sang as sweetly, and flitted about as merrilj', as 
if no tempest of fire, and smoke, and terror had 
ever di-iven them in mortal haste away. In oi\e 
place where the battle had raged, I found a little 
bunch of sweet bergamont, that had just put out 
its brown-blue leaves, rejoicing in its first resur- 
rection, and a bed of daffodils, ready to unfold 
their golden robes to the sun; and the green 
grass, in sunny j^laces, was fair to see. 15ut 
where great woods had cast their shadows, the 
necessities of attack and defence had made one 
haggard and almost universal ruin — trees cut 
down into all sorts of wild confusion, torn and 
splintered by cannon ball, trampled by horses and 
men, and crushed under the heavy wheels of ar- 
tillery. One sad wreck covered all. 

" Of course, it was not possible to cover all the 
ground, or to cut down all the trees. But here 
and there, where the defenders would sweep a 
pass, where our brave men must come, all was 
bared for the work of death ; and where the battle 
had raged, the wreck was fearful. 

" Our ever-busy mother Nature had already 
brought down great rains to wash the crimson 
stains from her bosom ; and it was only in some 
blanket cast under the bushes, or some loose gar- 
ment taken from a wounded man, that these most 
fearful sights were to be seen. But all over 
the field were strewn the implements of death, 
with garments, harness, shot and shell, dead 
horses, and the resting-places of dead men. Al- 
most a week had passed since the battle, and 
most of the dead were buried. We heard of twos 
and threes, and in one case of eleven, still lying 
where they fell ; and, as we rode down a lonely 
pass, we came to one waiting to be laid in the 
dust, and stopped for a moment to note the sad 
sight. Pray look out from my eyes at him, as he 



lies where he fell. You see by his garb that he 
is one of the rebel army, and, by the peculiar 
marks of that class, that he is a city rough. There 
is little about him to soften the grim picture that 
rises up before you, as he rests in perfect stillness 
by that fallen tree ; but there is a shawl, coarse 
and homely, that must have belonged to some 
woman; and 

' His hands are folded on his breast ; 
There is no other thing expressed, 
But long disquiet merged in rest.' 

" Will_ you still let me guide you through that 
scene as it comes up before me ? That long mound, 
with pieces of board here and there, is a grave ; 
and sixty-one of our brave fellows rest in it, side by 
side. Those pieces of board are the gravestones, 
and the chisel is a black lead pencil. The queer 
straggling letters tell you that the common sol- 
dier has done this, to preserve, for a few days at 
least, the memory of one who used to go out with 
him on the dangerous picket guard, and sit with 
him by the camp fire, and whisper to him, as they 
lay side by side in the tent through the still win- 
ter niglit, the hope he had before him when the 
war was over, or the trust in this comrade if he 
fell. There you see one large board, and in a 
beautiful flowing hand, ' John Olver, Thirty-first 
Illinois ; ' and you wonder for a moment whether 
the man who has so tried to surpass the rest was 
nursed at the same breast with John Olver, or 
whether John was a comrade, hearty and trusty 
beyond all price. 

" And you will ebserve that the dead are buried 
in companies, every man in his own company, 
side by side ; that the prisoners are sent out af- 
ter the battle to bury their own dead ; but that 
our own men wiU not permit them to bury a fel- 
low-soldier of the Union, but every man in this 
sacred cause is held sacred even for the grave. 

" And thus on the crest of a hill is the place 
where the dwellers in that little town have buried 
their dead since ever they came to live on the 
bank of the river. White marble and gray lime- 
stone, and decayed wooden monuments, tell who 
rests beneath. There stands a gray stone, cut 
with these home-made letters, that tell you 
how William N. Ross died on the 26th day of 
March, 1814, in the twenty-sixth year of his age; 
and right alongside are the graves, newly-made, 
of men who died last week in a strife which no 
wild imagining of this native man ever conceived 
possible in that quiet spot. Here, in the midst 
of the cemetery, the rebel officers have pitched 
their tents ; for the place is one where a com- 
mander can see easily the greater part of the 
camp. Here is a tent where some woman has 
lived, for she has left a sewing-machine and a 
small churn ; and not far away you see a hapless 
kitten shot dead; and everywhere things that 
make you shudder, and fill you with sadness over 
the wreck and ruin of war. 

" Here you meet a man who has been in com- 
mand, and stood fast ; and when you say some 
simple word of i)raise to him in the name of all 
who love their country, he blushes and stammers 



294 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



like a woman, and tells you he tried to do his 
best ; and when we get to Mound City, we shall 
find a man racked with pain, who Avill forget to 
suffer in telling how this brave man j-ou have just 
spoken to, not only stood by his own regiment 
in a fierce storm of shot, but when he saw a regi- 
ment near his own giving back, because their of- 
ficers showed the white feather, rode up to the 
regiment, hurled a mighty curse at those who 
were giving back, stood fast by the men in the 
thickest fight, and saved them ; and, says the sick 
man, with tears in his eyes : ' I would rather be 
a privijte under him, than a captain under any 
other man ! ' 

" I noticed one feature in this camp that I 
never saw before ; the men do not swear and use 
profane words as they used to do. There is a 
little touch of seriousness about them. They are 
cheerful and hearty, and in a few days they will 
mostly fall back into the old bad habit so painful 
to hear ; but they have been too near to the tre- 
mendous verities of hell and heaven on that battle- 
field, to turn them into small change for every- 
day use just yet. They have taken the eternal 
name for common purposes a thousand times ; 
and we feel as if Ave could say with Paul, ' The 
times of this ignorance God passed by.' But on 
that fearful day, when judgment fires were all 
afiame, a voice said, ' Be still, and know that I 
am God ; ' and they are still under the shadow of 
that awful name. 

" Now, friends, I can give you these hints and 
incidents, and many more if it were needful ; but 
you must still be left without a picture of the 
battle-field, and I must hasten to the work we 
want to do. The little town of Dover was full 
of sick and wounded ; and they, first of all, com- 
manded our attention. I have seen too much of 
the soldier's life to expect much comfort for him ; 
but Ave found even less than I expected among 
those Avho were huddled together there. There 
was no adequate comfort of any kind ; many 
Avere laid on the floor; mostAvere entirely unpro- 
vided Avith a change of linen, and not one had 
any proper nourishment. AVhat Ave carried Avith 
us Avas Avelcome beyond all price. The policy of 
our commanders Avas to remove all the Avounded 
on steamboats to Paducah, Mound City, and other 
places on the rivers ; and it was a part of my 
duty, Avith several other gentleman acting as sur- 
geons and nurses, to attend one hundred and 
fifty-eight AA'ounded men from Fort Uonelson to 
Mound City. 

" I may not judge harshly of Avhat should be 
done in a time of Avar like this in the West ; it is 
very easy to be unfair. I Avill simply tell you 
that had it not been for the things sent up by 
the Sanitary Commission in the Avay of linen, and 
things sent by our citizens in the Avay of nourish- 
ment, I see no possibiHty by which those Avounded 
men could have been lifted out of their blood- 
stained woollen garments, saturated AA'ith Avet and 
mud, or could have had any food and drink, except 
corn-mush, hard bread, and the turbid Avater of 
the river. 

"That long cabin of the steamboat is packed 



Avith Avounded men, laid on each side, side by 
side, so close that you can hardly put one foot 
betvieen the men to give them a drink, or to cool 
their fearful hurts. Most of us have been hurt 
badly at some time in our life, and remember 
Avhat tender and constant care Ave needed, and 
got. If you will substitute a rather careless and 
clumsy man for the mother or wife who Avaited 
on you, and divide his time and attention among 
perhaps forty patients, you Avill be able to con- 
ceive something of Avhat had been the condition 
of these poor travellers, but for the Chicago Com- 
mittee. 

" Here is one Avho has lost an arm, and there 
one who has lost a leg. This old man of sixty 
has been struck by a grape shot, and that boy of 
eighteen has been shot through the lung. Here 
a noble-looking man has lived through a fear- 
ful bullet Avound just over the eye ; and that poor 
German, Avho could never talk English so as to 
be readily understood, has been hit in the mouth, 
and has lost all hope of talking, except by signs. 

" That man with a shattered foot talks in the 
old dialect I spoke Avhen I Avas a child ; and when 
I ansAver him in his own tongue, the words touch 
him like a sovereign medicine. 

" The doctor comes to this young man, and 
says quietly, ' I think, my boy, I shall have to 
take your arm off" ; ' and he cries out in a gr-eat 
agony, ' O dear doctor ! do save my arm ! ' and 
the doctor tells him he Avill try a little longer, 
and wlien he has gone, the poor fellow says to 
me, ' What shall I do if I lose my arm? I haA'e 
a poor old mother at home, and there is no one 
to do anything for her but me.' 

" That man Avho has lost his arm is evidently 
sinking. As I lay Avet linen on the jjoor stump, 
he tells me hoAv ' he has a Avife and tAvo children 
at home, and he has alAvays tried to do right, and 
to live a manly life.' The good, simple heart is 
clearly trying to balance its accounts, before it 
faces the great event Avhich it feels to be not far 
distant. As I go past him, I see the face grow- 
ing quieter ; and at last good Mr. Williams, who 
has Avatched him to the end, tells me he put up 
his one hand, gently closed his OAvn eyes, and 
then laid the hand across his breast and died. 

" That boy in the corner, alone, suffers agony 
such as I may not tell. All day long aa'c hear his 
cries of ])ain through half the length of the boat ; 
far into the night, the tide of anguish pours over 
him ; but at last the pain is all gone, and he calls 
one of our number to him, and says, ' I am going. 
I Avant you to please Avrite a letter to my father ; 
tell him I OAve such a man tAvo dollars and a half, 
and such a man OAves me four dollars ; and he 
must draAV my pay, and keep it all for himself 
Then he lay silently a little Avhile, and, as the 
nurse Avet his lips, said, ' O, I should so like a 
drink out of my father's Avell ! ' and in a moment 
he had gone Avhere angels gather immortality 

' By Life's fair stream, fast by the throne of God.' 

" And so all day long, with cooling water and 
soft linen, Avith morsels of food and sips of Avine, 
Avith words of cheer and tender pity to every one, 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



295 



and most of all to those that were in the sorest 
need, we tried to do some small service for those 
that had done and suffered so much for us. -Some 
are dead, and more will die, and some will live, 
and be strong men again ; but I do not believe 
that one will forget our poor service in that ter- 
rible pain ; while to us there came such a reward 
in the work as not one of us ever felt before, and 
we all felt that it Avas but a small fragment of the 
debt we owed to the brave men who had given 
life itself for our sacred cause. 

" Two or three things came out of this jour- 
ney to the battle-field that gave me some new 
thoughts and realizations. And first, in all honor, 
I realized more fully than you can do, that in 
those victories of which Fort Donelson is the 
greatest, we have reached not only the turning- 
point, as we hope, of this dreadful war, but we 
have plucked the first fruits of our Western civ- 
ilization. I am not here to question for one 
moment the spirit and courage of our brothers in 
the East ; the shade of Winthrop, noblest and 
knightliest man, the peer of Arthur for truth, of 
Richard for courage, and of Sidney for gentle- 
ness, would rise up to rebuke me. Ball's Bluff 
was worse than Balaklava as a criminal blunder, 
and equal to it in every quality of steady, hope- 
less courage. America will never breed a true 
man who will not weep as he reads the story of 
those hapless Harvard boys, whose clear eyes 
looked out at death steadily to the last, and who 
scorned to flinch. 

" But here on our Western prairies, and in our 
backwoods, we have been raising a new genera- 
tion of men, Avhose name we never mentioned, 
under new influences, whose bearing we did not 
understand ; and the first time they could get a fair 
field and no favor, they sprang into the foremost 
soldiers, in the land. 

" Good elderly New England ministers, of our 
own faith, have made it a point to speak, in East- 
ern conventions, of our hopeless struggle with 
the semi-savagery of these mighty wildernesses. 
My dear doctor, that boy of eighteen was born 
in the prairies, and went to meetings where you 
would have gone crazy with the noise of the 
mighty prayers and psalms : and he got the con- 
version which you do not believe in, and was a 
sort of Methodist or Baptist ; but he stood like 
one of Napoleon's Old Guard through all the 
battle ; and when he was shot down, and could 
fight no longer, his mighty spirit dragged the 
broken tabernacle into the bushes, and there he 
prayed with all his might, not for himself, but 
that the God of battles would give us the victory. 
That rough-looking man was wounded twice with 
ghastly hurts, and twice went from the surgeon 
back to the fight, and only gave up when the third 
shot crippled him beyond remedy. 

" ' I saw those " Iowa Second " boys come 
on to charge the breastworks,' said our friend 
Colonel Webster to us. ' ]\Iore than one regi- 
ment had been beaten back, and the fortunes 
of the day began to look very uncertain. They 
came on steadily, silently, through the storm of 
shot, closing up as their comrades fell ; and with- 



out stopping to fire a single volley that might 
thin the ranks of the defenders, and make some 
gap by which they might pour into the fortress, 
they M'ent down into the ditch, and clean over 
the defences, and there they staid in spite of all.' 

" One quiet-looking oflicer saw his company 
sorely thinned in the beginning of the day ; and 
that the cause might have one more arm, he 
took musket and ammunition from one who could 
use them no more, and fought at the head of his 
companj', shot for shot, all day long ; and, as a 
wounded soldier told me this through his pain, 
he added, ' I tell you, sir, if that man ever runs 
for an oflice, I'll vote for him, sure.' 

" Secondly, from all these experiences, I have 
got a fresh conviction of the great mystery of 
the shedding of blood for salvation. We have 
been accustomed, especially in Unitarian churches, 
to consider Paul's ideas about blood-shedding as 
the fruit of his education under a sacrificial Ju- 
daism, and that, again, as a twin-sister of bar- 
barism ; but as I went over this battle-field, and 
thought on the dead heroes, and of all they died 
for, I kept repeating over each one, ' He gave his 
life a ransom for many ; ' and I wondered, Avhen 
I thought of how we had all gone astray as a 
people, and how inevitable this Avar had become, 
in consequence, as the final test of the two great 
antagonisms, whether it may not be true in our 
national affairs, as in a more universal sense, 
' without the shedding of blood there is no remis- 
sion of sins.' And so, by consequence, every 
true hero fallen in this struggle for the right is 
also a savior to the nation and the race. 

" Finally, I came to feel a more tender pity for 
the deluded men on the other side, and a more 
unutterable hatred of that vile thing that has 
made them what they are. On all sides I found 
young men with faces as sweet and ingenuous as 
the faces of our own children, — as open to sym- 
pathy, and, according to their light, as ready to 
give all they had for their cause. 

" I felt like weeping to see children of our noble 
mother so bare, and poor, and sad ; to see their 
little villages so different from those where the 
community is not tainted by the curse and pro- 
scription of human bondage ; and I felt more 
deeply than ever before how, for the sake of those 
men, who, in spite of all, are our brothers, this 
horrible curse and delusion of slavery ought to be 
routed utterly out of the laud." 



William Reid, an old sailor and man-of-war's- 
man, who was on board the Owasco, was one of 
the heroes of the fight at Galveston. During 
the hottest moments of the battle between the 
Owasco and the rebel batteries, this man received 
a severe wound while in the act of loading his 
rifle. His two forefingers on his left hand were 
shot away, and the surgeon ordered him below ; 
but he refused to go, and, tying his pocket hand- 
kerchief around his fingers, he remained on deck, 
and did good execution with his rifle. Not more 
than thirty minutes after, another shot struck 
him in his right shoulder, and the blood spirted 



296 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



out through his shirt. Master's Mate Arbana 
then ordered him to go below, and have the sur- 
geon dress his wounds. The brave old fellow 
said : " No, sir ; as long as there is any fighting 
to be done, I will stay on deck ! " 

After the engagement was over, the noble- 
hearted sailor had his wounds dressed and prop- 
erly attended to. He remained on board the 
Owasco, and Avhenever they beat to general quar- 
ters, William Reid was at his post ready for 
orders. He was told one day by the captain to 
go below, as he was on the sick list, and his 
place was in the hospital. He was displeased 
with this remark, and replied : " No, captain, my 
eyes are good, and I can pull a lock-string as 
well as any on 'em." The lock-string is a lanyard 
connected with the cap that fires the gun. 



John Burns, the Hero of Gettysburg. — 
The following thi-illing narrative was related by 
B. D. Beyea, who spent several days on the 
battle-field in search of the body of Captain C. 
H. Flagg, who fell in that terrible fight : 

" In the town of Gettysburg live an old couple 
by the name of Burns. The old man was in the 
war of 1812, and is now nearly seventy years of 
age ; yet the frosts of many winters have not 
chilled his patriotism, nor diminished his love for 
the old flag under which he fought in his early 
days. When the rebels invaded the beautiful 
Cumberland Valley, and were marching on Get- 
tysburg, old Burns concluded that it was time for 
every loyal man, young or old, to be up and doing 
all in his power to beat back the rebel foe, and, if 
possible, give them a quiet resting-place beneath 
the sod they were polluting with their unhallowed 
feet. The old hero took down an old State mus- 
ket he had in his house, and commenced running 
bullets. The old lady saw what he was about, 
and wanted to know what in the world he was 
going to do. ' Ah,' said Burns, ' I thought some 
of the boys might want the old gun, and I am 
getting it ready for them.' The rebels came on. 
Old Burns kept his ej-e on the lookout until he 
saw the Stars and Stripes coming in, carried by 
our brave boys. This was more than the old 
fellow could stand. His patriotism got the better 
of his age and infii-mity. Grabbing his musket, 
he started out. The old lady hallooed to him : 
' Burns, where are you going ? ' ' O,' says Burns, 
' I am going out to see what is going on.' He im- 
mediately went to a Wisconsin regiment, and 
asked them if they would take him in. They told 
him they would, and gave him three rousing cheers. 

" The old musket was soon thrown aside, and a 
first-rate rifle given him, and twenty-five rounds 
of cartridges. 

" The engagement between the two ai'mies soon 
came on, and the old man fired eighteen of his 
twenty-five rounds, and says he killed three 
rebels to his certain knowledge. Our forces 
were compelled to fall back and leave our dead 
and wounded on the field ; and Burns, having 
received three wounds, was left also, not being 



able to get away. There he lay in citizen's dress ; 
and if the rebs found him in that condition, he 
knew death was his portion ; so he concluded to 
try strategy as his only hope. Soon the rebs came 
up, and approached him, saying : ' Old man, what 
are you doing here ? ' 'I am lying here wounded, 
as you see,' he replied. ' Well, but what business 
have you to be here ? and who wounded you ? 
our troops, or yours ? ' 'I don't know who 
wounded me ; but I only know that I am wounded, 
and in a bad fix.' ' Well, what were you doing 
here ? — what was your business ? ' 'If you will 
hear my story, I will tell you. My old woman's 
health is very poor, and I was over across the 
country to get a girl to help her ; and, coming 
back, before I knew where I was, I had got right 
into this fix, and here I am.' ' Where do you 
live ? ' inquired the rebels. ' Over in town, in 
such a small house.' They then picked him up) 
and carried him home, and left him. But they 
soon returned, as if suspecting he had been lying 
to them, and made him answer a gi-eat many 
questions ; but hestuck to his old story, and they 
failed to make anything out of old Burns, and 
then left him for good. 

" He says he shall always feel indebted to some 
of his neighbors for the last call ; for he believes 
some one had informed them of him. Soon after 
they left, a bullet came into his room, and struck 
in the wall about six inches above where he lay 
on his sofa ; but he don't know who fii-ed it. His 
wounds proved to be only flesh wounds, and he 
is getting well, feels first-rate, and says he would 
like one more good chance to give them a rip." 



THE BATTLE OF GETTYSBURG. 

BY HOWARD GLYNDOK. 

The days of June were nearly done ; 
The fields, with plenty overrun, 
Were ripening 'neath the harvest sun, 
In fruitful Pennsylvania ! 

Sang birds and children, " All is well ! " 
When, sudden, over hill and dell, 
The gloom of coming battle fell 

On peaceful Pennsylvania ! 

Through Maryland's historic land, 
With boastful tongue, and spoiling hand, 
They burst — a fiei'ce and famished band — 
Right into Pennsylvania ! 

In Cumberland's romantic vale 
Was heard the plundered farmer's wail, 
And every mother's cheek was pale 
in blooming Pennsylvania ! 

With taunt and jeer, and shout and song. 
Through rustic towns they passed along — 
A confident and braggart throng — 

Through frightened Pennsylvania ! 

The tidings startled hill and glen ; 
Up sprang our hardy Northern men, 
And there was speedy travel then. 
All into Pennsylvania ! 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS, 



297 



The foe laughed out in open scorn ; 
For "Union men were coward-born," 
And then — they wanted all the corn 
That grew in Pennsylvania ! 



It was the languid hour of noon, 
When all the birds were out of tune, 
And nature in a sultry swoon, 

In pleasant Pennsylvania ! — 

When, sudden o'er the slumbering plain, 
Red flashed the battle's fiery rain ; 
The vollej'ing cannon shook again 
The hills of Pennsylvania ! 

Beneath that curse of iron hail, 
That threshed the plain with flashing flail. 
Well might the stoutest soldier quail. 
In echoing Pennsylvania ! 

Then, like a sudden summer rain. 
Storm-driven o'er the darkened plain. 
They burst upon our ranks and main. 
In startled Pennsylvania t 

We felt the old ancestral thrill. 
From sire to son transmitted still. 
And fought for Freedom with a will. 
In pleasant Pennsylvania ! 

The breathless shock — the maddened toil- 
The sudden clinch — the shar^j recoil ^- 
And we were masters of the soil, 
In bloody Pennsylvania ! 

To westward fell the beaten foe ; 
The growl of battle, hoarse and low, 
Was heard anon, but dying slow. 

In ransomed Pennsylvania ! 

Sou' -westward, with the sinking sun, 
The cloud of battle, dense and dun, 
Flashed into fire — and all was won 
In joyful Pennsylvania ! 

But ah ! the heaps of loyal slain ! 
The bloody toil ! the bitter pain } 
For those who shall not stand again 
In pleasant Pennsylvania I 

Back, thi-ough the verdant valley lauds. 
East fled the foe, in frightened bands. 
With broken swords, and empty hands. 
Out of fair Pennsylvania 1 



An Heroic Old* Man. — A soldier of the Con- 
federate army, writing from Missionary Ridge, in 
October, 1863, says : " I presume you know Fa- 
ther Challon, a Catholic priest of Mobile. Well, 
he has a brother, an old man of, perhaps, sixty 
years, who is a member of Captain Hurtel's com- 
pany. This old man was in Kansas when the 
war broke out ; he immediately turned his steps 
homeward, and coming across a Louisiana regi- 
ment, he joined it as a private. General McCul- 
lough, with whom the regiment was, happening 
to notice this brave old man, and also seeing how 
cheerfully he bore the fatigues and dangers of 
camp and battle, offered him a staff appointment ; 
but Mr. Challon refused it, preferring to fight as 



a private in the ranks, until he could find some 
of the Mobile or Alabama troops. This was not 
effected, however, until he got to Corinth with 
Price's army. Soon after, he was transferred to 
the 24th Alabama regiment, company A, com- 
manded by your fellow-citizen, A. Hurtel, where 
he has remained ever since, discharging his du- 
ties faithfully and well, so much so, indeed, that 
he was noticed by the General of the brigade, 
and other officers, with whom he was a great fa- 
vorite ; and many was the time that he might have 
been noticed sitting around the General's fire, in 
free conversation with that officer, always eager 
for news, and when he obtained any that was 
good, would hurry off to impart it to his regi- 
ment. But for the incident. 

" It was on the ever-memorable day of the 20th 
of September (battle of Chickamauga), that Mr. 
Challon took his place in the front ranks to at- 
tack the enemy in a strong position on a hill. 
Gallantly did all act on this occasion ; but con- 
spicuous among those brave men was the subject 
of this anecdote. They rushed on, driving the 
enemy from his breastworks, capturing three 
pieces of artillery, &c. ; but the enfilade fire from 
the right and left was so very heavy that we were 
obliged to fall back. Here Mr. Challon fell with 
his thigh broken. Lieutenant Higley, passing by, 
and seeing his condition, tendered him assist- 
ance ; but the old man waved him off, telling him 
to go and whip the Yankees, and let him alone ; 
that he would take care of himself. We moved 
on, leaving the litter-bearers to take care of the 
dead and wounded ; but in a few moments the 
news reached us that the enemy had set fire to 
the woods by their guns, and that the wounded 
would all be burned to death. ' 

" Several officers immediately volunteered to 
take a party, and rescue the sufierers. They has- 
tened to the' spot, and succeeded in saving all oux' 
men, but not until some of them had been scorched. 
Among these latter Avas my old friend, who was 
manfully battling with this new enemy. He had 
crawled some distance from the spot where he 
fell, and many of the surgeons think that he, in 
these efforts, broke his thigh entirely, that was 
only fractured in the first instance by the ball. 
The old man is still alive, and strong hopes are 
entertained of his recovery, his cheerfulness aid- 
ing in it. Many of the brigade have visited him. 
He is always cheerful, and says, ' No matter — the 
old man can die ; we whipped the rascals.' " 



The Dead at Vicksburg. — They lay in all 
positions ; some with musket grasped as though 
still contending ; others with the cartridge in the 
fingers, just ready to put the deadly charge where 
it might meet the foe. All ferocity had gone. 
Noble patriots ! uninhabited tenements ! ye rest 
here now in security ! Your portals, whence the 
spirits fled, are as calm and pale as moonlight 
upon snow — as though no sweet love had ever 
woven for ye myrtle wreaths, nor death draped 
your hearts in ivy — as though mirth had never 
smiled, nor sorrow wept where all is now silent. 



298 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



War -with its dangers, earth with its perplexities, 
neglect and poverty Avith their pangs, slander 
with its barb, the dear heart-broken ones at 
home — all fail to call ye back to strife. A dark 
and fearful shadow has crept over the land, and 
gathered ye in its gloom. O the tears that will 
be shed ! O the hearths that will be desolated ! 
Eyes will look in vain for your return to the 
hearths that ye once gladdened, while Fame 
crowns ye with its laurels, and the land of the 
hereafter Avelcomes ye as " they who saved the 
land." 

A remarkably sweet and youthful face was that 
of a rebel boy. Scarce eighteen, and as fair as a 
maiden, with quite small hands, long hair of the 
pale, golden hue that auburn changes to Avhen 
much in the sun, and curling at the ends. He 
had on a shirt of coarse white cotton, and brown 
pants, well worn ; while upon his feet were a 
woman's shoes of about the size known as 
" fours." Too delicate was his frame for war ; 
perchance some mother's idol. His left side was 
torn by a shell, and his left shoulder shattered. 
Poor misguided boy ! Hyacinth was scarce more 
delicately beautiful than he. Mayhap he had his 
Apollo, too. 

Two men, who had caught at a fig tree to as- 
sist them up a steep embankment, lay dead at its 
feet, slain, in all probability, by an enfilade fu-e 
from their right ; the branch at which they caught 
was still in their grasp. Some could not be rec- 
ognized by their nearest friends. Several were 
headless — others were armless ; but the manner 
of their death was always plain. The minie left 
its large, rather clear hole ; the shell its horrid 
rent, the shrapnel and grape their clear, great 
gashes, as though one had thrust a giant's spear 
through the tender, quivering flesh. 

In one trench lay two, grasping the same 
weapon — friend and foe. Across their hands 
fell a vine, the end upon the breast of the rebel, 
where it had fallen with them from an elevation 
above, the roots still damp with the fresh earth ; 
upon it was a beautiful passion flower in full 
bloom, and two buds ; the buds were stained 
with blood — the flower as bright as was the day 
when the morning stars sang together. On the 
faces of both was the calm that follows sleep — 
rather pale, ])erhaps, but seeming like him of 
old, of whom it was said, " He is not dead, but 
sleepeth." But ah, the crimson ! All is not 
well where earth is stained with blood. In some 
places the dead were piled, literally, like sacks of 
grain upon the shore. 

It is remarkable with what patience the fatally 
wounded, they who already stood upon the shore, 
bore their suff"erings. Some knew that they 
could not recover, but bore it manfully. Some- 
times a tear, and a low voice would say, " My 
sweet wife," or "Darling," "Mother," "God 
forgive " — a quiver, then all was over. Let us 
hope that friend and foe alike found favor in His 
sight where all is well. 

Death is life's mystery — that undiscovered 
country whence none return — in no place so great 
and marvellous a study as here. 



One would think that war would develop fero- 
city in hard natures ; perhaps it does, but it is 
not shown in the faces of the dead. They enter 
the silent land with eyes open ; a stare of sur- 
prise is in them ; the lines of care are softened 
upon the brow, and the cheek, when untorn, 
shows determination, as though they slept where 
doubt is unknown, where all mystery is revealed, 
where the reason of our creation, to bear the 
myrtle leaf of joy or the habiliments of mourn- 
ing, to reap the golden sheaves of content or 
gather the mildew of misery, is known. 

They have been sent, rather than gone, to the 
garner where all shall be gathered. 

This is the work of treason ! This it is to 
unroof the temple of law and order, and let 
loose the demon of discord. A people more 
than prosperous have fallen upon evil times. 
Murder, arson, theft, all kinds of injustice, follow 
in the footsteps of M'ar. Nor is the end yet. 
When shall spears and swords be beaten into 
ploughshares and pruning-hooks ? " How long, 
OLord?" 

The Escape of the "Planter." — A corre- 
spondent on board the gunboat Onward, on duty 
in the port of Charleston, gives the following 
account of this important event : 

" We have been anchored in the ship channel 
for some days, and have frequently seen a secesh 
steamer plying in and around the harbor. Well, 
this morning, about sunrise, I was awakened by 
the cry of * AH hands to quarters ; ' and before I 
could get out, the steward knocked vigorously 
on my door : ' All hands to quarters, sir ! de ram 
is a coming, sir ! ' I don't recollect of ever 
dressing myself any quicker, and got out on deck 
in a hurry. Sure enough, we could see, through 
the mist and fog, a great black object moving 
rapidly, and steadily, right at our port quarter. 
Notwithstanding ' Merrimacs,^ Iron Rains, Tur- 
tles, and death and destruction in all shapes, were 
instantly conjured up in the minds of all, yet 
every man worked with a determination and will 
that showed too plainly that be it a Ram, Turtle, 
or the old boy himself, he would meet with a warm 
reception. Springs were bent on, and the On- 
ward was rapidly warping around so as to bring 
her broadside to bear on the steamer, that was 
still steadily approaching us ; and when the guns 
were brought to bear, some of the men looked 
up at the Stars and Stripes, and then at the 
steamer, and muttered : ' You ! if you run into 
us we will go down with colors flying.' Just as 
No. 3 port gun Avas being elevated, some one 
cried out, ' 1 see something that looks like a 
white flag;' and sure enough there was some- 
thing flying on the steamer that would have 
been ivhite by an application of soap and water. 
As she neared us, we looked in vain for the face 
of a white man. When they discovered that we 
did not fire on them, there was a rush of contra- 
bands out on her deck, some dancing, some sing- 
ing, whistUng, jumping, and others stood look- 
ing towards Fort Sumter, shaking their fists, and 
muttering all sorts of maledictions on Fort Sumter 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



299 



and the ' heart of the South ' genen-alhj. As the 
steamer came under the stern of the Omvard, a 
very ancient old darky stepped out of the crowd, 
and taking off his hat, said, ' Good morning, sir ! 
I'se bi-ought you some of dem old United States 
guns, sir ! — fi'om Fort Sumter, sir ! ' and all thS 
others around him set up a yell — ' Hi ! dat's so ! 
yah ! ' and the antics and capers they cut could 
only be done by slaves, who, by a bold and suc- 
cessful move had gained their freedom — run- 
ning a steamer out of a large city — passing the 
frowning battlements of Castle Pinckney, Forts 
Moultrie and Sumter. Had such a feat been 
performed by a white man, Congress would have 
passed a vote of thanks, and the public would 
laave gone into ecstasies, and feted them. But 
to continue : As soon as she came up, Captain 
Nichols went alongside of her, and was joyously 
received on board. They all flocked around hira, 
and asked eagerly, ' Has you got one of dem old 
flags, sir ? ' ' We'd like to see him, sir ! ' The boat's 
flag was hauled up, and bent on the halliards of 
the steamer, amidst the greatest excitement. The 
male contrabands again commenced dancing, 
singing, whistling, and cheering, and in a few 
moments out came five female contrabands and 
three children. As soon as the females came out, 
they commenced shouting — looking up to the 
old Hag, ' Hi ! yah ! dat's him ! dat's de same 
old fellow! I know'd him ! ' and one rather good- 
looking one, with a very young child, elevated 
her baby over her head, and said, ' Just look up 
dare, honey ! it'll do you good, I knows it will ; ' 
and she held the infant close to her breast, and 
cut the ' pigeon wing,' with a vim, across the 
deck, and then shook her clothes like a hen in a 
rain-storm, and settled down the happiest look- 
ing creature the world ever saAV. 

" We learned from some of the most intelligent 
that they had been concocting this thing for three 
weeks. The leader in it was an old darky 
named Robert Small — they call him the ' Major.' 
The Major says they Avould have run two weeks 
ago with a large number of rifle cannon on board, 
but there was one fellow that they couldn't trust ; 
so they were compelled to postpone it. They 
have done very well as it is, for they have 
brought off four long thirty-two pounders, one 
one hundred and twenty-eight pounder rifle can- 
non, and one small mortar, besides minie rifles, 
ammunition, derricks, and a lot of apparatus used 
for planting heavy guns in battery. One of the 
men has been on her for some time, in the capa- 
city of an engineer, and another as pilot. The 
whole number on her is si.xteen, viz. : eight men, 
five women, and three children. 

"The old 'Major' said he thought he'd try it, 
any way ; for if he staid there he'd get killed, 
and he couldn't more than get killed in making 
the attempt, and Avound up by saying, « I tells 
you what it is, sar ! I was born under the old 
flag, and I'se gitting old, and I jist feel as 
though I'd like to die under it, and all we wants 
of you, gentlemen, is to let us live under de old 
flag — give us a little to start on, and we will earn 
our own living. We ain't no poor, lazy niggers.' 



The steamer is now on her way to the Augusta, 
the flag-ship on this station, and as she passes by 
the diflereut vessels, the crews man the rigging, 
and it would do your heart good to hear the 
hearty and prolonged cheers that greet her as she 
is passing through the fleet. I have forgotten to 
tell you that the steamer is the ' Planter.' She 
is armed with the thirty-twos and a howitzer, and 
is the same one we have seen so often. The 
other guns and apparatus were put on board the 
day before, to be transported to a new battery 
they are building. " 

Incident of Stone River. — In the rebel 
charge upon McCook's right, the rebel Third 
Kentucky was advancing full upon one of the 
loyal Kentucky regiments. These two regiments 
were brought from the same county, and conse- 
quently were old friends and neighbors, and now 
about to meet for the fii'st time as enemies. As 
soon as they came near enough for recognition, 
they mutually ceased firing, and began abusing, 
an'd cursing, and swearing at each other, calling 
each other the most outlandish names ; and all this 
time the battle was roaring around them without 
much attention from either side. It was hard to 
tell which regiment would come off" the victor in 
this wordy battle. As far as I could see, both 
sides were terrible at swearing; but this could 
not always last ; by mutual consent they finally 
ceased cursing, and, grasping their nmskets, 
charged into each other with the most unearthly 
yell ever heard on any field of battle. Muskets 
were clubbed, bayonet met bayonet, and in many 
instances, when old feuds made the belligerents 
crazy with passion, the musket was thrown away, 
and at it they went, pummelling, pulling, and 
gouging in rough-and-tumble style, and in a 
manner that any looker-on would consider a free 
fight. The rebels were getting rather the better 
of the fight, when the Twenty-third Kentucky 
succeeded in giving a flanking fire, Avhen they 
retreated with quite a number of prisoners in 
their possession. The rebels had got fairly under 
way, when the Ninth Ohio came up on the 
double-quick, and charging on their now disor- 
dered ranks, succeeded in capturing all their pris- 
oners, besides taking in return a great many 
of the rebels. As the late belligerents were 
conducted to the rear, they appeared to have 
forgotten their late animosity, and were now on 
the best terms imaginable, laughing, and chatting, 
and joking, and, as the rebels were well supplied 
with whiskey, the canteens v.-ere readily handed 
about from one to the other, until they all became 
as jolly as possible under the circumstances. 



A Masonic Incident. — The day after the 
battle of Antietam, the Fifth New Hampshire 
formed the picket line along the edge of the 
cornfield where Richardson's division fought. 
The reserve was in one edge of the corn, and the 
pickets about middle way of the field concealed 
in the corn, as the sharpshooters of the enemy 
fired on all who undertook to walk around on the 



300 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



I 



battle-field at that locality. Early in the morning 
one of the wounded rebels, who lay just outside 
the pickets, called one of the New Hampshire 
men, and handed him a little slip of paper, on 
which he had, evidently with great difficulty, 
succeeded in making some mystic signs in a 
circle with a bit of stick wet in blood. The 
soldier was begged to give it to some Freemason 
as soon as possible, and he took it to Colonel E. 
E. Cross, of his regiment. The Colonel was a 
Master Mason, but could not read the mystic 
token, it belonging to a higher degree. He 
therefore sent for Captain J. B. Perry, of the Fifth, 
who was a membor of the thirty-second degree of 
Freemasonry, and showed him the letter. Cap- 
tain Perry at once said there waS' a brother 
Mason in great peril, and must be rescued. 
Colonel Cross instantly sent for several brother 
Masons in the regiment, told the story, and in a 
few moments four " brothers of the mystic tie" 
were crawling stealthily through the corn to find 
the brother in distress. He was found, placed 
on a blanket, and at great risk drawn out 'of 
range of the rebel rifles, and then carried to the 
Fifth New Hampshii-e hospital. He proved to 
be First Lieutenant Edon of the Alabama volun- 
teers, badly wounded in the thigh and breast. 
A few hours and he would have perished. Lieu- 
tenant Edon informed his brethren of another 
wounded Mason, who, when brought out, proved 
to be a Lieutenant Colonel of a Georgia regi- 
ment. These two wounded rebel officers received 
the same attention as the wounded officers of the 
Fifth, and a warm friendship was established 
between men who a few hours before were in 
mortal combat. This is one of the thousand 
instances in which the Masonic bond has proved 
a blessing to mankind. 



An Agreeable Surprise. — Three fathers 
went up the Cumberland River in the same boat, 
with three metallic coffins, to bring away the 
bodies of their sons who had fallen in the battle 
of Stone River. As they stepped ashore at 
Ckrksville they met their boys jolly and hearty, 
with as little idea of going into burial cases as 
into a Southern convention. 



Incidents of Curtis' March. — On the 16th 
of May, 1862, Elijah D. Jenkins, of Henry County, 
Illinois, was shot at Cotton Plant, Arkansas. The 
company to which he belonged attempted to take 
him with them, although in a dying state. Stop- 
ping at a house by the roadside, they carried him 
in. He suddenly grew pale, and, staring wildly 
around, said to his comrades, " Raise me up, 
boys ; I want to give three cheers for the old 
flag," and instantly expired. 

The battle of the 7th of July, near " Bayou 
Cache " — Avon against tremendous odds — re- 
sulted in the death of over a hundred and ten 
rebels and the utter demoralization of six Texan 
regiments. The army under General Curtis was 



encamped at the junction of the Bayou Cache 
and Cache River, where his progress was delayed 
by a blockade of fallen timber. A road had been 
cut through this blockade on the evening of the 
6th, and early next morning Colonel Hovey of 
tTie 33d Illinois regiment was ordered by General 
Steele to open the road on the opposite side of 
the Cache, make a reconnoissance in front down 
to the Clarendon road, along which the army 
were to march, and also to scour the woods thor- 
oughly. Colonel Hovey detailed for this enter- 
prise the following force : Colonel Harris of the 
11th Wisconsin, with parts of four companies of 
his regiment, viz. : company D, Captain Jesse 
Miller ; company F, Lieutenant Chesebro ; com- 
pany H, Captain Christie ; company G, Captain 
Patridge ; and also parts of four companies of 
the 33d Illinois, viz. : company E, Captain El- 
liott ; company K, Captain Nixon ; company F, 
Captain Lawton ; and company A, Captain Pot- 
ter, who took charge ; and one small rifled steel 
gun, belonging to the First Indiana cavalry. The 
whole force numbered not over three hundred 
and fifty men. Colonel Hovey started about six 
A. M., with company D of the Eleventh Wiscon- 
sin ahead. Skirmishers were thi-own out, and in 
this way they proceeded to the Hill plantation, at 
the forks of the road, four miles distant from 
camp. On the way some pickets were driven in. 
The main road here leads to Cotton Plant and 
Clarendon. The road to the left is a neighbor- 
hood road, while that turning to the side leads 
across the Cache, four miles distant, and thence 
to the Des Arc, on the White River. Detach- 
ments were sent forward on each of these roads 
to reconnoitre. Colonel Harris, with three com- 
panies of the Eleventh Wisconsin, and Captain 
Potter, with the small rifle piece, proceeded rap- 
idly down the Des Arc road, having no cavalry. 
They passed a cornfield on the left, entered an 
open wood, and, reaching a turn in the road, at 
the same time rising up in elevation, they fell in 
with two Texan regiments of cavalry, with a regi- 
ment of conscript infantry drawn up on their 
right, ready to receive them. The rebels fired a 
murderous volley as soon as the nationals got 
into the snare, kiUing five of the men and wound- 
ing Colonel Harris and Captain Potter. The men 
returned the fire and fell back, the enemy being 
too preponderating in numbers to withstand with 
the little force. Captain Potter, though wounded, 
gave them a few rounds from his piece, and fell 
back, firing into the enemy's ranks. The rebels 
then made a charge, and the retreat became tem- 
porarily a panic. Colonel Hovey, hearing the 
firing, and judging the turn aff"airs were taking 
by the clouds of dust which rose and filled the air 
above the trees, took the remaining companies 
of the Thirty-third Illinois, and hastened to the 
scene of action. Some of the men fii'st fired 
upon did not stop till they reached Hill's house, 
rushing past Captain Potter, who would unlimber 
his gun, fire a round, and then retire ; thus check- 
ing the advance of the rebels until Colonel Hovey 
came up. The latter had hardly time to place 
his men in ambush behind the fence, at the angle 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



301 



of the cornfield, when the rebels, coming furi- 
ously forward with loud yells, received a well- 
aimed fire from Colonel Hovey and his men. 
Twenty-five rebels were killed the first pop. They 
were checked. The column reeled, and staggered 
by this murderous fire, broke, and the men fled 
in confusion. At the same time a heavy column 
of the enemy was seen moving through the woods 
between Colonel Hovey's j^osition and the Union 
camp, " Their intention was to get to the road 
on our rear," says a correspondent, •' cut us off 
from our camp, and thus surround om- brave men. 
But when they reached the road, and seeing the 
Wisconsin troops, which had fallen back, and, 
supposing them to be a reenforcement come to 
our aid, they abandoned their design, and re- 
turned. Thus what appeared to be disastrous at 
one time, turned to our advantage." 

Colonel Hovey rallied the above companies, 
and, advancing one fourth of a mile, to a cotton 
gin, held the position over an hour. 

At this time (about half past ten), Lieutenant- 
Colonel Wood came up with the second battalion 
of the First Indiana cavalry, bringing with him 
two steel rifled guns. This detachment had been 
ordered by General Curtis to proceed to the 
Bayou De Vue — fifteen miles from camp — with 
orders to save the bridge at that point from being 
destroyed by the enemy. The arrival of this re- 
enforcement proved extremely opportune. Colo- 
nel Hovey was posted about a hundred and fifty 
yards from Colonel Hill's house on the Des Arc 
road, and the army was not in view. Coming 
up at full speed, having heard the firing, the First 
Indiana were welcomed with enthusiastic cheers 
from the brave little command of Colonel Hovey. 
The latter exclaimed, " There comes Colonel 
Wood ; we are all right now, boys ; " and, ad- 
vancing to Colonel Wood, he said, " You'll find 
them (the enemy) down there. Colonel, thick 
enough ; pitch into 'em." The cavalry, with 
shouts and yells, then plunged forward at a fu- 
rious rate towards the rebels. The horses leaped 
a ditch four feet in width, which crossed their 
path, the bridge being torn up. One of the 
horses had a leg broken, and some of the men 
were pitched to the ground while making the 
perilous leap. Fortunately, none were seriously 
hurt. A few rails were piled into the ditch, and 
the steel rifled guns were passed over. A solitary 
rebel was now seen advancing to within one hun- 
dred yards of our front. He wheeled about and 
fled. The pieces, under charge of Lieutenant 
Baker, were unlimbered, and the cavalry brought 
into line of battle. The command was given : 
" Pieces by hand to the front ; forward march." 
The cannoneers seized their pieces by hand, and 
advanced on the enemy ; the latter being now 
discovered advancing, with extended wings, in 
the form of a V, the concave side facing towards 
our men. Their intention, it appeared evident, 
was to surround us. The rebels were dismounted, 
no horses being seen. Our pieces were loaded 
with canister, and, getting within point-blank 
range — some two hundred yards — we opened 
upon them with a terrible fire. The enemy halted, 



and replied by a heavy volley from their cross- 
fii'e on the gunners. Several of the latter were 
wounded, but not disabled. The steel rifled guns 
now belched forth a continued round of firing ; 
when the enemy, finding it too hot, fell back into 
the Avoods out of sight. The command was given 
again, " Pieces by hand to the front ; forward 
march." Colonel Hovey himself caught hold of 
the trail of one of the guns, and exclaimed, " Let's 
push them forward, boys." Colonel Wood and 
Lieutenant Baker also took hold of the drag rope 
hooks, and assisted in moving the guns forward. 
On the guns were pushed, the cavalry under Ma-, 
jor Clendenning following in line of battle, ready 
for the charge. Our men pressed on with enthu- 
siastic ardor. Advancing in this way a quarter 
of a mile, the enemy were descried formed in the 
same mode as before. We got up to within one 
hundred yards, when they opened fii'e upon us. 
We returned the fii'e with canister from the little 
guns, with occasional carbine and pistol shots 
from the cannoneers. The fke proving too gall- 
ing for the enemy, he again retreated, leaving a 
number of dead strewn on the ground. Thirteen 
dead rebels were biting the dust from the effects 
of our canister shots. Bowels and brains were 
scattered on the ground, and the blood besmeared 
the bushes in the vicinity. 

The order was given by Colonel Wood to Major 
Clendenning to draw sabre and charge. Taking 
companies E and G, the Major shouted, " Come 
on, boys ; it's our turn now ; " and plunged down 
the road into the brush, where they were met by 
a tremendous volley poured in on them by the 
rebels. At the first fire the Major was wounded 
severely, receiving a ball through the left lung ; 
and Captain Sloane, of company E, who was 
bravely charging in front, was instantly killed by 
a shot in the head. The Major, unmindful of 
his wound, still led on his men, and the latter 
poured in several volleys on the rebels from their 
carbines and pistols, unhorsing one and killing a 
number of the enemy. The rebels were staggered, 
and turning on their heels, fled in confusion. Our 
artillery followed close up, when the recall was 
sounded, and the cavalry fell back behind the 
pieces. Major Clendenning, in returning, fainted 
and fell from his horse, and was picked up by one 
of the men, who carried him oft" the field on his 
shoulders. 

The pieces were then limbered up and pushed 
forward in pursuit, the cavalry keeping close in 
the rear. In this way we advanced three fourths 
of a mile, when smaU parties of the rebels were 
discovered, stUl retreating. The guns were again 
unhmbered, and a dozen shells were tlirown after 
them, killing four, who were found at a long dis- 
tance ahead in the road, soon afterwards, by the 
pursuing cavalry. Colonel Hovey now ordered 
the infantry to the front, intending to deploy them 
as skirmishers, with an extended front, and follow 
up the foe. A consultation was held by the offi- 
cers, and it was decided to hold the ground al- 
ready won, and wait further developments, as our 
force was getting too far from succor, in a country 
with which we were perfectly ignorant. The woods 



302 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



were thick, the force of the enemy unknown. AVe 
had driven the enemy thi-ee miles. After halting 
there two hours, and no enemy making his ap- 
pearance, Lieutenant-Colonel AVood returned to 
the Clarendon road, and went to the Bayou du 
Vue to carry out his original intention. General 
Benton came up with his brigade and took com- 
mand. In camp it was supposed that the fight 
took place on another road, and, consequently. 
General Benton's orders were to make a rapid re- 
connoissance down the Des Arc road. Bowen's 
howitzers were pushed forward down one road 
after the enemy. A shot was fii-ed on the rebels 
and three men killed. Four kegs of powder were 
found concealed. The houses along the road were 
filled with rebel wounded, and the porches and 
door-steps were besmeared v,ith blood from those 
which they carried away. They abandoned their 
camp and fled across the Cache River, destroying 
a bridge they had constructed with boats. The 
bank on the opposite side was also cut out very 
steep, so as to prevent pursuit from our cavalry. 

The following incident occurred on the battle- 
field. At one time four out of six cannoneers 
serving one of the pieces were wounded at the 
same time. Sheafner, a German, clapped his hand 
to his left temple, and exclaimed, " Mine Got, I'm 
shot ! " Sheppard placed his hand on his back, 
saying, " O Lord, I'm shot ! " Then Lieutenant 
Dennaman brought his hand to his eye, saying, 
" I'm shot, too ! " Charley Barge was hit in the 
neck. He only said, " I'm burnt." The simul- 
taneous movement of the hands of the cannoneers 
to the parts injured, and the accompanying ex- 
clamations, were a little singular. 

Ptiding leisurely along. General Curtis inqtiked 
of a contraband, whose broadly-spread mouth in- 
dicated satisfaction at our approach, " AA^here did 
those rascals go whom we thrashed up above 
here ? " 

Contraband inquired, " Dem as what run down 
dis way yester' night, sah ? O, dem fellers was 
awful scared. One lot of 'em went down to de 
bayou, and one lot had done gone out on de Des 
Arc road, a^d de Colonel dat was wid 'em wanted 
'em all to go de Des Arc track ; but dem at de 
bayou told him right out dat dey would not do it ; 
and just about den dey dat was on de Des Arc 
road had run up ag'in one ob your Cap'ns, and 
back all dey come to de bayou, where de oders 
was ; and jes' as dey all went down in de swamp, 
up come" your Cap'ns wid dem little guns, and 
commenced what you call a sheUin' dem ; and 
dat is de last account." 

The above version was given off rapidly, in a 
high key, in the regular •' Brudder Bones " style, 
and was highly applauded. 



Robert Cummings. — The reader will recollect 
the circumstance of a lad on board the Harriet 
Lane exhibiting unusual courage in the fight 
that took place on the deck of that vessel, ending 
in her capture, on the morning of January 1, 
1863. Robert was engaged as a " messenger 
boy" on board the Harriet Lane, and won the 



good will of her officers by Ws pluck, good humor, 
and vivacity. AA'hen the attack occurred, and 
the storm of bullets was pouring down upon the 
overmatched crew from the cotton bulwarks of 
the Neptune and Bayou City, as our wounded 
men were carried below, the lad picked up two of 
their fallen revolvers, and taking his place upon 
the quarter-deck, blazed away at the invaders, 
fii'ing off every charge of both weapons, and 
then hurling them overboard. As the rebels 
clustered, thick as bees, on the cotton-bales, in 
the words of our informant, " every shot must 
have told. " Robert was subsequently wounded 
in the hand by a musket bullet, when momen- 
tarily his spu'it gave way. Surrendering with the 
rest, he shared the fortunes of the paroled offi- 
cers, naturally becoming a great favorite with 
them. 

NEGRO SONG OF" MISSION RIDGE. 

Ole massa he come dancin' out, 
And call de black uns roun*, 

Oh — O! Oh — O! 
He feel so good he couldn't stan' 
AVid boff feet on de groun'. 

Oh ! — O — ee ! 

Say ! don't you hear dem 'tillery guns 
You niggers ? don't you hear ? 

Oh — O ! Oh — ! 
Ole Gen'ral Bragg's a mowin' down 
De Yankees ober dar ! 

Oh ! — O — ee ! 

You Pomp, and Pete, and Dinah too. 
You'll catch it now, I swear. 

Oh— O! Oh — 0! 
I'll whip you good for mixin' wid 
Dem Yanks when dey was here. 

Oh ! — O — ee ! 

Here comes our troops ! in crowds on crov\'ds ! 
I knows dat red and gray. 

Oh — 1 Oh— O! 
But, Lord ! what makes dem hurry so, 
And frow dere guns away ? 

Oh! — — ee! 

Ole massa den keep boff feet still, 
And stared wid boff he eyes. 

Oh — O! Oh— O! 
Till he seed de blue-coats jes behin', 
AVhich cotch him wid surprise ! 

Oh! — O — ee! 

Ole massa's busy duckin' 'bout 
In de swamps up to he knees. 

Oh!— O! Oh — O! 
AVhile Dinah, Pomp, and Pete, dey look 
As if dey's mighty pleas'. 

Oh! — O — ee! 



AVasiiing Day in Camp. — " This is • washing 
day ' with us," Avrites a soldier of the Forty-first 
Ohio regiment. " AVashing day ! You know at 
home what a terrible disturber of domestic com- 
fort it is. My recollections of it are associated 
with cold feet, damp floors, meagre dinners, cros^ 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



303 



mothers, and birch rods. The servant girls and 
I used to fight more on washing days than on any- 
other. Washing is as much a duty as fighting. 
Woe to the unlucky sloven that appears at Sun- 
day morning inspection with dirty clothes, dirty 
hands, long hair, or untrimmed beard. We are ex- 
pected to bathe all over once or twice a week. 
This requLrement is one of the soldier's greatest 
blessings. At first, clothes washing was a diffi- 
cult and tedious operation ; but now there is not 
one of us that is not thoroughly initiated into the 
mysteries of wasliing, rinsing, and wringing. It 
is genuine satisfaction to see a fastidious youth, 
who, perhaps, has often found fault with his mother 
or sister on account of fancied imperfections in his 
linen, knee deep in water, worrying about some 
garment, in vain endeavors to wash it. Justice 
comes round at last. When I was a little brat I 
frequently used to throw down my bread and but- 
ter when it was not sugared to suit my whim. 
My mother would then say, ' You'll see the day, 
my boy, when you'll be glad to get that crust.' 
I have realized the truth of her words scores of 
times within the last year. Washing day with us 
has its amusements. On one occasion, last sum- 
mer, while we were stationed at Murfreesboro', a 
party of about a hundred of us were washing at a 
large spring on the opposite side of the town from 
where we were encamped. Buell's army was, at 
that time, exceedingly short of supplies. But few 
of us had more than one shirt — some were not 
even that fortunate. It was a warm, jjleasant day. 
We had removed our clothes, placed them in ket- 
tles, built fires, and were boiling them out, busy- 
ing ourselves, meanwhile, in playing * leap-frog,' 
' tag,' ' blackman,' and divers other games, when 
lo ! a party of rebel cavalry came thundering 
down upon us in pursuit of a forage train that 
had been sent out in the morning. What were 
we to do ? We had no arms with us ; our clothes 
were in boiling hot water ; the enemy were di-aw- 
ing near, fearfully near, jumping over the fence, 
the whole party of us scud right through the 
town for camp like so many wild Indians, as fast 
as our legs could carry us. The citizens, suppos- 
ing we would all be captured, came out in great 
glee, shouting, ' Run, Yanks ! run Yanks ! ' as we 
fled through the streets. We reached camp in 
safety, to the great astonishment and amusement 
of our comrades. It was a long time before we 
heard the last of that washing day. I asked one 
old black woman if she didn't blush when she saw 
us running through town. She replied, ' Why, 
de Lord God A'mi'ty bress ye, child — I couldn't 
blush for laughing.' " 



Adventure with an Alligator. — A soldier 
writing from Louisiana gives the following inter- 
esting and exciting personal adventures : 

" You must remember that this whole country 
is one vast swamp, thickly wooded with gum and 
cypress trees, and interlaced with bayous, which 
answer the purpose of roads. After attending to 
the pickets, I often indulge my spirit of adven- 
ture, and learn important facts about the country. 



by running up some small bayou on an exploring 
expedition. I presume you remember the old 
picture, in the Geography, of the Dismal Swamp : 
a little strip of water, trees meeting ovei-head ; 
the fallen tree in the water with a huge alligator 
on it ; the snakes here and there on bits of float 
wood ; the pelican and cranes, and many other 
birds. This is a true picture. It is what I see 
every day. I do not notice the reptiles, except a 
large alligator comes within range of my pistol, 
and then, with almost certain aim, I send a ball 
whizzing into his eye, the only place where a ball 
will penetrate. The alligators are not very large, 
— few of them being over ten feet long. Some 
of the snakes are very large, measuring over 
fifteen feet in length ; but the most common 
snake is the water moccason, usually about five 
feet long. Its bite is more fatal than the rattle- 
snake. 

" Now that I am on the alligator chapter, I will 
tell y^u of an exciting adventure I had with one. 
I had always been anxious to obtain some portion 
of an alligator to carry home as a trophy. One 
day, as I was returning from one of the outposts, 
I put into Alligator Bayou. An alligator swim- 
ming shows but little bumps above water, the 
larger one at his eyes, the other at his nose ; and 
it requires a marksman of no mean skill to hit it. 
I soon fell in with a number, and picking out the 
largest, I fired. He turned on his back, his feet 
quivered in the air, his jaws opened, and he sank. 
I paddled to the spot, and brought his lordship 
to the surface. After a good deal of prying and 
pulling, I got him into the boat, turning his head 
to the bow. He had hardly struck the bottom 
of the boat, when his mouth and eyes opened 
with a start, and his tail swept from side to side 
with the force of a sledge hammer. In an instant 
I comprehended my situation. To jump out and 
swim for shore was to jump into the jaws of a 
dozen reptiles, and my only salvation was to keep 
out of the reach of his tail, the canoe being so 
narrow that he could not face me. 

" At length, by throwing his head over the side 
of the boat, he got his head towards me, and made 
a charge with his jaws wide open. For once 
in my life I think I was thoroughly frightened. 
In an instant I plunged my paddle down his 
throat. His jaws closed on it like a vice, and 
he was quiet for a moment, and I had time to 
draw my pistol and send two balls into his head. 
He now lay quiet, but I saw that he was by no 
means dead, and I loaded my pistol, preparatory 
to another attack ; but as he did not seem disposed 
to renew hostilities, I paddled swiftly down the 
stream, and landed at the first convenient place. 
I then paid my last respects to his alligatorship 
by sending another ball entirely through his 
head, and 'went on my way rejoicing.' I did 
not succeed in getting the desired trophy, for 
alligators are like snakes ; ' their tails do not die 
until sundown,' and every time I touched him his 
tail would fly from side to side with such force as 
to endanger my bones. I think I shall never 
handle another alligator until his head and tail 
are cut off"." 



304 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, ^ND INCIDENTS. 



Story of President Lincoln. — Apersonal 
friend said to him : " Mr. President, do you 
really expect to end this war during your admin- 
istration ? " 

" Can't say, can't say, sir. " 

" But, Mr. Lincoln, what do j'ou mean to do ? " 

" Peg away, sir ; peg away. Keep pegging 
away ! " 

Incidents of Alexandria. — On Sunday 
morning, August 3, 1862, that place was plun- 
dered by a band of seventy-five rebels. After 
they had searched and robbed the Union stores 
of all the arms and ammunition they could find, 
and destroyed a national flag found in the store 
of B. J. Kinney, Esq., they magnanimously paid 
their respects to the only five Union families in 
the place. The house of Mrs. H. A. Conway, a 
widow lady, and for years a resident of the place, 
was proposed to be the first one searched ; but 
for the well-known reception her two daughters 
would have given the Vandals, Secesh deemed 
" discretion the better part of valor," and visited 
the house of Mr. J. Haller, where, by threats and 
vile oaths, they forced his daughter Julia to sur- 
render a Union flag, which she had often been 
seen Avaving to the boats passing on the Missis- 
sippi. 

Then mounting their horses, they rode to the 
houses of other Union families, giving insults, 
and acting in a manner that would disgrace a civ- 
ilized people. When passing the residence of 
one Fitzpatrick, a secesh sympathizer, and in 
whose house had been made a rebel flag presented 
them, the drunken rabble, in their frenzy, dropped 
the captured Union flag, which they had been 
trailing in the street ; when Miss Banscie Conway, 
a young lady of seventeen, seeing it fall, ran and 
picked it up, and safely carried it off, amid the 
angry oaths of the rebel throng. When command- 
ed to give it up, " No," she replied, " though you 
disgrace the name of men, with my life I'll de- 
fend the Stars and Stripes." On going into the 
house, she pinned the flag beneath her dress, and 
then bravely walked down the street, returning it 
to Miss Haller. 

Adventures of Sergeant Edwards. — In 
the charge made upon the rebels by company F, 
of the Seventeenth Indiana regiment, at the 
fight at Woodbury, Tenn., Sergeant WiUiam B. 
Edwards was amongst the foremost to dash in 
the enemy's midst, closely followed by four of his 
companions. In a moment, however, the Ser- 
geant, without being aware of it, was separated 
from the rest, they taking another direction. The 
rebels were endeavoring, by a free use of the 
spur, to reach the mouth of a certain lane before 
they should be intercepted by another party of 
ours, who were coming from another quarter to 
cut them off. 

Edwards fired off his gun, and, without knowing 
he was alone, galloped up to a Texan Ranger, 
who, with the rest, was in full retreat, and seizing 
hold of him, endeavored, by main strength, to 
drag him from the saddle. The rebel, who had 



a revolving rifle, turned fiercely around to shoot 
his assailant ; but Edwards caught his gun, and, 
after a desperate struggle, both going at full 
gallop, succeeded in M'resting it from him. It 
was then Edwards' turn to endeavor to shoot the 
Ranger. He elevated tlie piece and snapped it ; 
but, from some injury the rifle had received, the 
hammer would not fairly strike the caps, and the 
gun could not be discharged. All this time 
Edwards had forgotten his own single-barrelled 
gun. He now perceived it in the hands of the 
Ranger. They had exchanged pieces during the 
scuffle! 

Edwards dashed ahead. The Ranger had 
drawn his revolver. He fired it after his oppo- 
nent, and the ball passed through his coat. Not 
another one of the retreating rebels attempted to 
molest him for some time. As he galloped by 
each one, he called upon him to surrender, still 
supposing that he was closely followed by his 
four companions, and, a little further back, by his 
entire party. The frightened rebels seemed to 
be under the same impression, and those that 
Edwards called upon immediately halted, waiting 
for whoever were to take them in charge to come 
up. This gave them time to look about, and to 
perceive that none of our soldiers were following. 
Some of them then climbed the fences and ske- 
daddled in different directions, while the rest, 
gnashing their teeth with vexation and rage, 
dashed after Edwards. 

Above the shouts of all the rest, the Sergeant 
could now hear behind him the voice of the 
Ranger with whom he had maintained so des- 
perate a scuffle : " Shoot him ! shoot him ! why 
don't you shoot that d — d Yankee ? " Most of 
the rebels having blue overcoats on, they did not 
exactly know which was Edwards, and called back 
to the Ranger to say which one he meant. But 
the Sergeant had lost his hat in the melee, and 
the Ranger shouted, " The one without a hat ! " 
Several bullets were immediately sent whizzing 
round his ears ; but, fortunately, none of them 
took effect, and, a number of the rebels surround- 
ing him, he surrendered, while a dozen revolvers 
were levelled at his head and heart. But he only 
gave himself up when he perceived that no other 
Union soldier was in sight. 

Edwards remained a prisoner in the hands of 
the rebels four days. They were a portion of 
Morgan's old regiment. 

All sorts of questions were put to the prisoner 
by his captors. One asked him if it were time 
that Lincoln had called out tlii-ee millions of men. 
Another Avanted to know if he indorsed the procla- 
mation ; and, on his signifying that he did, an 
officer pulled out a copy of Vallandigham's speech, 
thrust it in his face, and asked him how he liked 
that. He found quite a number of officers who 
each had a copy of this infamous speech, which 
they were in the habit of quoting to confuse and 
confound our poor soldier boys who fell into their 
hands. The prayer of the patriot, as he grasps 
his rifle and kneels in the mud, the snow, or the 
blood of his murdered comrades, is : " Palsied be 
the tongue that uttered- that accursed harangue ! 




-EngiTyA.H.Kit'-to.e^ 



Mz\J . GEN. J. A.LO^T.^N . 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



305 



Anathema upon the head of the wretch who dares 
put cunning falsehoods in the mouths of our 
country's enemies, that they may cast them in the 
teeth of the poor soldier, M'ho has given up all — 
home, comfort, friends — that he may fight in that 
country's behalf ! " 

Thej' robbed him of everything — overcoat, 
blankets, and even a lead pencil which he carried 
in his pocket. 

Their living was rather scant. Each man drew, 
for a day's rations, half a pound of rusty bacon 
and a little corn meal. They did not depend 
altogether upon this supply, however, but regaled 
themselves with chickens, &c., stolen from the 
country people. 

After he had been with them for four days, a 
corporal and a few men were detached from the 
principal party, in order to take Edwards and 
four conscripts, who had been found concealed in 
the woods, to McMinniville. 

This squad stopped the first night at the house 
of a widow Beckwith, and partook of a comfort- 
able supper at her expense. The night M'as rainy 
and dark, and Edwards determined, if possible, 
to effect his escape. Making a pretence of going 
into the back yard of the house, he was accom- 
panied by the Corporal, gun in hand. After look- 
ing round a moment, Edwards stepped upon the 
porch, as if to go back, into the house ; and, 
while the eye of the reassured Corporal Avas taken 
off him, he made a leap from the porch into the 
darkness, and ran with all speed towards the bot- 
tom of the yard. The astonished Corporal hastily 
fired his gun, but the ball probably went far wide 
of the mark, as Edwards did not hear it. Indeed, 
such was his haste that he scarcely heard the 
report. 

He could see nothing, so dense- was the dark- 
ness ; but as he ran he unluckily struck the j^ard 
fence in such a way that he tumbled sheer over it, 
and heels over head into a thick patch of briers 
on the other side. Gathering himself up, and 
getting out of the briers as best he could, — his 
head, face, and hands terribly scratched and torn, 
— he ran hastily on until he became certain that he 
was not pursued. Then he stopped to rest a while. 
After this he wandered about for nearly a week, 
travelling mostly by night, and concealing himself 
by day, several times passing in and out the rebel 
picket lines, sometimes within a few }-ardsof them ; 
he once wholly lost his way, and was put upon the 
track by a member of a poor Union family, and 
subsisted almost all this time upon an ear or two 
of raw corn. At last he came in sight of Union 
soldiers at the burnt bridge on Stone River, seven 
miles north of Murfreesboro', where he once more 
gained his freedom under the old flag. 



Comedy op Battle. — A correspondent tells 
this incident of the fight at Murfreesboro': 

" A cluster of mangled fellows were huddled 
about a field hospital waiting surgical attention. 
A big, brawny trooper, with a bullet in his left leg 
and another in his right arm, hobbled up, holding 
his wounded arm in his left hand. ' Doctor,' said 
20 



he, with much less piety than pain, ' the d — d 
rebs came pretty near hitting me.' Another fel- 
low, blowing blood copiously from his nose, — the 
point of which had been shot off, — as a whale 
spouts sea-water, interposed, ' The d — d rascals' 
— sputter — * come d — d near ' — another blow 
and sputter — * missin^ me.' " 



How General Hooker talked to a Caval- 
ry Brigadier. — Said he to a Brigadier of cav- 
alry, " I know the South, and I know the North. 
In ])oint of skill, of intelligence, and of pluck, the 
rebels will not compare with our men, if they are 
equally well led. Our soldiers are a better qual- 
ity of men. They are better fed, better clothed, 
better armed, and infinitely better mounted ; for 
the rebels are fully half mounted on mules, and 
their animals get but two rations of forage per 
week, Avhile ours get seven. Now, with such sol- 
diers, and such a cause as we have behind them — 
the best cause since the Avorld began — v:e ought 
to be invincible, and by — , sir, we shall be ! You 
have got to stop these disgraceful cavalry ' sur- 
prises.' I'll have no more of them. I give you full 
power over your officers, to arrest, cashier, shoot — 
whatever you will — only you must stop these 
' surprises.' And, by — , sir, if you don't do jt, I 
give you fair notice, I will relieve the whole of you, 
and take the command of the cavalry myself ! " 



The Surrender of Vicksburg. — A corre- 
spondent gives the following interesting particu- 
lars of the surrender of the city : 

" As melancholy a sight as ever man witnessed, 
for brave men conquered and humbled, no matter 
how vile the cause for which they fight, present 
always a sorrowful spectacle ; and these foes of 
ours, traitors and enemies of liberty and civiliza- 
tion though they be, are brave, as many a hard- 
fought field can well attest. They marched out 
of their intrenchments by regiments upon the 
grassy declivity immediately outside their fort ; 
they stacked their arms, hung their colors upon 
the centre, laid off their knapsacks, belts, car- 
tridge-boxes, and cap-pouches, and thus shorn of 
the accoutrements of the soldier, returned inside 
their works, and thence down the Jackson road 
into the city. The men went through the cere- 
mony with that downcast look so touching on a 
soldier's face ; not a word was spoken ; there was 
none of that gay badinage we are so much ac- 
customed to hear from the ranks of regiments 
marching through our streets ; the few words of 
command necessary were given by their own offi- 
cers in that low tone of voice we hear used at 
funerals. Generals McPherson, Logan, and For- 
ney, attended by their respective staffs, stood on 
the rebel breastworks overlooking the scene never 
before witnessed on this continent. The rebel 
troops, as to clothing, presented that varied ap- 
pearance so familiar in the North from seeing 
prisoners, and were from Texas, Alabama, Mis- 
sissij^pi, Louisiana, Georgia, and Missouri ; the 
arms were mostly muskets and rifles of superior 



306 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS, 



II 



excellence, and I saw but very few shot-guns, or 
indiscriminate weapons of any kind ; it was plain 
that Pemberton had a splendidly-appointed army. 
Their flags were of a kind new to me, all I saw 
being cut in about the same dimensions as our 
regimental colors, all of the single color red, with 
a white cross in the centre. 

" The ceremony of stacking arms occupied a 
little over an hour upon that part of the lines ; 
and when it was concluded, the glittering caval- 
cade of officers, Federal and rebel, mounted and 
swept cityward on the full gallop, through such 
clouds of dust as I hope never to ride through 
again. A few minutes, fortunately, brought us to 
a halt at a house on the extreme outskirts of the 
city, built of stone, in the Southern fashion, Avith 
low roof and wide verandas, and almost hidden 
from view in an exuberance of tropical trees, and 
known as Forney's headquarters. 

"And here were gathered all the notables of both 
armies. In a damask-cushioned armed rocking- 
chair sat Lieutenant-General Pemberton, the most 
discontented-looking man I ever saw. Presently 
there appeared in the midst of the throng a man 
small in stature, heavily set, stoop-shouldered, a 
broad face, covered Avith a short, sandy beard, 
habited in a plain suit of blue flannel, with the 
two stars upon his shoulder, denoting a Major- 
Gerteral in the United States army. He ap- 
proached Pemberton and entered into conversa- 
tion with him ; there was no vacant chair near, 
but neither Pemberton nor any of his Generals 
ofi"ered him a seat; and thus for five minutes the 
conqueror stood talking to the vanquished seated, 
when Grant turned away into the house, and left 
Pemberton alone with his pride or his grief — it 
was hard to tell which. Grant has the most im- 
passive of faces, and seldom, if ever, are his feel- 
ings photographed upon his countenance ; but 
there Avas then, as he contemplated the result of 
his labors, the faintest possible trace of inward 
satisfaction peering out of his cold gray eyes. 
All this occupied less time than this recital of it ; 
and meantime officers of both armies were com- 
mingled, conversing as sociably as if they had not 
been aiming at each other's lives a few hours be- 
fore. Generals McPherson and Logan now turned 
back towards our camps to bring in the latter's 
division ; and a party, specially detailed, galloped 
cityward, about a mile distant, for the purpose of 
hoisting the flag over the court-house. 

" Lieutenant-Colonel William E. Strong, as- 
sisted by Sergeant B. F. Dugan, fourth company 
Ohio independent cavalry, and followed by a nu- 
merous throng of officers, soldiers, and civilians, 
ascended to the cupola of the court-house ; and 
at half past eleven o'clock on the Fourth of July, 
1863, flung out our banner of beauty and glory 
to the breeze." 

A Gallant Michigan Captain. — During the 
retreat of the Confederates, after a cavalry skir- 
mish near Corinth, Captain Botham, of the Third 
Michigan cavalry, who was finely mounted, pur- 
sued them ; and with the cry, *' Come on, boys ! " 
gave his horse rein and spur, and quickly disap- 



peared in the wood, through which their course 
lay. He was followed by two or three of the cav- 
alry. Captain Sailor taking the same direction with 
his company. But Captain Botham, without hat, 
his face glowing with excitement, his sabre flash- 
ing aloft, outstripped all save the three men in 
question, and went flying after the frightened foe, 
now fairly on the Corinth road. The chivalry ran 
Avell, but the mudsills gained upon them every 
instant. The party numbered about fifty strong ; 
and in the mad race they threw away their blan- 
kets, haversacks, and, in some instances, their re- 
volvers, carbines, and sabres. Like all reconnoi- 
tring parties, they were all armed to the teeth. 
At the end of the first mile the Captain left both 
of his companions behind ; and about the time 
the half of the second mile was accomplished he 
came up with the rear of the flying column, yell- 
ing at the top of his voice. By a single blow with 
his sabre he killed the first man he reached, the 
good blade cleaving his skull ; but just at this 
time observing a road that led into a field on the 
right, in order to avoid a stretch of the highway 
that was very bad, he dashed into it, and by the 
manoeuvre headed off" about thirty of the rebels, 
crying out to them to surrender, or he would cut 
them all down, at the same time swinging his 
sabre madly around his head. They drew rein at 
once, and there he stood alone with them, and in 
a loud voice bade them throw down their arms 
and surrender. Meantime, one half of them, Avhen 
they found themselves headed off", turned down a 
road to the left. But their captor put a stop to 
this by swearing that if another man left he would 
shoot him dead in his saddle. The two cavalry- 
men who started with Captain Botham now came 
up and disarmed the prisoners. Upon counting 
them, the Captain found that he had bagged thir- 
teen live secesh, single-handed and alone ! Has 
the feat been beaten during the war ? Thirteen 
of their cavalry taken by a single mutlsill ! Upon 
each of the prisoners was cither a loaded pistol, a 
loaded carbine, or a sabre- They were never more 
completely panic-stricken. They were all safely 
brought to camp. Eight or ten others Mere also 
taken, and four or five killed and wounded. None 
of the Union men received a scratch, although 
several of their horses were wounded. 



Mrs. John Haiit. — A soldier, belonging to 
the One Hundred and Forty-ninth New York 
regiment, in February, 1863, wrote as follows: 
" We have a woman in our regiment, who has 
marched with us through all our tedious and tire- 
some journeys, and shared all our tribulations 
without a murmur. Her name is ]\Irs. John 
Hart, of Syracuse. She is a stout Irish woman, 
with a good constitution, capable of enduring as 
much fatigue and labor as any man in the regi- 
ment, and withal, she is a kind-hearted, virtuous, 
and estimable lady, who performs many kind of- 
fices for the men, and is universally esteemed in the 
regiment. Her husband is a member of company 
E, and is a good soldier and an intelligent man. 
She came with the regiment to share his fortunes, 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



307 



and in all our troubles and exposures not a 
whimper of complaint has ever been heard from 
her lips. 

" For some considerable time she was employed 
while in camp in mending and washing for the 
men ; but since the arrival of Colonel Barnum, 
an oificers' mess has been formed, with Mrs. 
Hart for cook and hostess; and well does she 
perform the duties of our camp household. Out 
of the simplest materials she sets a meal upon 
our table fit for a prince, and our sharpened ap- 
petites are abundantly satisfied. Her services in 
this department are invaluable, and it is difficult 
for us to understand how we could possibly dis- 
pense with them. In addition to her other du- 
ties, she is now acting as nurse for Colonel Bar- 
num in his illness, and we all hope her motherly 
care will soon restore hira to health and strength 



Anecdote of Stonewall Jackson. — The 
night after the battle of Fredericksburg a coun- 
cil of war was held by General Lee, to Avhich all 
his Generals of divisions were invited. General 
Jackson ^ept throughout the proceedings, and 
upon being waked, and asked for his opinion, 
curtly said : " Drive 'em in the river ; drive 'em 
in the river ! " 

Civilities of "War. — A letter from the army 
of the Potomac, dated February 12, 1863, con- 
tains the following : 

" The rebels recently rigged up a plank, with a 
sail and rudder attached, and on top placed a 
drawer, evidently taken from an old secretary, in 
which they put two Richmond papers, and on top 
a half plug of tobacco, with a written request for 
a New York Herald, and stating that ' they would 
come over and have a little chat,' if we would 
pledge faith. But this kind of intercourse is 
strictly forbidden on our part. The next day, after 
the Ninth army corps had left, the rebels hailed 
our pickets, and asked ' where the Ninth army 
corps had gone.' " 

" I returned this morning from a visit to our 
pickets. Company I, One Hundred and Thirty- 
ninth Pennsylvania volunteers, has a very good 
location for standing post, but the ' Johnny Rebs ' 
are perfectly docile. Night before last Harry Born, 
one of our boys, was busily engaged in singing a 
song entitled ' Fairy Bell,' and when the time 
came for the chorus, the four rebs on the post 
opposite struck up, drowning Harry's voice almost 
entirely." 

Incidents of Helena. — " Yesterday, in com- 
pany with Captain Sherman, of the Second AN^is- 
consin cavalry," says a writer in the Milwaukee 
News, " we rode by the negro grave^'ard in the 
rear of General Washburn's headquarters. Four 
darkies had just deposited on the ground a stout 
negro, dead as a door nail. His woolly head and 
dirty feet protruded from under the worn-out 
horse blanket, which served as a winding-sheet. 
One of the living was slowly digging a trench, 
the others stood watching. 



" ' Halloo, boys, what's the matter with him ? ' 

" ' He's dun gone dead, massa ! ' and they 
chuckled to think we could not guess why he was 
there. 

" ' What's the matter of him ? ' 

" ' Too much hard times, massa ! De niggers 
can't Stan' everyting.' 

" ' Niggers die pretty easy here — don't they?' 

" ' Yes, massa, dey get shut of theyselves right 
smart now — dem's hard times for niggers ! ' 

" And so thought we, as they were left behind 
to conduct their funeral to a termination. In 
half an hour some thousand-dollar chap will be 
left to rot, and add richness to the soil, which 
will hereafter grow larger peaches than ever be- 
fore. 

" In the house of Dr. Grant, where I board, its 
an intelligent African girl, about twenty-four 
years old, owned by the doctor. The other 
morning, while she was sweeping up the hearth, 
said I : 

" ' Millie, are you a slave ? ' 

" ' Course I is — why ? ' 

" ' Why don't you run away, and be free ? ' 

" ' Umph — umph! Dis chile is too smart for 
dat. Dere is no fun in sleepin' in de mud, starv- 
in' to death, and gittin' no medicine when you 
are sick.' 

" ' There are lots and lots of niggers in town 
who have run away — ain't there, Millie ? ' 

" * Umph — umph — right smart lot of 'em.' 

" ' Well, Millie, ain't they better off than be- 
fore they run away ? ' 

" ' Now, wat's de use of foolin' ? You know 
better. Would you be better off without clothes, 
and a bed, and a house to sleep in, and some- 
body to look out for you, than if you had 'em 
aU ? De time was here when us niggers had our 
parties, and heaps of fun — and we had good 
clo'es, and was jis as good as anybody. Be- 
fore dis war begun, a wagon-load of niggers 
didn't dun gone dead every day as dem does 
now. Dis chile knows somefin' yet, and dat is, 
to stick to missus.' 

" ' Well, Millie, cannot the niggers take care 
of themselves ? ' 

" ' Lord help you, no ! About one in a hun- 
dred is smart enough to live, and de odders 
would dun gone dead right smart. Wat-wat- 
wat-wat de niggers know about buyin' stuff, and 
takin' care of demselves — dey never done 'em ! 
De massa always buys for de niggers jes like as 
if dey was his own family, and wen dem is sick, 
he has 'em doctored up. Umph — umph! de 
white Yankee folks skin de last chicken out of de 
nigger 'fore it were hatched, if de nigger took 
care of demselves ! Deed dey would ! ' 

" ' Well, Millie, you are a very sensible girl ; 
stick to your home, and you will be better off.' 

" ' Deed I will. We've all dun gone got sick of 
Yankees long ago. Nebber had such thieves in 
town afore. Dey beat de niggers stealin', and 
some of de niggers steal right smart too, I 
reckon.' 

" ' What do they steal, Millie ? ' 

" ' Golly, dey steal all dey see, if two men don't 



308 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



jes watch it all de time. We nebber had white 
folks in jail here till de army come, and now dey 
is ill dar all de time.' 

" ' Don't you look on the white folks who come 
with the army as your friends ? ' 
. " ' Umph — umph ! Not now ; dey is too wick- 
ed. Wat-wat-wat-wat dey care for niggers, when 
dey lets dem die here, and won't give dem noth- 
in'. Niggers don't know much, but dey learn 
who am dar friends right smart ! ' 

" And there is a world of truth in her ideas." 



CAPTURE OF ARKANSAS POST. 

ACCOUNT I!Y A IIOOSIEK WHO WAS THERE. 

In storming and taking Arkansas Post the 
Sixteenth Indiana regiment has realized the ex- 
ulting sense of being conquerors. Once defeatecV 
almost annihilated, in Kentucky, a few days before 
compelled to retreat before the rebel stronghold 
of Mississipi)i, it knows now M'hat it is, after a 
desi)erate fight, to charge upon fortifications, in 
a blinding tornado of shells, grape, canister, and 
musket balls, to be the first regiment inside of 
the hilrenchments, and among the smoking ruins, 
dismantled casemates, and exploded cannon, to 
plant the glorious old flag on the stronghold of 
the traitor's fort. 

On Friday, the 9th of January, 18G3, the Mis- 
sissippi squadron, returning from Vicksburg, 
sailed up White River, through the cut-off, and 
forty miles up the Arkansas. Late at night, 
when the soldiers M'ere sleeping in the steamer's 
elegantly furnished cabin, the General opened his 
maps and gave us some idea of the morrow's 
work. 

On Saturday morning the troops were disem- 
barked, cannon dragged up the bank, M-agons 
loaded with provisions, and an occasional feehng 
shot was fired from tlie gunboats. Messengers 
were galloping, and Generals with their stafis 
superintending the movements. There was a 
putting revolvers in order, donning fatigue suits, 
leaving hastily written letters behind. 

At twelve o'clock the Sixteenth started. The 
long voyage, the terrible sixty miles' march in 
Louisiana in thirty-six hours, when we destroyed 
their Western Railroad, and the five days in the 
Chickasaw swamps before the enemy's works at 
Vicksburg, had sadly thinned their ranks. Many, 
almost exhausted with fever, dragged themselves 
into the ranks, determined to go with their regi- 
ment. Forward rode our General to where at 
such an hour a leader should be — the front. No 
doubt his heart thrilled with pride as he glanced 
along the regiments of his brigade. Young, tall, 
and handsome, his chivalric bearing and courte- 
ous manners have won the love of all who know 
him. A General at thirty, made so for gallant 
conduct at Shiloh, his after conduct proved that 
we were not mistaken in deeming him the beau- 
ideal of a hero. The brigade marched up along 
the river bank, and rested in an open field for a 
short time. Steele's division, mud to their knees, 
after having vainly tried to pass through the 



swamps and bayous, returned and took a new 
course. 

It is now sunset, and we move forward past the 
outer rifle pits, from which the rebels had been 
driven this afternoon, on through the dense 
woods. Mud was everywhere ; we no longer 
stopped to avoid deep places, but plunged right 
through. It is now dark, and the gunboats have 
opened on the fort, from which the one hundred 
and twenty-eight pounders are shaking the ground 
in thundering replies. It is not like looking upon 
a mountain's quiet grandeur, but rather, only ten- 
fold more intense, like the lightning crashhig at 
your feet, rending the oak in splinters. There is 
a blaze of light from the gunboats. As sight is 
quicker than sound, a moment's pause before the 
awful roar and scream of the monstrous missile 
flying through the air followed by a dull explosion. 
Seldom can you thus trace the journey of a single 
shot in the roar of a dozen guns. Now they are 
shelling the woods. One passes to the right, an- 
other strikes to the left of our regiment, killing 
one and wounding four or five in company B. 
Darkness, with its half-seen horrors, the cannon's 
awful roar, the screams of shell and crash of 
falling timber, the blood and -smoke and groans 
of wounded men, make life seem so intense. In 
such an hour, into what notiiingness sink com- 
mon every-day affairs before such awful realities ! 
The puffing gunboats drop slowly down the river, 
the fort fires two shells, and all is quiet. 

Silently commands are given and obeyed : the 
men lie down where they had stood, in line of battle, 
on bush and in the mud. No fire is allowed. 
With their sixty rounds of ammunition they have 
brought but one blanket, which they wrap around 
them as a feeble ])rotection against the winter 
cold. From out a broken slumber I am roused 
by a gun's report. A Corporal, in his sleep, has 
kicked the hammer of his gun, and his wile and 
Httle ones will sadly hear of a right hand shot oil'. 

I could stand the cold no longer. In our rear 
were some huts, upon reaching which, I found 
men from difi'erent regiments gathered around 
sickly-looking fires, making cofl'ee. An Eighth 
]\Iissouri regiment man was telling how they 
hustled the rebels through the woods that after- 
noon ; about sixty of the scam])s had been cap- 
tured, while a wounded one lay dying in the 
corner. Slowly the night dragged along, till we 
almost thought the morrow never would come. 

Steele's division was passing silently, sa\>3 with 
the hum which always marks the movements of 
large bodies of men, and the rumbling artillery 
wagons cutting through ruts. Brigade after bri- 
gade moves on to join the right. 

With morning comes General Burbridgc, tell- 
ing us that Sherman would commence the attack 
on the right, while he intends that his brigade 
shall be the first to mount the , breastworks on 
the left. 

We are now within five hundred yards of the 
fort; we can see the buildings within its walls. 
The skirmishers who have been thrgwn to the 
front have stirred up the hornets, who favor uh 
with a lew shells. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



309 



Some of those able-bodied young men — those 
contemptible cowards — who are lounging in 
school-rooms, and smirking behind counters, may 
think it a very light matter to storm the enemy's 
intrenchments ; but plain soldiers, who have stood 
on battle-fields before, and seen the flow of blood 
as it gushed from fountains in human hearts, 
deem it no disparagement to then- manhood to 
think it a serious matter to meet the crashing 
rounds of grape and canister, and musket balls, 
as they lead the advance of a storming party. 

The Colonel calls us up around him, and reads 
the order. Our army, with batteries placed in 
every available position, and the gunboats on the 
river, have completely encircled the fort. After 
the batteries have opened, Sherman is to commence 
the attack on the right, which is the signal for us 
to advance. The Sixteenth is to lead the ad- 
vance, Avith the Sixtieth Indiana and the Eighty- 
third Ohio on our right and left. The gunboats 
are moving to the attack, though not a gun has 
yet been fired from our side. 

The stillness grows irksome. All know full 
well the awful storm is coming. At length a 
huge roar from one of the gunboats, followed by 
a shot from one of the thirty-two pounders on 
the left, announces that the ball is opened. A 
shot from the battery on the right tells that Sher- 
man has commenced. Fiercely the rebel guns 
answer back. Thicker and faster come the shells 
and solid shot, crossing in the air in curves from 
the circle of batteries around the devoted works. 
Not often could you trace the course of a single 
shot amid that incessant roar. Old soldiers say it 
was a cannonading only equalled by Donelson. 

The rebel regiments had retired from our front 
within the protection of their works. The boys 
took off overcoats, blankets, haversacks, canteens, 
drew their coats down, and buckled their belts 
tightly around their waists. In charge of sick 
men were left letters, photographs, and articles 
of value. Officers unbuckled their swords and 
took guns. The McClellan exercise avc had 
learned on the Potomnc might be. useful here. 
Cheering far to the right is heard. It is the sig- 
nal. Every man was at his post, and blood was 
throbbing high, as heard and obeyed were the 
commands, " Attention, battalion — by the right 
of companies to the front — Forward ! " On 
coming into the field, " By company into line — 
guide centre." Lieutenant-Colonel Orr shouted, 
•' Now, men, fellow me." AVe looked from our 
own glorious banner to the traitorous red, Avhite, 
and red, that floated full in view from the gar- 
rison staff. The mud was over ankle deep, but 
with Hoosier yells, onward right gallantly they 
went, like men whose blood was up, though met 
by a plunging storm of grape, canister, shells, and 
musket balls. The regiments on either side gave 
back, or, in the language of the General's report, 
" My right and left wavered, while my.centre stood 
firm, though met by a perfect tornado of the en- 
emy's missiles." We passed the house where 
two guns were posted, over the fence, into a little 
peach orchard. An exploding shell sent rails and 
men flying. 



We are now within a hundred yards of their 
strongest work, and the order is given to lie 
down and fire. Many, killed or badly wounded, 
never discharged their guns the first time. 
Lieutenant-Colonel Orr is severely wounded in 
the head by a piece of one of the shells that go 
flying over us, while the fjrape and singing bul- 
lets made music around our ears not soon 
forgotten. The huge pivot gun is throwing 
canister, at least half a bushel at each discharge. 
One load killed and wounded men in three com- 
panies. But our men were not idle, and soon 
their showers of balls silenced the cannon that 
bore on us. A rebel captain of artillery told us 
he could not get his men to go near the guns. 
Still the ceaseless fix-e from our gunboats was 
vying with the land batteries in raining the iron 
storm upon the devoted works. 

Here let me relate a little incident of personal 
experience, to show how the thing works. While 
Ij'ing on my side loading a gun, whack ! went 
something ; and I felt lilic the darky who, 
when shaking a coon off a tree, felt something 
drop that was not exactly a coon. A bullet had 
grazed the skin below my shoulder. It stunned 
me like hitting a man over the head with a club. 
Almost at the same instant, a piece of shell, 
hunting for its affinity, as A. Ward, Esq., would 
say, gently rolled against my leg. 

I retired in good order to the rear, and meet- 
ing a negro with coffee, I was reenforced and 
enabled to return. Upon rejoining the company 
I was very jiroud to find each man at his place, 
the Lieutenant interlarding an oath after each 
discharge of his gun, and the Orderly, a dark, 
stern, resolute man, giving the boys worthy 
models for imitation. 

The sun had sunk low in the west. The gun- 
boats were still steadily puffing uj) towards the 
fort. Many who had fired away then- sixty 
rounds of ammunition would coolly roll over the 
dead and wounded to get their cartridges. A 
Quaker lad came to me saying, very deliberately, 
" Captain, I am out of ammunition." 

The gunboats sent solid shot through the four 
feet thickness of oak, and scattered in splinters 
the railroad iron with which the top was plated. 
Some shells, which made centre shots, had torn 
off the muzzles of their monstrous guns as they 
exploded. 

Many of their guns were dismounted while the 
circle of our batteries was drawing closer in. 

Among the most unpleasant things were the 
groans of the wounded. A Corporal in company 
D lay groaning with the brain oozing out of his 
head, as though death would never come to his 
relief. The stifling smell of powder, the cannon's 
awful roar, the explosion of shells, illuminating 
the smoke that hung in clouds, made it seem as 
if we beheld the opening of hell's fiery caverns. 

At last a white flag is seen at the upper end of 
the breastworks; we rise up and commence 
cheering, but they pour in a murderous volley 
from the lower pits, and we drop down. Soon 
more white flags are seen on bayonets, and a 
man passes along the lower works waving the 



310 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



emblem of defeat, O, how the exulting shout 
of victory at that maddening hour of triumph 
rolled along the lines of the Union army. AH 
start on a foot race for the fort. 

General Burbridge, with a flag around his 
waist, was followed by Colonel Lucas, who, when 
Colonel Orr's riderless horse had come through 
the woods, had left his sick bed and rode out in 
time to be " in at the death." 

The sullen rebels seemed a little startled as 
half a score of regiments came rushing pell-mell 
into their ruined works. After a four hours' 
light the day was ours. 

General Churchill, who had fought us at Rich- 
mond, gave his sword to Burbridge. Seven 
thousand one hundred and some odd prisoners, 
mostly Texans, besides a vast amount of com- 
pany stores and arms, were captured. Wagons 
that once belonged to our regiment, and guns 
with our boys' names on them, are found here in 
Arkansas, that had been lost on the far-off Ken- 
tucky battle-field. It is worth going through a 
battle to celebrate its victory. Some of their 
dead, with arms cut off, heads and brains scat- 
tered, lay in the trenches. At one place a man's 
shoes were standing with his feet in them, while 
the body lay a rod away. I saw a pile of flesh 
and bones, which had lost all semblance of a 
human being. All distinctions of rank were 
forgotten ; general and private shook hands ; 
friends, rejoicing to find each other safe, em- 
braced ; and from the whole body of troops rang 
shouts of joy. 

The regiment returned to the point from which 
the assault was made, and made coffee around 
blazing fires. Now came the saddest part — the 
after the battle. The red sun Avas sinking in the 
west, " like a banner bathed in slaughter." Am- 
bulances were running to the hospitals, and men 
were gathering the dead and wounded. Heart- 
rending were the groans and labored breathing 
of many of the latter. Horses lay with white 
foam and blood oozing from their nostrils. 
Gazing upon such a scene, Ave feel the truth of 
those beautiful lines : 
"There is something of pride in the periloiis hour, 

Whate'er be the shape in which Death may 
loAver ; 

Fame is there to say Avho bleeds, 

And Honor's eye is on daring deeds; 

But Avhen all is past, it is htunbling to tread 

O'er the weltermg field of the tombless dead." 

Leaving to oflficial reports to bestoAV praise 
upon those Avho hold command, let me mention 
one from among the humblest, as a name to be 
remembered — the flag-bearer of the 16th, Dick S. 
Tenant, a beardless student, fresh from college. 
He Avas a faithful guardian to his trust amid that 
blinding hail, and Avas among the first to mount 
and plant the banner of our fathers upon the con- 
quered ramparts. 

A Snowball Battle. — A soldier of one of 
the New Jersey regiments Avrites as follows : 

"You are probably aAvare that the Second 
brigade of this division consists of four Vermont 



regiments, besides the Twenty-sixth. During the 
late heavy fall of snoAv, the Vermonters twice 
made an attack on the encampment of the Twen- 
ty-sixth, sending a perfect shower of snow balls 
at the head of every luckless Jerseyman who 
made his appearance Avithout his tent." The first 
attack Avas a complete surprise to us ; but we es- 
sayed a sally from the camp, and drove the attack- 
ing party back to their reserves. Being heavily 
reenforced, they charged on us again, and after a 
desperate resistance Ave Avere driven back into 
camp, fighting resolutely from the shelter of oui 
tents until darkness put an end to the contest. 
Our casualties Avere quite heavy, but those of the 
enemy, it is thought, exceeded ours. A few days 
after Avards the attack Avas rencAved, but Ave took 
up a strong position on a hill in the rear of the 
camp, and repulsed every assault of the foe. The 
snoAv Avas crimsoned Avith the blood issuing from 
the olfactory organs of the Vermonters, and the 
appearance of the battle-field indicated the fierce 
nature of the contest. The enemy raised a flag 
of truce, an armistice of a feAv hours Avas con- 
cluded, and then ensued that novel spectacle of 
Avar — men, Avho but afeAV minutes previous Avere 
engaged in one of the most sanguinary battles 
of modern times, harmonizing and fraternizing 
Avith clasped hands. 

" But the matter did not rest here. The night 
of the 24th had enveloped terra firma Avith its 
dusky shades. Many a Avaxen nose in the camps 
of the Second brigade snored sonorously, happily 
unconscious of its ruby discoloration on the mor- 
roAV. Many an eye placidly closed in slumber 
Avas to be violently closed in battle ere the ap- 
proach of another nightfall. And many a phren- 
ological bump sjiarsely developed on the night in 
question Avas to be suddenly brought to an age 
of puberty on the approaching day. The event- 
ful morning opened. Colonel Morrison sent a 
challenge to Colonel Seaver of the Third Vermont 
to engage in the open field at three o'clock P. M. 
The challenge was accepted, on the condition that 
the Fourth Vermont should be included Avith the 
Third. This was agreed to by the ColoneL Be- 
fore the appointed time some of our men Avere 
detailed on fatigue duty, and at the time of the 
engagement Ave Avere only able to muster some 
three hundred men. 

" Nothing daunted by the superiority of num- 
bers, Colonel Morrison ordered Lieutenant Mc- 
Cleese, of company C (Captain Pemberton being 
sick), to fortify a small hill on our right, make as 
much ammunition as possible, and pile the suoaa'- 
balls in pyramids. This arduous duty was hastily 
performed. It was a strong position, a SAVollen 
brook at its base ansAvering the purpose of a 
moat — too strong, in fiict, for the Vermonters, 
and they declined to attack us while occupying 
this miniature Chepultepec. Commissioners Avere 
appointed, and after a parley, the Twenty-sixth 
was marched across the brook, and formed in 
line of battle on the field fronting the Vermonters. 
The hills Avere covered Avith sjKJctators, and the 
eag-erness to Avitness the novel contest kneAV no 
bounds. Companies A and B were thi'OAvn out 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



311 



as skirmishers. Compaii)' E occupied the ri<^ht, 
C was given the centre, and H rested on the left. 
The Colonel dashed over the field in all direc- 
tions, encouraging the men to stand fast, amid 
the blue wreaths curling from a ' brier wood ' 
nonchalantly held in liis left hand, and the Adju- 
tant danced about on a spirited charger, appai*- 
ently impatiently awaiting the hour of contest, 
the light of battle dilating within his eyes, and a 
quid of ' navy plug ' reposing beneath his cheek. 
Lieutenant Woods, of the ambulance corps, 

and Lieutenant acted as mounted aids to 

the Colonel, while the ' Sergeant' and John K. 
Shaw, an aspiring Newark youth of eighteen, 
acted as perambulating aids. The line being 
formed and everything in readiness for the con- 
test, a red flag was raised as a signal, and in a 
breath of time a strong body of the enemy drove 
in our skirmishers, and fiercely attacked our 
centre. At the same moment another strong 
force advanced against our right, but only as a 
feint ; for they suddenly wheeled to the right, 
and joined their comrades in a furious charge on 
our centre. Major Morris ordered up company 
E from our right, but too late to be of any ad- 
vantage, and they were completely cut oft' from 
the main body of our army. Although flanked 
and pressed in front by overwhelming numbers, 
our centre heroically contested the advance of the 
enemy. Animated by the presence of the Colonel, 
they fought like veterans, and the M'hite snow- 
balls eddied through the air like popping corn 
from a frying pan. But the enemy were madly 
surging upon us in superior force, and it was 
hardly within the power of human endurance to 
stand such a perfect feu d^evfer any longer. 
Gradually the centre fell back inch by inch, the 
line then wavered to and fro, and finally the men 
broke in confusion and rolled down the hill fol- 
lowed by the victorious Vermonters. In vain the 
Colonel breasted the torrent ; in vain the Major 
urged the men to stand fast ; in vain did Adju- 
tant "White, the chivalric De Bayard of the Twenty- 
sixth, implore the gods for aid. 

" The boys never rallied. Lieutenant Woods 
made an attempt to rally them and form them in 
hollow square on the fortified hill to the right, 
but he was mistaken by the boys for a Vermonter, 
and unceremoniously pelted from their midst. 
But the Colonel was not totally deserted by his 
men. The Vermonters seized his horse by the 
bridle, and made a desperate attempt to take him 
prisoner. The fight at this point Avas terrific be- 
yond description. The men fought hand to hand. 
Colonel Scaver, the Achilles of the day, dashed 
through the combatants, seized Colonel Morrison 
by the shoulder, and called upon him to surren- 
der. But his demand was choked by the inces- 
sant patter of snow-balls on his ' physog.' Around 
the rival chieftains the men struggled fearfully ; 
there was the auburn-haired Hodge, alias ' Wild 
Dutchman,' fighting manfully. There was the 
fierce Teuton Captain of company E, dropping 
the foe right and left at every swing of his arms ; 
but all in vain. Amid the wild excitement con- 
sequent upon the shouting, the rearing, and 



plunging of horses, the Colonel was drawn from 
his saddle and taken by the enemy. Most of his 
' stafl'' followed him as pi-isoners. A desperate 
attempt was made to rescue him, but it proved 
of no avail. Major Morris fared no better. Ad- 
jutant White, however, made a bold attempt to 
retrieve the fortunes of the day. Dashing into 
the dense ranks of the foe, he seized the bridle 
of Colonel Stoughton's Bucephalus, and gallantly 
attempted the impossibility of capturing the 
Colonel, who was the acting Brigadier of the at- 
tacking party. But the Adjutant had ' caught a 
Tartar,' for the Vermonters rushed around him 
like the waves beating upon some lone rock in 
the ocean, and vainly clamored for his surrender. 
He fought like an Ajax mounted on a ' Black 
Bass,' retaining his position in the saddle by 
resting his knee against the pommel. This was 
at last observed by a shrewd Yankee, who dex- 
terously slipped between the two horses, detached 
the supporting knee, and the Adjutant fell from 
his lofty position like a tornado-stricken oak. 
This fall disheartened the Twenty-sixth, and only 
detached parties of a dozen, scattered over the 
field, persisted in an obstinate resistance. The 
' Sergeant ' received a solid shot in the back of 
the head, and was borne to the rear a captive, 
and then 

« The bugles sang truce.' 

" Thus ended the great battle of Fairview ; un- 
equalled in desperateness, and the theme of many 
a future poet's cogitations. Our loss was very 
heavy, and we were severely defeated. The spec- 
tators, acting on the well-known principle of 
kicking a man when he is down, pitched into us 
most unmercifully when our centre was broken, 
and prevented us from re-forming in line of battle. 
The slaughter of the enemy was fearful, and the 
prowess of fhe Newark ball players and firemen 
was displayed on their battered visages. Colonel 
Stoughton was honored with a black eye, and 
the gallant Seaver fared but little better. The 
following is a fair recapitulation of the casualties 
on both sides : 

" Bloody noses, fifty-three ; bunged peepers, 
eighty-one ; extraordinary phrenological develop- 
ments, twenty-nine ; shot in the neck after the en- 
gagement, unknown. 

" The Vermonters fought with the determined 
energy characterizing them when engaging Jeff''3 
myrmidons." 

Coolness in Battle. — In the report of Ma- 
jor-General Foster, of his expedition to Kins- 
ton, N. C, in the list of killed and wounded is 
the name of Ezra Wormouth. Ezra was wound- 
ed at Whitehall, while serving at one of the guns 
of Captain Jenny's battery. Third New York ar- 
tillery. A ball struck his left wrist, shattering 
the bones, and cutting ofl" his little finger. Am- 
putation was rendered necessary immediately — 
so now, all that Ezra has left of his arm is four or 
five inches below the elbow. The noble fellow 
says "he has done all he can do to whip the ene- 
mv and crush the rebellion, and he is not sorry 



312 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



he ever enlisted, but is conscious of having done 
his duty, as all true men should." Does not that, 
and many other such sentiments which are ut- 
tered by men who have felt the sad effects of 
war, show who are true heroes ? 

Not fifteen minutes before Ezra was wounded, 
Thomas Johnson, of Oswego, N. Y., while serv- 
ing at the same gun, was severely wounded in 
the left forearm and hand. Says Captain Jenny 
to him, " Johnson, you had better go to the rear, 
and have your wound dressed." Hear the reply : 
" No, Captain, I am going to work ! " And work 
he did ; but in a few minutes another ball took 
his right arm off. Turning to Captain Jenny, 
said he, " Noav, Captain, I guess I'll quit ! " 

Numbers of such instances can be cited, espe- 
cially that of a private in Company K (Captain 
Cole's), Third New York cavalry, who was shot 
down by a ball passing through his head, making 
nearly an inch hole. He immediately jumped up, 
and with true cavalry recklessness exclaimed, 
" Blast them ! give 'em thunder, boys ! I'll live to 
fight them yet ! " And, sure enough, he did. 



The " Third Article "^ of War. — A sol- 
dier correspondent writes the following from the 
camp of the Ohio volunteers, at Falmouth : 

" Yesterday being Sunday, after the usual 
guard, picket, and inspection calls, the ensuing 
hour and a half was spent in hearing the Articles 
of War read. As Corporal Humphrey, of our 
company, was reading the aforesaid ' Articles,' Me 
noticed that ' Eph ' smiled ' out loud ' several 
times, — attempting each time to disguise it by 
dryly coughing, — and after the inspection was 
over, we asked him what made him cough while 
in the ranks. ' Why,' said he, * when the Corpo- 
ral read " Article Thuxl," about any non-commis- 
sioned ofScer or soldier who should «se any pro- 
fane oath or execration, should forfeit one sixth 
of a dollar, to be applied for the benefit of the 
sick soldiers of the command ; and a commis- 
sioned officer should forfeit and pay, for each 
such offence, one dollar, to be applied in the same 
manner, I thought the " Article " was one of " Old 
Abe's jokes ; " and that the Corporal had got to 
the place " where the laugh came in." ' We told 
him that the Articles of War were no 'joke,'' but 
that they were enacted by Congress for the gov- 
ernment of all our armies. 

" ' Well,' said "Eph," ' if that is so, my opinion 
is that the sick soldiers of this army will " fare 
sumptuously every day," and as banks have what 
they call a " sinking fund," I think it would be 
well for Congress to provide the officers with a 
" swearing fund." ' As he was speaking, ' Ike ' 
plodded past in charge of the pickets of this di- 
vision, and ' Eph ' continued : ' Now, tliere goes 
" Ike " on picket, and he don't swear — only 
when he thiiJis it a " military necessity " — but 
I'll bet you a paper of '* Fighting Joe smoking 
tobacco " that before he arrives at the Lacy 
House, over those hills and through all that 
mud. Article Three will get busted more than one 
hundred dollars Avorth ; and if the members of 



Congress, who framed those Articles, were the 
picket that is going out with him, it would cost 
them more pay than they get in one season extra 
session, mileage and all.' 

" During the day ' Eph ' came into our quar- 
ters, and, taking from his pocket a little morocco 
covered book, said he would like to read a few 
lines from to-day's evening prayer — '22dday' — 
and accordingly read as follows : 

" . . ' Manassas is mine ; Ephraim also is 
the strength of my head. . . Who will lead 
me into the strong city ? . . Hast thou not 
forsaken me, O God ? and wilt not thou, O God, 
go forth with our hosts ? O, help us against the 
enemy, for vain is the help of man. Tlu-ough 
God we shall do great acts ; it is He that shall 
tread down our enemies. 

" ' Now,' remarked " Eph," ' my opinion is, Da- 
vid meant us. We have got Manassas ; took it 
— " without loss " — over a year ago. But 
" who will lead us into the strong city " ? Who 
will bring us into Ptichmond ? " Fighting Joe " 
is here in command of the army, and " Eph " is 
here too, and I hope he may have the honor of 
following " Old Joe " hito Kichmond. I believe 
God is on our side ; but my opinion is, we had 
better let those works, the enemy have erected 
on the other side, alone. The last time I was 
there I made up my mind General French Avas 
correct in his opinions. Said he to General 
Couch, " General, the men can't take those 
works." Said General Couch, " Brave men can 
do anything ! " " Brave men can't stop a can- 
non-ball, ," said old General French, 

at the same time busting Article Three ; but out 
we went, and tried it all day. I saw over twenty 
men try to stop one cannon ball — brave men, 
too — but, poor fellows ! ' French was right ; 
they could not do it. In fact, the ground was 
2)iled up with brave men, who looked as though 
they had tried very hard to stop some of those 
cannon balls, but were ' wearied out,' and had 
lain down to rest. Through God, brave men 
may do many, very many, great things ; but in 
the providence of God, He has not so constituted 
man, that even, though he is brave, he can stop 
a cannon ball." 

THE HOSPITAL. 

Narrow beds by one another — 

White and low ! 
Through them softly, as in church-aisles, 

Nurses go —; 
For the hot lips ice-drops bring, 

Cold and clear ; 
Or white eyelids gently closing. 

For the bier. 

Strong men, in a moment smitten 

Down from strength, 
Brave men, now in anguish praying — 

Death at length. 
Burns the night-lamp where the watchera, 

By the bed, 
Write for many a waiting loved one, 

"He is dead!" 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



313 



One lies there in utter weakness — 

Shattered, faint — 
But his brow wears calm befitting 

Martyred saint ; 
And although the lips must quiver, 

They can smile, 
As he says, "This will be over 

In a while. 

" As the old crusaders, weeping 

In delight, 
Knelt when Zion's holy city 

Rose in sight, 
So I fling aside my weapon. 

From the din 
3!o the quietness of heaven 

Entering in. 

•' Standing in the solemn shadow 

Of God's hand, 
Love of glory fading from me, 

* Love of land, 

I thank God that he has let me 

Strike one blow 
For this poor and helpless people. 

Ere I go." 

White and whiter grows the glory 

On his brow ; 
Does he see the towers of Zion 

Rising now ? 
Stands the doctor, weary, hurried, 

By his bed : 
"Here is room for one more wounded- 

He is dead." 



Aemy Discipline. — A writer in the Cincin- 
nati Commercial relates the following anecdote 
of General A. J. Smith, who Avas in command of 
a division of General Grant's army of the Missis- 
sippi. It shows, characteristically, his style .of 
treating with delinquent officers, whose shortcom- 
ings chance tc^ come within his observation : 

" As I, with my small command, was quartered 
on board the steamer Des Arc, which boat was at 
that time used as General A. J. Smith's head- 
quarters, I necessarily became a witness to this 
(to lookers on) most amusing interlude : 

" On our passage down from Arkansas Post to 
Young's Point, after our glorious victory at the for- 
mer place, we had on board with us (for transpor- 
tation) three companies of the — th Illinois volun- 
teers. Now it happened that these men had 
rather neglected to clean their guns, which the 
sharp eye of the old veteran soon discovered. It 
was in the morning of our third day out — the 
wind was blowing terribly, and the weather un- 
usually cold, rendering it very unpleasant to re- 
main long on the hurricane roof — that the Gen- 
eral came rushing into the cabin, where nearly all 
the officers were comfortably seated around a 
warm stove. 

" ' Captain,' exclaimed the General, in no very 
mild tone, addressing himself to the commander 
of one of the companies aforesaid, '•■have you had 
an inspection of arms this morning ? ' 

" ' No, General,' timidly replied the Captain, ' I 
have not.' 



" ' Have you held an inspection of your com- 
pany at any time since the battle of Arkansas 
Post ? ' sharply asked the General. 

" 'No, su- ; the weather has been so unpleasant, 
and I thought I would let my men rest a while,' 
hesitatingly replied the Captain, already nervous, 
through fear that something disagreeable was 
about to turn up. 

" ' You thought you'd let them rest a while ? In- 
deed ! The d — 1 you did ! Who pays you, sir, 
for permitting your men to lie and rot" in idle- 
ness, while such important duties remain unat- 
tended to ? What kind of condition are your 
men in, now, to defend this boat, or even the 
lives of your own men, in case we should be at- 
tacked by the enemy this moment. What the 
d — 1 are you in the service for, if you thus neg- 
lect your most important duty ? ' fairly yelled the 
old General. And then starting menacingly to- 
wards the quaking Captain, said he imperatively : 
'Mount, sir! on that roof this moment, and call 
your men instantly into line, that I may examine 
their arms. And you,' resumed he, turning and 
addressing the lieutenants, who commanded the 
other companies, ' are fully as delinquent as the 
Captain. Sirs ! I must see your men into line 
within ten minutes.' 

" It is scarcely necessary to state that the officers 
in question made the best of their time in drum- 
ming up their men, whom they found scattered in 
all parts of the boat. Finally, however, the com- 
panies referred to were duly paraded on the ' hur- 
ricane,' and an abridged form of inspection was 
gone through with. The General, finding their 
arms in bad condition, very naturally inflicted 
some severe talk, threatening condign punishment 
in case such neglect should be repeated. 

" But during the time in which one of these com- 
panies was falling in, which operation v/as not 
executed with that degree of promptness on the 
part of the rank and file satisfactory to the Lieu- 
tenant commanding, that officer called out in a 
most imploring strain — ' Fall in, gentlemen ! 
Fall in livelj', gentlemen ! ' That application of 
the word ' gentlemen ' fell upon the ear of Gen- 
eral Smith, who, turning quickly around, hastily 
inquired, ' Are you the Lieutenant in command 
of that company ? ' addressing the individual who 
had given the command in such a polite manner. 

" ' Yes, sir,' replied the trembling subaltern. 

" 'Then, who the d — 1 are you calling gentle- 
men ? ' cried the General. ' I am an old soldier,' 
continued he, approaching and looking more ear- 
nestly at the Lieutenant, ' but I must confess, sir, 
that I never before heard of the rank of gentle- 
men in the army. Soldiers, sir, are all supposed 
to be gentlemen, of course ; but hereafter, sir, 
when you address soldiers, remember to say sol- 
diers, or men ; let us have no more of this " bow- 
ing and scraping," where it is your duty to " com- 
mand." ' Then turning upon his heel, his eyes 
snapping with impatience, the old General gave 
vent in the following words : ' Gentlemen ! Gen- 
tlemen, forsooth ! And rusty guns ! Umph ! 
That's good ! But that is the way it goes in our 
army nowadays. Each man expects to run for 



314 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



some civil office, on his return from the war, and 
so grfeat is his fear of giving offence to his men, 
and thus injure his popularity, that he permits 
them to neglect their most important duties ; and 
to " trump all," he has to address his command 
with the word " gentlemen " prefixed in order to 
be obeyed ! Alas, what militia.'" 



Anecdotes op General Keaent. — "I have 
never told you how popular the memory of Kearny 
is with all here," said a soldier — " Jersey Kearny, 
as some call him. ' What is that patch of red on 
your hat for ? ' I asked a young fellow one day. 
' It is for Kearny, sir,' said he ; and anybody could 
see he was proud of it. 

" Stories are related by the dozen of the daring 
of Kearny in action. Among a party of a dozen 
officers, many of whom had fought under him in 
the battles on the Peninsula and Manassas, I 
heard a number of adventures related to which 
the narrators had been witnesses. In the midst 
of the most desperate battles, when the whole 
field was ablaze with fire and smoke, Kearny was 
in an ecstasy of delight, as he rode along his 
unbroken columns, cheering where the fight was 
thickest ! ' You might hear the shrill voice of 
Kearny,' said Colonel Kiddoo, of a Pennsylvania 
regiment, ' ringing out, as he rode along the lines, 
" Gayly, men, gayly ! " I shall hear that voice 
of Kearny's till I die,' said the Colonel. But the 
old General's cheering was not always couched in 
the choicest terms ; for, when a little doubt low- 
ered over our arms, then Kearny would put on 
his whole armor, he would sink the rowels of his 
spurs into that wonderful horse he rode, and, fly- 
ing along from right to left and from left to right, 
he would hail the line with, ' We are whipping 
them like h — 1, like h — 1 we are whipping them ! ' 

" He had lost the left arm, and he would often 
catch the rein in his teeth ; his sword in his right 
hand, carried above his head. Nothing was too, 
daring for him. Once he had cleared an immense 
log and ditch together, but one of his aids halted 
when he came to it. Kearny saw him hesitate, 
and spoke out, ' Jump it, you d — d ass ! jump, I 
say, you d — d ass !' he often repcEfted. 

" It is said that when Kearny fell, he had 
ridden furiously, and become suddenly surprised 
by a force of the enemy in a strip of woods. 
They had him entrapped, and sang out, ' Sur- 
render, surrender ! ' ' Never, by G — d ! ' and 
Kearny, wheeling his horse, received the fatal 
bullet."- 

How Waterford was saved. — Just before 
the rebels evacuated the village of Waterford, 
near Leesbuvg, Virginia, they openly avowed they 
would burn it to the ground, as it was nothing 
more than a " cursed Quaker settlement." A 
noble-hearted Quaker woman, whose husband 
had been chased from his home by the rebels 
some months before, besought a gentleman of 
her faith to hasten over to Colonel Geary's camp, 
some eight miles away, and ask him to send a 
force to Waterford to prevent the threatened con- 



flagration. He had a flne horse, but declined the 
duty, owing to the dangers of getting tlu-ough 
the rebel pickets. " Lend me thy horse, then," 
she said. He declined again. " Then I will steal 
thy horse," she said, " and go myself" She forth- 
with directed a servant to take the horse to a 
neighboring wood, to which the owner made no 
resistance. Another servant took her side-saddle 
to the horse, Avhen the heroine appeared, and, 
mounting the animal, rode off in open day right 
through the pickets, who did not stop her, strange 
to say. When she got to Geary's camp, she met 
her husband ; and, being brought into presence 
of the Colonel, she made known the object of her 
mission, which was quickly complied with, and 
she rode back to Waterford at the head of a 
detachment, which got into the village just in 
time to see the rebel force leaving the opposite 
end of the town as fast as their heels could carry 
them. And thus this pretty little village was 
saved from conflagration by the resolute con- 
duct of this Quaker lady. 



THE ESCAPE OF JOHN MORGAN. 

General John Morgan was honored with 
an ovation on the 7 th of January, 1864, on his 
arrival at Richmond. The following is an ac- 
count of his escape from the Ohio Penitentiary, 
and subsequent adventures : 

" Their bedsteads were small iron stools, 
fastened to the wall with hinges. They could 
be hooked up, or allowed to stand on the floor ; 
and, to prevent any suspicion, for several days 
before any work was attempted, they made it a 
habit to let them down, and sit at their doors 
and read. Captain Hines superintended the 
work, while General Morgan kept watch to divert 
the attention of the sentinel, whose duty it was 
to come round during the day, and observe if 
anything was gjjing on. One day this fellow 
came in while Ilpkersmith was down under the 
floor, boring away, and, missing him, said, ' Where 
,rs Hokersmith ? ' The General replied, ' He is 
in my room sick ; '<ind immediately pulled a docu- 
ment out of his pocket, and said to him, ' Here is 
a memorial I have drawn up to forward to the 
Government at Washington. What do you think 
of it?' .., 

" The fellow, who, perhap's, could not read, 
being highly flattered arthe Generqi's condescen- 
sion, took it, and very gravely looked at it for. 
several moments before he vouchsafed any reply ; 
then, handing it back, he , expressed himself 
highly pleased with it. In the mean time, Hoker- 
smith had been signalled, and came up, profess- 
ing to feeL>^ery uuM'ell.' This sentinel was the 
most difficult and dangerous obstacle in their 
progress, because there was no telling at what 
time he would enter during the day, and at night 
he came regularly every two hours to each cell, 
and inserted ' a light through the bars of their 
door, to see that they were quietly sleeping ; and 
frequently, after he had completed his rounds, he 
would slip back in the dark, with a iiair of India- 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



315 



rubber shoes on, to listen at their cells if anything 
was going on. The General says that he would 
almost invariably know of his presence by a cer- 
tain magnetic shudder which it would produce ; 
but, for fear that this acute sensibility might 
sometimes fail him, he broke up small particles 
of coal every morning, and sprinkled them before 
the cell-door, which would always announce his 
coming. 

" Everything was now ready to begin the work ; 
80, about the latter part of October, they be- 
gan to bore. All Avere busy, — one making a 
rope-ladder, by tearing and twisting up strips of 
bed-ticking, another making bowie-knives, and 
another tAvisting up towels. They labored perse- 
veringly for several days, and, after boring 
through nine inches of cement, and nine thick- 
nesses of brick placed edgewise, they began to 
wonder Avhen they should reach the soft earth. 
Suddenly a brick fell through. AVhat could this 
mean ? What infernal chamber had they reached ? 
It was immediately entered ; and, to then* great 
astonishment and joy, it proved to be an air- 
chamber extending the whole length of the row 
of cells. Here was an unexpected interposition 
in their favor. Hitherto they had been obliged 
to conceal their rubbish in their bed-tickings, 
each day burning a proportionate quantity of 
straw. Now they had room enough for all they 
could dig. They at once commenced to tunnel at 
right angles with this air-chamber, to get through 
the foundation ; and day after day they bored — 
day after day the blocks of granite were removed 
— and still the work before them seemed inter- 
minable. 

" After twenty-three days of unremitting labor, 
and getting through a granite wall of six feet in 
thickness, they reached the soil. They tunnelled 
up for some distance, and light began to shine. 
How glorious was that light ! It announced the 
fulfilment of their labors ; and if Providence 
would only continue its favoivthey \^ould soo 
morijiVg ofJtJie 



be free. This was the 
dav of November, 1863. 



The subsequent night 



sooi^kthe 
26th ^t 

io-lit -«' 



keeper entered with a letter for. Ge'n^al Morgan 
He opened it, and what was his^^u^i^e.«tFi'jut(i»I 
may say, wonder — to find jt froni a poor Irish 
woman of ^his acquaintance7in KJhiucky, com- 
mencing : ' My dear (j^nrfH*— I feel^certain youn 
are going to try to git out of prison ; but, for your 
sake, don't^u .try it^njy d^r Gintal. You will 
only be taken prisoner again, '^nd made to sufifer 
more than you do now-l *• 

" THte-kater^jj^weffitSui to^e^Jc of hi^ind- 



ness to the poor when he lived at Lexington, and 
concluded by again exhorting him to trult in 
God, and wait his time. What could this mean ? 
No human being on the outside had been informed 
of his intention to escape ; and yet, just as all 
things were ready for him to make tlie attempt, 
here comes a letter from Winchester, Kentucky, 
advising him not to ' try it.' This letter had 
passed through the examining oifice of General 
Mason, and then through the hands of the lower 
officials. What if it should excite their suspicion, 
and cause them to exercise an increased vigi- 
lance? The situation, however, was desj^erate. 
Their fote could not be much worse, and they 
resolved to go. Nothing now remained to be 
done but for the General and Colonel Dick Mor- 
gan to change cells. The hour approached for 
them to be locked up. They changed coats, and 
each stood at the other's cell door with his back 
exposed, and pretended to be engaged in making 
up their beds. As the turnkey entered, they 
' turned in,' and pulled their doors shut. 

•' Six, eight, ten o'clock came. How each pulse 
throbbed as they quietly awaited the approach of 
twelve ! It came — the sentinel passed his round 
— all well. After waiting a few moments to see 
if he intended to slip back, the signal was given. 
All quietly slipped down into the air-chamber, 
first stuffing their flannel-shirts, and placing them 
in bed as they were accustomed to lie. As they 
moved quietly along through the dark recess to 
the terminus where they were to emerge from 
the earth, the General prepared to light a match. 
As the lurid glare fell upon their countenances, a 
scene was presented which can never be forgot- 
ten. There were crouched seven brave men who 
had resolved to be free. They were armed with 
bowie-knives made out of case-knives. Life, in 
their condition, was scarcely to be desired, and 
the moment for the desperate chance had arrived. 
Suppose, as they emerged from the ground, that 
the dog should give the alarm — they could 
die. \ 
But f^Ar-moments were spent in this kind of 



at twelve o'clock, was determmed on as the hoiJ^ apprehension. The hour had arrived, and yet 
at which thejt^'ottttf attempt -tki^ir liberty.-..^ Each.^they I3ame. fortunately — yes, providentially — 
moment that intervened was filled with di'eadful the night ha#--suddenly grown dark and^ainy, 
anxiety and suspense>,and each time the guard 
entered increased»^ieir apprehensions. The Gen- 
eral says thai he>(|^d prayed for rain ; but the 
mortiing of the. 2 7u^ijtwned bright' and beauti- 
ful. The e^^iyig *caml^an,d clouds t^^an to 
gather. How they prayed for them to increase ! 
If rain should o^jly begin, their chances of detec- 



the dogs had retired to their kennels, ana the 
sentinels had taken refuge under shelter. The 
inner wall, by the aid' 'of the rope-ladder, was 
soon scaled, and- now the outer one had to be at- 
tempted. Captain Taj-lor (who, by the way, is a 
nephew of Old Zach), being a very active man, 

«K ^ ■ ' ° ' bysthe assistance of his comrades reac^ied the 

tion would ^^-^leatly lesseaed.K.'^ile, Ii^sb top of the gate,^f^cl^-as enabled to get the rope 
thoughts Av^-e passmg through their minds, tM^vOver'the wall, mien' the top was gained, they 



found a rope extending all around, which the 
G$o^ral imn^e^iately cut, as he suspected that it 
might lead into't^e Warden's room. This turned 
out to- be correct. They then entered the sen- 
try-bo^ on the wall and changed their clothes, 
and let themselyes down the wall. In sliding 
down, the General skinned his hand very badly, 
and all were more or. less bruised. Once down, 



^ 





\ 



> » 



^y separated — 
Hfikersmith, 






y\or and Shelton going one 
jnett, and McGee another. 




>S 



316 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



and General Morgan and Captain Hines pro- 
ceedfng immediately towards the depot. 

" The General had, by paying fifteen dollars in 
gold, succeeded in obtaining a paper which in- 
formed him of the schedule time of the different 
roads. The clock struck one, and he knew, by hur- 
rying, he could reach the down- train for Cincinn-ati. 
He got there just as the train was moving off. He 
at once looked around to see if there were anj^ 
soldiers on boai'd, and espying a Union officer, he 
boldly walked up and took a seat beside him. 
He remarked to him, that ' as the night was 
damp and chilly, perhaps he would join him in a 
drink.' He did so, and the party soon became 
very agreeable to each other. The cars, in cross- 
ing the Scioto, have to pass within a short dis- 
tance of the Penitentiary. As they passed, the 
officer remarked : ' There's the hotel at which 
Morgan and his officers are spending their lei- 
sure.' ' Yes,' replied the Greneral, ' and I sincerely 
hope he will make up liis mind to board there dur- 
ing the balance of the war, for he is a great nui- 
sance.' When the train reached Xenia, it was de- 
tained by some accident more than an hour. Im- 
agine his anxiety, as soldier after soldier would 
pass through the ti'ain, for fear that when the sen- 
tinel passed his round at two o'clock their ab- 
sence might be discovered. 

" The train was due in Cincinnati at six 
o'clock. This was the hour at which they were 
turned out of their cells, and, of course, their 
escape would be then discovered. In a few mo- 
ments after it would be known all over the 
country. The train, having been detained at 
Xenia, was running very rapidly to make up the 
time. It was already joast six o'clock. The 
General said to Captain Hines : ' It's after six 
o'clock ; if we go to the depot, we are dead 
men. Now or never.' They went to the rear, 
and put on the brakes. ' Jump, Hines ! ' Off 
he went, and fell heels over head in the mud. 
Another severe turn of the brakes, and the Gen- 
eral jumped. He was more successful, and 
lighted on his feet. There were some soldiers 
near, who remarked, ' What in h — 1 do you 
mean by jumping off the cars here?' The Gen- 
eral replied ; ' What in the d — 1 is the use of my 
going into town when I live here ? and, besides, 
what business is it of yours ? ' 

" They went immediately to the river. They 
found a skiff", but no oars. Soon a little boy 
came over, and appeared to be waiting. ' What 
are you waiting for ? ' said the General. ' I am 
'waiting for my load.' 'What is the price of a 
load ? ' ' Two dollars.' ' Well, as we are tired 
and hungry, we will give you the two dollars, 
and you can put us over.' So over he took 
them. ' Where does Mi|(|^'^^ — — live ? ' ' Just a 
short distance from here.' ' Will you show me 
her house ? ' ' Yes, sir.' The house was reached, 
a fine breakfast was soon obtained, money and a 
horse furnished, a good woman's prayer bestowed, 
and off" he went. From there, forward through 
Kentucky, everybody vied with each other as to 
who should show him the most attention — even 
to the negroes ; and young ladies of refinement 
begged the honor to cook his meals. "*'" 



" He remained in Kentucky some days, feel- 
ing perfectly safe, and sending into Louisville 
for many little things he wanted. Went to 
Bardstown, and found a Federal regiment had 
just arrived there, looking for him. Remained 
here and about for three or four daJ^s, and then 
struck out for Dixie ; sometimes disguising him- 
self as a Government cattle-contractor, and buy- 
ing a large lot of cattle ; at other times a Quar- 
termaster, until he got to the Tennessee River. 
Here he found all means of transportation de- 
stroyed, and the bank strongly guarded ; but 
with the assistance of about thirty others, who 
had recognized him, and joined him in spite of 
his remonstrances, he succeeded in making a 
raft, and he and Captain Hines crossed over. 
His escort, with heroic self-sacrifice, refused to 
cross until he was safely over. He then hired a 
negro to get his horse over, paying him twenty 
dollars for it. The river was so high that the 
horse came near drowning, and after more tlian 
one hour's struggling with the stream, was pulled 
out so exhausted as scarcely to be able to stand. 

"The General threw a blanket on him and com- 
menced to walk him, when suddenly, he says, he 
was seized with a presentiment that he would be 
attacked, and remarking to Captain Hines, ' AVe 
shall be attacked in twenty minutes,' commenced 
saddling his horse. He had hardly tied his girth 
when ' Bang ! bang ! ' went the minie balls. 
He bounced his horse, and the noble animal, ap- 
pearing to be inspired with new vigor, bounded 
off" like a deer up the mountain. The last he 
saw of his poor fellows on the opposite side, they 
were disappearing up the river bank, fired upon 
by a whole regiment of Yankees. By this time 
it was dark, and also raining. He knew that a 
perfect cordon of pickets would surround the 
foot of the mountain, and if he remained there 
until morning he would be lost. So he deter- 
mined to run the gantlet at once, and com- 
menced to descend. As he neared the foot, lead- 
ing his horse, he came almost in personal contact 
with a picket. His first impulse was to kill him, 
but finding him asleep, he determined to let him 
sleep on. He made his way to the house of a 
Union man that he knew lived near there, and 
went up and passed himself off" as Captain Quarter- 
master of Hunt's regiment, who was on his way to 
Athens, Tenn., to procure supplies of sugar and 
coffee for the Union people of the country. The 
lady, who appeared to be asleep while this inter- 
view was taking place with her husband, at the 
mention of sugar and coffee, jumped out of bod 
in her night-clothes, and said : ' Thank God for 
that ; for we ain't seen any rale coffee up here for 
, God knows how long ! ' She was so delighted at 
the prospect, that she made up a fire and 
cooked them a good supper. Supper being over, 
the General remarked that he understood that 
some rebels had 'tried to cross the river this 
afternoon.' ' Yes,' said the woman ' but our 
men killed some on urn, and di-iv the rest back.' 
' Now,' said the General, ' I know that ; but 
didn't some of them get over?' 'Yes,' was 
her reply, ' but they are on the mountain, and 
cannot get down without being killed, as every 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS, 



317 



road is stopped up.' He then said to her : ' It 
is very important for me to get to Athens by to- 
morrow night, or I may lose that sugar and 
coffee ; and I am a&aid to go down any of these 
roads for fear my own men will kill me.' 

"The fear of losing that sugar and coffee 
brought her again to an accommodating mood, 
and she replied : ' Why, Paul, can't you show 
the Captain through our farm, that road down by 
the field ? ' The General says : ' Of course, 
Paul, you can do it ; and as the night is very 
cold, I will give you ten dollars (in gold) to 
help you along.' The gold, and the prospect 
of sugar and coffee, were too much for any 
poor man's nerves, and he yielded, and getting 
on a horse, he took them seven miles to the 
big road. 

" From this time forward he had a series of ad- 
ventures and escapes, all veiy wonderful, until he 
got near another river in Tennessee, when he 
resolved to go up to a house and find the way. 
Hines went to the house, while the General stood 
in the road. Hearing a body of cavalry come 
dashing up behind him, he quietly slipped to one 
side of the road, and it passed by without ob- 
serving him. They went travelling after Hines, 
and, poor fel'ow ! he has not been heard of 
since. How s,id to think that he should be either 
capture i or killed after so many brave efforts, not 
only in Ills own behalf, but also in that of the 
General; for the General says that it is owing 
chiefly to Hines's enterprise and skill that they 
made their escape. 

"When he arrived at the river referred to above, 
he tried to get over, intending to stop that night 
with a good Southern man on the other side. 
He could not get over, and had to stop at the 
house of a Union man. The next morning he 
went to the house that he had sought the night 
previous, and found the track of the Yankees 
scarcely cold. They had been there all night, 
expecting that he would come there, and had 
murdered everybody who had attempted to reach 
the house, without hailing them. In pursuing 
this brutal course, they had killed three young 
men, neighbors of this gentleman, and went 
away, leaving their dead bodies on the ground. 

"After he had crossed Okey's River, and got 
down into Middle Tennessee, he found it almost 
impossible to avoid recognition. At one time he 
passed some poor women, and one of them com- 
menced clapping her hands, and said, ' O ! I 
know who that is ! I know who that is ! ' but, 
catching herself, she stopped short, and passed 
on with lier companions. 

"The General says that his escape was made 
entirely without assistance from any one on the 
outside, and, so far as he knows, also without 
their knowledge of his intention ; that the an- 
nouncement of his arrival in Toronto was one of 
those fortuitous coincidences that cannot be 
accounted for; that it assisted him materially, 
no doubt. In fact, he says that his ' wife's 
prayers' saved him, and, as this is the most 
agreeable way of explaining it, he is determined 
to believe it." 



An Incident. — Among the excuses offered for 
exemptions, some are extremely ludicrous. In 
Smyth County, Va., we learn, one man on en- 
rolling himself wrote opposite his name, " one 
leg too short." The next man that came in, 
noticing the excuse, and deeming it pretty good, 
thought he would make his better, and wrote op- 
posite his name, " both legs too short " ! 



Wit wokth Preserving. — The committee 
appointed to collect metal for cannon for Gen- 
eral Beauregard's army, applied to a planter of 
Adams County, Miss., for his bell. Not having 
such an article, he mentioned it to his wife, when 
she very patriotically offered her brass kettle. 
The little ones rather demurred to the sacrifice, 
and one of them, with a sweet tooth, said, " La, 
pa, what will we do for preserves ?■ " " My 
daughter," said the wag of a father, " our whole 
duty now is to preserve our country." The 
kettle was sent. 

Buell's Strategy. — A soldier who was in the 
battle of Pittsburg gives the following account 
of General Buell's strategy in the field : 

" On Monday morning, about ten o'clock, Gen- 
eral Buell executed a manoeuvre that reflects great 
credit on him as a commander. The rebels were 
advancing in great force to turn our left and cap- 
ture our transports and supplies, when Buell, be- 
coming aware of their intentions, made prepara- 
tions to receive them. About half a mile above 
the lauding are two large ridges, and between 
them he placed a brigade of infantry. The 
troops were ordered to lie down. He then 
ordered a lower battery to fire on the enemy and 
make a show of retreating in confusion to draw 
the rebels on. On came the rebels, pell-mell, 
yelling at the top of their voices, ' Bull's Piun,' 
' Bull's Run,' thinking, I suppose, to frighten us. 

"As soon as the rebels came in range, the lower 
battery, agreeably to orders, opened fire, re- 
treated, and took a position in rear of the upper 
battery. The rebels, seeing our men retreating, 
charged up the hill, and took possession of the 
battery. The rebels, in the mean time, wei'e not 
aware of our troops being in the hollow below 
them. At this moment the signal was sounded, 
and the whole brigade rose to their feet, and 
poured a deadly fire of rifle balls into the ranks 
of the rebels, cutting them down by scores. At 
this favorable moment, also, the upper battery 
poured in a perfect storm of grape and canister 
shot. The rebels reeled and staggered like 
drunken men, and at last broke and fled in every 
direction, leaving the ground strewed with dead 
and dying." 

Inxident of Fort Donelson. — One little 
incident will show what the rebels expected. 
Having exhibited such a large force, and com- 
pletely surrounded the nationals, they thought 
it was about time for them to surrender, as many 
others had done ; and they began to be out of 
patience at the men's foolish tenacity, as they 



318 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS 



termed it, and determined to make a charge upon 
the siege gun, which they hoped to capture and 
decide the contest. Two rebels, more venture- 
some than the rest, rode rapidly to the advance 
of the charging force, and ventured a little advice 
— yelling out, "You d — d fools you, don't you 
know when to surrender? Don't you see you 
are completely surrounded ? " Our gallant little 
force at this point did not appreciate this admo- 
nition ; but just then bang went the old gun, 
blowing Mr. Rebels and horses to atoms, repuls- 
ing the charge, and saving this point again. The 
men and horses were about fifteen feet from the 
gun when it went off, loaded with canister. 



A Case of Affection. — A soldier at La 
Grange, Tennessee, gives the following: "The 
women would rather we would take prisoners all 
the men on the plantation than one blind mule. 
A case of like filial affection I witnessed one 
time while our company Mas out picking up 
scattering members of Faulkner's guerrilla band. 
Coming up to a house where we had ascertained 
one of them lived, our Lieutenant inquired of 
the ' gude woman ' of the house, the whereabouts 
of her lord. She hurriedly informed him that 
her husband was not at home. The Lieutenant 
knew he was, however, and set some of us to search- 
ing for Mr. Butternut, while others were looking 
about for anything else contraband. During the 
search, the woman noticed the boys catching a 
mule in the lot, and bursting into tears, sobbed 
piteously, ' O, dear, Mr. Lieutenant, they are 
taking my poor old mool ! O, Mr. Lieutenant, 
good Mr. Lieutenant, for the love of God and 
your mother, if you ever had one, donH let 'em 
take my poor old mool ! ' To this appeal, Lieu- 
tenant Watson only asked again where she had 
concealed her husband. ' O, I'll show you where 
he is, but for God's sake spare me that poor old 
mool ! ' Her trembling husband was soon forth- 
coming, and mounting him upon the mule, we 
left the woman standing in the door wringing her 
hands and crying, not for her betrayed husband, 
but ' my poor old mool ' — doubtless beginning to 
think this war was not so fine a thing as the country 
had supposed before it had followed them home to 
their hearthstones." 

Heroism at Fredericksburg. — Captain 
James H. Piatt, Jr., of company B, Fourth Ver- 
mont regiment, having been ordered with his 
company to the right of the skirmish line, after 
having once expended nearly all its ammunition 
and been re-supplied, led his men out in front of 
a battery within three hundred yards, where they 
did noble execution till a charge of canister struck 
down half the company, killing four and wound- 
ing fourteen, when he ordered them back to re- 
form, which they did, and retired in good order 
with the regiment just relieved. Yet not all, for 
calling some to his side, the humane Captain, a 
skilful physician, bound up the most dangerous 
wounds, thus prolonging at least several lives, 
and with the assistance he had summoned, bore 



away to the hospital, a mde distant, all who were 
unable to help themselves. This was done amid 
bullets flying like hail, yet, through a kind Provi- 
dence, no one was harmed. As the gallant Cap- 
tain said, " God would not let us suffer while in 
discharge of such a duty." 



"WfflLE GOD HE LEAVES ME REASON, 
GOD HE \STLLL LEAVE ME JIM."* 

BY MARY H. C. BOOTH. 

" Soldier, say, did you meet my Jimmy in the 

iaght? 
You'd know him by his manliness, and by his eyes* 

sweet light." 
" I fought beside your gallant son — a brave, good 

fellow he ; 
Alas ! he fell beneath the shot that should have 

taken me." 

" And think you that my Jimmy cared about a 

little fall ? 
Why make a great ado of what he would not mind 

at all ? 
When Jimmy was a little boy, and played with 

Bobby Brown, 
He always played the enemy, and Bob he shot him 

down. 

"I've seen him fall a hundred times, the cvmning 

little sprite ; 
He can't forget his boyish tricks though in an 

earnest fight. 
But never mind about the fall ; I want to hear of 

him ; 
Perhaps you'A^e heard the Captain speak of what he 

thinks of Jim." 

" I've often heard the Captain say Jim was a splen- 
did lad, 

The bravest and the handsomest of all the boys 
he had. 

And here's a lock of Jimmy's hair, and here's a 
golden ring ; 

I found it tied around his neck upon a silken 
string." 

The mother took the matted tress, she took the 

ring of gold. 
But shook her head, and laughed aloud at what the 

soldier told. 
" Soldier," said she, " where is my boy ? where is 

my brave boy, Jim ? 
I gave the others all to God, but God he left me 

him. 

" Hush, there is Uncle Abraham a-knocking at the 

door ; 
He calls for other mothers' sons, ' Tliree hundred 

thousand more ! ' 
Be still, Old Uncle Abraham ; 'twill do no good 

to call ; 
Y'^ou think my house is full of boys ; ah, Jimmy 

was my all." 

* Words of a soldier's mother, who, on hearing that 
her only son had fallen in battle, became hopelessly 
insane, though continually declaring that his having 
" fallen " was of no consequence. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



319 



A Laughable Adventure. — The following 
story was related by Lieutenant J, H. Spencer, 
of the First Minnesota regiment : 

" On the — th we moved towards Madison Court 
House, and when within two and one half miles 
of the town we came to Robson River, which 
was so high, from the recent rains, that we could 
not cross, there being no bridge. We camped 
for the night, and remained until the 20th. At 
three A. M. we crossed the river, and at daybreak 
the advance guard, which consisted of sixteen 
men, a guide and myself, chai-ged through the 
town, and drove the enemy's pickets towards 
Gordonsville. On the south side of the town we 
found a horse hitched in front of a house, saddled 
and bridled, and covered M'ith sweat. Our guide 
told us that the man who lived there was a strong 
' secesh,' and I recognized the horse as one I had 
seen the day before, through my glass, mounted 
by a rebel scout. I ordered my men to surround 
the house, while I quietly knocked at the door. 
An elderly lady made her appearance. I asked 
her if Mr. Newton (the man's name) was at home. 
She said ' no, he had gone to Gordonsville ; had 
been gone two days.' I asked her whose horse 
that was at the front gate. She did not know, but 
thought, perhaps, it belonged to the rebel pickets 
that had been stationed near the house. I told 
her that I thought so too, and that I should have 
to search the house, for I believed that some one 
was secreted in it. She begged of me not to do 
so, and assured me that no one was in the house 
but herself and daughter-in-law ; that her daugh- 
ter was very sick, and could not be disturbed. I 
told her that I would not disturb her or interfere 
with private property, unless in the discharge of 
my duties. I searched all the rooms but the one 
in which the sick lady was. I found two Enfield 
rifles, and one Colt's revolver, all loaded with 
ball cartridges. The old lady begged of me not 
to disturb her daughter — she was very sick. My 
modesty prompted me not to enter the room, but 
it was my duty to make a thorough search. I 
quietly opened the door, and looked in. The 
lady was in the bed, and apparently in great 
agony. I stepped into the room and looked 
carefully around into the closet and under the 
bed, but discovered nothing suspicious. I noticed, 
with some misgivings, that the lady took up more 
room in the bed than I thought was necessary, 
(unless she had on hoops). I turned down the 
bed clothes, and found — what? The identical 
soldier, Newton, who had ' been gone to Oordons- 
ville two days!' He was snugly curled up on 
the back side of the bed, and it seemed that he 
had gone to bed in something of a hurry, for he 
had on all his clothes, even his cap and boots. 
His wife also seemed to recover very rapidly from 
her illness. I shall never forget the expression 
that Avas depicted upon Newton's countenance. 
I posted my pickets and returned with my pris- 
oner to camp." 

A Rabbit in Battle. — A full-grown rabbit 
had hid itself away in the copse of a fence, which 
separated two fields near the centre and most ex- 



posed portion of the battle-ground. Rabbits are 
wont to spend the day almost motionless, and in 
seeming dreamy meditation. This one could have 
had but little thought — if rabbits think — when 
choosing its place of retreat at early dawn, that 
ere it was eventide there would be such an un- 
wonted and ruthless disturbance. 

During all the preparations for battle made 
around its lair during the forenoon, it neverthe- 
less remained quiet. Early, however, in the after- 
noon, when the rage of battle had fairly begun, 
and shot and shell Mere falling thick and fast in 
all directions, a shell chanced to burst so near the 
rabbit's hiding-place that he evidently considered 
it unsafe to tarry longer. So, frightened almost 
to death, out he sprang into the open field, and 
ran hither and thither, M'ith vain hope of finding 
a safe retreat. Whichever way it ran, cannons 
were thundering out their smoke and fire, regi- 
ments of men were advancing or changing position, 
horses galloping here and there, shells bursting, 
and solid shot tearing up the ground. Sometimes 
it would squat down and lie perfectly still, when 
some new and sudden danger would again start 
it into motion. Once more it would stop, and 
raise itself as high as possible on its hind legs, 
and look all round for some place of possible 
retreat. At length that part of the field seemed 
open which lay in the direction opposite from 
w'here the battle raged most fiercely. Thither it 
accordingly ran with all its remaining speed. 

Unobserved by it, however, a regiment was in 
that direction held in reserve, and, like Welling- 
ton's at Waterloo, was lying flat on the ground, 
in order to escape the flying bullets. Ere the 
rabbit seemed aware, it had jumped into the midst 
of these men. It could go no farther, but pres- 
ently nestled down beside a soldier, and tried to 
hide itself under his arm. As the man spread the 
skirt of his coat over the trembling fugitive, in 
order to insure it all the protection in his power 
to bestow, he no doubt feelingly remembered how 
much himself then needed some higher protec- 
tion, under the shadow of whose arm might be 
hidden his own defenceless head from the fast 
multiplying missiles of death scattered in all di- 
rections. • 

It was not long, however, before the regimeigt 
was ordered up and forward. From the protec- 
tion and safety granted, the timid creature had 
evidently acquired confidence in man — as the 
boys are wont to say, " had been tamed." As the 
regiment moved forward to the front of the bat- 
tle, it hopped along, tame, seemingly, as a kitten, 
close at the feet of the soldier who had bestowed 
the needed protection. Wherever the regiment 
went, dming all the remaining part of that bloody 
day and terrible battle, the rabbit kept close be- 
side its new friend. When night came on, and 
the rage of battle had ceased, it finally unmo- 
lested and quietly hopped away, in order to find 
some one of its old and familiar haunts. 



An Inisn Gunner. — At the battle of Fredericks- 
burg a large cannon was located quite a distance 



320 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



from the rebels, and so much so that it Avas not 
being fired. An Irishman came along and wanted 
to fire, but they told him it would only be a waste 
of ammunition. " But," said the Irishman, " be 
d — d if I don't pay for the ammunition if it don't 
hit 'em." Consent was given, and he loaded his 
gun, cutting his fuse from his own sense of dis- 
tance, drawn from his unerring sight. Soon 
an oiiicer was seen, with another on each side, 
when Pat sighted his gun, and let go. Down 
went the officer, smash went the shell, wounding 
or killing the other tv.'o ; and thus, with equal 

f)recision, he continued to cut his fuse and fii'e as 
ong as tliey remained on the ground. 



Note from an Officer's Journal. — " Near 
Chattanooga, Thursday, September 17. — To-day 
a young lady called with her mother at headquar- 
ters, and asked to see the ' old flag,' saying for 
two years they had been denied a sight of it. As 
it was unrolled before them, they burst into tears. 
In the door-yard of her home is a grave, and I 
wUl tell you how it came there — then wonder at 
her weeping if you will. While the rebels were 
in this place, and were enforcing the conscription, 
her father fled to the mountains. Sought out and 
captured by the rebel fiends, without the knowl- 
edge of his wife and daughter, by night they 
brought him to his home and hung him on the 
tree beneath which he now sleeps. Morning came, 
and two rebel soldiers called to tell them the hus- 
band and father was outside, wishing to see them. 
Going out, expecting to embrace him, what a sight 
met then- eyes ! Horror-stricken, they appealed 
to the men to aid them in giving him a decent 
burial, but to no purpose ; and amid the jeers and 
brutal insults of the God-forsaken wretches, they 
themselves were compelled to cut him doM'n, dig 
his grave, and bury him from their sight forever. 
What wonder that they wept when they saw the 
old banner of freedom waving over them ? Is 
God just, and will he allow such men to triumph ? 
Little indeed do those at home know of the per- 
secutions, the tortures, agonies the Union people 
have endured. Until mine own eyes had seen it, I 
cftuld not hold such belief against my fellow-man." 



Incidents of Gettysburg. — The following 
hicidents are taken from the diary of an English 
officer, who was present at the battle : 

" General Hill told me that in the first battle, 
near Gettysburg, the Yankees had fought with a 
determination unusual to them. He pointed out 
a railway cutting, in which they had made a good 
stand ; also a field, in the centre of which he had 
seen a man plant the regimental colors, round 
which the regiment had fought for some time with 
much obstinacy ; and when, at last, it was obliged 
to retreat, the color-bearer retreated last of all, 
turning around every now and then to shake his 
fist at the advancing rebels. General Hill said 
he felt quite sorry when he saw this gallant Yan- 
kee meet his doom. 

" In the P.rst day's contest the rebels had about 



twenty thousand men in the field. In the second 
day's fight — 2d of July — General Lee is de- 
scribed as sitting most of the time ' quite alone 
on the stump of a tree.' What I especially re- 
marked was, that during the whole time the firing 
continued, he only sent one message, and only re-j 
ceived one report." 

Of the preparations made for the third and de- 
cisive day's contest, the writer says : 

" Pickett's division, which had just com.e up, 
was to bear the brunt in Longstreet's attack, to- 
gether with Hill's, and Pettigrew in Hill's corps. 
Pickett's division was a weak one — under five 
thousand — owing to the absence of two brigades." 

After the battle had opened, the writer pro- 
ceeded to join General Longstreet : 

"And although astonished to meet such vast 
numbers of wounded, I had not seen enough to 
give me any real idea of the extent of the mis- 
chief. When I got close up to General Long- 
street I saw one of his regiments advancing 
through the woods in good order ; so, tliinldug I 
was just in time to see the attack, I remarked to 
the General that I wouldn't have missed this for 
anything. Longstreet was seated at the top of a 
snake fence, and looking perfectly calm and un- 
perturbed. He replied, laughing, ' The devil you 
wouldn't! I would like to have missed it very 
much. We've attached ami been repulsed. Look 
there ! ' For the first time I then had a view of 
the open space bctAveen the two positions, and saw 
it covered with Confederates slowly and sulkily 
returning towards us, under a heavy fire of ar- 
tillery. But the fire whei-e we were was not so 
bad as farther to the rear ; for although the air 
seemed alive with shell, yet the greater number 
burst behind us. 

" The General was making the best arrange- 
ments in his power to resist the threatened ad- 
vance, by advancing some artillery, rallying the 
stragglers, &c. I remember seeing a General 
(Pettigrew, I thinlc it was) come up to him, and 
report that ' he was unable to bring his men up 
again.' Longstreet turned upon him and replied, 
with some sarcasm, 'Very v.'ell ; never mind, then, 
General ; just let them remain where they are ; 
the enemy's going to- advance, and will spare you 
the trouble.' 

" He asked for something to drink ; I gave him 
some rum out of my sUver flask, which I begged 
he would keep in remembrance of the occasion ; 
he smiled, and, to my great satisfaction, accepted 
the memorial. He then went off to give some 
orders to McLaw's division. 

" Soon afterwards, I joined General Lee, who 
had, in the mean while, come to the front, on be- 
coming aware of the disaster. If Longstreet's 
conduct was admirable, that of General Lee was 
perfectly sublime. He was engaged in rallying 
and encouraging the broken troops, and was rid- 
ing about a little in front of the wood, quite alone, 
the whole of his staff being engaged in a similar 
manner farther to the rear. His face, which is 
always placid and cheerful, did not show signs of 
the slightest disappointment, care, or annoyance ; 
and he was addressing to eveiy soldier he met a 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS, 



321 



few words of encouragement, such as, 'All this 
will come right in the end ; we'll talk it over af- 
terwards ; but, in the mean time, all good men 
must rally. We want all good and true men just 
now,' <S:c. He spoke to all the wounded men that 
passed him ; and the slightly wounded he ex- 
horted ' to bind up their hurts and take up a 
musket ' in this emergency. Very few failed to 
answer his appeal ; and I saw many badly wounded 
men take off their hats and cheer hiifli. 

" He said to me, ' This has been a sad day for 
us, Colonel — a sad day; but we can't expect al- 
ways to gain victories.' He was also kind enough 
to advise me to get into some more sheltered 
position. 

" Notwithstanding the misfortune which had 
so suddenly befallen him. General Lee seemed to 
observe everything, however trivial. When a 
mounted officer began beating his horse for shying 
at the bursting of a shell, he called out, ' Don't 
whip him, Captain — don't whip him ; I've got 
just such another foolish horse myself, and whip- 
ping does no good.' 

" I happened to see a man lying flat on his face 
in a small ditch, and I remarked that I didn't 
think he seemed dead. This drew General Lee's 
attention to the man, who commenced groaning 
dismally. Finding appeals to his patriotism of 
no avail, General Lee had him ignominiously set 
on his legs by som^neighboring gunners. 

" I saw General Wilcox (an officer who wears 
a short round jacket and a battered straw hat) 
come up to him and explain, almost crying, the 
state of his brigade. General Lee immediately 
shook hands with him, and said, cheerfully, ' Nev- 
er mind, General — all this has been my fault ; it 
is I that have lost this fight, and you must help 
me out of it in the best way you can.' 

" In this manner I saw General Lee encourage 
and reanimate his somewhat dispirited troops, and 
magnanimously take upon his own shoulders the 
whole weight of the repulse." 



Loyalty in East Tennessee. — A letter from 
a soldier in Burnside's army, written from Knox- 
viUe, says : 

*' i saw an old man from Jefferson County, in 
this State, who, although seventy-three years of 
age, came to join the army. He brought, as he 
terms them, his own crowd, of one hundred men, 
and another of eighty. He and forty of his com- 
pany have been bushwhacTiing in the mountains 
for fourteen months. 

" Seven or eight regiments are under way, sev- 
eral of which will be full this Aveek. Morristown, 
Greenville, and Jonesboro' have, I learn, each a 
regiment nearly full. 

" When we were at Morristown, and getting 
on the cars for Greenville, an old countr}Tnan 
from back some twenty miles came- riding into 
town. As he did not know we were there, he 
looked at the brigade a while with astonishment. 
When the state of things began to flash upon 
him, he asked if we 'weren't the blue-bellied 
Yankees;' and, as soon as he was satisfied, he 
21 



went almost crazy, shouting, ' Glory to God, they 
have come at last ; ' then, sinking his heels into 
his horse's sides, he went galloping through the 
town, waving his hat and shouting away, ' Glory 
to God, they've come at last ! ' 

" It was not long, however, before he was back, 
and coaxing some of the boys to go home with 
him. He said ' it weren't only twenty miles ; ' if 
they would go home with him, « he know'd the old 
woman would go crazy.' He said she had been 
' saving thirteen jars of apple butter ever since 
last summer, for the Yankees to eat.' When our 
boys told him there would be a fight at the salt- 
works, and that that was our destination, he 
wanted to borrow a gun and go along, saying the 
rule of the rebels was over now, and his was 
come, and he was ' arter revenge like a four-year- 
old.'" 

Whose Father was he ? — After the battle 
of Gettysburg a Union soldier was found in a 
secluded spot on the field, Mhere, wounded, he 
had laid himself down to die. In his hands, 
tightly clasped, was an ambrotype containing the 
portraits of three small children, and upon this 
picture his eyes, set in death, rested. The last 
object upon which the dying father looked was 
the image of his children, and, as he silently 
gazed upon them, his soul passed away. How 
touching ! how solemn ! AVhat pen can describe 
the emotions of this patriot father as he gazed 
upon these children, so soon to be made orphans! 
Wounded and alone, the din of battle still sound- 
ing in his €ars, he lies down to die. His last 
thoughts and prayers are for his family. He has 
finished his work on earth ; his last battle has 
been fought ; he has freely given his life to his 
country ; and now, while his life's blood is ebb- 
ing, he clasps in his hands the image of his 
children, and, commending them to the God of 
the fatherless, rests his last lingering look upon 
them. 

Fighting by the Day. — At the siege of 
Lexington, Missouri, an old Texan, dressed in 
buckskin and armed with a long rifle, used to 
go up to the works every morning about seven 
o'clock, carrying his dinner in a tin pail. Taking 
a good position, he banged away at the Federals 
till noon, then rested an hour, ate his dinner ; 
after which he resumed operations till six P. M., 
when he returned home to supper and a night's 
sleep. The next day, a little before seven, saw 
him, dinner and rifle in hand, trudging up street 
to begin agaiu his regular day's work, — and in 
this style he continued till the surrender. 



Incident of Linn Creek, Missouri. — Dur- 
ing the hottest of the conflict, Lieutenant Mont- 
gomery, son of the captain of that name, found 
himself without a sabre, having lost it Y.-hen he 
discharged both of his revolvers, and having 
nothing with which to reload, and no other 
weapon of defence, he " pitched in " with his fist. 
One of the prisoners brought in showed unmis- 



322 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCmENTS. 



takable marks of A'iolence from this source. At 
the close of the fight, Captain Switzler became 
separated from his company, and soon afterwards 
found himself set upon by three of the rebels, 
who, with their guns, Avere intent on taking his 
life by means of clubbing him, their guns being 
unloaded. As each approached, the Captain struck 
him a blow with the side of his sabre, ordering 
him to surrender. He succeeded in defending 
himself in this way until young Montgomery 
came to his assistance, when all three of the 
rebels were taken prisoners. 



A Thrilling Narrative. — Rev. H. D. Fish- 
er, a well-known minister of the Methodist Epis- 
copal Church, gives the following thrilling account 
of his escape from death during the Lawrence 
massacre : 

" Many miraculous escapes from the assassin's 
hand were made : none perhaps more so than in 
my own case. For the last eighteen months I 
have been marked by the rebels for death, be- 
cause I have been ordered by various Generals to 
provide ' homes for refugees,' and find work for 
them to do to support themselves and families. 
Now, three times I have signally escaped their 
hands. God has saved my life as by fire. When 
Quantrell and his gang came into our town al- 
most all Avere yet in their beds. My wife and 
second boy were up, and I in bed, because I had 
been sick with the quinsy. The enemy yelled 
and fired a signal. I sprang out, and my other 
children and myself clothed ourselves as quick as 
possible. 

" I took the two oldest boys and started to run 
for the hill, as we were completely defenceless and 
unguarded. I ran a short distance, and felt as if 
I should be killed. I returned to my house, where 
I had left my wife with Joel, seven years old, and 
Frank, six months old, and thought to hide in 
our cellar. I told Willie, twelve years old, and 
Eddie, ten years old, to run for life, and I would 
hide. I had scarcely found a spot in which to 
secrete myself, when four murderers entered my 
house and demanded of my wife, with horrid 
oaths, where that husband of hers was, who was 
hid in the cellar. She replied, * The cellar is 
open ; you can go and see for yourselves. My 
husband started over the hill with the children.' 
They demanded a light to search. My wife gave 
them a lighted lamp, and they came, light and 
revolvers in hand, swearing to kill at first sight. 
They came within eight feet of where I lay, but 
my wife's self-possession in giving the light had 
disconcerted them, and they left without seeing 
me. They fired our house in four places, but my 
wife, by almost superhuman efforts, and with baby 
in arms, extinguished the fire. Soon after three 
others came, and asked for me. But she said, 
' Do you think he is such a fool as to stay here ? 
They have already hunted for him ; but, thank 
God, they did not find him.' They then com- 
pleted their work of pillage and robbery, and 
fired the house in five places, threatening to kill 
her if she attempted to extinguish it again. One 



stood, revolver in hand, to execute the threat if 
it was attempted. The fire burned furiously. The 
roof fell in, then the upper story, and then the 
lower floor ; but a space about six by twelve feet 
was by a great eS"ort kept perfectly deluged by 
water by my wife, to save me from burning alive. 
I remained thus concealed as long as I could live 
in such peril. 

"At length, and while the murderers were still 
at my front^ door and around my lot, watching 
for their prey, my wife succeeded, thank God, in 
covering me with an old dress and a piece of car- 
pet, and thus getting me out into the garden, and 
to the refuge of a little weeping willow covered 
with ' morning glory ' vines, where I was secured 
from their fiendish gaze and saved from their 
hellish thirst for my blood. I still expected to 
be discovered and shot dead. But a neighbor 
woman, who had come to our help, aided my wife 
in throwing a few things saved from the fire 
around the little tree where I lay, so as to cover 
me more securely. Our house and all our clothes 
— except a few old and broken garments (not a 
full suit of anything for one of us) and some car- 
pet — with beds, books, and everything to eat or 
read, were consumed over us or before our eyes. 
But what of that ? I live ! Through God's mer- 
cy I live ! " 

The Twin Brothers. — T^at fact is stranger 
than fiction, is exemplified in the following true 
story of two brothers, twins, which occurred 
during the memorable siege of Port Hudson. 
Passing, one day, through tlie streets of that little 
town, we noticed two corpses lying upon the gal- 
lery of the carpenter's shop, awaiting their turn 
for the boxes, dignified with the title of coffins, 
to consign them to their last resting-place. They 
were bodies of tall stature, stout and well built, 
betokening the hardy backwoodsmen of the South- 
west. Over the face of each was thrown a cloth, 
through which the blood was oozing, showing 
that they had received their death wounds through 
the head. It was no uncommon sight, during the 
siege, to see death in every form, from the body 
pierced by the single bullet, to the one shattered to 
atoms by the cannon ball or mortar shell. Yet 
there was something in the appearance of those 
bodies which riveted our attention : wo indulged 
the inquiry as to who they were. A rough, grizzly 
Confederate soldier was sitting by their side, 
whose arm, tied up, showed that, for the present, 
he was unfit for .active service. The tears were 
trickling down his cheeks as he gazed mournfully 
upon the dead before him, while his quivering lip 
told, better than words, that they had been more 
to him tlian simple comrades of the tent and 
field. 

He related their story in a few words. '•' They 
were my sons," said he, " and were twins. One 
of them joined at the same time I did. We 
came here with General Beale, and have done our 
duty to the best of our knowledge, and, I believe, 
to the satisfaction of our officers. 

" This morning, sir, while at the breastworks, 
one of my boys, in order to get good aim at the 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



523 



sharpshooters outside, thoughtlessly raised him- 
self too high, when a rifle ball pierced his brain, 
and he fell dead at my feet. His brother, seeing 
him fall, sprang forward to pick him up, but, in 
so doing, exposed himself above the line of de- 
fences, when he too received a ball through the 
brain, and he fell dead upon the still quivering 
corpse of his brother. As they came into the 
world, so they went out of it — together. In 
removing their bodies from the breastworks, I 
got this wound, which has shattered my arm. 
Would that I had died with them, sir, for I have 
no one to love now upon this earth." 

" And their mother — your wife ? " 

" Died, sir, in giving them birth." 

One coffin received the remains of the twins, 
and, a few days after, while sitting in front of his 
tent, an exploding shell gave a death wound to 
their heart-broken father. 



Amenities of Picket Duty. — " Our regi- 
ment (the First Delaware) was on picket, and 
confronting the enemy. ' Barney,' our Sergeant- 
Major, — who, by the way, is quite an institution, 
— espied a cow, which had just escaped from the 
rebel lines, with a reb in hot pursuit, both coming 
towards neutral territory. * Barney,' seizing his 
sword, rushed towards the scene. Secesh, seeing 
the advance, halted. Imagine his surprise, when 
' Barney ' ran up to the cow, and, waving his 
sword, gave her a gentle poke with it, and started 
her towards our lines. The rebel, astonished 
at the audacity, cried out : ' Halloo, you Yank ! 
bring that cow back here ! She belongs to us.' 
'Barnej',' flourishing his sword, stopped, and 
looked back towards him, and responded : ' Who 
are you cursing, you darned rebel ? The animal 
has seceded ! ' Giving the cow another reminder 
with his sword that she was needed in our bivouac, 
he brought her in triumphantly, — several of the 
rebs, who had been drawn out by the colloquy, 
laughing at the signal discomfiture of their com- 
panion in arms. 'Barney,' having milked the 
cow, and obtained about a gallon and a half of 
the lacteal fluid, — enough to supply the entire 
picket reserve, — turned her back toAvards the 
rebel lines, and cried out to the defeated Johnny 
that he might have the beast now — that he didn't 
need her any longer. The last seen of her, she 
was wending her way slowly to the enemy in 
quest of her calf, which was tied to a tree. This, 
to say the least, was a handsome piece of strategy ; 
to say nothing of the milk, it was a con2) de 
main." 

Scenes in the South-.west. — The follow- 
ing narrative of a recruiting expedition into Ar- 
kansas was given by Engineer L. G. Bennett, 
who left St. Louis in April, 1863, in company 
with William M. Fishback, who was authorized 
by General Curtis to raise a regiment among the 
loyal Arkansians : " The party started for Cass- 
ville, Missouri, intending to make that place theii- 
point of departure for the journey to the moun- 
tains. 



" The road to Cassville is intersected several 
times by a limpid stream, called Flat Creek. It 
was very high, from the recent rains. On the 
road, four ' great strapping girls ' were overtaken, 
who were footing it from Newton County to Cass- 
ville. The girls sometimes kept up with, and 
occasionally outstripped, his ambulance. Occa- 
sionally the vehicle would get the start on a level 
stretch of road, and the girls would fall behind. 
Coming up to a deep ford, the Colonel, with gal- 
lant intentions, halted his ambulance, until the 
girls came up, and politely off'ered to convey 
them to the opposite bank in his ambulance. 
' O,. no ; we never ride,' said one ; and they leaped 
into the boihng current, and, although the creek 
was ' waist deep,' they soon emerged, dripping, 
on the opposite bank, leaving the very modest 
Colonel completely nonplused by the adventur- 
ous " Amazons. The damsels were soon half a 
mile in advance, singing: 

" ' O, did you see my sister ? ' 

" On arriving at Cassville, intelligence was re- 
ceived that Fayetteville, our advanced post in 
Arkansas, was ordered to be abandoned, and that 
the Federal troops were on the retrograde march 
to Missouri. This information put a damper on 
recruiting prospects in that section, and the jjarty 
returned to Springfield. 

" It was resolved to penetrate Arkansas by 
way of Forsyth, on the White River, and a rather 
formidable company was made up, consisting of 
a number of Kansas officers, * regular dare-dev- 
ils,' and a few Arkansas fugitives, numbering 
eighteen in all — armed to the teeth — under 
commajid of Colonel Fishback. 

" The White River was reached by the recruit- 
ing party about a mile above Forsyth. The river 
was swollen by the recent rains, and the pros- 
pect of crossing seemed dubious. The region 
was in possession of the rebels, and infested 
with secesh sympathizers. It was getting to- 
Avards night. A butternut individual was discov- 
ered on the opposite shore. 

" After hailing the stranger, and parleying some 
time with him, it was agreed that one of the 
party should cross, and perfect arrangements. 
■Kelley, a bold, adroit man, volunteered to go 
over, and a boy paddled over in a ' dug-out ' to 
get him. Kelley and the boy started in the ' dug- 
out ' to cross, but before they reached the other 
side, three more men appeared on the opposite 
bank, with muskets and revolvers ready cocked. 
Their movements were closely watched, and our 
men rested their rifles across logs, and, with 
steady aim, intended to blaze away in case any 
hostile move should be made on Kelley. The 
latter was allowed to land, and had a long con- 
ference, in which he represented that his party 
were bushwhackers, who had been chased by the 
Federal authorities out of Missouri, and were en 
their way south. This artful story was credited, 
and the boat permitted to bring over the balance 
of the party-— which had to be done one at a 
time — making some eighteen round trips. It 
was, consequently, late in the night before all had 



324 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



got over. In swimming their horses, four were 
drowned, 

'• The men who so readily assisted in fenying 
the party across the river turned out to be among 
the worst class of bushwhackers in that region. 

" One was Hendrick, who had hung and shot a 
number of loyal men in Ozark and Stone Coun- 
ties, Missouri. Another, named Bird, was also a 
noted desperado, being a horse thief and a mur- 
derer. He and his gang had ' cleaned out ' every 
loyal family on Bull and Swan Creeks, in Taney 
County, Missouri, utterly depopulating that sec- 
tion for miles around. 

" On taking leave of these desperadoes next 
morning, the kindest wishes for the success of 
our party were expressed. A list of rebel leaders 
was also given, where the party would be wel- 
comed, and receive assistance in their journey 
throughout the country. 

'■ Proceeding three miles further, up popped a 
picket from the side of the road, who, ordering 
the party to halt, demanded who they were and 
their destination. The ever-prompt Kelley was 
sent forward, and, after a brief explanation, made 
all things satisfactory to the picket. The picket 
Scwd he was from St. Louis, and was among forty 
prisoners who escaped from the guard-house at 
Springfield, one dark and rainy night. He was 
asked why he was stationed in that out of the 
way place, and replied that pickets were sta- 
tioned in these places to kill the ' Mountain Feds,' 
as they were called, who were in the habit of 
fleeing from Arkansas to Missouri. He informed 
the party that ten more pickets were concealed in 
the brush. His credulity was so far overcome 
that he gave the party the rebel pass-word. It 
consisted in whisthng three times like a quail. 
He said by making that noise they would not be 
molested when they ran across any of their men. 
If any one was seen in the act of fii'ing, he said, 
just whistle the signal as directed, and the fii'e- 
locks would drop instantly. Kelley soon became 
a proficient in making the desired signal. 

" The bald tops of the hills were clothed with 
a light verdure, sprinkled with flowers. They 
descended from the hill country into a long piece 
of woods. The last picket had given the locality 
of the pickets, and in order to avoid a strongly 
posted picket guard some fourteen miles ahead, 
the travellers held a council and resolved to leave 
the main travelled road. By this detour they in- 
tended to circumvent the picket guard. On leav- 
ing the main road they got among the hills again, 
and after travelling a whole day, ascending and 
descending the hills, they emerged at night on 
the road and found they had advanced but five 
miles. 

" The next morning the blankets were tied to 
the saddles, and the party, mounting their horses, 
determined to keep the road and run the risk of 
encountering the pickets. "When they got in 
sight of the latter, instead of meeting with oppo- 
sition, the cowardly pickets mounted their steeds 
and precipitately fled to Carrolton, the county 
seat of Carrol County, sixteen miles distant. The 
pickets spread the alarm that the Missouri en- 



rolled militia was coming in full force. They 
followed the terrified pickets, and camped within 
eight miles of Carrolton, procuring a few ears of 
corn, which was parched for supper. 

" In order to avoid the rebel bands, who were 
patrolling the country, it became necessary, much 
of the time, to travel in the woods, over moun- 
tains, and through rocky ravines, away from the 
' settlements.' Ignorance of the geography of 
the country kept the party so long on the way 
that their scanty supply of hard tack was ex- 
hausted. Hogs and cattle Avere plenty, and one 
of the party, a Rocky Mountain hunter, exercised 
his agility in lassoing a fat steer, without exposing 
their position by a. shot. 

" The Colonel one day came up to a cabin, and 
inquired of the butternut owner if he had any 
corn bread to spare. ' No,' said Butternut, 
' don't raise much of nothiu' down yere ; the 
crap's poor.' Casting a glance over into a small 
enclosure, bristHng with weeds, the Colonel 
thought he discovered something resembling on- 
ions. Inquiry was made of the man if he had 
onions to spare, and he answered he ' reckoned 
not.' Presently his barefooted better-half, who 
had been listening, said, ' Pap, I reckon it's in- 
juns he's arter.' ' 0,' said Butternut, ' if it's 
injuns you're arter, I 'low we kin spare you a 
heap on 'em.' And the Colonel returned to camp 
with an abundant supply of ' injuns ' to regale 
his half-famished command. 

" Not far from Carrolton was found one Lewis, 
a most wicked rebel, who, with an ' oath ' and 
' protection papers ' in his pocket, obtained from 
Colonel Weir, of the Tenth Kansas, boasted that 
he had all along made it his business to hunt and 
help to hang and rob Union men, or oblige them 
to flee from the country. Under the idea that 
the party were Southern men, he piloted them 
eight miles on the way, 

" On the top of Gaither Mountain were several 
droves of horses belonging to the secesh residing 
on Crooked Creek. Some of the party Avere 
much better mounted Mhen they left the top of 
the mountain. 

" Arriving at Jasper, in Newton County, the 
party considered themselves safe, as the pco])le 
among the mountains are mostly loyal. Captain 
Vanderpool, of the First Arkansas infantry, was 
in the neighborhood, with a number of armed 
recruits. He had had several encounters with 
the rebels, and defeated them every time. It 
was judged best not to confine recruiting opera- 
tions to one neighborhood. Accordingly a portion 
went about thirty miles east, in Pope County, on 
the border of Searcy and Comvay Counties. 

" An expedition was planned to a saltpetre cave 
in Searcy County, which was being worked by 
the rebels, who manufactured at the rate of one 
hundred barrels per day. The ubiquitous Kelley. 
at the head of twelve men, cautiously approached 
the cave, surprised and captured tlie guard, de- 
stroyed all the machinery, kettles, vats, arclies, 
&c., pertaining to the works, and, with his pris- 
oners and a number of captured horses, returned 
without a single misfortune to any of his party. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



325 



This little adventure so won the confidence of the 
mountaineers, that they thought there was no 
such man as Kelley and the Kansas jayhawkers. 

" Volunteers came flocking in by the score, and 
in ten days a company of ninety-six was formed, 
with "William Brashears, an Arkansian, as Cap- 
tain, Kelley as First Lieutenant, and Joseph Brown 
as Second Lieutenant. Other expeditions were 
planned, many horses, guns, and prisoners taken, 
and much jn-operty recovered which had been 
captured from Union men. 

" Word finally came that an expedition of 
three hundred rebels was coming from Dover, 
the county seat of Pope County, to break up 
Brashears' company. The boys retired to a fa- 
vorable position among the mountains, and for 
two days awaited their coming. At length word 
was brought from what was deemed a reliable 
source that the rebels had returned. 

" Captain Brashears, having business at home, 
and not suspecting danger, with only four men in 
his company, was proceeding to the transaction 
of his business, when suddenly he fell among the 
entire secesh ' force. They chased him over a 
mile, wounding him several times, and finally 
killing him. 

" One of Captain Brashears' companions made 
his escape, another was killed, and two others, 
brothers, were captured and hung, after enduring 
many tortures and fiendish barbarities, disgrace- 
ful even to savage Indians, and too repulsive to 
be related. The neighboring women were not 
even permitted to bury their dead bodies without 
being threatened and insulted. 

'* Mention has already been made that Captain 
Vanderpool was recruiting in the neighborhood 
of Jasper. One morning, the citizens of Jasper 
were surprised to find a force of two hundred 
rebels, under Captains Mitchell, Love, and Sisel, 
in their midst, and four or five of Vanderpool's 
recruits were captured. The Captain was in the 
immediate neighborhood, but his men were scat- 
tered, and it was impossible immediately to col- 
lect them. Eighteen, however, were near at 
hand ; with this handful, he did not hesitate to 
attack them. Approaching the lower part of the 
town, and covering the men behind rocks, fences, 
and trees, a hot and destructive fire was poured 
upon the enemy, and they were glad to seek the 
cover of the neighboring hills. But Vanderpool's 
men beginning to collect, a retreat was ordered. 
At the crossing of Hudson Creek, our boys gave 
them a few more rounds, scattering them in every 
direction, and leaving their dead behind. Our 
party met with no loss, except the prisoners cap- 
tured early in the morning. 

" An expedition was planned to make a raid in 
the direction of ClarksvUle and the Arkansas 
River, and about sixty men were collected for the 
enterprise. Two of Bennett's recruiting officers 
resided south of the Arkansas, and aimed to get 
in their own neighborhoods, where their chances 
for recruiting were more flattering. In. this scout, 
Vanderpool promised to aid them to the river, 
and accordingly all who had not already gone 
to Pope County joined the expedition. After 



scouting two days among the mountains and 
deep valleys, which had alternately been devas- 
tated by the rebels and 'Mountain Feds,' and 
where nothing but the most abject poverty and 
wretchedness existed, our parly strvick the valley 
of Mulberry Creek, in Johnson County, which 
had not been visited by a military force since the 
war. Large fields of corn and plenty abounded 
on every side. The inhabitants were mostly of 
the rebel persuasion. No armed force was met 
with. A number of horses, a few guns and am- 
munition, were captured, and also four prisoners. 
A large force prevented theiy from going to 
Clarksville. The two recruiting officers crossed 
the river, but nothing has been heard from them 
since. 

" The acquaintance was formed of Captain Sam- 
uel Farmer, who resides near the head of Mulberry 
Creek. Some of the party had been but a few 
minutes at his house, when some of his smaller 
children went to his hiding-place in the woods, 
and informed him that a party of Federals was 
at the house. The Captain soon made his ap- 
j^earance, and with tears of joy bade them wel- 
come, saying that anything he had was free. 
Such demonstrations of friendship deterred the 
boys from meddling with even his bees, and the 
old fellow had to take the lead in opening two 
of his best hives of honey for the boys. Corn 
bread and bacon were served liberally, and for 
the first time since the scout the boys got enough 
to eat. 

" The Captain said he M-as an early settler in Ar- 
kansas, and for many years had represented John- 
son County in the State Senate. At the break- 
ing out of the secession troubles, he had taken 
an open stand in favor of the Union, and in the 
elections preliminary to the Convention, had 
steadily voted against secession. By the action 
of the Convention (not the people), the State 
finally drifted with the Southern tide. Military 
companies were everywhere raised for the South, 
and, quite early, one in Mr. Farmer's own neigh- 
borhood. He had served in the Mexican and 
Florida wars, and more recently in the Indian 
war in California and Oregon, and his military 
experience and qualities were well known. At 
once, every device which rebel ingenuity could 
invent was brought to bear to force him into the 
service. Flattery, threats, promises of high po- 
sitions, and the personal influence of Governor 
Rector, in a measure overcame his scruples, and 
he Avas made Major of Hill's Fifteenth Arkansas 
regiment. The work of drilling and preparing 
the regiment for duty devolved entirely upon 
him. 

" During Price's occupation of Springfield, in 
the winter of 1861-2, his regiment was stationed 
at Elm Springs, under INIcCulloch. Price's rapid 
retreat before General Curtis called for help from 
McCulloch, and he with other forces met the re- 
treating ]\Iissourian at Sugar Creek, where a stand 
was resolved upon. All remember the result of 
that skirmish, in which the Federal cavalry, under 
Carr, Ellis,, and Bowen, charged so vigorously 
among the rebel horse, foot, and artillery as to 



326 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



again set them in a headlong flight. The impet- 
uous charge of the Federal squadron of cavalry 
in a measui-e removed from Farmer's eyes the 
scales which Lexington, Wilson Creek, and Bull 
Run had placed over them. He saw that the arm 
of the national government was not yet palsied, 
but was capable of dealing to traitors powerful 
blows. At Cross Hollows, Price, who outranked 
McCulloch, determined to make a stand. To this 
the latter was opposed, and so serious was the 
quarrel between the two leaders that a council of 
war Avas called the settle the difficulties and adopt 
a policy. 

"Farmer was the only one of that council who 
sided with McCulloch. He admitted the strength 
of the position, provided Curtis was foolish enough 
to attack in front, but stated that the topography 
of the country was such that their position could 
be easily turned, and predicted that the next thing 
the Federals would be on their (the rebels') flank. 
Sure enough, the next day Sigel was at Osage 
Springs, threatening Price's flank and rear ; and 
nothing was left for them to do but resume the 
skedaddle to the Boston Mountains, where Mc- 
Culloch wished to remain and receive Curtis' at- 
tack. But here Van Dorn assumed the chief com- 
mand, which soon culminated in the battle of Pea 
Ridge. At this battle Colonel Hill and his Lieu- 
tenant-Colonel early ran away from the fight, tak- 
ing a small part of the regiment with them. But 
Major Farmer kept the remainder in their places, 
and was drawn up in line but a few rods from the 
field, and but a few paces from v/here Ben McCul- 
loch was killed. He was the first man to aid him 
after he was shot. 

" About ten minutes before McCulloch fell, 
they were together reconnoitring the Federal posi- 
tion. The Thirty-sixth Illinois formed in line for 
a charge j and when the breeze unfolded the Stars 
and Stripes to view. Major Farmer's old love for 
the flag returned, and turning to McCulloch, he 
said that ' this was the last battle and the last 
time he should ever raise his hand against that 
flag.' The scene, and such surrounding circum- 
stances, in the midst of the thunders of a great 
battle, an expression from one he highly esteemed, 
aflected even McCulloch, and he asserted that it 
was a trying ordeal for him to fight against that 
once-honored flag. He Avas among the last to 
leave the field at Elkhorn, at the rebels' final 
retreat. 

*' Farmer, shortly after, tendered his resigna- 
tion, which, after many delays, was granted, and 
he returned to his home. Shortly after the con- 
script law was put in force, and at a public meet- 
ing in his neighborhood he denounced the meas- 
ure with all his powers. Though not daring 
openly to avow himself a Union man, yet he pre- 
dicted that such arbitrary measures would soon 
drive the people of Arkansas to rebel against the 
rebellion. He compared the helpless condition 
of Arkansas, after the battle of Pea Ridge, to the 
' valley of dry bones ; and his conviction that a 
wind would blow from the North, and that bone 
would seek its bone, and the whole become a liv- 
ing mass.' How truly has this come to pass in 



the present uprising of the people of Arkansas, 
and the development of a Union sentiment there ! 
' Bone is seeking its bone ' all over the South. 

" Three of his sons came within reach of the 
conscription act, and to avoid it they sought 
safety among the neighboring crags of the moun- 
tains and woods. They were hunted like wolves, 
and one of them shot down by the rebel home 
guard ; and though this occurrence was near a 
year ago, he was still almost helpless from the 
effect of the shot. The father and sons, however, 
by hiding in the woods, had thus fiir escaped the 
provisions of the act, and hailed us as his dearest 
friends and benefactors. He stated that there 
were a large number in the neighboring moun- 
tains who Mere liunted the same as he. 

" The Captain was advised to form a company, 
and join the Federal army, and that, if he ever 
expected Arkansas to be free, and restored to the 
Union, he must help to do it. He could not ex- 
pect others to do that which more intimately 
concerned him. Said he, ' Will the Federals re- 
ceive me after the part I have taken against them ? ' 
Having been satisfied in regard to this, he avowed 
his intention to immediately raise a company. 
He was given the necessary instructions, and 
when next heard from, the company numbered 
over sixty, with himself as captain, with others 
equally as loyal, as lieutenants. When last heard 
from, his company numbered one hundred and 
three men. 

" Nearly every day after the formation of his 
company, expeditions were planned and executed 
against the secessionists, f(\r arms, ammunition, 
and horses, for his men. At one time a few of 
his boys entered Clarksville, captured a rifle from 
one Basham, which cost one hundred and fifty 
dollars ; also a horse, valued at one thousand dol- 
lars. This Basham was a noted secessionist, and 
had been a Lieutenant-Governor of the State. 
On another occasion. Lieutenant Middlcton, with 
but one companion, came suddenly upon a Cap- 
tain Birch and three soldiers, and demanded their 
surrender. Birch, in reply, ordered Middleton to > 
surrender. Both parties prepared for a fight, but 
after a long parley. Birch and his men surren- 
dered. Captain Birch was armed with a splendid 
Sharp's cavalry rifle, and all were mounted on 
good horses. Middleton would scarcely take i 
a thousand dollars for his rifle. 

" One day Captain Farmer was alone at a black- 
smith's shop, getting his horse shod for the jour- 
ney, and not dreaming of rebels in many miles 
of him. He heard a rustling in a neighboring i 
cornfield, but paid no attention to it, until sud- <■ 
denly he was fired on by forty men. The bullets 
cut his clothes, and tore up the gravel all around 
him, but he was not hurt. He dashed into a 
neighboring thicket, losing his hat in his flight. 
Shots were poured after liim, and a number of 
rebels pursued, among whom was Captain Birch, 
whom he had kindly treated, and released but a few 
days before, after promising upon lionor not to ^ 
molest the Union people again. Captain Farmer I 
had a rifle and a pistol with him, but the rifle 
missed fire, but with his pistol he scratched the i 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



327 



Captain in the face, and cut his ear nearly free 
from his head. 

" Of course, the forty beat a hasty retreat, for- 
getting even to take off the Captain's horse. 
They rejoined the other portion of their band, 
consisting, in all, of one hundred and fifty men. 
The Captain soon met seven of his boys, and 
gave the alarm. WJhile he went to coliect the 
remainder, the seven secreted themselves in a 
coi'nfield, and fired into the whole secesh crowd 
as they passed along, killing two and wounding 
one. The secesh prepared to make a charge into 
the corn, but another round from their hidden foe 
put the whole crowd to flight, leaving five dead 
and two wounded in the road. The seven, 
among whom were two of Farmer's sons, chased 
the rebels to Clarksville. 

" The mountainous districts of Arkansas are its 
loyal portions. Particularly is this so in the Bos- 
ton range, which extends from near Batesville to 
an unlimited distance westward. Its gorges, caves, 
and thickets form a safe retreat from danger, and 
swarm with loyal men, objects of rebel cruelty and 
persecution. 

" To cross these mountain ranges, or ascend the 
isolated peaks, is a most laborious undertaking. 
With difficulty one clambers up the steep sides, 
while a loose rock occasionally tumbles with a 
crash into a chasm below. The summits are often 
surrounded by a perpendicular wall of rock, with 
only an occasional opening up the natural steps 
by which they are attained. 

" From these commanding eminences is had the 
most singular and romantic view which imagina- 
tion can paint. To some this rough scenery 
would be enchantingly sublime. On either side 
of narrow valleys, mountains piled up almost to 
the clouds, exhibiting a variegated view of huge 
rocks, crags, caverns, and peaks, and the whole 
covered by a thick, almost impenetrable wilder- 
ness. 

" These are the fortresses of the hardy moun- 
taineers, from which they bid defiance to the sur- 
rounding rebel hordes, and often sweep down 
upon them like an eagle on its prey. 

" Nearly every crag and ravine among the Bos- 
ton Mountains have echoed the sharp crack of 
the rifie, used in deadly conflict between the con- 
tending factions which divide the people of Ar- 
kansas. The mountains are the fortresses of the 
Union men, and woe be to the rebel who shows 
himself in these haunts. The Union man who 
ventures into the surrounding country is caught 
and hung to the first limb. A rebel raid was 
made up the valley of Hudson's Creek ' for the 
purpose of cleaning out Vanderpool and his cursed 
Feds,' under the command of Love and Sisel. As 
they proceeded up the valley, two or three unsus- 
pecting Federal recruits Mere caught and hung. 

" But Vanderpool was not idle. Hastily collect- 
ing about sixty or seventy of his men, he made an 
attack on them at Huston's. The rapid fire of 
the huntsmen's rifles resounded among the moun- 
tains, and both parties fought with the determina- 
tion to conquer or die. But our men found them- 
Belves between two fires from the barn and house, 



and being largely outnumbered, were obliged to 
fall back. But Lieutenant Cross was determined 
not to give up the unequal contest, and collecting 
a few brave spirits, charged almost among the 
enemy. He paid for his temerity Avith his life, 
for he fell pierced with a score of balls. The sur- 
vivors fled ; but no opportunity was lost to now 
and then drop a stray shot among the rebels, un- 
til then- situation became so dangerous that they 
retreated into Carroll county, burying eight of 
their dead in a field adjoining the house, and car- 
rying oflT a large number of wounded. 

" Our loss was one killed and four slightly 
wounded. But by the death of Lieutenant Cross 
the mountaineers lost their bravest and best friend. 
He knew no fear, and his only fault was rashness. 
None had such influence over the men to prevent 
them from the same excesses as the rebels, as he. 
After his death Vanderpool's recruits lost much 
of the discipline which the Lieutenant had en- 
forced. His death added another to the large list 
of widows and orphans who can trace their be- 
reavement directly to this cruel, heartless war. 

" Mrs. Cross came with the recruiting party to 
Springfield, for the purpose of getting the pay 
due him for many months' faithful services ; but 
met with little success. Many of the heartless 
officers who have the management of much of 
the army business, can, and often do, manage to 
strip the ignorant, but deserving, Arkansas widow 
or soldier of all or much of their hard earnings — 
oftentimes costing blood and life. 

"About the 1st of July, it was determined, 
with the recruits on hand, to flght their way out, 
if necessary, to the Federal lines ; and all were 
ordered to rendezvous on Hudson's Creek, about 
four miles above Jasper. But a bareheaded fe- 
male express rider, mounted on a bare-backed 
horse, reeking with sweat, announced that Sisel, 
with a hundred men, was on Big Creek, eight miles 
distant, committing depredations on the Union 
inhabitants. About one hundred of our men 
were mounted and off" in an instant. It was 
thought best to go over the mountain, to the 
head of the creek, and then down it and meet 
him, as he was reported to be moving up the 
stream. This required a circuit of twenty miles ; 
and when we reached the settlement on Big Creek, 
we found the bird had flown, retracing his course 
down the creek. We followed on until midnight, 
when horses and men were completely worn down. 
They had travelled forty miles since two o'clock. 

" They finally struck the Buffalo Creek, or River, 
and camped on the farm of one Jackey Adair. 
'Uncle Jackey' Avas an old man, was quite 
wealthy, and a most bitter rebel. His hogs and 
corn-cribs paid the penalty of this ; and, during 
the two days at his place, man or beast lacked 
not for something to eat. Here Mr. Bennett had 
a severe attack of the pleurisy. It became neces- 
sary for the men to go to other portions of the 
State, and he was left with ' Uncle Jackey,' who 
was informed that his life would pay the forfeit for 
any harm which befell his patient. The old gentle- 
man promised to do the best he could. 

" Before dayhght the pursuit was resumed, and 



328 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



at sunrise the spot was reached where Sisel had 
camped during the night. Of course he was 
gone, and out of reach. The jaded steeds were 
turned in another dhection, to Shinn's tanyard, 
to get something for man and horse to eat. Here 
were caught two persons, who said Sisel did not 
leave his camp for the night until early sunrise. 
Had it been known they were so close upon him, 
there would have been either a fight or a foot- 
race. It was now too late. 

" The next morning, before daylight, the house 
was surrounded by Sisel's whole gang, and the 
old man was rudely asked in what room Mr. B. 
was. Never did man plead for another as ' Uncle 
Jackey ' pleaded for his patient. He knew he 
would be killed if he was found, and being a per- 
sonal friend of Sisel, he finally persuaded him to 
leave. They did not even take the rifle or revolver. 
In the mean time, Vanderpool had heard of Sisel's 
movements, and early in the morning was back 
at ' Uncle Jackey's.' The way that the rebels 
had gone being pointed out, a reconnoitring party 
was sent out, headed by Lieutenant Fesperman, 
a man as brave and rash as Lieutenant Cross. 
They had followed the rebel trail about a mile in 
the woods, when, from an ambush, they were fired 
upon, and Lieutenant Fesperman and another 
were dangerously wounded. The remainder fled 
in confusion. 

" The rebels came from their covert and shot 
Fesperman, wounded as he was, through the 
head, killing him instantly. Vanderpool soon 
came up, and the rebels fled. The burial of Fes- 
perman, and the care of the Avounded man, occu- 
pied them until afternoon. After this, the rebels 
made no more raids among the mountains, and 
were much afraid of the ' Mountain Feds,' even at 
their places of resort. It was believed that our 
own and Vanderpool's men numbered eight hun- 
dred, and that we had a natural fort in the moun- 
tains from which no force could drive us. 

" On their return to the Federal lines, the party 
were not molested until after passing Huntsville. 
Guerrillas had thi'eatened to fire upon them from 
every point ; but strong flanking parties on either 
side prevented this, and the only loss from them 
was one horse, while several regular soldiers and 
a few guerrillas were captured. 

" At Fayetteville was found a small party of 
Federal soldiers, about fifty in number, mostly 
convalescents from the hospitals, on their way to 
their commands, with a number of recruiting 
officers for Phelps' Second Arkansas cavalry. 
Our party numbered about four hundred, and 
the column had not all entered the town when a 
sharp firing was heard in the western suburbs, 
which was ascertained to be an attack of In- 
graham, a guerrilla Captain, upon the pickets, 
who, after exchanging a few shots, were driven 
in. Receiving orders to conduct the unarmed 
men (which included near half our number) to a 
place of safety, Mr. Bennett directed them to 
march out upon the telegraph road, in the direc- 
tion of Cassville, until out of danger. The firing 
coming nearer towards the centre of the town, a 
sort of panic seized Vanderpool's men, and they 



hastily retreated to the eastern portion of the 
town. By the exertions of Vanderpool and a 
few others, a stand was here made, but the rebel 
shots soon began to whistle around them, and 
our mountaineers aga^n took to flight. The offi- 
cers in charge of the detachment of regular sol- 
diers were somewhat under the influence of 
liquor, and they, too, participated in the panic 
and flight, in confusion, up the telegraph road. 
Lieutenant Kelley had command of the rear 
guard of our column, but so rapid had been Van- 
derpool's flight from the town as to leave him 
alone with a small detachment of his company. 
He, too, fell back on the telegraph road. 

" By the exertions of Captain Farmer, Kelley, 
Mr. Bennett, and one or two of the officers in 
charge of the convalescents, the flight was 
stopped, order soon restored, and Ivelley prepared 
to make a charge upon the rebels, who now had 
entire possession of the town. Hastily collecting 
about twenty men, he bore down upon the rebel 
flank just as the last shots were being exchanged 
with Vanderpool. The rebels, thinking this to be 
a Federal reeiiforcement, designed to cut off" their 
retreat, fired one volley, and then hastily fled, 
thus presenting the novel spectacle of two con- 
tending parties fleeing from each other. Lieu- 
tenant Kelley was severely wounded by the last 
fire of the rebels, a rifle shot entering above the 
knee, and coming out of his back, Avhich pre- 
vented his pursuing the flying rebels. 

" They left three of their number dead, and 
seven so seriously wounded as to be left behind. 
Others of their number, less dangerously wound- 
ed, made their escape. Our loss was but two 
wounded, including Lieutenant Kelley. In num- 
bers, the rebels were only about eighty, while our 
armed force was at least near three hundred. Had 
the rebels known our strength, they would not 
have made the attack. They supposed there 
were none to contend with but the small party of 
convalescents and recruiting otficers, who en- 
tered the town the evening before. 

" The fight following so closely upon our enter- 
ing the town, and there being no difference be- 
tween the dress of the ' Mountain Feds ' and the 
rebels, led the former to suppose the whole was 
a rebel scheme to capture them. Hence their 
rapid flight up tlie telegraph road. But Kelley's 
daring cliarge undeceived them, and they were 
no longer afraid of us. About sixty of our own 
and Vander])oors recruits were so frightened as 
not to stop their flight until they reached Cass- 
ville. Vanderpool, M'ith the remainder, after 
about three hours, came back to the town. It 
Avas resolved. to hold the place for a time at 
least, and if the rebels wished to attack us again, 
to retrieve what had been lost in the first en- 
counter. 

" The country around Fayetteville had been 
made desolate by both armies, which had alter- 
nately occupied it. There was but one small 
field of corn for many miles from town, and it 
was difficult subsisting the horses. Bushwhack- 
I ers swarmed around, firing upon and annoying 
j the Federal foraging and scouting parties. In a 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



329 



few days, Captains Robb and Worthington, with 
two companies of the Fu-st Arkansas cavalry, 
came down from Cassville. Not having orders 
to hold the place, it was determined to abandon 
it, after retaining possession only a week. 

'•' Captain Vanderpool, with his recruits for the 
Fii\st infantry, and the convalescents, about one 
hundred and seventy-five, went to liis regiment 
at Fort Gibson, M'hile Captains Robb and Wor- 
thington, with the recruits and a large number 
of citizens, who were moving north, took the 
telegraph road for Cassville. 

" While Mr. Bennett was at Fayetteville, hav- 
ing some leisure, he wrote the details of his trip 
in a letter to his wife, which he read to Lieutenant 
Kelley, at his solicitation, while the Lieutenant 
was lying sick in bed. A native Arkansian, who 
was an attentive listener to the narrative, broke out : 

" ' ^lajor, you must have been to school a right 
smart.' 

" The unsophisticated native was informed that, 
like all the people of the North, he had enjoyed 
the advantage of some schooling. 

" ' Wall, you know a heap. That letter to your 
wife reads just like a book.' 

" It was late in the day before the march north- 
ward was resumed. Ten miles were made the 
first day. The next morning Captain Robb's 
and Lieutenant Kelley's companies (now under 
Captain Farmer,) numbering near one himdred 
men, were ordered to proceed to the Elm Spring 
road, and endeavor to catch some bushwhackers, 
who, it was reported, infested it, and join the 
main command at Cross Hollows. 

" At the same time. Lieutenant Odlin, with forty 
men, were sent to the rear of a mountain on the 
right of the road in search of guerrillas, this being 
a favorite haunt of theirs. Captain Worthing- 
ton with the remainder, now reduced to about 
fifty armed men, and all our unarmed rabble and 
women and children, proceeded up the telegraph 
road. They had proceeded but two or three 
miles when a heavy volley was poured upon them 
from the brush. The unarmed crowd fled in 
every direction, but Captain Worthington, with 
his men, for a few minutes bravely held the 
ground and returned the enemy's fire. But the 
Captain being wounded, and a large number of 
horses and men being killed and wounded, they, 
too, finally retreated. 

" Captain Robb's command was nearly four 
miles away when the firing commenced. ' To the 
rescue, boys,' was his brief order ; and Mr. Ben- 
nett's party went flying through the woods in the 
direction of the firing. The rebels were prepar- 
ing to charge upon the train and capture the 
fugitives, when Captain Robb appeared in sight. 
The clatter of hoofs, the shouts of the men, and 
the immense cloud of dust we raised, led the 
enemy to suppose the party were a large and un- 
looked-for reenforcement coming from an oppo- 
site direction, and they fled precipitately to the 
woods. 

" It was ascertained that the rebels numbered 
four hundred, commanded by Colonel Hunter. 
Captain Odlin encountered them in their retreat, 



and with his thirty charged among them, killing 
a few ; but seeing their overwhelming numbers 
pouring around him, he pmdently retreated with 
the loss of one prisoner. In this fight we lost 
three killed and quite a number wounded, besides 
a number that were missing, that we could not 
ascertain what had become of them. Twelve 
dead horses belonging to our men were counted. 
This was considered a defeat for the Federals. In 
fact, our men were so separated that victory was 
impossible. 

*' The most disgraceful part of the whole affair 
was the leaving of our dead unburied, and three 
of the wounded behind. The only excuse for 
this was, that the enemy was expected to either 
renew the attack there, or make a circuit around 
and attack the party at Cross Hollows, and it was 
necessary to proceed as fast as possible. We 
were left in possession of the battle-field, and 
there can be no reasonable excuse for this negli- 
gence on our part. Camped that night in Cross- 
Timbers Hollow, but a few miles from Iveetsville, 
being molested no more on the march." 



THE STARS AND STRIPES. 

BY JAMES T. FIELDS. 

Rally round the flag, boys — 
Give it to the breeze ! 

That's the banner we love 
On the land and seas. 

Brave hearts are under it ; 

Let the traitors brag ; 
Gallant lads, fire away ! 

And fight for the flag. 

Their flag is but a rag, ■ — 

Ours is the true one ; 
Tip with the Stars and Stripes ! 

Down with the new one ! 

Let our colors fly, boys — 
Guard them day and night ; 

For victory is liberty. 

And God will bless the right. 



A Hospital Incident. — A brother from the 
Chi'istian Commission, while going the rounds 
among the wounded, approached the bed of a 
soldier suffering from a severe wound in the leg. 

" Ah, my dear brother, war is a dreadful thing," 
said the preacher. 

" If you had my leg, you'd think so ; but I had 
the satisfaction of "killing a few of them d — d rebe.s 
before they knocked me doAvn," said the soldier. 

" Yes, but you must remember that the rebels 
are not our only enemy. Satan is our greatest 
enemy — he is the enemy of our souls," said the 
preacher. 

" Satan is a pretty bad fellow, but he can't give 
us worse than we got at Chickamauga," replied 
the soldier, writhing under the pain of his wound. 

"We must pray for our souls' salvation, 
brother." 

" No, I'll pray for my leg's salvation first, till 



330 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



I get another crack at them hounds," pointing to 
Lookout Mountain, " and then I'll pray for my 
soul," said the soldier. 

The preacher left, convinced that the case was 
a hopeless one. 

1 ^^ 

I , f A Substitute Wanted. — Chief Engineer 

Dean, of the fire department, called at the office 

where I make shoes for a living, and handed me 

a big white envelope, notifying me that I was 

drafted, and must report myself for examination 

at Lawrence on the 18th day of August. 

Now I consider it the duty of every citizen to 
give his life, if need be, for the defence of his coun- 
try ; so, on the morning of the eventful 18th, I put 
on a clean shirt and my Sunday clothes, and started 
for Lawrence, to see if I could get exempted. 

Lawrence, as all know, is situated on the Mer- 
rimac River, and its principal productions are 
mud, dust, and factory girls. The city proper, 
at least that part I savv, consisted of a long, nar- 
row entry, up one flight of stairs, adorned over- 
head with a frescoing of gas meters, and carpeted 
with worn-out tobacco quids, and furnished with 
one chair, two settees, and as many huge, square 
packing cases, marked " Q. M. J)." Scattered 
around this palatial entrance-hall were some forty 
or fifty conscripts, looking very much as if they 
expected to be exempted by old age before the 
young man with a ferocious mustache should 
notify them of their turn. Most of them were 
doomed to disappointment ; for, while they count- 
ed the hours of delay, a door would suddenly 
open, and the tall young man would single out 
one man, and march him through the open door- 
way, to be seen no more. 

By and by — that is, after several hours' wait- 
ing — my turn came. 

" John Smith ! " shouted the doorkeeper. 

"That's me," says I. With' a cheer from the 
crowd, I entered a large, square room, where two 
persons sat writing at a table, and the third, evi- 
dently the surgeon, was examining a man in the 
last stages of nudity. 

One of the writers at the table, a young man, 
with curly eyes and blue hair, nodded to me, and 
dipping his pen in the ink, commenced : 

" John Smith, what's your name ? " 

" John Smith," says L 

" Where was you born ? '* 

" Podunk, Maine." 

"What did your great grandfather die of? " 

" Darned if I know," says L 

" Call it hapentoo," says he ; " and your grand- 
father, too ? " 

" I don't care what you call it," says I, for I 
was a little riled by his nonsensical question. 

" Did you ever have boils ! " 

" Not a boll." 

" Or fits ? " 

" Nary fit." 

" Nor delirium tremens ? " 

" No, sir-ee ! " 

" Or rickets ? " 

" I'll ricket you," for I thought he meant some- 
thing else. 



" Did you ever have the measles ? " says he. 

Here I took off my coat. 

" Or the itch ? " 

"Yes, sir," said I, "that fist" — and I shoved 
a very large brown one within three inches of his 
nose — " has been itching for the last ten minutes 
to knock your pesky head off, you little, mean, 
low-lived, contemptible whelp, you." 

" My dear sir," said the mild-spoken, gentle- 
manly Burgeon, laying his hand on my arm; 
" calm yourself, I pray. Don't let your angry 
passions rise, but take off your clothes, so I can 
see what you are made of." 

So I suppressed my anger, and withdrawing to 
a corner, I hung my clothes upon the floor, and 
presented myself for examination, clad only with 
the covering nature had given me, except about 
a square inch of court plaster on my right shin, 
where I had fallen over a chair, the night before, 
feeling for a match. 

" Young man," said the surgeon, looking me 
straight in the eye, " you have got the myopia." 

" Hey ? " 

" You have got the myopia." 

"Yes, sir," said I, "and a good one, too — a 
little Bininger, with a drop of Stoughton, makes 
an excellent eye-opener, of a morning." 

" And there seems to be an amaurotic tendency 
of the right eye, accompanied with ophthalmia." 

" Pshaw ! " says I. 

" Arid that white spot in the left eye betokens 
a cataract." 

" I guess you mean in the ear," sa3'S I, " 'cause 
I went in swimming this morning, and got an 
all-fired big bubble in my left ear ; " and here I 
jumped up and down, two or three times, on my 
left foot, but to no pui-pose. As soon as I 
stopped, he mounted a chair, and commenced 
feeling the top of my head. 

" Was your family ever troubled with epi- 
lepsy?" says he. 

" Only two of the boys," says I ; " and when 
they catch them, my wife always goes at them 
Mith a fine tooth comb the first thing." 

Jumping off the chair, he hit me a lick in the 
ribs that nearly knocked me over ; and before I 
had time to remonstrate, his arms were around 
my neck, and his head pressed against my bosom 
the same way that Sophia Ann does, when she I 
wants me to buy a new bonnet or dress. J 

" Just what I thought," said he, " tuberculosis 
and hemoptysis, combined with a defect in the 
scapular membrane and incipient phthisis." 

" Heaven ! " says I, " what's that? " 

" And cardiac disease." 

" No ? " said I._ 

" And pericarditis! " 

" Thunder ! " said L 

" Stop talking ! Now count afler me — one ! " 

" One ! " said I, more than half dead with fright. 

" Asthma ! Two." 

" Two ! " I yelled. 

" Exostosis of the right fistula ! Thi-ee ! " 

" Three ! " I gasped. 

" Coxalgia ! Four ! " 

"Murder!" said L "Four!" 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



331 



idenum of the right ventricle ! 



ear doctor ! ain't you most 
int." 

; not half through. Why, my 
3X was nothing to your chest. 

a, and gloriosis, and conchol- 

and — " 

•embled so, I leaned against 



" Confii 
Five ! " 

"O, d. 
through ? 

" Throu 
friend. Pa 
You have 
ogia, and i 

Here ra- 
the table f( % 

"And a nt luxation of the anterior 

lobe of the ilanx." 

My only as a deprecatory gesture. 

"And sciuiuiuus aiathesis and omnipoditis." 

I sank to the floor in utter despair. 

" Eluration ! " he yelled, — for he saw I was 
going fast, — " and maxillarium, and — " 

When I woke to consciousness again, I found 
myself in a puddle of water, an empty bucket near 
by, and the surgeon astride my chest, shouting 
something in my ear, of which, however, I could 
hear notliing. 

I smiled feebly in acknowledgment of his atten- 
tions. At a sign from him, two attendants drew 
near, and having lifted him into a chair, — for he 
was absolutely black in the face with the violence 
of his exertions, — they hoisted me to a perpen- 
dicular, and the examination proceeded. 

But I will not harass your feelings by repeat- 
ing the heart-rending details. Suffice it to say, 
that I was afflicted with gastritis, emphysemation, 
marcidity, empyema, obesity, condyle of the hu- 
merus, pilicose veins, hernia in both great toes, 
and hemorrhoids in the left heel, besides lots of 
other diseases, whose names I cannot remember. 
Finally, after a rigid examination of my toe-nails 
in search of eruptive lesions, he arose to his feet, 
drew a long breath, wiped the perspiration from 
his face with a stray newspaper, and commenced. 

" Young man," said he, — and his eyes glistened 
with delight as he spoke, — " you are really the 
most interesting subject I ever met with. Really 
a most wonderful case ! I don't know when I 
have enjoyed a half hour so thoroughly. Why, 
sir, with the exception of two, or at most three, 
you have symptoms of every disease in the medi- 
cal dictionary. Please let me embrace you again, 
just to see if I can detect exicosis of the viscous 
membrane. Well, — no," he continued, with a 
slightly disappointed air, as he released me, "I 
don't seem to find it, exactly ; but would you mind 
coming round to my boarding-house, after tea, so 
that 1 can spend the evening auscultating after 
it?" 

He was so anxious to find that particular symp- 
tom, that I was sorry to refuse him ; but 1 had 
promised Sophia Ann that I would be home to 
tea, and knew she %vould worry if I staid ; so I 
was obhged to decline. Seeing there was a lady 
in..the_case, he very politely excused me — very 
much to my relief. 

" Well, good by, my friend," said he, as I took 
my hat to go ; "I wish it was so you could go to 
the war ; I would have you in my hospital in less 
than a month, and then I could examine you at 



ray leisure. I am positive a little exposure would 
bring on those two symptoms I spoke of, and then 
what a magnificent subject you would be ! How 
I should like to dissect you ! But then, perhaps 
you don't like it ; and if you don't, I don't know 
as I blame you for wishing to preserve your won- 
derful organization as long as possible ; so you 
just go into the next room, and Captain Herrick 
will give you a furlough to go home and provide 
a substitute, or pay your commutation fee. Boy, 
call the next on the list." 

" But, sir," said I, aghast at his concluding re- 
marks, " j'ou don't pretend to accept me as able- 
bodied ? " 

" Really, my friend," said he, " the fact is, you 
have so many diseases that I actually don't know 
which to specify. It won't do to say cranial dis- 
ease, when it's your heart that's aflTected ; and if 
I mention your heart, what's the use of your hav- 
ing the consumption ? But I know Dr. Coggs- 
well will be glad to get your commutation fee ; or 
if you will bring up a likely substitute, I shall be 
delighted to examine him ; and some day, when 
we are both at Hberty, I shall be most happy to 
have you call upon me. Hold ! just unbutton 
your coat, for a moment ; I must find that ex- 
ico— " 

But here I broke from his grasp, and stopping 
in the next room only long enough to procure my 
furlough, I started for the railway station, and 
never looked behind until I was safe in the arms 
of Sophia Ann and my dear children. 
• And now can anybody tell me where I can find 
a good substitute, warranted diseased in the head, 
heart, lungs, and legs, or all of them ? To such 
a man I will give three hundred dollars down ; 
or, if he prefer, at the rate of five dollars apiece 
for each symptom ; and I promise him, in behalf 
of our Uncle Samuel, food and clothing for three 
years, together with medical attendance in pro- 
portion to the number and malignity of his dis- 



Capture of a Secession Flag. — The com- 
mander of Camp Herron, Mo., in November, 
1861, having learned that a certain very fine se- 
cession flag, that had waved defiantly from a flag- 
staff' in the village of Manchester, twenty miles 
distant, until the successes of the Union forces 
caused its supporters to conclude that, for the 
present, " discretion would be the better part of 
valor," was still being very carefully preserved, its 
possessors boasting that they would soon be ena- 
bled to rehoist it, determined upon its capture. 

On the 15th inst., he directed First Lieutenant 
H. C. Bull, of company C, of the Ninth Iowa 
regiment, to take charge of the expedition, and 
to detail fifteen good men for the purpose, which 
detail the Lieutenant made from company C. 

They left camp by the cars at half past five 
P. M., landing at Slerrimac, three miles from 
Manchester, proceeding from thence to Manches- 
ter on foot, and surrounded the house of Squire 
B., who had been foremost in the secession move- 
ment of that strong secession town, and was re- 
ported to be in possession of the flag. 



332 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



The Squire protested against the imputation, 
declaring that the flag was not in his possession, 
and that he knew not of its whereabouts. His 
lady acknowledged that she had for a time kept 
it secreted in a box in the garden ; but as it was 
likely to become injured, she took it out, dried it 
in the sun, when it was taken away by some la- 
dies, who lived a long distance in the country, 

' ■ whose names she refused to give. Finally, after 

,,t ' a thorough but fruitless search of the house, af- 

^^ rier the Lieutenant had placed her husband under 

V arrest, and he was being started for headquarters, 
the lady, probably hoping to save her husband, 
acknowledged that it was taken by a ^Irs. S., 
who resided a mile and a half in the country, — 
not such a terrible long distance, after all. Her 
husband was then sent to Merrimac, escorted by 
four soldiers, and the remainder, conducted by 
the galJan^^Lieutenant, started to visit the resi- 
dence of Mrs. S., in search of the flag. The dis- 
tance to the lady's residence was soon travelled, 
the house surrounded, and the flag demanded of 
Mrs. S., who proved to be a very intelligent lady, 
and was surrounded by a very interesting fam- 
ily. The lady replied to the demand that she 
would like to see the person that stated that she 
took the flag from Squire B.'s ; that as to its 
whereabouts she had nothing to say ; that the 
Lieutenant could search her house, and if he 
could find anything that looked like a flag, he was 
welcome to it. Accordingly, a thorough search 
was made, in which the lady and her daughter 
aided, but no flag was to be found. The lady 
then thanked the officer for the gentlemanly man- 
ner in which the search had been conducted, and 
added that she trusted he was satisfied. He re- 
plied he was quite certain that she had the flag, 
and that it would have been far better for her to 
have yielded it ; but as she did not, as unpleasant 
as the task was, he should arrest her and take 
her to headquarters at Pacific City. Two men 
were then despatched for a carriage with which 
to convey the lady to Merrimac, and from thence 
the lady was informed that she would be sent by 
raib-oad. She accordingly made preparations to 
go ; but after about an hour had elapsed in wait- 
ing for the carriage, the lady again demanded 
the name of the informants, and when told that it 
was ]Mrs. B., and that Squire B. was already un- 
der arrest, she then asked whether any indignity 
would have been off'ered to her had the flag been 
found m her possession, to which the courteous 
Lieutenant replied, " Certainly not, madam ; our 
object with Squire B. was his arrest, and the cap- 
ture of the flag ; but with you, our object was the 
flag." 

'* Will you pledge your honor," said she, " that 
if I surrender the flag I shall not be arrested, nor 
my family disturbed ? " When replied to in the 
affirmative, she added, " I wish you to understand, 
sii", that no fear of arrest or trouble would ever 
have made me surrender that flag ; but Squire 
B.'s family induced me to take that flag to save 
their family from trouble, saying that it should 
be a sacred trust, known only to ourselves, and I, 
consequently, surrender it." 



She then went to a bed that had been fruit- 
lessly searched, took from it a quilt, and with the 
aid of her daughters proceeded to open the edges 
of the quilt, and cut the stitches through the 
body of it, and pulled off' the top, when, behold ! 
there lay the mammoth flag next •;o the cotton, 
being carefully stretched twice and nearly a half 
across the quilt. When taken out and spread, it 
proved to be a magnificent flag, over twenty-one 
feet in length, and nearly nine feet in width, with 
fifteen stars, to represent the prospective Southern 
Confederacy. 

" Recollect," said the lady to Lieutenant Bull, 
" that you did not find it yourself, and when you 
wish detectives, you had better employ ladies." 
She also added, that she gave up the flag unwill- 
ingly. The daughter remarked that she had 
slept midcr it, and that she loved it, and that fif- 
teen stars were not so terribly disunion, in her 
estimation, after all. ■ '' 



THE BATTLE-CRY OF FREEDOM. 

Yes, we'll rally round the flag, boys, 

We'll rally once again, 
Shouting the battle-cry of Freedom ; 
We will rally from the hill-side, 

We will rally from the plain, 
Shouting the battle-cry of Freedom. 

Chorus. 
The Union forever ! Hurrah, boys, hurrah ! 
Down with the traitors, up with the Stars ; 
While we rally round the flag, boys, 

Rally once again. 
Shouting the battle-cry of Freedom. 

We are springing to the call 

Of our brothers gone before, 
Shouting the battle-cry of Freedom ; 
And we'll fill the vacant ranks 

With a million freemen more. 
Shouting the battle-cry of Freedom. 

The Union forever, &c. 

We will welcome to our number 

The loyal, true, and brave, 
Shouting the battle-cry of Freedom ; 
And although he may be poor 

He shall never be a slave, 
Shouting the battle-cry of Freedom. 

The Union forever, &c , 

We are springing to the call, 

From the East and from the West, 

Shouting the battle-cry of Freedom ; 

And we'll hurl the rebel crew 
From the land we love the best, 

Shouting the battle-cry of Freedom. 
The Union forever, &c. 

We are marching to the field, boys, 

Going to the fight, 
Shouting the battle-cry of Freedom ; 
And we'll bear the glorious Stars 

Of the Union and the Right, 
Shouting the battle-cry of Freedom. 

The Union forever, &c. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



333 



We'll meet the rebel host, boys, 
With fearless hearts and true, 

Shouting the battle-cry of Freedom ; 

And we'll show what Uncle Sam. 
Has for loyal men to do, 

Shouting the battle-cry of Freedom. 
The Union forever, &c. 

If we fall amid the fray, boys, 
We will face them to the last, 

Shouting the battle-cry of Freedom ; 

And our comrades brave shall hear us, 
As we are rushing past, 

Shouting the battle-cry of Freedom. 
The Union forever, &c. 

Yes, for Liberty and Union 
We are springing to the fight. 

Shouting the battle-cry of Freedom ; 

And the victory shall be ours, 
Forever rising in our might, 

Shouting the battle-cry of Freedom. 
The Union forever, &e 



BATTLE OF GETTYSBURG. 

by samuel wiliceson. 

Headquarters Aemy of Potojiac, | 
Saturday Night, July 4. j 

How can I ^Yl•ite the history of a battle Avhen 
my eyes are immovably fastened upon a central 
figure of transcendingly absorbing interest — the 
dead body of my oldest born son, caused by a 
shell in a position where the battery he com- 
manded should never have been sent, and aban- 
doned to die in a building where surgeons dared 
not to stay ? 

The battle of Gettysburg ! I am told that it 
commenced on the 1st of July, a mile north of 
the town, between two weak brigades of infantry 
and some doomed artillery and the whole force 
of the rebel army. Among other costs of this 
error was the death of Reynolds. Its value was 
priceless, however, though priceless was the 
young and the old blood with which it was 
bought. The error put us on the defensive, and 
gave us the choice of position. From the mo- 
ment that our artillery and infantry rolled back 
through the main street of Gettysburg, and rolled 
out of the town to the circle of eminences south 
of it, we were not to attack, but to be attacked. 
The risks, the difficulties, and the disadvantages 
of the coming battle were the enemy's. Ours 
were the heights for artillery; ours the short, 
inside lines for manoeuvring and reenforcing; 
ours the cover of stone walls, fences, and the 
crests of hills. 

The ground upon which we were driven to 
accept battle was wonderfully favorable to us. 
A popular description of it would be to say that 
it was in form an elongated and somewhat 
sharpened horse-shoe, with the toe to Gettysburg 
and the heel to the south. 

Lee's plan of battle was simple. He massed 
his troops upon the east side of this shoe of po- 
sition, and thundered on it obstinately to break 
it The shelling of our batteries from the nearest 



overlooking hill, and the unflinching courage and 
complete discipline of the army of the Potomac, 
repelled the attack. It was renewed at the point 
of the shoe — renewed desperately at its south- 
west heel — renewed on its western side with an 
effort consecrated to success by Swell's earnest 
oaths, and on which the fate of the invasion of 
Pennsj'lvania was fully put at stake. Only a 
perfect infantry and an artillery educated in the 
midst of charges of hostile brigades could pos- 
sibly have sustained this assault. Hancock's 
corps did sustain it, and has covered itself with 
immortal honors by its constancy and courage. 
The total wreck of Cushing's battery — the list 
of its killed and wounded — the losses of officers, 
men, and horses Cowen sustained — and the mar- 
vellous outspread upon the board of death of 
dead soldiers and dead animals — of dead sol- 
diers in blue and dead soldiers in gray — more 
marvellous to me than anything I have ever seen 
in war — are a ghastly and shocking testimony 
to the terrible fighting of the Second corps that 
none will gainsay. That corps Avill ever have the 
distinction of breaking the pride and power of 
the rebel invasion. 

For such details as I have the heart for. The 
battle commenced at daylight, on the east side of 
the horse-shoe position, exactly opposite to that 
which Ewell had sworn to crush through. Mus- 
ketry-firing preceded the rising of the sun. A 
thick wood veiled this fight, but out of its leafy 
darkness arose the smoke — and the surging and 
swelling of the fire, from intermittent to continu- 
ous and crusliing, told of the wise tactics of the 
rebels in attacking in force and changing their 
troops. Seemingly the attack of the day was to 
be made through that wood. The demonstration 
was protracted — absolutely it was preparative. 
There Avas no artillery fire accompanying the 
musketry, but shrewd officers on our western 
front mentioned, with the gravity due to the 
fact, that the rebels had the day before fallen 
trees at intervals upon the edge of the wood they 
occupied in face of our position. These were 
breastworks for the protection of artillerymen. 

Suddenly, and about ten in the forenoon, the 
firing on the east side, and everywhere about our 
lines, ceased. A silence as of deep sleep fell 
upon the field of battle. Our army cooked, ate, 
and slumbered. The rebel army moved one hun- 
dred and twenty guns to the west, and massed 
there Longstreet's corps and Hill's corps, to hurl 
them upon the really weakest point of our entire 
position. 

Eleven o'clock — twelve o'clock — one o'clock. 
In the shadow cast by the tiny farm-house, sixteen 
by twenty, which Gen. Meade had made his head- 
quarters, lay wearied staff officers and tired jour- 
nalists. There was not Avanting to the peaceful- 
ness of the scene the singing of a bird, which 
had a nest in a peach tree within the tiny yard 
of the whitewashed cottage. In the midst of 
its warbling, a shell screamed over the house, in- 
stantly followed by another, and another, and in 
a moment the air was full of the most complete 
artillery prelude to an infantry battle that was 



334 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTo. 



ever exhibited. Every size and form of shell, 
known to British and to American gunnery, 
shrieked, whirled, moaned, whistled, and wrath- 
fully fluttered over our ground. As many as six 
in a second, constantly two in a second, bursting 
and screaming over and around the headquar- 
ters, made a very hell of fire that amazed the 
oldest officers. They burst in the yard — burst 
next to the fence on both sides, garnished as 
usual with the hitched horses of aids and order- 
lies. The fastened animals reared and plunged 
with teiTor. Then one fell, then another — six- 
teen lay dead and mangled before the fire ceased. 
Still fastened by their halters, which gave the ex- 
pression of their being wickedly tied up to die 
painfully, these brute victims of a cruel war 
touched all hearts. Through the midst of the 
storm of screaming and exploding shells, an am- 
bulance, driven by its frenzied conductor at full 
speed, presented to all of us the marvellous spec- 
tacle of a horse going rapidly on three legs. A 
hinder one had been shot off at the hock. A 
shell tore up the little step of the Headquarters 
Cottage, and ripped bags of oats as with a knife. 
Another soon carried off one of its two pillars. 
Soon a spherical case burst opposite the open 
door — another ripped through the low garret. 
The remaining pillar went almost immediately to 
the howl of a fixed shot that Whitworth must 
have made. During this fire, the horses at twen- 
ty and thirty feet distant were receiving their 
death, and soldiers in Federal blue were torn to 
pieces in the road, and died with the peculiar 
yells that blend the extorted cry of pain with 
horror and despair. Not an orderly — not an 
ambulance — not a straggler, was to be seen upon 
the plain swept by this tempest of orchestral 
death, thirty minutes after it commenced. Were 
not one hundred and twenty pieces of artillery 
trying to cut from' the field every battery we had 
in position to resist their purposed infantry at- 
tack, and to sweep away the slight defences be- 
hind which our infantry were waiting? Forty 
minutes — fifty minutes — counted on watches 
that ran, O, so languidly ! Shells through the 
two lower rooms ! A shell into the chimney that 
fortunately did not explode. Shells in the yard. 
The air thicker and fuller, and more deafening 
with the howling and whirling of these infernal 
missiles. The chief of staff struck. Seth Wil- 
liams, loved and respected through the army, 
separated from instant death by two inches of 
space vertically measured. An aid bored with 
a fragment of iron thi'ough the bone of the arm. 
Another cut with an exploded piece of case shot. 
And the time measured on the sluggish watches 
was one hour and forty minutes. 

Then there was a lull, and we knew that the 
rebel infantry was charging. And splendidly they 
did this work — the highest and severest test of the 
stuff that soldiers ai-e made of. Hill's division, 
in line of battle, came first on the double-quick, 
their muskets at the " right-shoulder-shift." 
Longstreet's came as the support, at the usual 
distance, with war cries and a savage insolence, 
as yet untutored by defeat. They rushed in per- 



fect order across the open field up to the very 
muzzles of the guns, which tore lanes through 
them as they came. But they met men who were 
their equals in spirit, and their superiors in te- 
nacity. There never was better fighting, sinae 
Thermopylae, than was done yesterday by our 
infantry and artillery. The rebels were over our 
defences. They had cleaned cannoneers and 
horses from one of the gims, and were whirling 
it around to use upon us. The bayonet drove 
them back. But so hard pressed was this brave 
infantry, that at one time, from the exhaustion of 
their ammunition, every battery upon the princi- 
pal crest of attack was silent, except Cowen's. 
His service of grape and canister was awful. It 
enabled our line, outnumbered two to one, first 
to beat back Longstreet, and then to charge upon 
him, and take a great number of his men and 
himself prisoners. Strange sight ! So terrible 
was our musketry and artillery fire, that when 
Armistead's brigade was checked in its charge, 
and stood reeling, all of its men dropped their 
muskets, and crawled on their hands and knees 
underneath the stream of shot till close to our 
troops, where they made signs of surrendering. 
They passed through our ranks scarcely noticed, 
and slowly went down the slope to the road in 
the rear. Before they got there, the grand 
charge of Ewell, solemnly sworn to and care- 
fully prepared, had failed. 

The rebels retreated to their lines, and opened 
anew the storm of shell and shot from their one 
hundred and twenty guns. Those who remained 
at the riddled headquarters will never forget the 
crouching, and dodging, and running of the but- 
ternut-colored captives when they got under this, 
their friends' fire. It was appalling to as good 
soldiers even as they were. 

What remains to say of the fight? It strag- 
gled surlily over the middle of the horse-shoe on 
the west, grew big and angry on the heel at the 
south-west, lasted there till eight o'clock in the 
evening, when the fighting Sixth corps went joy- 
ously by as a reenforcement thi-ough a wood bright 
with coffee pots on the fire. 

My pen is heavy. O, you dead, who at Get- 
tysburg have baptized with your blood the second 
birth of Freedom in America, how you are to be 
envied ! I rise from a grave whose wet clay I 
have passionately kissed, and I look up and see 
Christ spanning this battle-field with his feet, and 
reaching fraternal and loving up to heaven. His 
right hand opens the gates of Paradise, — with 
his left he sweetly beckons to these mutilated, 
bloody, swollen forms to ascend. 



Incident of Nashville. — The Sixty-ninth 

Illinois regiment, after marching in column 
through the principal streets of Nashville, cheer- 
ing for the Union, came to a halt and in line of 
battle in front of the St. Cloud Hotel, where Gov- 
ernor Andy Johnson was stopping, and ofl'ered 
three cheers for the "Union, the Constitution, 
and- the enforcement of the laws ; " whereupon 
Governor Andy Johnson appeared, hat in hand, 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



335 



and made a very little -war speech. While these 
things were going on, a pretty young lady, expen- 
sively and tastily dressed, promenading the street, 
was put to the inconvenience of having to pass 
round the right wing of the battalion, which 
blocked up two streets. As she swept along, she 
turned up her pretty nose (as is their custom) at 
a manly, soldierly appearing Corporal in company 
D. The Corporal promptly stepped out of ranks, 
caused three soldiers to do the same, and invited 
the young lady to pass through the interval. She 
accepted the invitation, but, in passing through 
the lines, gave the Corporal a " withering glance," 
as Reynolds would have it, and said to him, "You 
had better all of you go home." " O, no," an- 
swered the Corporal, " we like your country, your 
climate, your people." " Our people ! " the young 
lady exclaimed, sucking in a good supply of 
breath ; " are you not ashamed to drive our poor 
men from their homes and theii- families ? " " But 
we don't want to drive them away," said the Cor- 
poral, " if they will only have any sense — we 
don't want their niggers — don't want to free 
them — have too many niggers North now — all 
we want is to keep together the old government, 
and to keep up the old flag, and that we are going 
to do." 

A True Kentucktan. — The Provost Marshal 
of the Eighth District of Kentucky, having called 
upon those whom he had enrolled to show cause 
for exemption, — if cause there were, — was wait- 
ed on by a large crowd, nearly all of whom were 
rebels, many of them having served several 
months in the rebel army, but considered them- 
selves unfit for the hardships of the tented field. 
Hereupon, the Provost Marshal was favored with 
tlae following letter : 

KiCHJioJJD, Ky., December 17, 1863. 

Captain Robert Hays, Provost MarsTial Eighth, 
District, London, Kentucky : 

Dear Sir: I have seen your advertisement 
giving the people desiring exemption from the 
coming draft an opportunity to lay in their com- 
plaints, &c. Now, sir, I have never had the honor 
of your acquaintance, but I can refer you, for the 
truth of what I am about to say, to my worthy 
friend, James D. Foster, surgeon, and a member 
of your honorable Board. My complaints are as 
follows, viz. : 

I have no broken limbs. I have no chronic dis- 
eases, such as iuflamnvatory rheumatism, chronic 
inflammation of the stomach, phthisic, white swell- 
ing, &c. I am not blind in either eye. I am not 
knock-kneed. I am not bandy shanked. I am 
not bow-legged. I have no bad teeth, and can bite 
ofi' a cartridge. I stand straight on my pastern 
joints. I have never been drilled in the Southern 
army, and never been so fortunate as to belong 
to the sympathizing party in Madison. I have no 
impediment in my speech. I am neither near- 
sighted nor far-sighted. I can hear well ; I can hear 
the ring of a musket as well as the ring of a silver 
dollar. In short, I am sound in wind and limb. 



I am about twenty-eight years old. I am a house- 
keeper, and have a wife (a good Union woman), 
and no children living. I am a citizen of Madi- 
son County, Kentucky, from which you want two 
hundred and thirty-nine soldiers. I am as brave 
as any man who is no braver than I am. One of 
my legs is as long as the other, and both are long 
enough to run well. I am for the " last man and 
the last dollar," " nigger or no nigger ; " espe- 
cially the last man. If you have a good musket 
marked " U. S.," send it down here, and I am 
ready to bear it in defence of the Union. I am 
no foreigner, and claim all the papers that entitle 
me to " go in." Willard DA\^s. 



At Island Number Ten, Major Corse, In- 
spector-General on General Pope's stafl", discov- 
ered a crowd of secessionists in a cornfield. As 
soon as he was seen by them, they hid themselves 
amongst the corn, and the Majoi', being alone, 
naturally feared that he himself would be taken 
prisoner instead of making them his captives. 
There was nothing to be done, however, but to 
put a bold face on the matter ; so he took down 
the rail fence suiTOunding the field, rode in among 
them, and ordered them to march into the road, 
and stack arms there. This order was obeyed, 
and the Major's feelings were considerably re- 
lieved when a guard came along with other pris- 
oners, to whom he very willingly transferred those 
he had taken, and went on his way rejoicing. 
Secretary Scott and Adjutant-General Butler 
found themselves at one time in a similar posi- 
tion ; they, too, trusting to the justness of their 
cause, commanded the rebels to surrender. This 
they did, and thei^ two officers brought into 
camp one hundred and fifty-three prisoners of 
their own manufacture. 



The Vermont Brigade. — The following de- 
scription of this noted brigade was written by "one 
who did not belong to it, and who never was in 
Vermont." It will be seen, by the tenor of the 
article, that the writer is no flatterer, although the 
relation of the truth constitutes his j'l'oduction 
complimentary to the gallant " Green Mountain 
boys : " 

" They were honest farmers turned vagabonds. 
They were simple countrymen changed into heroes. 
They were quiet townsmen that had become ro- 
vers. They stole ancient horses and bony cows 
on the march. They pillaged moderately in other 
things. They SM-ept the dairies, and they stripped 
the orchards for miles where they travelled. They 
chased rabbits when they M-ent into camp, after 
long marches, and they yelled like wild Indians 
when neighboring camps were silent thi'ough fa- 
tigue. They were ill disciplined and familiar with 
their officers. They swaggered in a cool, impu- 
dent way, and looked down with a patronizing 
Yankee coolness upon all regiments that were 
better drilled, and upon that part of the army 
generally that did not belong to the Vermont 
brigade. They were strangely proud, not of them- 



336 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



selves individually, but of the brigade collective- 
ly ; for they knew perfectly "svell they were the 
best fighters in the known world. They were 
long of limb, and could outmarch the army. They 
were individually self-reliant and skilful in the use 
of arms ; and they honestly believed that the Ver- 
mont brigade could not be beaten by all the com- 
bined armies of the rebellion. 

"They were veterans in fighting qualities al- 
most from their first skirmish. This was at Lee's 
Mills. They crossed a narrow dam under a fire, 
made the attack they were instructed to make, 
and came back, wading deep in the water, with a 
steadiness that surprised the army. They were an 
incorrigible, irregular, noisy set of rascals. They 
were much sworn at during their four years of 
service ; yet they were at all times a pet brigade. 
There were but two things they would do — march 
and fight ; and these they did in a manner pe- 
culiarly their own. They had a long, slow, swing- 
ing stride on the march, which distanced every- 
thing that followed them. They had a quiet, 
attentive, earnest, individual way of fighting that 
made them terrific in battle. Each man knew 
that his neighbor in the ranks was not going to 
run away ; and he knew, also, that he himself in- 
tended to remain where he was. Accordingly none 
of the attention of the line was directed from the 
important duty of loading and firing, 'rapidly and 
carefully. When mo-\ing into action, and while 
hotly engaged, they made queer, quaint jokes, 
and enjoyed them greatly. They crowed like 
cocks, they ba-a-ed like sheep, they neighed like 
horses, they bellowed like bulls, they barked like 
dogs, and they counterfeited, with excellent efi"ect, 
the indescribable music of the mule. When, per- 
chance, they held a picket linefci a forest, it seemed 
as if Noah's ark had gone to pieces there. 

" In every engagement in which this-brigade 
took part, it was complimented for gallant con- 
duct. One of the most remarkable of its perform- 
ances, however, has never appeared in print, nor 
has it been noticed in the reports. After the bat- 
tle of Gettysburg, when Lee's army was in the 
vicinity of Hagerstown and the Antietam, the 
Vermont brigade was deployed as a skirmishing 
line, covering a point of nearly three miles. The 
enemy were in force in front, near Beaver Creek. 
The Sixth corps was held in readiness in rear of 
the skirmish line, anticipating a general engage- 
ment. The enemy had evidently determined to 
attack. At last his line of battle came forward. 
The batteries opened at once, and the skirmishers 
delivered their fire. Our troops were on the alert, 
and stood watching for the skirmishers to come 
in, and waiting to receive the coming assault. But 
the skirmishers would not come in ; and when the 
firing died away, it appeared that the Vermonters 
thus deployed as a skirmish line had actually re- 
pulsed a full line of battle attack. Twice after- 
wards the enemy advanced to carry the po- 
sition, and were each time again driven back by 
this perverse skirmish line. The Vermonters, 
it is true, were strongly posted in a wood, and 
each man fired from behind a tree. But then 
everybody knows that the etiquette in such mat- 



ters is for a skirmish line to come in so soon as 
they ai-e satisfied that the enemy means business. 
These simple-minded patriots from the Green 
Mountains, however, adopted a rvde of their own 
on this occasion ; and the enemy, disgusted with 
such stupidity, retired across the Beaver Creek, j 

" When the Vermonters led the column on a 
march, their quick movements had to be regulated 
from corps or division headquarters, to avoid gaps 
in the column as it followed them. If a rapid or 
forced march were required, it was a common 
thing for Sedgwick to say, with a quiet smile, ' Put 
the Vermonters at the head of the column to-day, 
and keep everything well closed up.' 

"After the riots in New York, when it was 
found necessary to send troops to the city to pre- 
vent a recurrence of the outbreak, the Vermont 
brigade was specially named by the War Depart- 
ment for this duty. Within two hours after the 
receipt of the despatch, the command was en route 
for the city. They occupied the public squares 
here for some time, enjoyed themselves not wisely, 
nor yet virtuously ; and returned to the army of 
the Potomac sadly demoralized in all l)ut tlie two 
great essential qualities of fighting and marching. 
It was a fortunate thing for the New York mob 
that it avoided a conflict with the New England 
troops at that time. 

" Upon the return of the brigade to the field 
they quietly held on to their old routine of life, 
and maintained to the close of the war the splen- 
did reputation they had won at the very outset. 

" There were many regiments equal to the Ver- 
mont regiments in actual battle, and some that, 
like the Fifth New York volunteers, not only 
equalled them in fighting qualities, but greatly 
surpassed them in drill, discipline, and appearance 
on parade. As a brigade, however, they were 
undoubtedly the best brigade in the army of the 
Potomac, for they not only fought as well as it 
was possible to fight, but they could outmarch, 
with the utmost ease, any other organization in 
the army. 

" It was the intention of the writer only to refer 
to this brigade, as furnishing the best type of the 
American soldier ; but this article has grown be- 
yond its intended limit, and we have, therefore, 
not the space to examine into the causes of this 
superiority. Two, however, may be briefly stated. 
First, that the regiments from Vermont were bri- 
gaded together. This rule, strange to say, seemed 
to work well only in regard to the smaller States, 
like Vermont and New Jersey. Second, the fact 
that Vermont, during the first year of the war, 
recruited for her regiments, and kept them full. 
Regimental and company officers, knowing that 
their ranks would be filled up, discharged men 
freely, and thus managed to get rid of their weak 
and worthless soldiers. For these reasons the 
Vermonters were good men. They were fortunate, 
moreover, in having such commanders as General 
W. F. Smith and General W. T. H. Brooks. It 
naturally resulted from this combination of cir- 
cumstances that they became a great power in 
battle, and earned a reputation of which every 
man and woman in Vermont may well be proud." 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



337 



Spiritualism at the White House. — A 
correspondent at Washington, in the spring of 
1863, naiTated the following story : 

" A few evenings since, Abraham Lincoln, 
President of tlie United States, was induced to 
give a spiritual soiree in the crimson room at the 
AVhite House, to test the wonderful alleged super- 
natural powers of Mr. Charles E. Shockle. It 
was my good fortune, as a friend of the medium, to 
be present, the party consisting of the President, 
Mrs. Lincoln, Mr. AVelles, Mr. Stanton, IMr. 
L , of New York, and Mr. F , of Phila- 
delphia. We took our seats in the circle about 
eight o'clock, but the President was called away, 
shortly after the manifestations commenced, and 
the spirits, which had apparently assembled to 
convince him of their power, gave visible tokens 
of their displeasure at the President's absence, 
by pinching INIr. Stanton's ears, and twitching 
Mr. Welles' beard. He soon returned, but it was 
some time before harmony was restored, for the 
mishaps to the secretaries caused such bursts of 
laughter that the influence was very unpropitious. 
For some half hour the demonstrations were of 
a physical character — tables were moved, and 
the picture of Henry Clay, which hangs on the 
Avail, was swayed more than a foot, and two can- 
delabras, presented by the Dey of Algiers to 
President Adams, were twice raised nearly to the 
ceiling. 

" It was nearly nine o'clock before Shockle was 
fully under spiritual influence ; and so powerful 
were the subsequent manifestations, that tM'ice, 
during the evening, restoratives were applied, for 
he was much weakened ; and though I took no 
notes, I shall endeavor to give you as faithful an 
account as possible of what took place. 

" Loud rappings, about nine o'clock, were heard 
directly beneath the President's feet, and Mi\ 
Shockle stated that an Indian desired to com- 
municate. 

" ' Well, sir,' said the President, ' I should be 
happy to hear what his Indian majesty has to say. 
We have recently had a visitation from our red 
brethren, and it was the only delegation, black, 
white, or blue, which did not volunteer some ad- 
vice about the conduct of the war.' 

" The medium then called for pencil and paper, 
and they were laid upon the table in sight of all. 
A handkerchief was then taken from Mr. Stanton, 
and the materials were carefully concealed from 
sight. In less space of time than it has required 
for me to write this, knocks were heard, and the 
paper was uncovered. To the surprise of all 
present, it read as follows : 

" ' Haste makes waste, but delays cause vexa- 
tions. Give vitality by energy. Use every means 
to subdue. Proclamations are useless ; make a 
bold front, and fight the enemy ; leave traitors at 
home to the care of loyal men. Less note of 
preparation, less parade and policy talk, and more 
action. Hbnky Knox.' 

" ' That is not Indian talk, Mr. Shockle,' said 
the President. ' Who is Henry Knox ? ' 
" I suggested to the medium to ask who Gen- 
22 



eral Knox was ; and before the words were from 
my lips, the medium spoke in a strange voice : 
' The first Secretary of War.' 

'"O, yes, General Knox,' said the President, 
who, turning to the Secretary, said : * Stanton, that 
message is for you ; it is from your predecessor.' 

" Mr. Stanton made no reply. 

" ' I should like to ask General Knox,' said the 
President, ' if it is within the scope of his ability, 
to tell us when this rebellion will be put down.' 

" In the same manner as before, this message 
was received : 

" * Washington, Lafayette, Franklin, Wilber- 
force. Napoleon, and myself, have held frequent 
consultations on this point. There is something 
which our spiritual eyes cannot detect, which ap- 
pears well formed. Evil has come at times by 
removal of men from high positions, and there 
are those in retirement, whose abilities should be 
made useful to hasten the end. Napoleon says, 
concentrate yom* forces upon one point ; Lafay- 
ette thinks that the rebellion will die of exhaus- 
tion ; Franklin sees the end approaching, as the 
South must give up for want of mechanical 
ability to compete against Northern mechanics. 
Wilberforce sees hope only in a negro army. 

Knox.' 

" ' Well,' exclaimed the President, ' opinions 
differ among the saints as well as among the sin- 
ners. They don't seem to imderstand running 
the machines among the celestials much better 
than we do. Their taUi and advice sound very 
much like the talk of my cabinet — don't you 
think so, Mr. Welles?' 

" * Well, I don't know — I will think the mat- 
ter over, and see what conclusion to arrive at.' 

" Heavy raps were heard, and the alphabet was 
called for, when, ' That's what's the matter,' was 
spelt out. 

" There Avas a shout of laughter, and Mr. 
Welles stroked his beard. 

" * That means, Mr. Welles,' said the President, 
* that you are apt to be long-winded, and think 
the nearest way home is the longest way round. 
Short cuts in Avar times. I Avish the spirits could 
tell us liOAv to catch the Alabama.' 

" The lights, which had been partially lowered, 
almost instantaneously became so dim that I 
could not see sufficiently to distinguish the fea- 
tures of any one in the room, and on the large 
mirror over the mantel-piece there appeared the 
most beautiful, though supernatural, picture ever 
beheld. It represented a sea vieAV, the Alabama 
with all steam up, flying from the pursuit of 
another large steamer. Tavo merchantmen, in 
the distance, Avere seen, partially destroyed by 
fire. The picture changed, and the Alabama was 
seen at anchor under the shadow of an English 
fort — from Avhich an English flag Avas waving. 
The Alabama Avas floating idly, not a soul on 
board, and no signs of life visible about her. The 
picture vanished, and in letters of purple ap- 
peared : ' The English people demanded this of 
England's aristocracy.' 

" ' So England is to seize the Alabama, final- 



338 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



ly,' said the President. ' It may be possible ; but, 
Mr. Welles, don't let one gunboat or monitor 
less be built.' 

" The spirits called for the alphabet, and again 
' That what's the matter,' was spelt out. 

"'I see, I see,' said the President. ' Mother 
England thinks that what's sauce for the goose 
may be sauce for the gander. It may be tit-tat, 
too, hereafter. But it is not very compliment- 
ary to our navy, anj-how.' 

" ' We've done our best, Mr. President,' said 
Mr. Welles. * I'm maturing a plan which, when 
perfected, I think, if it works well, will be a per- 
fect trap for the Alabama.' 

" ' Well, Mr. Shockle,' remarked the Presi- 
dent, 'I have seen strange things, and heard 
rather odd remarks ; but nothing which con- 
vinces me, except the pictures, that there is any- 
thing very heavenly about all this. I should like, 
if possible, to hear what Judge Douglas says 
about this war.' 

" ' I'll try to get his spirit,' said Mr. Shockle ; 
'but it sometimes happens, as it did to-night in 
the case of the Indian, that though first im- 
pressed by one spirit, I yield to another more pow- 
erful. If perfect silence is maintained, I will see 
if vt'e cannot induce General Knox to send for 
Mr. Douglas.' 

" Three raps were given, signifying assent to the 
proposition. Perfect silence was maintained, and 
after an interval of perhaps three minutes, Mr. 
Shockle rose quickly from his chair, and stood 
up behind it, resting his left arm on the back, his 
right thrust into his bosom. In a voice, such as 
no one could mistake, who had ever heard Mr. 
Douglas, he spoke. I shall not pretend to quote 
the language. It was eloquent and choice. He 
urged the President to throw aside all advisers 
who hesitate about the policy to be pursued, and 
to listen to the wishes of the people, who would 
sustain him at all points, if his aim was, as he 
believed it was, to restore the Union. He said 
there were Burrs and Blennerhassets living, but 
that they would wither before the popular appro- 
val which would follow one or two victories, 
such as he thought must take place ere long. 
The turning-point in this war will be the proper 
use of these victories. If wicked men, in the 
first hours of success, think it time to devote 
their attention to party, the war will be pro- 
longed ; but if victory is followed up by ener- 
getic action, all will be well. 

" 'I believe that,' said the President, ' whether 
it comes from spirit or human.' 

" Mr. Shockle was much prostrated after this, 
and at Mrs. Lincoln's request, it was thought 
best to adjourn the seance." 



Seventy-slx and Sixty-four. — Among a 
large number of articles sent to the Sanitary 
Commission was a good and patriotic old lady's 
last tribute, to be laid on the altar of her country, 
bearing the following inscription : 

" These socks were spun and knit by Mrs. Ze- 
ruah Clapp, ninety-six years old, whose hands, 



in youth, were engaged in moulding bullets in 
the Revolutionary War." — Chestertown, New 
York. 

GENERAL LEE'S WOOING. 
" JV/y Maryland! My Maryland ! " 

My Maryland ! My Maryland ! 

Among thy hills of blue 
I wander fsir, I wander wide, 

A lover bold and true; 
I sound my horn upon the hills, 

I sound it in the vale ; 
But echo only answers it — 

An echo like a wail. 

5Iy Maryland ! My Maryland ! 

I bring thee presents fine — 
A dazzling sword with jewelled hilt, 

A flask of Bourbon wine ; 
I bring thee sheets of ghostly white, 

To dress thy bridal bed, 
With curtains of the purple eve, 

And garlands gory red. 

My Maryland ! My Maryland ! 

Sweet land upon the shore. 
Bring out thy stalwart j'eomanry, 

Make clean the threshmg-floor. 
My ready wains lie stretching far 

Across the fertile plain, 
And I among the reapers stand 

To gather in the grain. 

My Maryland ! My Maryland ! 

I fondly wait to see 
Thy banner flaunting in the breeze. 

Beneath the trysting tree ; 
While all my gallant company 

Of gentlemen, with spurs. 
Come tramping, tramping o'er the hills, 

And tramping through the furze. 

My Maryland ! My Maryland ! 

I feel the leaden rain ! 
I see the winged messenger 

Come hurling to my brain ! 
K feathered with thy golden hair, 

'Tis feathered not in vain ; 
I spurn the hand that loosed the shaft. 

And curse thee in my pain. 

My Maryland ! My Maryland ! 

Alas the ruthless day 
That sees my gallant buttonwoods 

Ride galloping away ! 
And ruthless for my chivalry, 

Proud gentlemen, with spurs. 
Whose bones lie stark upon the hills, 

And stark among the furze. 



An Anecdote of Colonel Hugh ]\IcNeil. — 
Dui'ing the battle of South Mountain the rebels 
held a very strong position. They were posted 
in the mountain pass, and had infantry on the 
heights on every side. Our men were compelled 
to carry the place by storm. The position seemed • 
impregnable ; large craggy rocks protected the 
enemy on every side, while our men were exposed 
to a galling fire. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



339 



A band of rebels occupied a ledj^e on the ex- 
treme right, as the Colonel approached with a few 
of his men. The unseen force poured upon them 
a volley. McNeil, on the instant, gave the com- 
mand : 

" Pour your fire upon those rocks ! " 

The Bucktails hesitated ; it was not an order 
that they had been accustomed to receive ; they 
had alw-ays picked their men. 

" Fire ! " thundered the Colonel ; " I tell you to 
fire at those rocks ! " 

The men obeyed. For some time an irregular 
fire was kept up, the Bucktails sheltering them- 
selves, as best they could, behind trees and rocks. 
On a sudden McNeil caught sight of two rebels 
peering through an opening in the works to get 
an aim. The eyes of the men followed their com- 
mander, and half a dozen rifles were levelled in 
that direction. 

" Wait a minute," said the Colonel ; " I will try 
my hand. There is nothing like killing two birds 
with one stone." 

The two rebels were not in line, but one stood 
a little distance back of the other, while just in 
front of the foremost was a slanting rock. Colonel 
McNeil seized a rifle, raised it, glanced a moment 
along the polished barrel ; a report followed, and 
both the rebels disappeared. At that moment a 
loud cheer a little distance beyond rent the air. 

" All is right now," cried the Colonel ; " charge 
the rascals." 

The men sprang up among the rocks in an in- 
stant. The afii'ighted rebels turned to run, but 
encountered another body of the Bucktails, and 
were obliged to surrender. Not a man of them 
escaped. Every one saw the object of the Colo- 
nel's order to fire at random among the rocks. 
He had sent the party around to their rear, and 
meant thus to attract their attention. It was a 
perfect success. 

The two rebels by the opening in the ledge 
were found lying there stifi" and cold. Colonel 
McNeil's bullet had struck the slanting rock in 
front of them, glanced, and passed through both 
their heads. There it lay beside them, flattened. 
The Colonel picked it up, and put it in his 
pocket. 

Incidents of Shekman's March. — A corre- 
spondent who accompanied the army of General 
Sherman gives the following : 

" I entered a house. The hostess was standing 
in a small room with closed door, looking through 
a small aperture, and crying : ' O ! don't kill me. 
I am afeard of you.' I assured her my profound 
respect for her sex had always, led me to treat 
them Avith the most tender kindness. ' O, yes,' 
she said, ' but — but you Yankees have been rec- 
ommended to us to be a very bad and murder- 
some set of people ! ' 

" In another hut I saw two women and seven 
small children, the oldest not more than nine 
years of age. They looked forlorn and hojieless. 
It seemed to me that death would be a relief to 
them all. Though they had not eaten a mouthful 
for three days, ooth women were smoking. A 



child was lying on the bed. I saw, by its burning 
cheek, that it was very ill. I said, ' Is your child 
sick ? ' ' Yes,' she replied, and seemed, by her 
indiflerence, to have even lost a mother's love. I 
procured one of our surgeons ; he examined the 
child, and said, ' Dying of starvation.' Before I 
left, the doctor had ordered provisions from the 
Commissary, for Avhich he paid out of his own 
funds. There are some kind men left yet. The 
husbands of these women were in the rebel army. 
The authorities make no provision for the poor. 
It is hard to see tlie suffering here en<3ured by 
these harmless, illiterate people. 

" One cause of their sufferings is the necessity 
of taking something in the way of provisions. 
If the supplies of forage are not up, the boys \vill 
take the corn, and other things, too. I saw one 
fellow attacking a beehive which had been left 
behind. The bees were worse than rebels. He 
was repulsed. But, on making the second attack, 
he ckew a large grain sack over his head and 
shoulders, donned his buckskin gauntlets, took 
the enemy, and divided the spoils. It is laugh- 
able to see the German soldiers out foraging. It 
is not unfrequently that an ancient hen is seen 
swinging from the pommel of a saddle, and a 
brood of young chickens following the horse." 



Bravery of Captain Hess. — On the 19th 
of May, 1864, at Milford Station, on the Virginia 
Central Railroad, F. W. Hess, senior Captain of 
the Third Pennsylvania cavalry, with a detach- 
ment of the First Pennsylvania cavalry, was or- 
dered to take some rifle pits defending the ene- 
my's position, at a bridge over the Matapony 
River. Dismounting his men, he led them over a 
field, about three hundi'ed yards, without cover 
of any kind from the enemy's bullets. The num- 
ber of men at Captain Hess' disposal was less 
than one hundred, armed with Sharp's carbines 
and pistols. The pits were taken in the most gal- 
lant style ; and in them were captured six officers 
and fifty enlisted men of the 11th Virginia infan- 
try. Captain Horton, their commanding officer, 
as he gave up his sword to Captain Hess, said, 
" Sir, you are a brave man ! " The loss in this 
charge was six killed and eight wounded. By 
the exploit the bridge was uncovered, and the 
passage of the river secured. Captain Hess and 
his men were warmly commended for their gal- 
lantry by General Torbert, and measiu-es have 
been taken to obtain for the Captain the vacant 
Majority of his regiment. Captain Hess belonged 
in McConnellsburg, Fulton County, Penn. 



Capturing a Gun. — There was an old chap 
in the Berdan Sharpshooters, near Yorktown, 
known as " Old Seth." He was quite a character, 
and a crack shot — one of the best shots in the 
regiment. His "instrument," as he termed it, 
was one of the heaviest telescopic rifles. One 
night at roll-call, " Old Seth " was non est. This 
was somewhat unusual, as the old chap was al- 
ways up to time. A Sergeant went out to hunt 



840 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



him up, he being somewhat fearful that the old 
man had been hit. After perambulating around 
in the advance of the picket line, he heard a low 
"halloo." "Who's there?" inquired the Ser- 
geant. " It's me," responded Seth, " and I've 
captured a secesh gun." " Bring it in," said the 
Sergeant. " Can't do it," exclaimed Seth. 

It soon became apparent to the Sergeant that 
" Old Seth " had the exact range of one of the 
enemy's heaviest guns, and they could not load it 
for fear of being picked off by him. Again the 
old man shouted : " Fetch me a couple of haver- 
sacks full of grub, as this is my gun, and the 
cussed varmints shan't fire it again while the 
scrimmage lasts." This was done, and the old 
patriot kept good watch over that gun. In fact 
it was a " captured gun." 



Amenities of ^YA■^,. — The following extracts 
from letters written by a general officer in the 
Union army exhibit some of the pleasures of ac- 
tive service : 

" Cajip Piebrepoint, Va., December 19, ISOl. 

" My Dear L. : .... 

I' . - Nine P. M. — I had written the fore- 
gouig before breakfast, when I was interrupted 
by the return of one of my ' guides,' or scouts, 
who had just come in from a night ride beyond 
our lines. 

" He informed me that the enemy had, two 
days before, thrown forward his pickets to within 
four or five miles of my advance guard, and had 
carried off two good Union men living within a 
mile of the advance, and had threatened others. 
This party had of course retired as soon as they had 
completed their work of revenge on such of their 
fellow-citizens as they suspected of entertaining- 
feelings favorable to the Union party. Not know- 
ing whether their rallying point was west or south 
of the railroad, I at once sent a squadron of the 
First cavalry, with two guides, who knew the 
country well, to make an extended circuit, to 
pick up any small parties prowling near my ad- 
vanced cavalry picket, and to collect such infor- 
mation from the natives respecting larger bodies, 
as they might possess. They have just returned, 

and Major reports having obtained reUable 

information of a strong body of cavalry on the 
Centreville road below Dranesville, and a rumor 
of a large force expected to-morrow, with a heavy 
wagon train, to sweep the country around Dranes- 
ville of forage. I shall move a brigade in that 
direction at daylight, to be followed by a second 
at eight A. M., and I shall, by a rapid ride, join 
them as soon as the morning business will let 
me. My watch (near twelve M.) reminds me 
that I must soon lie down, as I want to get a good 
sleep before day ; but before I close my letter, I 
•.iiust tell you of an amusing occurrence of this 
morning. 

" What think you of being formally called upon 
tcvgive my name to a new-born son of Mars? 

" But without further prelude let me inform 
you that about noon, as I was quietly sitting in 
my office writing on official matters, the orderly . 



in waiting opened the door and reported that a 
soldier asked to be admitted to speak to me on ur- 
gent business. The many wants of the private sol- 
dier were at the moment engrossing my thouglits, 
and M'ere in fact the purport of my communica- 
tion then being addressed to general headquar- 
ters ; therefore I said, ' Let him come in.' A man 
of middle size, with a beaming smile overspread- 
ing his whole countenance, approached the table 
and apologized for interrupting me, saying, ' Gen- 
eral, I will not detain you a minute ; but I have 
just received a letter from my Avife ; she tells me 
she has a son four days old, and I have come to 
ask permission to name the boy after yourself.' 
' What is your oM-n name, my man ? ' I asked. 
' Thomas H. Walker ' was the reply. 

" ' You have a very good name ; why not call 
the child after yourself? ' 

" He replied, a little embarrassed, 'The com- 
pany won't let me, sir : the men say he must be 
named after the General ; and I have come to 
ask you to write your name on a piece of paper, 
in full, for I mean to give him the whole of it.' 

" Seeing the affair was of a desperate character, 
I thought the wisest course was to despatch it at 
once ; so, tearing ofi" a slip of paper, I began to 
•HTite, when private Walker remarked, ' General, 
you may, if you please, send a couple of neck- 
laces — one for the wife, and one for the old 
woman, her mother ! ' ' O ho ! ' says I to my- 
self; ' now comes the gist of the matter ; and as 
I pushed the paper towards him, I said, * Here 
is the name. Walker ; but where the necklaces 
are to come from I can't exactly say.' ' Ah ! 
that's easy enough said,' put in Walker ; ' I can 
get them at the store across the road, opposite 
to the General's quarters.' * And what,' I asked, 
' are the necklaces to cost ? ' ' Thirty-seven and 
a half cents apiece,' was the demure reply. 

" Much relieved by this information, fori thought 
I was in for, at least, twenty dollars, I handed 
the man a gold dollar. Receiving the money 
with a low bovr, he again spoke : ' If the orderly 
would let me pass in again, I should like to show 
them to the General.' * Then tell the orderly to 
let you pass,' I said, and resumed my writing. 
Already the affair had passed from my mind, 
when the orderly again opened the door, with 
' Walker again, sir.' ' Send him in ; ' and in 
came he, if possible, more beaming than before, 
and carrying a package about six inches in diam- 
eter, nicely tied up in brown paper, which he 
presented to me. It felt very soft, and was se- 
curely bound. ' WUl the General please to look 
at them ? ' ' Upon my word. Walker, if I undo 
them, I shall never be able to do them up again.' 
' Never mind, sir ; you undo them, and I'll do 
them up again.' So, without further parley, I 
gave the string a jerk ; the knot parted suddenly, 
and out rolled at full length upon the floor, one 
end remaining under my hands, not two ' neck- 
laces,' but two gayly-colored silk and worsted 
' nedc-scarfs,^ about six feet long, and six inches 
wide. The surprise was immense, and an almost 
irresistible fit of a strong sense of the ludi- 
crous seized me. I did manage to restrain it, as 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



541 



AValker exclaimed, 'Ain't they beautiful?' I 
looked at the honest face on the other side of the 
table, and I could not laugh at him. After a 
pause, I observed him wipe the palm of his right 
hand upon the leg of his pantaloons, and then, 
extending his fingers to their full length, he placed 
a silver quarter of a dollar upon the centre of 
the palm, and said: 'Here is the change, sir.' 
' And what are you going to do with that, my 
man ? ' I asked. He replied very seriously, ' I 
don't know, sir — what do you think, yourself?' 
After a moment's reflection, I said, ' Suppose you 
buy a pair of red woollen socks for the boy.' 
His eyes brightened, and he said, with vehemence, 
' I'll do it. General, for I expect he's a buster ; 
anyhow, General, when the company hears this, 
they'll have a bust-out, certain ! ' With that, 
private Walker, who had been in service about 
three months, and still retained the native hon- 
esty and simplicity which he had brought from 
the western wilds of Pennsylvania, gathered up 
his necklaces, and bowed himself from my pres- 
ence. 
" Good night ; it is time for me to lie down. 

" Friday Evening, December 20, 10 o'clock P. M. 

" Dear L. : As I did not close my letter last 
night, I will add a postscript, to let you know 
that I met the enemy to-day at Dranesville, and 
thrashed him soundly. His force was about three 
thousand, infantry and cavalry, and one battery of 
artillery; ours about the same — that is, one 
brigade, the Rifles and Easton's battery, four 
pieces. 

" General J. E. B. Stuart was in command of 
the rebel force, and had with him one hundred 
wagons, which the prisoners I have just examined 
inform me were sent home, pretty well filled with 
wounded soldiers, instead of plundered forage. 
His loss must have been heavy, as he left forty- 
three killed and severely wounded on the field. 
The First and Second brigades of my division did 
not amve on the ground in time to participate in 
the affair. Our men fought very handsomely, 
and so, in fact, did the rebels. As I had moved 
out without special authority from general head- 
quarters, and had brought with me only the day's 
rations, I resolved to return to my camp, after 
collecting the wounded of the enemy, and placing 
them in the keeping of the people of the town, where 
they were attended to, and their wounds dressed 
by our own surgeons. Such as I had ambulances 
for, in addition to what were required for our 
own wounded, I brought iik Our loss I cannot yet 
state accurately ; it will not reach more than sixty, 
killed and wounded. I reached camp, with all my 
men in good condition, about one horn* ago. 

" I will write you more particularly to-morrow, 
if I have the time. 

" Good night, my dear L. ^ j^ -^^ ,, 



Incident of Hagersxown. — A young lady, 
living near Hagerstown, had an American flag 
around her body, and a party of rebels appeared, 
and demanded it. She refused to give it up. 



when the brave Southrons drew pistols, and 
threatened to shoot her if she did not deliver it 
up at once. She then took it off, and said, that 
rather than suff'er violence, she would present it to 
them, and hoped they would not say they captured 
it from our soldiers. She also said she hoped they 
would meet before long, and under difierent cir- 
circumstances. They took then* departure, and 
soon after stopped at a hotel, where, it seems, the 
landlord regaled them bountifully with liquor. 
On leaving this place, and before proceeding far, 
they were surprised at being ordered to halt and 
surrender, by a party of our cavalry, who had got 
wind of their proceedings, which they did, and were 
led back to where the young lady lived, from 
whom they had taken the flag. " Ah ! " said she, 
" back already ? Why, I did not expect to see you 
so soon, although I was confident you would pay 
us a visit before long. Now, I will thank you to 
return me the flag I presented you, as I am sat- 
isfied it would become soiled if it remained in 
your hands." It was handed over without reply, 
the party feeling as cheap as though they had • 
been caught at sheep stealing. [p\ "* , 



An Affecting Incident. — The following 
touching incident occurred in one of the hospi- 
tals at St. Louis : 

" In another ward I saw a Tennesseean, whose 
cheek presented the pallor of death. I walked 
up to his bedside. His hand was trying to grasp 
some object, that, in his fitful delirium, was pic- 
tured on his dying imagination. His lips feebly 
uttered the word ' Catherine.' I took his hand 
in mine; his eyes, that were rolled upward in 
their sockets, wandered around until he was able 
to fix their gaze on me. ' Do you say something ? ' 
said I, tenderly. He motioned to me to put my 
ear down, ' O my wife — Catherine — my chil- 
dren ! ' His breathing was short — his voice very 
faint. ' How many children have you ? ' said I. 
He held up his four fingers. ' What is your 
name ? ' said I. ' William C. Brandon,' replied 
he. ' Where are you from ? ' I asked. * Dods- 
ville, Jackson County, Tennessee.' I was revolv- 
ing in my mind if there would be an opportunity 
to forward intelligence of him to his family, when 
he said, ' Will you write to Catherine ? Tell her 
I — I thought of her and the children ; I — I 
prayed for them — O God ! O God ! ' I assured 
him I would endeavor to fulfil his request. I 
then talked to him about a Redeemer, and 
after a while he seemed happier. His looks 
spoke what words could not." 



Endurance of Colored Troops. — General 
Wistar, commanding at Yorktown, in December, 
1863, sent one of the colored regiments on a raid 
through Matthews County, Virginia, accompa- 
nied by a white cavalry regiment. The black 
troops marched a distance of sixty miles in 
forty hours, and endured the fatigues of a 
tramp considerably easier than the mounted 
white men. 



342 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



CHICKAMAUGA, "THE STREAM OF 
DEATH ! " 

Chickamauga ! Chickamauga ! 

O'er thy dark and turbid wave 
Rolls the death-cry of the daring, 

Rings the war-shout of the brave ; 
Round thy shore the red fires flashing, 

Startling shot and screaming shell — 
Chickamauga, stream of battle, 

Who thy fearful tale shall tell? 

Olden memories of horror. 

Sown by scourge of deadly plague, 
Long had clothed thy circling forests 

With a terror vast and vague ; 
Now to gather fiercer vigor 

Erom the phantoms grim with gore, 
Hurried by war's wilder carnage 

To their graves on thy lone shore. 

Long, with hearts subdued and saddened, 

As th' oppressor's hosts moved on, 
EeU the arms of Freedom backward, 

Till our hopes had almost flo^\Ti ; 
Till outspoke stern Valor's fiat — 

" Here th' invading wave shall stay ; 
Here shall cease the foe's proud progress ; 

Here be crushed his grand array ! " 

Then, their eager hearts all throbbing 

Backward flashed each battle-flag 
• Of the veteran corps of Longstreet, 

And the sturdy troops of Bragg ; 
Fierce upon the foeman turning, 

All their pent-up wrath breaks out 
In the furious battle-clangor. 

And the frenzied battle- shout. 

Roll thy dark waves, Chickamauga ; 

Trembles all thy ghastly shore, 
With the rude shock of the onset, 

And the tumult's horrid roar : 
As the Southern battle-giants 

Hurl their bolts of death along, 
Breckinridge, the iron-hearted, 

Cheatham, chivalric and strong ; — 

Polk and Preston, gallant Buckner, 

Hill and Hindman, strong in might ; 
Cleburne, flower of manly valor ; 

Hood, the Ajax of the fight ; 
Benning, bold and hardy warrior ; 

Fearless, resolute Kershaw, 
Mingle battle-yell and death-bolt, 

Volley fierce and wild hurrah ! 

At the volleys bleed their bodies, 

At the fierce shout shrink their souls, 
AVhile their fiery wave of vengeance 

On their quailing column rolls ; 
And the parched throats of the stricken 

Breathe for air the roaring flame ; 
Horrors of that hell foretasted. 

Who shall ever dare to name ? 

Borne by those who, stiff and mangled, 

Paid, upon that bloody field, 
Direful, cringing, awe-struck homage 

To the sword our heroes wield ; 
And who felt, by fiery trial, 

That the men who will be free. 
Though in conflict baffled often. 

Ever will unconquered be ! 



Learned, though long unchecked they spoil us,- 

Dealing desolation round. 
Marking with the tracks of ruin 

Many a rod of Southern ground. 
Yet, whatever course they follow. 

Somewhere in their pathway flows, 
Dark and deep, a Chickamauga, 

Stream of death to vandal foes ! 

They have found it darkly flowing 

By Manassas' famous plain, 
And by rushing Shenandoah 

Met the tide of woe again : 
Chickahominy ! immortal. 

By the long, ensanguined flight, 
Rappahannock, glorious river. 

Twice renowned for matchless fight. 

Heed the story, dastard spoilers, 

Mark the tale these waters tell, 
Ponder well your fearful lesson, 

And the doom that there befell : 
Learn to shun the Southern vengeance, 

Sworn upon the votive sword, 
*' Every stream a Chickamauga 

To the vile, invading horde I " 



In August, 1862, Colonel Holcomb of the 
First Indiana volunteers sent a long letter to 
General Butler's headquarters at New Orleans, 
detailing an account of a disturbance in his 
camp, and stating at the close that he had been 
obliged to shoot one of the mutineers. General 
Butler read the paper carefully, indorsed it, 
" Shoot another," and sent it back to the Colonel. 



"Home, Sweet Home." — War, terrible as it 
is, has its little stanzas of poetry, its chapters of 
romance, but lost and forgotten in the heavy 
thunders and sterner duties of the battle. 

One of those incidents that make their way 
straight to the heart is related as having oc- 
curred before- the two days at Pittsburg Landing. 

Thursday evening preceding the battle was as 
lovely as spi'ing and moonlight could make it. 
On that night the band of the Lead Mine regi- 
ment were serenading General McCIernand at 
his headquarters, within cannon shot of the 
Landing. And when the band poured out upon 
the stiUl night the air " Home, Sweet Home," the 
camps were hushed. In one of them a poor fel- 
low lay in a tent ill with fever. As the well- 
remembered tune fell upon his ear, he turned his 
face with a groan to the canvas wall and died with 
the dying strain. And so he found " Sweet 
Home." 

Snow Bird and Owasso. — An Indian tra- 
dition is thus related by a soldier in camp at the 
Green Paver Bridge : 

" The site of our camp seems dedicated to 
blood-shedding from time immemorial. The spot 
is rife with stories and legends of the noble tribe 
of ' Harper ' Indians, who once held undisputed 
possession of the soil. One of their tales runs 
thus : Their chief, notorious for his cruelty and 
ungovernable passions, became smitten with a 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



343 



young white lady, -vvhom he had captured some 
time previous. In the legend she is described as 
having been surpassingly beautiful. She very 
naturally did not reciprocate his brutal and un- 
sought affection, but smiled with favor on a 
young and handsome warrior, whose deeds of 
daring and innumerable virtues caused him to be 
loved by all the tribe, with the single exception 
of the ' Black Chief.' More than once had his 
protecting arm shielded ' Snow Bird ' from the 
wiles of the base-minded chieftain. 

" On a calm, lovely night, while the beautiful girl 
was paddling slowly up and down the stream, 
musing with her thoughts, she was startled by 
the voice of her persecutor calling from the bank. 
After vainly importuning her to row to the shore 
and take him in the boat, the enraged chief 
sprang into the water and struck out for the boat. 
The frightened maiden seized the oars, plied them 
swiftly and with a skilful hand ; swiftly the frail 
vessel darted over the sparkling waters, but not 
less swiftly did the powerful chief, aroused to 
renewed strength by his raging passion, follow, 
till the exhausted girl, wearied with almost super- 
human exertions, was compelled to drop the oars. 
With a fiendish smile he grasped the prow of the 
boat and climbed into it. Gazing calmly on the 
terrified girl, he complimented her rowing, and 
ordered her to again take up the oars, and bade 
her row to a spot still farther from their encamp- 
ment, still known as the * Black Pool.' Fearing 
to refuse, with trembling hand and fast-beating 
heart she obeyed. Arriving at the spot desig- 
nated, the chief demanded her hand in marriage. 
After vainly pressing his suit, using entreaties 
and threats, the enraged villain then attempted 
force. With strength almost equal to his own 
did she endeavor to protect what is dearer than 
life to a woman — her maiden vutue. Drawing 
a small dagger she had concealed on her person, 
she furiously struck at him, inflicting a severe 
wound on his arm, disabling it. The infuriated 
fiend now seized an oar and struck the agonized 
girl a furious blow, which threw her from the 
boat. The helpless maiden seized the side of the 
boat to keep from drowning, and, with prayers, 
tears, and entreaties, begged the heartless wretch 
to spare her Ufe ; but her only answer was 
another blow from the hands of her enemy. . She 
loosed her hold and sank, but arose to the sur- 
face in a moment, Avhen the blood-stained mur- 
derer again struck her, this time with his toma- 
hawk, burying it in her brain. She sank, with a 
shriek fearful to hear in that lonely spot, to rise 
no more. 

"On the return of the chief to their camp, he 
met Owasso, the lover of Snow Bird, who had 
just returned from a protracted hunt. He had 
searched the entire encampment, also, her favorite 
haunts, without finding any trace of her, till he 
at last, becoming alarmed, sought Black Chief, 
and demanded to know her whereabouts. The 
chief, with a smile beaming with scorn and hatred, 
answered : ' Snow Bird sleeps at the bottom of 
the Black Pool.' ' What ! murdered, and by thy 
hand?' *Ay! by my hand.' 'Fiend! can it 



be that he, the Great Spirit, is just, and let you 
live after such a horrid deed ? But Pll not be 
so merciful.' With these words Owasso sprang 
upon him. The contest was fierce and deadly. 
Owasso at length, completely exhausted by the 
superior strength of his adversary, gathered all 
his strength, and succeeded in wrenching the 
knife — having lost his own in the struggle — 
from the grasp of his foe, and plunged both blade 
and hilt deep in the throat of his enemy. As 
soon as he found his foe was dead, he, with great 
exertion, drew the knife from the chief's thi'oat, 
and raising himself on his knees, he raised the 
dripping blade towards heaven and cried out, 
' Snow Bird, I have revenged thee, and will now 
follow thee,' saying which, he rose to his feet and 
rushed to the cliff overhanging the place where 
she had been so cruelly murdered. Without a 
word, merely casting round his head, taking a 
farewell glance at his once happy home, he 
plunged forward knife in hand — a splash, a 
gurgle, and the brave OAvasso was never seen 
more. 

" Tradition says that Snow Bird and Owasso 
are often seen in a spirit boat rowing calmly and 
silently along the river, always disappearing at 
the fatal spot, the Black Pool, and that the form 
of Owasso is often seen flitting round the top of 
the cliff from which he made the fatal leap. 

" Our stockade is built on the point of the cliff. 
So you see we are camped in a romantic spot. 
It was built, under the supervision of a 'regular' 
engineer, during the latter part of 1862, and 
burned by the notorious horse thief, John H. 
Morgan, on the 1st of January last. It is need- 
less to speak of the glorious defence of the place 
on the 4th of July. It will ever be one of the 
brightest jewels in the wreath of fame that Michi- 
gan's brave sons have woven for her since the 
beginning of this wai\" 



General Porter's Reconnoissance, — "The 
exciting event of the day," wrote a correspondent 
on the 11th of April, 1862, "has been a balloon 
reconnoissance by General Fitz-John Porter on 
a scale of rather larger magnitude than was in- 
tended. At five o'clock in the morning General 
Porter took his place in Professor Lowe's balloon. 
He supposed the usual number of ropes were at- 
tached to it, whereas there was only one, and a 
place in this, as was afterwards ascertained, had 
been burned by vitriol, used in generating gas. 
Taking his seat in the car, unaccompanied by 
any one, the rope was let out to nearly its full 
length, — the length is about nine hundi-ed yards, 
— when suddenly snap went the cord, and up 
went the balloon. This was an unexpected part 
of the programme. The men below looked up 
with astonishment, and the General looked down 
with equal bewilderment. 

" ' Open the valve,' shouted one of the men 
below. 

" ' I'll manage it,' responded the General. 

" Up went the balloon, higher, higher. It rose 
with great rapidity ; its huge form lessened as it 



344 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



wildly mounted into the regions of the upper aii* ; 
it became a speck in the sky. The wind was 
taking it in the direction of the enemy's territory. 
By this time every staff officer and hundreds of 
others were looking at the moving speck. It is 
impossible to describe the anxiety feU and ex- 
pressed for the fate of him, the central object of 
thought, in that far away moving speck, every 
moment becoming less visible. It is seen to move 
in our direction ; the countenances of our men 
brighten with hope. It passes over our heads. 
Soon it begins to descend, but with a rapidity 
that arouses renewed apprehension. Quickly a 
squad of cavalry, led by Captain Locke, Lieu- 
tenant McQuade, of the General's staff, plunge 
spurs into their horses, and dash away in the 
direction of the descending balloon. The rest 
of the story is as I received it from the General's 
own lips. While the rope was being played out, 
he adjusted his glass in readiness for his proposed 
view of the enemy's territory. A sudden bound 
of the balloon told him in a moment that the 
rope had given way. He dropped his glass, 
heard the call, ' Open the valve,' made the re- 
sponse given above, and set about looking for 
the valve. He was sensible of being flighty (the 
General loves a pun as well as the next one), but 
was not at all nervous. He saw the wind had 
taken him over the line of the rebel intrench- 
ments. Having no wish to drop in among them, 
he let the valve take care of itself, and proceeded 
to take advantage of his position to note the as- 
pect of rebel objects below. Crowds of soldiers 
rushed from the woods, and he heard their shouts 
chstinctly. Luckily he was above the reach of 
their bullets ; so he was not afraid on this score. 
The map of the country was distinctly discernible. 
He saw Yorktown and its works, York River and 
its windings, and Norfolk and its smoking chim- 
neys. A counter current of air struck the balloon, 
and its course was reversed. Its retreat from 
over Rebeldom was rapid. He opened the valve, 
the gas escaped, and down he came. He could 
not say how fast he came down, but it was with a 
rapidity he would not care to have repeated. The 
car struck the top of a shelter tent, — under 
which, luckily, no one happened to be at the time, 
— knocked the tent into pi, and left him envel- 
oped in a mass of collapsed oil silk. He crawled 
out, and found himself in the middle of a camp, 
not one hundred rods from General McClellan's 
headquarters. 

" ' I came mounted, you see,' was his remark 
to General Burns, who was about the first man 
by his side. He gave the details of his aerial 
voyage to General Burns, who, seeing the oppor- 
tunity of getting off a joke, could not lose the 
opportunity. 

" ' You are a suspicious character,' remarked 
Burns. 

" ' How so ? ' asked Porter. 

" ' In the space of half an hour you have been 
taken up by a balloon, and arrested by a shelter 
tent.' 

" ' And you have come down safe, I see,' broke 
in Captain Locke, before the laughter at General 



Burns' duet of puns ; ' I came with this cavalry 
company to look you up.' 

" ' You ought to have sent flying artillery after 
me,' rejoined Porter." 



A Woman's Sacrifice. — The following elo- 
quent and touching tribute to the memory of 
Miss Cutler, a volunteer army nurse, who died 
at Newbern, of disease contracted while in the 
performance of her duties, is from a private let- 
ter written by T. H. Squire, Surgeon, Eighty- 
ninth New York volunteers : 

"The daughter of Dr. Cutler, Twenty-first 
Massachusetts, of which I have spoken in a pre- 
vious letter, died a few days ago, at Newbern, of 
typhoid fever. Her remains were brought back 
to this island, and buried to-day. Who will 
write her epitaph in befitting verse? She was 
the friend of the sick and wounded soldiers, edu- 
cated, accomplished, young, beautiful, affection- 
ate, patriotic, pious, and self-sacrificing. In her 
death in the van of the army, a woman pure 
and lovely has been laid as a victim upon the 
altar of Liberty. She died away from home : a 
father, whom she loved, stood by her ; but liis 
duties to the wounded prevented him from ac- 
companying her remains to their temporary rest- 
ing-place on this beautiful island. Sacred be the 
spot M'here her remains now lie ! Ye winds that 
whisper in the pines, breathe her a requiem ! Ye 
grapes and mistletoe that climb upon the trees, 
and droop from overhanging boughs, bend down 
and kiss her lonely grave ! Bay, myrtle, and 
magnolia, distil your fragrance around the tomb ; 
in life her gentle virtues breathed a like per- 
fume ! Dear girl, I would that I had power to 
hand thy name down to all coming time ! " 



Hardee thrown in the Shade. — A well- 
known Confederate Major-General was stopping 
for a while in a Georgia village, which circum- 
stance coming to the knowledge of the " Home 
Guard " of tliat vicinity, the Captain resolved to 
give the General an opportunity of witnessing the 
" revolutions " of his superb corps. In due time. 

Captain 's company, having " fell in," were 

discovered by the General in front of his quai*- 
ters, in the execution of his command, " In two 
ranks, git," &c. During the exhibition, by some 
dexterous double-quick movement only known 
among militia officers, the Captain, much to his 
surprise and chagrin, found the company in a 
" fix," best described, I reckon, as a " soKd cir- 
cle." In stentorophonic tones he called them 
to " halt ! " The General became interested, and 
drew near, in order to sec in what way things 
would be righted. The Captain, in his confu- 
sion, turned his head to one side, like a duck 
when she sees the shadow of a hawk flit past, 
and seemed to be in the deepest thought. At 
last an idea seemed to strike him ; a ray of in- 
telligence mantled his face, and straightening 
himself up, he turned to the company, and cried 
out: " Company, disentangle to the front, march." 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



345 



The company was " straightened," and the Gen- 
eral gave it as his opinion that it was the best 
command he had ever heard given. 



An Incident by the Wat. — When a love for 
the old flag does exist in Dixie, it is clear, warm, 
and earnest. It gushes out sometimes in the 
most unexpected places, like a spring in a desert; 
and many a time have Federal prisoners been 
startled into tears at finding a loyal heart beating 
close beside them, when they had only looked for 
taunt and treason. A body of Federal prisoners 
had reached Rome, en route for Richmond. 
Weary, famished, thirsting, they were herded like 
cattle in the street, under the burning sun — a 
public show. It was a gala day in that modern 
Rome. The women, magnificently arrayed, came 
out and pelted them with balls of cotton, and with 
such sneers and taunts as, " So you have come to 
Rome — have you, you Yankees ? How do you 
like your welcome ? " and then more cotton and 
more words. The crowds and the hours came 
and went, but the mockery did not intermit, and 
our poor fellows were half out of heart. 

My informant, Major P., faint and ill, had 
stepped back a pace or two, and leaned against a 
post, when he was lightly touched upon the arm. 
As he looked around, mentally nerving himself 
for some more ingenious insult, a fine-looking, 
well-dressed boy of twelve stood at his elbow, his 
frank face turned up to the Major's. " And he, 
too ? " thought the ofiicer. 

With a furtive glance at a rebel guard, who 
stood with his back to them, the lad, pulling the 
Major's skirt, and catching his breath, boy-fash- 
ion, said, " Are you from New England ? " "I 
was born in Massachusetts," was the reply. " So 
was my mother," returned the boy, brightening 
up ; " she was a New England gu-1, and she was 
what you call a * school-ma'am,' up North ; she 
married my father, and I'm their boy ; but how 
she does love New England, and the Yankees, and 
the old United States ! and so do I." 

The Major was touched, as well he might be ; 
and his heart warmed to the boy as to a young 
brother; and he took out his knife, severed a 
button from his coat, and handed it to him for a 
remembrance. " 0, I've got half a dozen just 
like it. See here ! " and he took from his pocket a 
little string of them — gifts of other boys in blue. 

" My mother would like to see you," he added, 
" and I'll go and tell her." 

" What are you doing here ? " growled the 
guard, suddenly wheeling round upon him ; and 
the boy slipped away into the crowd, and was 
gone. Not more than half an hour elapsed before 
a lovely lady, accompanied by the little patriot, 
passed slowly down the sidewalk next to the curb- 
stone. She did not pause, she did not speak ; if 
she smiled at all, it was faintly ; but she handed 
to one and another of the prisoners bank notes 
as she went. As they neared the Majoi-, the boy 
gave him a significant look, as much as to say, 
"That's my New England mother." The eyes 
of the elegant lady and the poor, weary officer 



met for an instant, and she passed away like a 
vision, out of sight. Who will not join with me 
in fervently breathing two beatitudes : God bless 
the young Georgian, and blessed forever be the 
Northern schoolma'am ? — B. F. Taylor. 



"Good Shooting." — The color-bearer of the 
Tenth Tennessee (Ii-ish) having been shot down 
in the battle of Chickamauga, the Colonel ordered 
one of the privates to take the colors. Pat, who 
was loading at the time, replied : " By the holy 
St. Pati'ick, Colonel, there's so much good 
shooting here, I haven't a minute's time to 
waste foolinw with that thing." 



Gaining the Crest of Rocky Face. — After 
the evacuation of Tunnel Hill, Georgia, by the 
rebels, the Fourth corps (Howard's) passed to 
the right of the place, confronting them on Rocky- 
face Ridge. 

On Sunday, the 8th of May, 1864, a detach- 
ment of Harker's brigade was ordered on a recon- 
noissance to the northern extremity of the ridge. 
The balance of the brigade being held in reserve 
at the base. Colonel Opdyke, with his five hundred 
Ohio (One Hundred and Twenty-fifth) Tigers 
was ordered forward, with a guide, to develop the 
enemy on the ridge, and, if possible, gain a posi- 
tion there. Skirmishing commenced at the base, 
and increased in severity as our men ascended. 
But up they went, the skirmishers dodging from 
tree to tree, and from rock to rock, to escape the 
buUets that were showered upon them from the 
crest. The sides of the ridge were so steep and 
rocky that the men were obliged to cling to the 
trees and jutting clifis to help themselves along. 
Field officers were obliged to dismount and lead 
their horses, and even then could only proceed with 
great difficulty. Twice the men were ordered to 
lie down and rest, in order to cool themselves, as 
the day was exceedingly warm, and the exercise 
severe. 

Simultaneously with the second order to halt, 
the cry rung out from the rocks above us, " We 
have gained the crest I — "WE have gained the 
CREST I ! " The announcement seemed to elec- 
trify the men, and with a shout that rent the air, 
they sprang forward like tigers, and in a moment 
the entire regiment rested on the summit of the 
ridge. Stopping a moment to breathe, they 
were again ordered to advance, which they did 
with a determined bravery that defied the sneak- 
ing enemy that skulked from rock to rock, im- 
proving every obstacle to embarrass them. Hav- 
ing driven the enemy more than half a mile, the 
men were ordered to throw up stone-works for 
temporary security, until further orders were 
received from the rear. The reply came in these 
words — "You have accomplished all, and more 
than was expected. Take a strong position and 
await orders." 

The Sixty-fifth Ohio infantry, and shortly after- 
wards the remainder of the brigade, came to the 
support of the One Hundred and Twenty-fifth. 



346 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



Incidents of the Battle of Resaca, Ga. — 
May 18. — "I have just been over that portion of 
the battle-field where the Twentieth corps re- 
pulsed the enemy yesterday, and the sight pre- 
sented is enough to make the heart of one long 
accustomed to war ache. The ambulance corps, 
so complete in all its details, is gathering in the 
wounded, and the groans of the sufferers are grat- 
ing to the ear. All the rebel dead and wounded 
are left in our hands to be cared for. The ground 
is thickly strewn Avith the victims in about equal 
proportions, excepting at those places where des- 
perate charges were made upon our line, when 
the enemy came out of his breastworks ; there 
the rebels largely predominate. There, within a 
few yards of me, a wounded rebel is stopping the 
blood that endeavors to make its exit through a 
ghastly grape wound in the leg of a Union sol- 
dier ; while over yonder, beneath an oak, a 
wounded Federal is in the act of giving water 
from his canteen to an enemy who fell beside him, 
and whose life-blood discolors the garments of 
both. After the shock of battle has passed, the 
helpless inhabitants of the rifle pits and trenches 
are no longer enemies. A common sympathy 
seems to inspire them, and they are once more 
friends and brothers — children of one Father. 

" On the field, yesterday, on the left, near Tilton, 
where our cavalry engaged the enemy, a beauti- 
ful garden, clothed in all the loveliness that rare 
plants and southern flowers could give it, at- 
tracted my attention, and I was drawn to it. The 
house had been deserted by its owners, and the 
smiling magnolias and roses seemed to stand 
guard over the deserted premises. I entered 
through an open gate, stooped to pluck a rose 
from the bush, when I discovered one of the 
enemy's pickets lying partially covered by the 
grass and bushes — dead. He was a noble-look- 
ing man, and upon his countenance there seemed 
to rest the remnant of a smile. The right hand 
clasped a rose, which he was in the act of sever- 
ing from its stem when he received the messen- 
ger of death. In the afternoon the cavalry dug 
a narrow grave, and, with Federal soldiers for 
pall-bearers, and the beautiful flowers for mourn- 
ers, he was laid to rest, the rose still clasped in 
his stifl'ened hand. Nothing was found to iden- 
tify him, and in that lonely grave his life's his- 
tory lies entombed. No sister's tears will baptize 
the grave among the roses where the dead picket 
sleeps." 

General Terry and Colonel Olmsted. — 
Major Gardiner, of the Seventh Connecticut regi- 
ment, tells this chai'acteristic story of General 
Terry, the late Colonel of his regiment: 

" After Fort Pulaski had been placed in Gen- 
eral Terry's charge, and as its rebel commander. 
Colonel Olmsted, was about to be sent North as a 
prisoner of war. General Terry, appreciating the 
embarrassments to which he might be subjected, 
told him that as it was not probable that he was 
supplied with current money, and as Confederate 
money was valueless except as a curiosity, he de- 
sired that he would accept of a sum that might free 



him from temporary inconvenience, and presented 
him with fifty dollars in good money. The offer 
was gratefully accepted, of course, with suitable 
acknowledgments of the generosity which prompt- 
ed it. 

An Heroic Sailor. — In the record of the war, 
not the least interesting features are the heroic 
deeds of the humble men who compose the rank 
and file of the army and navy. Instances of in- 
dividual heroism and self-sacrifice present them- 
selves in abundance, and furnish a rich harvest 
of materials for the annalist and historian. One 
of the most conspicuous of these is the case of 
the gallant tar, John Davis, whose courage in the 
attack on Elizabeth City, N. C, is made the sub- 
ject of special mention by his immediate com- 
mander and by Commodore Goldsborough, who 
thus unite to make manifest the bond of time 
chivalry which binds together all brave men, 
however widely separated theu' station. The fol- 
lowing is the story of this brave sailor : 

" Lieutenant J. C. Chapin, commanding United 
States steamer Valley City, off Roanoke Island, 
writes to Commodore Goldsborough under date 
of February 2oth, noticing a magnanimous act 
of bravery by John Davis, gunner's mate on 
board his vessel, at the taking of Elizabeth City. 
He says John Davis was at his station, during the 
action, in the magazine issuing powder, when a 
shell from the enemy's battery penetrated into 
the magazine, and exploded outside of it. He 
threw himself over a barrel of powder, protecting 
it with his own body from the fire, while at the 
same time passing out the powder for the guns. 
Commodore Goldsborough, in transmitting this 
letter to the Navy Department, says : ' It affords 
me infinite pleasure to forward this communica- 
tion to the Navy Department, to whose especial 
consideration I beg leave to recommend the gallant 
and noble sailor alluded to ; ' and he adds in a 
postscript : ' Davis actually seated himself on the 
barrel, the top being out, and in this position he 
remained until the flames were extinguished.' " 

The Navy Department promptly rewarded 
John Davis, the brave sailor who so courageously 
protected from the flames a barrel of gunpowder 
on the steamer Valley City during the attack 
upon Elizabeth City. He was a gunner's mate, 
receiving a salary of twenty-five dollars per 
month, or three hundred dollars per year. The 
evidence of his bravery was received at the Navy 
Department on the evening of the 10th instant, 
and on the next day Secretary Welles sent him 
the following letter, appointing him a gunner, an 
office which carries with it a salary of one thou- 
sand dollars per year, and is a life appointment, 
the salary increasing by length of service to one 
thousand four hundred and fifty dollars : 

"Navy Department, March n, 1S62. 

" Sir : Your commanding officer and the Flag- 
Officer of the Northern Atlantic Blockading 
Squadron, have brought to the notice of the De- 
partment your courage and presence of mind, dis- 
played on the 10th ultimo, in protecting with 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



347 



your person a barrel of gunpowder from the 
names. 

" As a mark of appreciation of your bravery, 
you are hereby appointed an acting-gunner in the 
navy of the United States from this date. 

" Enclosed herewith is a blank oath of oflBce, 
which, having executed, you will return to the 
Department, accompanied by your letter of accept- 
ance. 

" If, after you have served six months at sea, 
you shall fm-nish the Department with satisfactory 
testimonials from your commanding officer, a war- 
rant will be issued to you, bearing the same date 
of this acting appointment. 

" I am, respectfully, your obedient servant, 

Gideon Welles." 



A Joan d'Akc. — A maurauding band of reb- 
els in Kentucky, on their way to Mount Sterling, 
stopped at the house of a Mr. Oldom, and, he be- 
ing absent at the time, plundered him of all his 
horses, and among them a valuable one belonging 
to his daughter Cornelia. She resisted the out- 
rage as long as she could, but finding all her ef- 
forts in vain, she sprang upon another horse, and 
started post haste towards the town to give the 
alarm. Her first animal gave out, when she seized 
another, and meeting the messenger from Mid- 
dleton, she sent him as fast as his horse could 
carry him to convey the necessary warning to 
Mount Sterling, where he arrived most oppor- 
tunely. Miss Oldom then retraced her way to- 
wards home, taking with her a double-barrelled 
shot-gun. She found a pair of saddle-bags on the 
road, belonging to a rebel officer, which contained 
a pair of revolvers, and soon she came up with 
the advancing mam-auders, and ordered them to 
halt. Perceiving that one of the thieves rode 
her horse, she ordered him to surrender her 
horse ; this he refused, and finding that persua- 
sion would not gain her ends, she levelled the 
shot-gun at the rider, commanded him, as Damon 
did the traveller, " down from his horse," and 
threatened to fii'e if he did not comply. Her in- 
domitable spu'it at last prevailed, and the robbers, 
seeing something in her eye that spoke a terrible 
menace, surrendered her favorite steed. When 
she had regained his back, and patted him on 
the neck, he gave a neigh of mingled triumph 
and recognition, and she turned his head home- 
ward and cantered off as leisurely as if she were 
takine her morning exercise. , n \ 



THE BALLAD OF ISHMAEL DAY. 

One summer morning a daring band 

Of rebels rode into Maryland^ 
Over the prosperous peaceful farms. 
Sending terror and strange alarms, 
The clatter of hoofs and the clang of arms. 

Fresh from the South, where the hungry pine, 
They ate like Pharaoh's starving kine ; 
They swept the land like devouring surge, 
And left their path, to its farthest verge, 
Bare as the track of the locust-scourge. 



" The rebels are coming," far and near 
Rang the tidings of dread and fear ; » 

Some paled, and cowered, and sought to hide ; 

Some stood erect in their fearless pride ; 

And women shuddered, and children cried. 

But others — vipers in human form. 
Stinging the bosom that kept them warm — 
Welcomed with triimiph the thievish band, 
Hurried to offer the friendly hand. 
As the rebels rode into IMaryland, — 

Made them merry with food and wine, 
Clad them in garments rich and fine, — 
For rags and hunger to make amends, — 
Flattered them, praised them with selfish ends : 
" Leave us scathless, for we are friends ! " 

Could traitors trust a traitor ? No ! 

Little they favored friend or foe. 

But gathered the cattle the farms across, 

Flinging back, with a scornful toss — 

" If ye are friends, ye can bear the loss ! " 

Flushed with triumph, and wine, and prey, 
They neared the dwelling of Ishmael Day, 
A sturdy veteran, gray and old, 
With heart of a patriot, firm and bold, 
Strong and steadfast — unbribed, unsold. 

And Ishmael Day, his brave head bare. 
His white locks tossed by the morning air, 
Fearless of danger, or death, or scars, 
AVent out to raise, by the farm-yard bars. 
The dear old flag of the Stripes and Stars. 

Proudly, steadily, up it flew. 

Gorgeous with crimson, and white, and blue : 
His withered hand, as he shook it freer, 
May have trembled, but not with fear. 
While, shouting, the rebels drew more near. 

" Halt ! " They had seen the hated sign 
Floating free from old Ishmael's line — • 

" Lower that rag ! " was their wrathful cry. 

'• Never ! " rung Ishmael Day's reply ; 

" Fire, if it please you — I can but die ! " 

One, with a loud, defiant laugh, 

Left his comrades, and neared the staff. 

" Dotan ! " — came the fearless patriot's cry — 
" Dare to lower that flag, and die ! 
One must bleed for it — you or I ! " 

But caring not for the stern command, 
He drew the halliards with daring hand ; 
Ping ! went the rifle-ball — down he came- 
Under the flag he had tried to shame — 
Old Ishmael Day took careful aim ! 

Seventy winters and three had shed 
Their snowy glories on Ishmael's head ; 

But though cheeks may wither, and locks grow 
gray. 

His fame shall be fresh, and young alway — 

Honor be to old Ishmael Day I 



Alienations of War. — The war produced 
strange alienations. Two Kentuckians, father 
and son, were on a railroad train in Indiana. The 
father was a rebel prisoner ; the son was a Fed- 



348 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



eral guard on the platform of the car. The old 
man, seeing his son, presumed to take more lib- 
erty than the rule allowed, and put his head out- 
side the door. His son hastily advanced, piece 
at the shoulder, with a sharp " Get back there, 
you old rebel ! " 

Incidents of the Peninsula. — During the 
first day's skirmish near Lee's Mills, two soldiers, 
one from Maine, the other from Georgia, posted 
themselves each behind a tree, and indulged in 
sundry shots, without effect on either side, at the 
same time keeping up a lively chat. Finally, 
that getting a little tedious, Georgia calls out to 
Maine, " Give me a show," meanmg step out, and 
give an opportunity to hit. Maine, in response, 
pokes out his head a few inches, and Georgia 
cracks away, and misses. " Too high," says Maine. 
" Now give me a show." Georgia pokes out her 
head, and INIaine blazes away. " Too low," sings 
Georgia. In this way the two alternated several 
times, without hitting. Finally, Maine sends a ball 
so as to graze the tree within an inch or two of the 
ear of Georgia. " Cease firing," shouts Georgia. 
" Cease it is," responds Maine. " Look here," 
says one, " we have carried on this business long 
enough for one day. 'Spose we adjourn for ra- 
tions ? " " Agreed," says the other. And so the 
two marched away in different directions, one 
whistHng " Yankee Doodle," the other " Dixie." 

" While coming home from a scout," says a 
soldier at Yorktown, " we called at a house, and 
found a couple of ladies, quite young, and one as 
handsome as a Hebe. They were secesh to the 
' backbone,' and had each a lover in the rebel 
army ; one of them was at Yorktown, and only 
left the day before, to pick his way back along the 
York River, and carry such information as he 
had gotten from us. The young lady showed us 
his photograph, a good-looking Lieutenant, and 
hoped we should meet him face to face, that he 
might leave us for dead. ' O,' said she, ' if aU 
the Yankees were one man, and I had a sword 
here, I should like to cut his throat ! ' 

" And she said it with a vim, too. We told 
her we would take good care of young Lieuten- 
ant White, and see that Miss Florill had an op- 
portunity to change her name after the battle was 
over, hoping for an invitation to the wedding ; and 
as she had called me the ' Divine,* chaplain of 
the regiment, I proposed to marry them. 

" ' Never,' said she. ' I hope he will come home 
dead before you shall take Yorktown. I would 
wade in blood up to my knees to bury his body.' 

" She spoke of poison in a glass of water we 
drank, but I replied that ' one look of her angel 
face, one smile from her lovely features, would be 
an antidote to the rankest poison.' ' Yes,' she 
replied, ' and to your hatred of the South too ? ' 

" The flirtation nearly made her in favor of 
Union, and us the more so. But we had not 
gone far when we observed a company of soldiers 
approaching, who brought with them the lover a 
corpse upon a litter, returning to his sweetheart. 
He had been shot, while trying to avoid the quick 
eye of our sharpshooters, near a house upon the 



York River shore, where his father had resided, 
and where a negro informed the soldiers that his 
mother and sister were at the house where we 
had been in conversation with the ladies, one of 
whom was his sister, and our soldiers had, after 
receiving orders, carried him to be buried. 

" We did not mar the sorrow of the relatives 
by stopping to witness the reception of the 
body." 

" Military Necessity." — A knot of news- 
paper correspondents in the department of the 
Rappahannock took formal possession of certain 
rebel premises, and adopted the following declara- 
tory resolutions : 

" 1. Resolved, That the house belonged to the 
Federal Government by reason of its owner's se- 
cession and abandonment, and not to the officers 
who occupied it. That we were equally children 
of Uncle Sam, and that, inasmuch as Uncle Sam 
has repudiated primogeniture from his first start 
out in life, all his children were entitled to share 
alike, at present and in prospective, and that the 
house was ours to use, as much as the officers. 
That we, therefore, should take possession of any 
unoccupied portion of it. That the dining-room 
was unoccupied for the night, and that there we 
should take up our lodgings. 

" 2. Resolved, Of all the appliances of comfort 
that we could find unappropriated, ditto. That 
we should take some wood, enough to keep a 
roaring fire all night, to warm our feet by. 

" 3. Resolved, Of everything to eat, ditto ; pro- 
vided that we could get cook's consent, acknowl- 
edging valid authority over the matter in him, 
derived from his skill and labor in making it 
eatable. 

" 4. Resolved, That we do all these things as a 
military necessity, and in strict conformity to, and 
most devoted regard for, the constitution of the 
doers." 

A Brave Pennsylvanian. — At the battle 
and capture of Port Gibson, Sergeant Charles 
Bruner, aPennsylvanian, of Northampton County, 
with a squad of fifty men of the Twent3'-third 
regiment Wisconsin volunteers, was the first to 
enter the fort. The flag-sergeant being wounded, 
Sergeant Bruner seized the colors, and, amid 
cheers and a rain of bullets, planted the Stars 
and Stripes upon the ramparts. 

Again, at Champion Hill, the Twenty-third was 
about breaking, when Sergeant Bruner took the 
colors in his hand, and cried, " Boys, follow ! 
don't flinch from j-our duty ! " and on they went, 
following their brave color-bearer ; and the in- 
trenchment was taken. 

Again, at the battle of Big Black, company B, 
of the Twenty-third Wisconsin, got orders from 
General Grant to plant a cannon, and try to 
silence a battery, which was bravely done ; when 
the cannon was dismantled, Captain and First 
Lieutenant were gone and wounded. Sergeant 
Bruner again cheered on his men, and in a hand- 
to-hand fight the enemy were routed. The Ser- 
geant was made prisoner twice ; but his captors 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



349 



were soon put liors du combat by his brave fol- 
lowers, who would die for their gallant Sergeant, 
and now Captain. The rebels were driven back, 
with lost colors. 

Singular to say. Sergeant Bruner has led on 
his men in more than thirteen battles, always in 
front, yet he has never been wounded. He cap- 
tured with his own hands three rebel flags, which 
he handed over to General Grant. 

Sergeant Bruner, the only Pennsylvanian in 
that regiment, does the old Keystone State great 
honor. 

Bravery at Lee's Mills. — Among the in- 
cidents of the fight at Lee's Mills, Virginia, on 
the 16th of April, 1862, was the recovery from a 
fever of Sergeant Fletcher, of company E, Third 
Vermont, on the sick list, and excused from duty, 
and the use he made of his temporary health. He 
crossed the stream and went through the fight ; 
then, on his return, was among those who went back 
and rescued the wounded. On his return to camp, 
he went into hospital and resumed his fever, with 
aggravation. 

John Hanington, a beardless orphan boy of 
seventeen, unarmed, went over and rescued out 
of the rifle pit a disabled comrade. 

Lieutenant Whittemore commanded company 
E, which is without a Captain for some reason. 
This officer, with his revolver, covered Harrington 
in his hazardous expedition, and killed several 
rebels who aimed their pieces at the boy. His 
most intimate friend in the company, private 
Vance, had been killed in the rifle-pit. Whitte- 
more, enraged with sorrow, burst into tears, and 
seizing the dead soldier's musket, stood over him, 
and threatened death to any who should retreat ; 
and then stooping down, he took cartridge after 
cartridge from his friend's box, and killed his man 
with every fire — raging with a divine fury the 
while. 

Among the phenomena of the fight was the con- 
dition of the uniform of Captain Bennett, of com- 
pany K, of the Third Vermont. It had eight bul- 
let holes in it — one through the collar of his coat, 
one through the right coat-sleeve, one through his 
pantaloons below the left knee, one through both 
pantaloons and drawers above the right knee, and 
four through the skirts of his coat. There was 
not a scratch upon this man's skin. 



ROSECRANS AND THE CONFEDERATE CAPTAIN. 

— The following interview took place, during the 
progress of the battle of Chickamauga, between 
General Rosecrans and a Captain Rice, of the 
First Texas regiment. The Captain was made 
prisoner on Saturday afternoon, and taken im- 
mediately to Rosecrans, who was two hundred and 
fifty yards in the rear of the portion of his army 
which was engaged by Hood's division. Rose- 
crans appeared, dressed in black breeches, white 
vest, and plain blouse, and was surrounded by a 
gorgeous staff. The General is short and thick- 
set, with smooth face, rosy cheeks and lips, bril- 
liant black eyes, and is very handsome. He is 



exceedingly affable and pleasant in conversation. 
On the approach of Captain R., he dismounted, 
tapped him familiarly on the shoulder, and said, 
" Let us step aside and talk a little." Seated on 
a fallen tree, some thirty yards from the staff, the 
General, a la genuine Yankee, picked up a stick 
and commenced whittling, and the following con- 
versation ensued : 

Rosecrans. Where are your lines ? 

Rice. General, it has cost me a great deal of 
trouble to find your lines ; if you take the same 
amount of trouble, you will find ours. 

Rose. (Wincing slightly.) What brigade do 
you belong to ? 

Rice. Robertson's. 

Rose. What division ? 

Rice. I don't know. 

Rose. What corps ? 

Rice. I don't know. 

Rose. Do you belong to Bragg's army? 

Rice. O, yes, sir. 

Rosecrans looked at him, and smiled at his in- 
genuous manner, so perfectly open and candid the 
Captain seemed, then agam commenced, blandly : 

Rose. How many of Longstreet's men got 
here? 

Rice. About forty-five thousand. 

Rose. Is Longstreet in command ? 

Rice. O, no, sir ! General Bragg is in com- 
mand. 

Rose. Captain, you don't seem to know much, 
for a man whose appearance seems to indicate so 
much intelligence. 

Rice. Well, General, if you are not satisfied 
with my information, I will volunteer some. We 
are going to whip you most tremendously in this 
fight. 

Rose. Why ? 

Rice. Because you are not ready to fight. 

Rose. Were you ready ? 

Rice. Yes ; we were ready. 

Rose. How do you know we were not ready ? 

Rice. You sent a brigade to burn a bridge. 
General Bragg sent a brigade to drive yours back. 
You were forced to reenforce ; then General Bragg 
reenforced, and forced you into an engagement. 

Rose. I find you know more than I thought 
you did. You can go to the rear. — Southern 
paper. j 

How AN Amputation is Performed. — Im- 
agine yourself in the hospital of the Sixth corps 
after a battle. There lies a soldier, whose thigh 
has been mangled by a shell ; and, although he 
may not know it, the limb wiU have to be ampu- 
tated to save his life. Two Surgeons have akeady 
pronounced this decision ; but, according to the 
present formation of a hospital in this camp, no 
one Surgeon, nor two, can order an amputation, 
even of a finger. The opinion of five, at least, 
and sometimes more, including the division Sm-- 
geon, always a man of superior skill and experi- 
ence, must first be consulted, and then, if there is 
an agreement, depend upon it, the operation is 
necessary. This did not use to be, in the earlier 
months of the war ; but it is so now. Suppose 



350 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



that the amputation has been decided upon ; the 
man, who is a rebel, and an Irishman, with strong 
nerve and frame, is approached by one of the Sur- 
geons, and told that he will now be attended to, 
and whatever is best will be done for him. They 
cannot examine his wound thoroughly where he 
lies, so he is tenderly lifted on to a rough table. 
A rebel Surgeon is among the number present. 
The man, as I have said, has strong nerve, and is 
not reduced by loss of blood. So, then, the de- 
cision is communicated to him that he must lose 
his leg. While the operating Surgeon is examin- 
ing, and they are talking to the poor fellow, chlo- 
roform is being administered to him through a 
sponge. The first sensations of this sovereign 
balm are like those pleasant ones produced by a 
few glasses of whiskey, and the Irishman begins 
to think he is on a spree, and throws out his arms 
and legs, and talks funnily. The inhalation goes 
on, and the beating of the pulse is watched ; and 
when it is ascertained that he is totally oblivious 
to all feeling, the instruments are produced, and 
the operation commences. Down goes the knife 
into the flesh, but there is no tremor or indication 
of pain. The patient is dreaming of the battle 
out of which he has just come. Hear him, for 
he's got his rifle pointed over the earthworks at 
our advancing line of battle : " Arrah, now they 
come ! Give it to 'em ! Down goes my man ! 
Load up, load up quick! for there they are again ! 
Hi ! hi ! hi ! Up they come ! Now for another 
shot ! " Such are a sample of the exclamations 
the Celt makes, in his own brogue, while the Sur- 
geons are cutting, and carving, and sawing away. 
The leg is off", and carried away ; the arteries are 
tied up, and the skin is neatly sewed over the 
stump. The eflect of the chloroform is relaxed ; 
and when the patient opens his eyes, a short time 
afterwards, he sees a clean white bandage where 
his ghastly wound had been, and his lost limb is 
removed. He feels much easier, and drinks an 
ounce and a half of good whiskey with gusto. 
This is a real instance of amputation, and the 
chief characteristics of the description will answer 
every one. 

Anecdote of General Sherman. — On the 
arrival of General Sherman at Savannah, he saw 
a large number of British flags displayed from 
buildings, and had a curiosity to know how many 
British Consuls there were there. He soon ascer- 
tained that these flags were on buildings where 
cotton had been stored away, and at once ordered 
it to be seized. Soon after that, while the Gen- 
eral was busUy engaged at headquarters, a pom- 
pous gentleman walked in, apparently in great 
haste, and inquired if he was General Sherman. 
Having received an affirmative reply, the pom- 
pous gentleman remarked, " that when he left his 
residence. United States troops were engaged in 
removing his cotton from it, when it was protected 
by the British flag." 

" Stop, sir ! " said General Sherman ; " not 
your cotton, sir, but my cotton, — in the name 
of the United States Government, sir. I have 
noticed," continued General Sherman, " a great 



many British flags all about here, protecting 
cotton. I have seized it all, in the name of my 
Government." 

" But, sir," said the Consul, indignantly, " there 
is scarcely any cotton in Savannah that does not 
belong to me." 

" There is not a pound of cotton here, sir, that 
does not belong to me, for the United States," 
responded Sherman. 

" Well, sir," said the Consul, swelling himself 
up with the dignity of his ofliice, and reddening iij 
the face ; " my Government shall hear of this. I 
shall report your conduct to my Government, 
sir ! " 

" Ah ! pray, who are you, sir ? " said the Gen- 
eral. ; 

" Consul to Her British Majesty, sir ! " i 

" O ! indeed ! " responded the General. " I 
hope you will report me to your Government, i 
You will please saj'' to your Government, for me, 
that I have been fighting the English Government 
all the way from the Ohio River to Vicksburg, 
and thence to this point. At every step I have i \i 
encountered British arms, British munitions of \ r 
war, and British goods of every description — at , 
every step — sir. I have met them, su-, in all 
shapes ; and now, sir, I find you claiming all the 
cotton, sir. I intend to call upon my Govern- 
ment to order me to Nassau at once." 

" What do you propose to do there ? " asked 
the Consul, somewhat taken aback. 

" I would," replied the General, " take with me 
a quantity of picks and shovels, and throw that 
cm-sed sand-hill into the sea, sir; and then I 
would pay for it, sir — if necessary ! Good day, 
sir." 

One of God's Noblemen. — A flat-boat full 
of soldiers, a few of whom were African, at- 
tempted to land at Rodman's Point, on the coast i 
of North Carolina. '^ 

The rebels were awaiting their approach in ; 
ambuscade, and reserved their fire till the end of I 
the boat was resting on the shore, and then opened 
a deadly fire. Life could only be saved by lying 
flat on the boat's bottom ; and if they remained 
inactive long, the whole boat-load would be cap- 
tured. One of the negro soldiers, who saw the 
situation, and the vital importance of getting the 
boat off", as well as the imminent danger of the 
attempt, said : " Somebody got to die to get us aU 
out dis 'ere, and it tnouglit jus' as well be me as 
anybody ! " 

He then deliberately rose up, stepped on shore, 
and pushed the boat off". As she swung clear, 
and the men crouching in the bottom were saved, 
the body of the noble African fell forward into 
the end of the boat, pierced by five bullets. 



Stories of War. — A Chaplain, on the eve 
of a battle, bade the soldiers of his corps fight 
bravely, for those who fell " would sup in heaven," 
and thereupon himself marched to the rear, re- 
plying, when called to stop, " that for his part 
he never took suppers." A kindred anecdote is 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND ESTCIDENTS. 



351 



related of a militia colonel in the last ■war with 
Great Britain. Addressing his soldiers, on the 
eve of an engagement, he told them to "press 
where they saw his white plume wave," adding 
that, " if by any accident the regiment was over- 
powered and driven off the field, and should need 
further orders after the battle, they would find 
him (the Colonel) behind Simon Norris' barn, in 
the town of Buxton." 



Half an Hour among the Rebels. — The 
sun was shining down in a style that would have 
done honor to the swelteriAg regions of the 
tropics. Beneath its torrid beams several hun- 
dred rebels, who had taken the oath of allegiance 
to their native country, trudged their way from 
the Delaware Wharf to the depot, in West 
Philadelphia, where they awaited transportation. 
Among the motley crowd were a number possess- 
ing natural intelligence, although uneducated. 
From the excessive heat, they might have sup- 
posed they were already in the " Sunny South," 
and that under such a high temperature it would 
be impossible for Northerners to be the cold- 
hearted barbarians they had been represented to 
be. The repentants presented a varied picture 
for philosophical contemplation. Some of them 
were decidedly sullen, and at times exhibited a 
morose disposition. Others seemed to regard 
matters and things as they found them, with a 
degree of philosophy entirely creditable. Num- 
bers Avere loquacious, and their speech indicated 
the peculiarities of various localities of our coun- 
try. Among that crowd was a tall individual, 
with grayish-blue eyes, sunken cheek, sallow 
complexion, and long, yellowish hair, dangling 
down his neck. He seemed possessed of natural 
intelligence, but was deficient in point of edu- 
cation. In his speech he was remarkably pro- 
fane. 

Among the spectators was a gentleman re- 
markable for the emphatic style in which he 
enforces argument on the different topics of the 
day. He eyed the crowd of rebels for some time, 
mingled among them, and finally singled out 
the tall, yellow-haired individual, above alluded 
to, for a little especial conversation. 

" You're a South Carolinian, I suppose ? " said 
the spectator. 

" That's my native country i" replied the repent- 
ant rebel. 

" Your native country j were you born there ? " 

"Waal, I was.'* 

" Then the whole country is your native coun- 
try, and not simply South Carolinai" responded 
the gentleman. 

" Waal, I don't know about that ar, stranger ; 
you fellows have licked us like " 

" Don't say that, su", for you are entirely mis- 
taken," replied the interlocutor. 

" Waal, I don't know what you call a lickin'; 
if we didn't get it, then I don't know what a lick- 
in' is ; why, sir, we're tore out, root and branch, 
and smashed down like Virginny tobacco in a 
press." 



"Now, let me tell j^ou," responded the dial- 
ogist, " the North has only brought you fellows 
back into the Union ; the North did not invade 
the South merely to thrash you ; the North took 
the good old flag of the Union there, and asked 
you to come under its protection ; j'ou refused, 
and the North went at you, and, after pretty hard 
fighting, have brought you under that flag again. 
This is all the North has done. The North said 
that the Union should not be divided, and this 
doctrine is fully maintained by American arms 
and American valor." 

By this time the argument began to increase 
in interest; other rebels gathered around, and 
attentively listened ; they looked upon the strange 
gentleman as though a sort of demigod had paid 
them a visit, and felt that words of wisdom were 
dropping from his lips. 

" Guess that are leader must be a Congress- 
man," said one rebel to another, aside. 

" He's one on 'em, eny how," said another ; 
" but he don't look like an abolitioner." 

" No, I guess he arn't one on 'em critters, no 
how," responded a third ; " but he talks pooty." 

" I hke them ar sentiments, and when I get to 
Red River I'll express 'em as me own," said a 
rough-looking customer with bushy whiskers. 

" Well," continued the gentleman, " now don't 
return to your homes with any false notion about 
the people of the North. They are your friends ; 
they will assist you if you will only show a dis- 
position to assist yourselves in industrial pursuits. 
You must go to work, love the good old flag, 
and, if necessary, you must fight for it, and not 
against it." 

" By , stranger, you speak like a man j. we 

never will fight against the old flag." 

" Nor the Union ? " 

" No, sir, never ; we are for the Union against 
all enemies ; we've been enemies to ourselves." 

" You have been misled by false teachers, and 
you must guard against them; you must think 
for yourself; but never array yourself against 
that good old flag. [Here he pointed to one float- 
ing from the staff on the- depot.] You must put 
all your Jeff Davises down under your feet, and 
not permit them to trample you in the dust." 

" That's so, by ■ ," chimed in several. 

" D Jeff Davis ; if the Government don't 

hang him, we will, if we can only get a chance." 

It really seemed that these men would have 
instantly hung Jeff Davis, or any admirers of the 
" stern statesman," had an opportunity been given 
them. By the time the dialogue was concluded 
the rebels gave unmistakable evidence of the 
change that had come over the spirit of their 
dreams, by actually giving three cheers for the 
United States, and death to JeS" Davis. 



Speech in the Mississippi Convention of 
THE " Gentleman from Jones." — "I an^ a 
mossy-back, sir, and I stand here to-day to repre- 
sent the county of Jones. People said that the 
county of Jones seceded from Mississippi. Yes, 



352 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



sir, we did secede fi-om the Confederacy, and, sir, 
■we fought them like dogs ; we killed them like 
devils; we buried them like asses! Yea, like 
asses, sir. My own people down there in the 
county of Jones did, in their sovereign capacity, 
secede, and did become mossy-backs. We did 
fight them like dogs and kill them like hellions 
— like hellions, I say, sir! But I didn't come 
here to gas, sir ; and I surrender my rights to 
the floor, sir, expressing only the one sentiment, 
that I stand up for the county of Jones in gen- 
eral. Yes, sir, I am for Jones all the time. In 
my suffering county the wails of three hundred 
and eighty widowed women and shirt-tail chil- 
dren are ascending before the God of right, and 
appealing in tears to the powers appointed for 
relief." 

The Lawrence Massacre. — A survivor of 
the terrible scenes at Lawrence relates the fol- 
lowing incidents : Early on the morning of the 
massacre, young Collamore, son of Mayor Colla- 
more, a youth of eighteen, started from Law- 
rence for a farm which was owned by his father, 
to shoot some birds for a sick brother. He had 
cleared the limits of the city and come to a cross 
road, when, upon looking up, he saw, within a 
dozen paces, the advance guard of Quantrel, 
comprising about twenty or thirty men. He kept 
on and passed them, when they ordered him to 
halt. He turned and came towards them, scarcely 
suspecting that they were foes, when the ruffians 
aimed at him and fired. Providentially not a 
ball hit him, although several grazed his person, 
one of them actually cutting off one of his eye- 
lashes. Seeing that the young man was un- 
scathed, one of the ruffians, with a blasphemous 
denunciation of his comrades for their inex- 
pertness, rode up to him, and, taking deliberate 
aim, fired, with the intention of lodging a ball in 
his abdomen. Young Collamore was cool and 
collected in this trying moment, and turning 
himself so as to disturb his assailant's aim, just 
as the rifle was discharged rolled from his horse, 
exclaiming — "I am killed!" The shot took 
effect in the fleshy part of the thigh. The young 
man was perfectly conscious, but lay entirely 
still, feigning death. Several others of the band 
rode up and discharged their pistols or rifles 
point blank at him, but he never flinched, and 
fortunately was not again hit. The advance 
guard passed on, and Collamore then attempted 
to drag himself to a house in the neighborhood, 
occupied by an L:ishman, which had been spared 
through the intercessions of some L-ishmen who 
were among the guerrillas. While doing this he 
saw the main body of Quantrel's gang approach- 
ing. He hastened his steps, using his gun as a 
crutch, and just reached the house in time to 
tlirow himself into a cellar window, when some 
of the gang rode up in full chase. They shot a 
man who showed himself at a window, but did 
not discover Collamore, who finally escaped, 
although he lay for several hours in the cellar 
before the people in the house could venture to 
his relief. The young man owes his life to his 



nerve and his presence of mind. He is now with 
friends in this city. His wound is a severe one, 
and may cripple him for life, as the ball has not 
yet been extracted. 

When the band of Quantrel entered the town, 
but few of the inhabitants had arisen, and their 
work was the more speedy and certain. Quantrel 
himself visited the house of Mayor Collamore, 
against whom the ruffians had a peculiar spite 
because of his energy in thwarting their* designs 
of invasion. Mrs. Collamore, aroused by the 
sound of fire-arms, got up and went to the win- 
dow, when she saw some of the ruffians chasing 
an unarmed man in the yard of a house near by. 
They shot him repeatedly, even after he was 
mortally wounded. Shocked at this scene, and 
at once comprehending the danger, she aroused 
her husband, whose first impulse was to get his 
pistols and resist. But Mrs. Collamore urged 
her husband to conceal himself, and suggested a 
hayrick in the rear of the house. But before he 
could get out of the house it was surrounded, 
and the ruffians were thundering at the door. 
Mrs. Collamore then suggested the weU, and has- 
tened her husband to the well-room. Mr. Colla- 
more hesitated before entering the -well, express- 
ing apprehensions for his wife ; but she implored 
him to seek his own safety, assuring him that 
there could be no danger to a defenceless woman. 
He went into the well, and the boards having 
been replaced, Mrs. Collamore went to the door. 
She was confronted by Quantrel himself, who in- 
quired for her husband. She replied, calmly and 
composedly looking him in the face, that he had 
gone east. With a fearful oath, the ruffian 
strode past her, and went du'ectly to the chamber 
of Mr. Collamore, being evidently well acquainted 
with the premises. Disappointed, he instituted a 
search, though not very thorough, for the cellar 
was not visited; and not finding the object of his 
vengeance, he demanded of Mrs. Collamore the 
money that was in the house. She gave him 
what she had, but he insisted that there was 
more. Mrs. Collamore remembering that one of 
the children had about five dollars in specie, gave 
that to Quantrel, which seemed to satisfy the 
ruffian. He rummaged the drawers, but did not 
touch the silver belonging to Mrs. Collamore, or 
Mr. CoUamore's signet ring. 

One of the children, eight years old, held up to 
him a ten cent piece, and said, with child-like sim- 
plicity, " I will give you that if you won't kill 
me." ' The ruffian turned on his heel with the 
exclamation, " Pshaw ! what do you suppose I 
want of that ? He threatened the life of another 
of the children, a boy of fifteen ; but Mrs. Col- 
lamore implored liim to spare him. She remarked, 
with a presentiment that her oldest boy was killed, 
" He is my all. You have doubtless killed his 
brother, who went out gunning this morning, and 
must have met your band." A smile of fearful ma- 
lignity passed over the countenance of the ruffian, 
as he signified his knowledge of the cuxumstance, 
and turned away. 

After plundering the house, Quantrel set it oa 
fire, and when Mrs. Collamore attempted to quench 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



353 



the flames, threatened her life. When the ruffians 
had left, and while the house Avas burning, Mrs. 
Collamore went to the well and called to her hus- 
band, who answered " yea " to the inquiry if he was 
safe. But when the danger was entirely passed, on 
going to the v*ell he was found to be dead. He is 
supposed to have been suffocated by the smoke. 

The anguish of the v/ife, bereft of a tender and 
affectionate husband, and left houseless and home- 
less, was yet to be intensified by anxiety for the 
safety of her children. She found a temporary 
shelter, to which her oldest son was conveyed for 
medical treatment. Two days subsequent to the 
massacre an alarm was started at midnight, that 
Quantrel was returning to complete the work of 
destruction. The panic-stricken inhabitants fled 
to the woods, deserting the city and all of their 
property, many of them having nothing but their 
night garments. Mrs. Collamore sent her children 
and theu" nurse to a place of safety, but would not 
leave her wounded son. With the help of a young 
minister she procured a buggy, and putting him 
into it with great difficulty, dragged him Avith su- 
perhuman strength to the river bank. 

It was dark and rainy ; but the shelterless ex- 
iles — mostly women and children — scarcely dared 
to speak above a v/hisper, lest the murderous ruf- 
fians should be upon them. The terrors of that 
night of fear and foreboding will never be effaced 
from the memory of the people of Lawrence. It 
turned out that there was no truth in the reports 
of the return of Quantrel. 

The work of the ruffian band was carried on 
in the most erratic manner. Many buildings 
were studiously protected. Jim Lane's house 
was burned down ; but so was the house of Mrs. 
Jenkins, whose husband, it will be recollected, 
was murdered by Lane. Many who were known 
to be opposed to jayhawking were murdered. 
Governor Robinson's house was spared. It has 
been said that it was protected by a squad of sol- 
diers across the river. But other houses were 
burned, which were nearer to these soldiers, and 
the ruffians breakfasted in a house which was be- 
tween Ex-Governor Robinson's and the river. 
Ex-Governor Shannon's property was spai'ed, and 
at the request of Mrs. Shannon a guard was fur- 
nished for his office. 

Some few of the band showed a merciful spirit, 
but most of them seemed actuated by the most 
fiendish malice, and thirsted for blood, with which 
they were certainly sated. They were not con- 
tent with wounding unarmed men, but shot at 
them until life vias extinct. No massacre in the 
history of our country has been more fearful, or 
attended with incidents more cruel. 

The people of Leavenworth opened their hearts 
and theu* houses to the sufi"erers, ■who speak in 
the highest terms of their generosity. Mrs. Col- 
lamore, particularly, found there many who re- 
membered and appreciated her noble husband, 
and warmly expresses her gratitude to them for 
their kindness to herself and her children. There 
is much destitution and suflFering among the peo- 
ple of Lawrence, which only the liberal benevo- 
lence of the rest can relieve, and we hope that 
23 



the appeals which have been made in their behalf 
will meet with a prompt response. 



Thoughts of Home. — " Let mc tell you of a 
little incident that happened to me this morning," 
said a soldier in Louisiana. " I had been out all 
day on the skirmish line ; all was still ; I had not 
heard the singing of a bullet for some time. I 
was sitting on the ground, with my rifle across 
my knees, thinking of home and friends far away 
— wondering what the future had in store for 
me, and if I should ever see that home again. 
As I sat thus, a little bird, called the Baltimore 
oriole, perched himself on a bush so close to me 
that I might have touched him with my rifle, and 
commenced singing. The voice of this bird is 
much like that of our robin, and he is about the 
same size, though his color is different, being a 
dark red. The poor little fellow had been di-iven 
away through the day by the shower of bullets 
that visited that quarter, but had returned at 
night to visit his home, and seemed now to be 
returning thanks to God for his safe return. And 
so, thought I, my case may be like the little bird. 
After this struggle is over, I, too, may return to 
friends and home. I accepted the omen, thanked 
God for his watchful care over me, and, with re- 
newed courage and hope, pressed on." 



An Adventure. — A " Silent Observer" of com- 
pany B, of the Fourth Pennsylvania regiment, 
gives the following narrative of an adventure in 
West Virginia, in the spring of 1864 : — 

" The person I am going to write about is a 
regular harum-scarum individual, and is never 
with his regiment except he is on duty ; he is 
always travelling about the country (or I should 
say scouting around), and there is little that he 
does not know, and few places he can't find. But, 
as regards his duty, I am made to understand 
that he never shirks anything that is right, though 
sometimes he growls when he imagines he is im- 
posed upon, but it is generally soon over : this 
much I can say, he is a good and I believe brave 
soldier. I will give you the narrative as I got it 
from him at New Creek. He said : ' x\fter I got 
out to our pickets, I thought I would stay there 
all night, and in the morning go on. I remained 
there about two hours, when the Fourteenth Vir- 
ginia infantry came along ; so I concluded to go 
with them as far as they Avent. I started, and 
Avent Avith them to Burlington ; here they stopped 
and camped. I was told by some of the men of 
another regiment, that our men did no fighting 
there, but had gone on to Moorsfield ; so I con- 
cluded to go on after the regiment. The next 
morning I Avent on with some Avagons as far as 
the junction of the Romney and Moorsfield road. 
I staid there until about half past eleven o'clock 
A. M. AVhile I Avas there, an ambulance came 
along, and, as I ascertained that it was going 
near my regiment, I concluded to go with it. I 
got in, and, on inquiring, I found it belonged to 
the Second regiment ^Maryland Home Brigade. 



354 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



" * We had proceeded along the road towards 
Moorsfield about five miles when I observed five 
men come out of the mountains about fifty yards 
' from the road, and, as they drew near us, I dis- 
covered them to be rebels. There was no time to 
jump out, and run away, nor to upe arms ; for 
they had us surrounded in a jiffy, and it would 
have been madness anyhow, as there was only 
one gun between us, and that was not ready for 
use. Let me state here that the regiment was 
not more than five or six miles ahead of us, and 
there were cavalry passing that road all the time. 
The rebels came on us with pointed pistols, and 
ordered us to surrender. We had no choice ; so 
we gave up. They asked us to give them all the 
arms from the ambulance. I gave them my gun 
and equipments, and then we were ordered to 
drive up a by-road about one hundred yards from 
the main road on the right going to Moorsfield. 
After they had taken the horses from the ambu- 
lance, they run it down a hill, and cut some of 
the spokes. They then took the things which 
they could carrj-, and mounted us on the horses, 
and took us up in the mountains to the left of the 
road about a quarter of a mile. After we got 
there, they searched us, and took everything that 
they thought dangerous. My companion's pocket 
knife and gloves were taken from him, and my 
canteen and a piece of emery paper I had were 
taken from me. And they asked us if we had 
any money, but we had nary red. They told us 
that they had been sent there to intercept our 
despatches, and pick up all stragglers. I made 
very light of being a prisoner, and told them I 
did not care, as I was under arrest, and expected 
to get a court-martial for desertion, and perhaps 
be sent to a fort for one or two years. I laughed, 
and seemed so contented, that they did not think 
I would try to escape ; my companion was down- 
hearted and discontented, and all his energy had 
left him. 

" ' We had been up there about half an hour, 
when the lookout reported a cavalryman coming 
down the road, and as they supposed him to be a 
despatch-bearer, a reb started down the moun- 
tain after him. I whispered to my companion to 
grab the rebel guard, and I would help him. The 
guard v>-as a very strong man, and I knew if we 
intended to do anything, we must surprise him, 
and make quick work of it. The guard was very 
anxious to see his comrades take a Yankee de- 
spatch-bearer, and did not pay much attention to 
us. I suppose he thought it foolishness for us to 
attempt to escape. He had a short rifle, and no 
revolver, nor sabre. As my companion was the 
stoutest, he was to take his gun. The rebel guard 
then immediately took us in sight of the road, to 
show us the fun of taking a Yankee. The rebels 
smTounded the cavalryman before he knew it, 
and soon disarmed him. I got behind the rebel 
guard, and my companion on the side his rifle was 
on, and just as the four rebels with their prison- 
ers got to the foot of the mountain, my companion 
grasped the gun, and I grasped the rebel ; I put 
my hand over his mouth, and threw one arm 
around his neck, at the same time throwing his 



head back ; my companion wrenched the gun 
from him, and then gave him a punch in the 
bread-basket with the muzzle, which made him 
" holler " blue murder, and I told him to hit him 
on the head. But he was too slow, and before 
I could throw him dovar he forced himself away 
from me, and went stumbling down the mountain 
tovtards his comrades, who were then within one 
hundred yards of me. My companion had gone, 
and was about thirty yards from me : and think- 
ing it was time for mc to get away, I darted oif ; 
and after running up and down the mountain for 
about four miles with my companion, we discov- 
ered the rebels trying to outflank us. My com- 
panion threw away the rifle which he had carried 
until then ; we then separated ; he threw himself 
down behind a log, and I kept on for about one 
mile ; then I started for the road. At the time I 
separated from my companion the rebels were 
only about fifty yards from him, and one hundred 
and fifty yards from me ; but the fog prevented 
them from seeing him, and the bushes them from 
seeing me. After I got down in the field I saw a 
man coming through it, and as I knew he was not 
armed, and as I saw harness on the horse, I de- 
termined to seek aid from him. I went up to him, 
and hailed him with, " Hold on there, mister ! " 
When I had got close to him I said : " Look 
here, stranger ; 1 want you to tell me the truth ; 
are you a Union man or a secesh ? " He said : " I 
am a Union man ! " " Well," said I, " then you 
must help me." I told Irim I must ride on his 
horse a little way ; he told me to mount behind 
him. After doing so he took me across the creek 
and across the fence about three hundred yards, 
and then told me which way to go. I foUow^ed 
his du-ections, and soon came into our lines.' " 



Freedom of Speech. — A letter-writer in Al- 
abama says : " Om* minister nearly got himself 
into a scrape the other day ; and whether he is 
' a bit of a wag,' or a very careless fellow, or an 
' abolition traitor,' is now the topic of discussion 
with us. At the meeting on Fast Day he gave 
out Dr. AVatts' hymn, commencing — 

« And are we wretches j-et alive ; 

And do we yet rebel r 
'Tis wondrous, 'tis amazing grace. 
That we are out of hell.' " 



" Lym.-^n Beecher Adams." — While the Thir- 
ty-eighth Ohio regiment was home on furlough, a 
man hailing from Dayton, but represented as for- 
merly from Rhode Island, desu-ous of distinguish- 
ing himself in the field, proposed to be mustered 
into the service of the United States as a volun- 
teer in that regiment. Being apparently sound in 
body and mind, and responding to the name of 
Lyman Beecher Adams (which bespoke, more 
than individual assurances, a patriotic ancestry), 
he was promptly received into the good faith and 
fellowship of the veterans of the regiment. With 
such a name, and hailing from the little State of 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



355 



Rhode Island, so fruitful in loyal progress, who 
coukl demand any further Toucher or guarantee 
of his genuine character? He underwent the 
ceremonies attending his initiation into the vol- 
unteer service, accepted his allotted bounty, and 
started for the seat of war, sharing, for a season, 
with his companions in arms many of the fatigues 
and exposures incident to army life, and, during 
his passage with us, continually repeated mentally 
the sentiment of the negro melody : 

"I'm gwine 'long dovm. to Georgia — I haiai't got 
long to stay." 

Shortly after the amval of the regiment at 
Einggold, Georgia, it Avas sent out upon picket 
duty, and Lj-man Beecher Adams was expected 
to, and did (willingly, of course), enter upon this 
rather unpleasant branch of the service ; and being 
a true soldier, did not feign sickness, or attempt 
to shirk from any duties. Taking advantage of 
this, his first experience on picket duty, he con- 
cluded to absent himself from the next roll call, 
and, with rifle, cartridge-box, and person, catered 
into the rebel lines. 

A few days thereafter, a party of rebel officers, 
with a flag of truce, having some communication 
with General Grant, apjieared before the Union 
lines, and were met by others from the army. 
During the interchange of civilities common to 
such occasions, a rebel officer stated that he was 
requested by the late Juijman Beeclier Adams to 
present his compliments to the Thirty-eighth Ohio 
regiment, and to tender his grateful acknowledg- 
ments for their kindness in delivering him from the 
land of his captivity to the bosom of his friends. 

A brief summary of this story is this : Lyman 
Beecher Adams was a rebel Captain under John 
Morgan, and having escaped from Johnson's 
Island, was genorously provided by his enemies 
with a dead-head ticket to Dixie. The joke is — 
To be relished exclusively by rebels. The moral 
— New recruits should sometimes, previous to 
being accepted, furnish proper credentials. 



An Incident of the Hospitax. — "One of 
the patients was a mere boy, not more than sev- 
enteen years old. I think you would have de- 
scribed him as a little boy, and altogether unfit 
for military service. But he was brave-hearted, 
and of a pleasant countenance. He was first sick 
of the measles, and had been exposed to the cold 
and rain during our march to Decatur Junction ; 
now he sufiered under an attack of pneumonia ; 
his mind wandered, and there was no hope of his 
recovery. Our hospital steward, a noble, warm- 
hearted man, whom all the men love, came in, 
and as he passed along the ward the little sufierer 
asked, in a plaintive, child-like voice, to be taken 
in his lap. The steward tenderly raised him in 
his arms, and began to soothe him with loving 
words. Such words and acts find their way even 
to maddened brains. 

" ' Mayn't I kiss you ? I want some one to 
love,' asked the grateful heart of the jDatient. 

" Consent was given, with a smothered, sobbing 



voice ; the djing boy kissed him lovingly, and 
then gi'ew tranquil as a babe. No doubt, I 
thought, he was again, in thought and feeling, at 
home, enclosed in the arms that had clasped him 
a thousand times. I don't know, but I think the 
steward will treasure that kiss in his memory, as 
worldly men do ancestral jewels, and in the end 
find it written to his credit in heaven." 



How A Captain was Captuhed. — ^'I was 
officer of the guard, on as bright a July day as 
ever dawned on creation ; and though it was op- 
pressi^ly warm,, as early as guai'd mounting, eight 
o'clock, yet that interesting ceremony had passed 
oS" magnificently, and I was preparing to go the 
grand rounds immediately after the call for the 
second relief, when Lieutenant H., the old officer 
of the guard, sent his respects, with an earnest 
request for me to call on him at his marquee for 
special consultation. ' H — 1 is brewing at po«t 
number twelve,' said he, as he took me by the 
hand, ' and this fellow will tell you what he saAV 
there ; and you may rely upon trouble there be- 
fore to-morrow.' ' An' I saw notliing at all, at all, 
but a ghost, sure,' said the Irish soldier ; ' it came 
out of the hill forenent the old graveyard, shook 
its fist at me as it passed, and went into the bush 
towards the fort.' 

" ' How did it look ? ' inquired H. 

"'Look? indade, how should it look, but like 
a woman di'aped in white, with eyes of fire ? ' 

"An hour after, I was carefully searching the 
ground in the vicinity of post number twelve, when 
my ears were saluted with the well-known cry of, 
'Buy any pies'n' cakes? — all clean and new; 
twenty-five cents for the pies, two cakes for a 
penny.' 

" ' Where is your pass, my good lady, if you are 
a camp follower ; and why are you here among the 
rocks and bushes, if you wish to sell your market- 
ing ? ' said G. 

" ' I am the honest wife of Pat Maloney, of the 
Fourteenth Maiyland, and sthopped here to rest 
me weary limbs afther coming five miles dovvn from 
me home in the hill, your honor ! ' 

"'Very likely,' said I; 'but you will please 
march down to the camp, and submit to a slight 
insi^ection of your basket and papers, if you hare 
any.' 

'"I have no papers, sir; and why should you 
put a loyal woman, and a wife of a Union soldier, 
to this trouble, bad luck till ye ? ' 

" ' You will not be harmed, madam. If you are 
a loyal woman, as you say, you will see the pro- 
priety of so doing.' 

" Cakes and pics, sure enough, but no papers ; 
and I began to believe that there was no connec- 
tion between her and Pat's 'ghost;' but why 
should she wear a pair of men's boots? 

" ' Och, these were the boots me husband wore 
before he 'listed, sure ! ' 

" And so the Captain, somewhat given to gallan- 
try, volunteered to accompany her to her friends, 
two miles towards her ' home in the hill,' where she 
was to give positive jjroof that she was ' neither a 



356 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



spy nor a ghost.' And away they went, a single 
soldier only accompanying them, amid the ill- 
suppressed laughter of the regiment. 

" Noon, one o'clock, two o'clock, and no tidings 
of the Captain ! What was to be done ? A squad- 
ron of cavalry was ordered to dash up the hill, 
reconnoitre, and report. And then time wore 
heavily away for an hour, when the cavalry charged 
into camp and up to headquarters, when instantly 
the long roll was beat, and in five minutes the 
regiment was under arms in line of battle. A 
perfect silence ensued, and the Adjutant read the 
following note : 

" ' Colonel D. : I am willing to exchange the 
pies, cakes, and basket for the soldier and the 
d — d fool Captain whom I caught with crinoline. 
Pedlers and ghosts are at a premium in these 
parts just now. Yours, in haste, 

" ' Bland, First Lieutenant C. S. A.' 

" The soldier's musket was found four miles 
from camp, with the note from the ivoman Lieu- 
tenant sticking on the point of the bayonet ; and 
so the Captain was captured." 



Anecdote of Philippa. — Among the troops 
in Western Virginia, stories about the Philippa 
affair formed a staple of conversation. Here is 
one of the best : 

A certain Indiana company, almost worn out 
with marchuig, was straggling along, with very 
little regard to order. Hurrying up to his men, 
the Captain shouted, "Close up, boys! D — n 
you, close up ! If the enemy were to fke on 
you when you're straggling along that way, they 
couldn't hit a d — u one of you ! Close up ! " And 
the boys closed up immediately. 



She Eegeetted It. — In the early part of 
the war, an elderly lady, who attended a meeting 
of the Fii'st Vermont regiment, arose, full of en- 
thusiasm, and said she thanked God that she was 
able to do something for her country ; her two 
sons, all she possessed in the world, were in the 
regiment ; and the only thing she had to regret 
was, that she could not have known it twenty 
years ago — she would have fiu'nished more. 



" Broke the Connection." — In the battle of 
Ciiampion Hills, a Colonel was moimted on a 
horse which did not like the wliistling of bullets 
and bursting of shells wliich showered about him. 
The Colonel, who was one of those officers al- 
ways found in advance of his regiment, held a 
different opinion from his horse ; so he called 
Sam, the negro servant, to take the animal back, 
and bring the " Morgan," that could stand fii-e. 
Sam, who was in sympathy with the disgraced 
charger, gladly obeyed ; but on his way back with 
the Morgan, a shell dropped in the field right be- 
fore him, and burst, sending the mud and stones 
ia every direction. This was too much for Sam, 
and he broke for the rear, not to be seen again 



for several days. One of the officers, finding 
him not wholly recovered from his fear, at this 
time, of his irate master, said : " Why don't you 
go back to the Colonel ? He was angry, but you 
may return ; you know he was always friendly tn 
you." " Dat ar am all berry true," replied Sam, 
with an inimitable expression of countenance, 
and a significant gesture of the hand ; " de Colo- 
nal and I Avere berry good friends, but de fac is, 
dat ar shell broke de connection." 



Incidents of Knoxville. — " After thirteen 
days of menace and siege," says a coi'respond- 
ent, " the enemy gathered his forces, and struck 
the mighty blow that was to have broken our 
lines, demolished our defences, and captured 
Knoxville. It was an utter and disastrous fail- 
ure. In justice to our enemy, it is conceded by 
all, that more desperate valor, daring gallantry, 
or obstinate courage, has not been recorded dur- 
ing the war. They contended against the impos- 
sible. The men who opposed them were as brave, 
as well trained on the same bloody fields of Vir- 
ginia, as they, and, having as large a stake, had 
the advantages of an impregnable position. The 
enterprise Avas a bold one, the plan masterly, and 
the attempt vigorous. Success would have given 
the enemy possession of the key to all our works 
on the west side of the town, if not the t»vvn itself. 
But Fort Sanders lost, our position in Knoxville 
would be more precarious. But they failed. We 
do not know if Longstreet has done his worst ; 
but it is evident that he expected to have ex- 
ploited a brilliant and decisive coup de guerre. 
He was thirteen days deciding upon it. He 
waited until reenforced by the forces of General 
Jones, Mudwall Jackson, Carter, and Cerro Gordo 
Williams. He selected three brigades of picked 
regiments, and determined upon a night attack, 
always the most dangerous and bloody, but if 
successful, the most decisive. It is evident that 
he played a tremendous odds to insure succes.s, 
and every man in those doomed brigades ad- 
vanced to the storming of Fort Sanders with that 
confident courage that usually commands it. To 
resist liim were part of the Seventy-ninth Xev,- 
York in the front, four companies of the One 
Hundredth Pennsylvania on the right, and four 
companies of the Second Micliigan on the lei't. 
No part of the fort is complete. One bastion cii 
the north-west angle, and a parapet on the we^^, 
side, only are up. Temi>orary traverses were 
made by cotton bales, and also two salients from 
wlaich guns could sweep the ditches on the nortli 
and west. Spirited sku-mishing commenced on 
the right of the position at ten o'clock P. M. on 
Saturday. The vigor and persistence of it evi- 
dently foreshadowed sometliing more serious be- 
hind, and such became the feeling of all the im- 
mense audience withiii our lines, who listened to 
the continuous and unceasing crash of musketry, 
hour after hour, to one, two, and three o'clockA. 
M. Many an anxious heart that night beat high 
with hope and fear for their rebel friends with- 
out, and many a tearful and timid prayer went up 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



357 



to the God of battles for the safetj' of friends 
within. All felt that an eventful moment was at 
hand, for weal or woe, in the destinies of East 
Tennessee and her brave defenders. The ene- 
my dashed upon the left of our position sev- 
eral times, as if in confident bravado, and finally 
drove our skirmishers from the advanced rifle 
pits, and occupied them about daylight Sunday 
morning. Our men rallied, and as determinedly 
regained them, driving the rebels back in turn. 
Suddenly an avalanche of men was hurled upon 
the disputed rifle pits ; our skirmishers were 
forced back, and covered by our guns from the 
fort by our retreating men. Two storming bri- 
gades were enabled to approach within one hun- 
dred yards of the bastion. It was their inten- 
tion, probably, to draw out our boys, and then 
attempt to return with them and enter the works. 
In this they were foiled. Our skirmishers fell in 
on the left, and the rebel storming party ad- 
vanced directly upon the bastion. Then ensued 
a scene of carnage and horror which has but few 
parallels in the annals of warfare. Balaklava was 
scarcely more terrible. Stunned for a moment 
by the torrent of canister and lead poured upon 
them by Buckley's First Rhode battery and our 
line of musketry, on they came. Again and 
again the deadly missiles shattered their torn and 
mangled columns. Their march was over dead 
and wounded comrades ; yet still they faltered not, 
but onward, still onward : whole ranks stumbled 
over wires stretched from stump to stump, and 
fell amid the dead and dying ; yet still over their 
prostrate bodies marched the doomed heroes of 
that forlorn hope. 

" At last the ditch was reached, and the slaugh- 
ter became butchery, as if on a wager of death 
against mortality. Benjamin's guns on the 
salients swept the ditch as the tornado would the 
corn. The earth was sated with blood — men 
waded in blood, and struggled up the scarp, and 
slipping in blood fell back to join their mangled 
predecessors in the gory mud below. The shouts 
of the foiled and infuriate rebels, the groans of 
the dying and shrieks of the wounded, arose 
above the din of the cannon. Benjamin lighted 
shell and threw them over the parapet, and artil- 
lerymen followed his example. One rebel climbed 
the parapet and planted the flag of the Thirteenth 
Mississippi regiment on the summit; but the 
rebel shout that greeted its appearance had scarce 
left the lips that framed it when man and flag 
were in the ditch below, pierced by a dozen balls. 
Another rebel repeated the feat, and joined his 
comrade. A third essayed to bear oft' the flag, 
and was cloven with an axe. One man entered 
an embrasure, and was blown to fragments ; two 
mere were cut down in another, but not one en- 
tered the fort. The three veteran regiments of 
the Ninth army corps stood up to the work be- 
fore them unflinching and glorious to a man. 
The heroes of a dozen campaigns from the Poto- 
mac to Vicksburg, they found themselves for the 
thii'd time arrayed for trial of courage and endur- 
ance with the flower of the Southern army, — 
the picked men of Longstreet's boasted veterans. 



— and saw the sun rise, on that chill Sunday 
morning in November, on an entire brigade anni- 
hilated, and two more severely punished. Even 
the dead outnumbered us, for not more than 
three hundred of our force participated in the 
defence of Fort Sanders. Benjamin, of the Third 
United States artillery, and Buckley, of the 
First Rhode Island battery, were foremost in acts 
of daring and gallantry. General Ferraro, who 
has never left the fort since Longstreet's appear- 
ance before it, to whose skill and foresight much 
of the admirable dispositions for defence was 
due, was in command, and right nobly has he 
earned his star. His coolness, energy, and skill 
are subjects of universal encomium. 

" The dead and wounded were left on the field, 
and the ghastly horrors were rendered sickening 
by the vain cries of hundreds for water and help. 
In full view from the embrasures the ground was 
covered with dead, wounded, and dying. Forty- 
eight were heaped up in the ditch before the bas- 
tion; thirteen in another place, almost within 
reach of those who, though late their foes, would 
have willingly heeded their anguished shrieks for 
water ; yet none dared go to their assistance. The 
humanity of General Burnside was not proof 
against so direct an appeal, and he at once sent 
in a flag of truce, off'ering an armistice until five 
o'clock P. M., for the purpose of burying their 
dead and caring for their wounded." 



A Revival in Fokt Sumter. — Rev. A. B. 
Stephens, chaplain of the Eleventh South Caro- 
lina regiment, wrote in September, 1863 : " We 
now constitute the garrison of Fort Sumter. On 
the last fast day I began a meeting which has 
been going on and increasing in interest all the 
while, till now God has honored us with a gra- 
cious revival of religion among the soldiery of 
this command. A few months ago but two ofli- 
cers in the regiment were members of the church ; 
now but few more than that number are not pro- 
fessors of religion. About two hundred have 
joined the church, and a larger number have been 
converted, and are now happy in the love of God. 
It would do your soul good to visit the old fort, 
battered and scarred as it is, and hear the sol- 
diers make the tattered walls ring with the high 
praise of the living God. No camp-meeting that 
I have ever attended can come near it." 



Admiration of Stonev^^all Jackson. — "I 
was much amused," said a correspondent, " at the 
rebel prisoners' account of Stonewall Jackson's 
admission into heaven. They were strong ad- 
mirers of General Jackson, and especially of the 
great success of his flank movements. ' The day 
after his death,' said they, * two angels came 
down from heaven to carry General Jackson 
back with them. They searched all through the 
camp, but could not find him. They went to the 
prayer-meeting, to the hospital, and to every other 
place where they thought themselves likely to 
find him, but in vain. Finally they were forced 



858 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



to return without him. What was their surprise 
to find that he had just executed a splendid fiank 
movement, and got into heaven before them ! ' " 



Incidents of Pittsburg Landing. — One 
of the soldiers who was in the battle happened 
to be inordinately fond of card-playing. During 
the fight he had three of his fingers shot off. 
Holding up his mangled member, he gazed at it 
with a look, of inefiable sorrow, and exclaimed, 
as a big tear stole into the corner of his eye : 
"I shall never be able to hold a full hand 
again ! " 

An incident somewhat curious occurred in Gen- 
eral McClernand's quarters. When the rebels 
were driven back on Monday, and he regained 
his position, on entering his tent a figure in rebel 
costume was sitting in a chair, the head resting 
en a table, as if its owner was dozing, very much 
in the style that sleepy clerks do after a hard 
day's work. A slight shake to waken the appar- 
ent sleeper", and the body of a corpse fell upon 
the floor. Wounded in a manner that must have 
caused him excruciating pain when lying down, 
he had crawled into the chair and died. 

Private John Ferguson, company K, Sixty-fifth 
Ohio, who was killed in the second day's battle, 
was accompanied to camp by a young Newfound- 
land dog, who had persistently followed him from 
the time of his enlistment, and from camp to camp, 
to the moment of his death. Two days after the 
battle the faithful dog was found lying upon the in- 
animate breast of his master ; nor would he consent 
to leave the spot until the remains were buried. 



McCLELLAN'S SOLILOQUY. 

BY A DAUGHTER OF GEORGIA. 

Advance, or not advance ; that is the question ! 

Whether 'tis better in the mind to suffer 

The jeers and bowlings of outrageous Congressmen, 

Or to take arms against a host of rebels, 

And, by opposing, beat them? — To fight — to win — 

No more ; and by a victory, to say we end 

This war, and all the thousand dreadful shocks 

The flesh's exposed to — 'tis a consummation 

Devoutly to be wished. To fight, to win, 

To beat ! perchance be beaten ; — ay, there's the rub ; 

After a great defeat, what would ensue ! 

When we have shuffled off the battle-field, 

J.Iust give us pause; there's the respect 

That makes calamity a great defeat. 

But shall I bear the scorn of all the North, 

The "outward" pressure, and Old Abe's reviling, 

The pangs of being scoffed at for this long delay, 

The turning out of office (ay, perchance, 

When I myself might now my greatness make 

With a great battle) ? I'd not longer bear 

To drill and practise troops -behind intrenchments, 

But that the fear of meeting with the foe 

On dread Manassas, from whose plains 

Few of us would return — puzzles my will, 

And makes me rather bear the evils I have. 

Than fly to others which are greater far. 

These Southerners make cowards of us all. 



Scenes on the Hospital Boat. — " The 
steamer arrived at our wharf from Pittsburg 
Landing," says a correspondent, " with hundreds 
of the sick and wounded. 

" As we first entered the cabin, we were struck 
by the pallid and ghastly face of one of the poor 
fellows stretched upon the floor at our feet. As 
we passed him, he faintly begged for water. He 
breathed v/ith great labor, and was suffering, as 
the doctor told us, with some internal injury. 
Half an hour later we saw him again, the doctor 
bending over him, and trying to get him to tell 
his name. It was with great difficulty he articu- 
lated. 

" ' Tell me now, quietly and slowly ; don't be 
in a hurry,' said the doctor, in the kindest tones. 

" ' Company — , First Ohio cavalry,' he strug- 
gled out. 

" ' And what is your name ? ' 

" ' H-i-r-a-m H-e-n-k-e-f-e-r I ' 

" The doctor hurried back to record his name, 
and as we returned, we were startled to find him 
dead ! his body straightened by the last throe, 
and his fixed eyes staring coldly and vacantly up- 
ward. 

" ' Poor boy ! ' murmured the doctor, as he 
reached down, and gathering up his blanke^, cast 
it over his body and face. 

" Limbs are being amputated, and the still- 
ness of the hour is disturbed by the groans 
of the suffering victims. Sounds of distress 
are heard from the upper cabin and from be- 
low. Estes, of Utica, has had his leg ampu- 
tated ; he cannot live. Another undergoes tlie 
same operation. Two men are being trepanned, 
and instances almost innumerable occur where 
men are having bullets extracted, and their 
wounds dressed. The rebel wounded are being 
as well taken care of as our own. Caseaux, of 
the Orleans Guard, of Louisiana, has a painful 
wound in the groin ; he is being cared for by an 
Ohioan of venerable appearance, named Dodd. 
The Oceanian's appetite, it seems, is not lost, for 
he enjoys his wholesome repast Avith apparent 
reHsh. Next to him is a Mobilian, formerly 
from Philadelphia, named Davis ; he is badly 
wounded in two places, but keeps his spirits up 
remarkably well. The philanthropic Dodd next 
turns his attention to him. Davis is unable to 
feed liimsclf ; but Dodd helps him by tablespoon- 
fuls from a tin can filled with wholesome beef 
soup. Dodd has evidently said something to 
Davis that is understood by Caseaux, who says 
he understands ' very little English,' although a 
member of the wealthy and highly educated 
family of Caseaux, of New Orleans, which has 
already borne a somewhat conspicuous place in 
the annals of the present war. Caseaux actually 
laughs. Dodd has said that ' he wished they were 
feeding beef soup to one' another all over the 
Union.' In a state-room near by lies young Walk- 
er, of Mobile, — not he of Nicaragua, — but he who 
was of the rebel army, who says that liis side was 
confident of victory at the last battle ; that ' the 
Federal wounded are well taken care of by the 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



359 



Confederates ; and that in Mobile the ladies even 
extended to them hospitalities, furnishing them 
with hats, shoes, and other clothing.' 

♦' When one of the wounded rebels, a French 
Creole, was brought on board, in answer to all 
questions about his position, the battle, the 
Southern situation, &c., his invariable answer 
was: ^ Nov, comprends vous, Monsieur. Me no 
understand Anglaise.' 

" After a few hours had elapsed, and the nurse 
had been busily engaged in serving hot soup to 
other wounded soldiers, one of them approached 
our Frenchman and said, in pure Western patois, 
' Hello, mister, won't you have some soup ? ' 
' Yes, sir-ee ! by damn ! ' There was no difficulty 
in making him understand after that." 



Hakdee OtTTDONE. — A militia captain in 
North Carolina was marching his company " by 
the front," when he found himself in front of a 
gate through which he desired to go. Here was 
a dilemma. The front of the company was much 
wider than the opening of the gate, and unless 
some change should be made in the order of 
march, part of his men would go full tilt against 
the fence. Our hero belabored his brain for the 
proper command ; but the words, " By the right 
flank — file left — march," obstinately refused to 
come to his help. He extricated himself from 
the difficulty in a way which showed his posses- 
sion of the ready wit of an accomplished guerrilla. 
With a bold voice he shouted, " Company, halt — 
break ranks — march ; form on the other side 
of the fence ! " 

GovEKNOR Smith's Tactics. — A Confederate 
correspondent relates the following at the expense 
of Governor Smith, of Virginia: "At the fo-st 
battle of Manassas he rode up to his regiment 
(he was then a Colonel) at a critical point of the 
conilict, and, rising in his stirrups, shouted — 
" Boys, I don't know what orders to give you, but 
String 'em ! String 'em ! " 



Ple.\sant Dkeams. — A soldier of the Six- 
teenth New York artillery tells the following : 
Sometimes the boat does not bring our bread 
from Yorktown, and some laughable scenes ensue 
among the men for the want of it. In the next 
tent to us the following funny scene occurred the 
other morning. One of the men went to his 
haversack for a piece of bread he had left there 
the night before, and found it was missing, and 
accused the others of stealing it; but they all 
stoutly denied it except one. " Arrah, drink yer 
coffee," said he, " and I'll tell ye about a dhreani 
I had last night." " An' what has your dhrame 
to do with my loaf?" said the loser of the bread. 
" Hould on, bedad, till you hear it," cried the 
other. 

" You see, I dhramed Captain Sheibner bucked 
and gagged me ; an' put me in the guard-house, 
the spalpeen, for tweiity-four hours. An' I was 
very hungry. Well ! a beautiful lady came to me. 



and relased me, an' sint me to my tint. ' You'll 
find bread in the haversack,' says she. 

" Well ? " said the loser of the bread. " Well," 
said Pat, " I got up in my sleep an' ate your 
loaf." The roar of laughter that followed 
drowned the complaint of the loser, who, to use 
his own words, " had to dhrink dhry coffee that 
morning." 

BP.Ai'ERY AT Olustee. — Color-Sergcant James 
Cox, of the Forty-seventh New York regiment, at 
the battle of Olustee, Fla., although he had 
received a ball in the body (hardly an inch from 
the heart, as it was ascertained), and another in 
his thigh, never let the fact be known, but re- 
mained bare-headed, facing the enemy, advancing 
and then slowly falling back with the colors, as 
ordered from time to time. Once, when struck, 
he fell ; but the colors were instantly grasped by 
Orderly Sergeant Michael Roden, of company B, 
who likewise conducted himself nobly all through. 
The enemy never saw Sergeant Cox's back, and 
he stuck by his flag until we left the field, when 
Sergeant Koden had the honor of carrying it 
home. 

A Thrilling Scene. — During the passage 
of the fleet conveying the Sixteenth army corps 
to Vicksburg in the winter of 1864, the following 
scene occurred : " Our transport being in the 
advance," said a correspondent, " we backed out 
from Memphis this morning, and steamed south- 
ward. One after another followed, with their 
hurricane and boiler decks covered, yea, black- 
ened with their patriotic human life. Banners 
were flying, and the air was rent, as cheer after 
•cheer went up, mingled with the always inspiring 
fife and drum. Countenances indicated cheerful, 
hearty, but solemn earnestness. The martial 
music ceased. I jumped upon the wheel-house, 
and at the top of my voice called for the ' Battle 
Cry of Freedom.' Souls and voices unused to 
song sung this morning. We dropped ])ast Fort 
Pickering ; the high bluffs Avere lined with colored 
troops. How they cheered, how they shouted, 
and waved hats and handkerchiefs ! In the song 
we poured forth 

'And although he may be poor, he shall never 
be a slave. 
Shouting the battle cry of Freedom : ' 

the mnds wafted it on shore, and again and again 
went up the glad acclaim. ' Coronation ' was called 
for. 

' All hail the power of Jesus' name ' 

was never more appropriately sung. The excel- 
lent Christian Colonel of the One Hundred and 
Seventeenth was urged to speak. He declined, 
saying to me, ' Your lungs are adapted to the open 
air.' ''I could not help add a few words as the 
historic moments were passing. At the close, 
with hat in hand, and leading a hatless auditory, 
v/e reverently approached into the King of kings' 
audience chamber. Wc thanked and praised 
Him, and begged of Him to be with our trans- 
port, the fleet, and expedition." 



560 



ANECDOTES. POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. > 



" God Save the South." — This is the title 
of a national Confederate anthem, composed by 
Professor C. G. De Coniel, of llichmond ; words 
by Captain Ernest Halpin, of the C. S. A. The 
great prolificness of the Southern press in the 
production of music is one of the best indications 
that, amidst all the horrors and devastations of 
this cruel war, the people of the South have re- 
mained uncontaminated by its demoralizing influ- 
ence, and still preserve, in all its former purity, 
their love for " the tine, the beautiful, the 
good." As a means of civilization, — an element 
of spiritual life, — it would be difficult to overrate 
the importance and interest which attach to 
music. It is the language of the soul ; and its 
peculiar function is to facilitate the development 
of the emotional language of our nature, and to 
call into exercise those sympathies which prepare 
us for the enjoyment of the higher sphere of hap- 
piness which our Creator has allotted to us. The 
vague feelings of inexpressible felicity which music 
arouses, the indefinite impressions of an un- 
known ideal life which it calls up, may be con- 
sidered as prophetic of our future state. The 
strange capacity which all have for being affected 
by melody and harmony, may be taken to imply 
both that it is within the possibilities of our na- 
ture to realize those intenser delights they dimly 
suggest, and that they are in some way concerned 
in the realization of them. 

" 'Tis the golden key 
That opes the palace of eternity." 

It has long been conceded that a martial strain 
will urge a man into the front ranks of battle 
sooner than an argument, and a fine anthem ex- 
cite his devotion more certainly than a logical 
discourse. As has been truly said, the sentiment 
of the age has Avritten itself in music. Its wild 
intelligence, its keen analysis, its revolutionary 
spii'it, its restlessness, and its humanity, may be 
traced in the rich combinations of Rossini, in the 
grand symphonies of Beethoven, in the pleading 
tenderness of Bellini, and in the mingled war- 
notes and sentiment of Verdi. We should, there- 
fore, hail with delight the active life wliich seems 
to animate the composers and singers of our 
country. It is a clear demonstration that the 
spirit of the people is not broken, notwithstand- 
ing all the outrages and horrors to which they 
have been subjected by the remorseless foe. As 
long as they can tune their voices to the rich mel- 
ody of song, so long will the spirit of patriotism 
remain unsubdued in their hearts. 

Among the many good pieces that have been 
published, we know of none superior, if equal, to the 
one under consideration, by Professor De Coniel. 
It is what we have long wished for — a national 
anthem, breathing a spirit of patriotism and devo- 
tion suited to our troublous times. The pure and 
simple religious feeling which pervades the poetry 
of this piece is beautifully interpreted bj^, and car- 
ried home to, the heart, in the deep pathos and ma- 
jestic tones of the music. The sentiments of the 
anthem are perfectly in accordance with the reli- 
gious feeling and faith of our people. Our hope of 



success, in this dreadful struggle, has "not been in 
our own strength, but in the mighty arm of Him 
" who weigheth the earth in a balance," and " be- 
fore whom all nations are as nothing." As a na- 
tional anthem, we know nothing to compare with 
this in sublimity. The opening stanza is peculiarly 
grand ; while the minOr key of the words, 

" God be our shield, 
At home, or on the field ; 
Stretch thine arm over us, 

Strengthen and save," 

must, we think, send a thrill of deep emotion, and 
find a responsive chord in the heart of every one 
not dead to " the concord of sweet sounds." 
There are several very fine passages in the last 
two stanzas ; but we do not deem it proper here 
to enter into a critical review of the pieces, as all 
who dehght in song will examine and judge for 
themselves. We had the pleasure of hearing the 
anthem sung, the other evening, by a fail- friend, 
whose soul seemed to enter into and realize the 
beauty and spirit of the music, and can truly say, 
with the poet, — 

" And when the stream of sound 
Which overflowed the soul had passed away, 
A consciousness survived those it had left 
Dispirited upon the'silcnt shore 
Of memory, images and gentle thoughts, 
Which cannot die, and will not be destroyed." 

To sing this anthem properly, requires a voice 
of great depth, compass, flexibility, and tone ; 
and those who may have heard it rendered by 
amateurs deficient in these, were, no doubt, dis- 
appointed in their expectations as to its merits. 
One of the most interesting and profitable exer- 
cises our " fair daughters of song " can engage 
in, will be the mastery of this anthem. In it 
they will find ample scope for all of their vocal 
and artistic talents ; and we confidently believe 
that when it shall be fully known, it will rival 
in popidarity the celebrated national anthems of 
France and England. — Southern paper. 



First American Flag over Richmond. — 
The crowning event of the rebellion was undoubt- 
edly the capture of Richmond by the loyal or Fed- 
eral forces. The most striking incident of this 
achievement was the reestablishment of the United 
States or American flag in the rebel capital, over 
the rebel capitol, in which the rebel Congress 
met and deliberated, and a traitor convention 
passed the ordinance of secession, which they 
vainly hoped would carry Virginia forever out of 
the Union. The details of this interesting event 
are as follows : 

The one division of the Twenty-fifth and one 
of the Twenty-fourth corps com])osing that por- 
tion of the army of the James which lay on the 
extreme right of Grant's army of investment, oc- 
cupied positions within seven mUes of the be- 
leaguered rebel stronghold. From an adjacent 
hill Richmond was as plainly to be discerned as 
Port Ewing from the hills above Barrytown. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



361 



This corps v/as commanded by Major-General 
Godfrey Weitzel. His chief of the staif was Brig- 
adier-General George F. Shepley, formerly mili- 
tary Governor of New Orleans, and lately of Nor- 
folk. His Aid-de-camp, Lieutenant Johnston L. 
de Peyster, had been transferred with his cliief 
to the staff of General Weitzel, and thus became 
Aid-de-camp to the latter. Lieutenant de Peys- 
ter belonged to the 13th New York artillery, and 
was, as is well known, from Tivoli, Red Hook, 
Dutchess County, New York. 

The night of the 2d and 3d April was one of 
intense anxiety and expectation in the army of 
the James. Throughout the previous day they 
could hear the tremendous roar of the terrible 
battle in which their comrades were engaged, far 
away across the river upon the extreme left and 
around Petersburg, and they knew that the next 
morning, early, they were to play their dangerous 
part by assaulting the rebel works in their front 
in order to capture Richmond itself. 

About two A. M., April 3, Lieutenant de Peys- 
ter, hearing tremendous explosions, and seeing a 
vast blaze in the direction of Richmond, mounted 
the wooden signal tower, about seventy feet high, 
at General Weitzel's headquarters, and reported 
that he could discern a great fire towards Rich- 
mond. He could not decide, however, that the 
city was burning. Efforts were at once made to 
capture a rebel picket. About three A. M. they 
were successful. A prisoner, of the Thirty-seventh 
Virginia artillery, reported that he neither knew 
where his general nor his command were. This 
led General Shepley to believe the rebels were 
evacuating Richmond. About half past three 
A. M., a deserter came in and announced that the 
city was being abandoned. At four A. M. a ne- 
gro drove into the Federal lines in a buggy, and 
confii'med the glorious news. Joy and exultation 
at once absorbed every other feeling, and orders 
were immediately given for the troops to move. 
This was about six A. M. Brevet Brigadier-Gen- 
eral Draper's colored brigade led the advance 
along a road strewn with all kinds of abandoned 
munitions of war, and amid the roar of bursting 
shells, v/hich was terrific. On either side small 
red fings indicated the position of buried torpe- 
does between the two lines of abatis in Weitzel's 
immediate front. These warning indications the 
rebels had not had time to remove. This fortunate 
incident preserved many lives, as the space was 
very narrow between the explosives. 

The rebel defences seemed almost impregnable. 
Every elevation along the road was defended by 
fieldworks, and very strong forts. Two lines of 
abatis and three lines of rifle pits and earth- 
works, one within the other, defended every av- 
enue of attack and point of advantage. The first 
and second lines Avere connected by regular lines 
of redans and works — the third, near the city 
and commanding it, disconnected. If our troops 
should have had to carry the defences by storm, 
the loss would have been fearful, since the contest 
would have been constantly renewed, because the 
rebels, as fast as one line of defences was occu- 
pied, wouJ4 only have had to fall back into an- 1 



other to recommence the butchery of the assail- 
ants under every advantage to themselves. 

Brigadier-General Shepley had brought with 
him, from Norfolk, a storm flag, which had for- 
merly belonged to the Twelfth Maine volunteers. 
Of this regiment he had been originally Colonel. 
This flag had floated triumphantly over the St 
Charles Hotel at New Orleans. This latter build- 
ing was the headquarters of General Butler, to 
whom General Shepley had acted as chief of stafl". 
Shepley had previously, in sport, made the re- 
mark that the flag referred to would do to float 
over Richmond, and that he hoped to see it there. 
Lieutenant de Peyster, who heard this, asked the 
General " if he would allow him to raise it for 
him." Shepley said, " Y'es, if you bring it with 
you, and take care of it, you shall raise it in Rich- 
mond." As the Twenty-fifth corps left their lines 
to advance towards Richmond, the aid asked his 
General if he recollected his promise about the 
flag. " Yes, go to my tent and get the flag, and 
carry it on your saddle; I will send you to raise 
it if we get in." 

April 3, six A. M., General Weitzel and his 
staff", together more than thirty officers, each hav- 
ing an orderly following in the rear, galloped on 
through the wrecks of the retreating rebels and 
the columns of the advancing Federals. As soon 
as they entered the suburbs of the rebel capital, 
the shouts of welcome broke forth. Meanwhile, 
several arsenals, stored with shells, were burning. 
I'he explosions of the missiles mmgled into one 
continuous roar. Even as they drew near the 
capitol itself, the populace rushed into the streets 
to hail their deliverers, or shake hands with them. 
In fact, their whole line of march within the sub- 
urbs was thronged with men, women, and boys, 
colored and white, all shouting vrelcome. The 
excitement was intense. Old men, gray, and 
scarred with many battles, acte'd the part of boys, 
hurrahing and yelling at the top of their voices. 
Meanwhile, the male negroes were boMing down 
to the ground, and the sable matrons chorusing 
with all their strength of lungs, " Bress de Lord ! 
de year ob jubilee hab come ! " 

When near the foot of Shockoe Hill, the high, 
abrupt elevation, whose front is crowned by the 
capitol, Lieutenant de Peyster spurred on through 
the promiscuous throng up to the capitol itself. 
This building, the most conspicuous object in 
Richmond, owes everything to its size and posi- 
tion, since neither the architecture nor tlie mate- 
rial corresponds with the site and proportions. 
The front, with its Ionic colonnade, looked down 
upon the business part of the city, which v.'as all 
ablaze. The rear faced the fashionable quarter 
of Richmond, an elevated plain, considered the 
most eligible locality for private residences. The 
capitol had two flag-staifs, one at either end of 
the roof. Upon the front one an enormous rebel 
flag had been displaj-ed, which, when not extended 
by the wind, trailed down to the steps below. 
This had been torn 'down, and had been partially 
rent into thousands of pieces, to be preserved as 
mementoes of the occasion. Upon the staflp in 
the rear, in full sight of the domiciles of the rebel 



362 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



magnates and sympathizers, *' the first real Amer- 
ican flag " was raised by Lieutenant de Peyster. 

That flag, ^Yhich had been consigned to his 
care for that very purpose, which he had carried 
into the city buckled to his saddle, which had 
floated in like triumph over the Crescent City of 
the South, the first real American flag hoisted 
over the rebel capitol, M'as raised by a Dutchess 
County ofiicer, aged eighteen, in the presence of 
Captain Langdon, chief of artillery to the stafl' 
of Major-General Weitzel. As it rose aloft, dis- 
played itself, and steadily streamed out in the 
strong gale, wliich was filling the air with fiery 
flakes from the adjacent conflagration, it was 
hailed with deafening shouts by the redeemed 
populace, who swarmed the open space below and 
around. 

A short time before this real flag-raising, Major 
Atherton H. Stevens, of the Fourth Massachu- 
setts cavahy, and Major E. Graves, of General 
Weitzel's staff, had elevated, or hoisted, two cav- 
alry guidons, small swallow-tailed flags, with the 
staffs to which they were attached. These were 
so small that they \yeve scarcely visible, if visible 
at all, from the streets below. Moreover, it 
should be remembered that there is a vast differ- 
ence, as to honor and possession, between plant- 
ing these, and hoisting a United States flag, the 
true emblem and act of occupation and triumph. 
Therefore, as conceded, to Lieutenant de Peyster 
belongs the historic glory of being the first to 
run up " the first real American flag," selected and 
carried in by him for that very purpose, over the 
chief building of a city preeminently the strong- 
hold and seat of life of the rebellion. 

That this hoisting the flag was not attended 
with great peril, detracts in no manner whatever 
from tlie merit of the achievement, inasmuch as, 
when it occurred, a letter dated "iMarch 28, in 
the Field," had already been received in New York, 
stating that Lieutenant de Peyster was pledged 
to his General, if Richmond were taken, " to put a 
certain flag on the house of Jefferson Davis, or 
on the rebel capitol, or perish in the attempt." 
Everything was perfectly prepared for an intended 
assault when General Shepley and his Aid dis- 
covered that the works which they were ready to 
storm had been abandoned. 

Having, amid gale, tumult, and triumph, drank 
upon the roof to the success of our arms, the 
young Aid-de-camp went down into the private 
room of Jeff'erson Davis in the custom-house, at 
the foot of the hill, and thence wrote a letter 
describing the entrance of the loyal army, Avhich 
reached New York the same day (April 6) on 
which the Commercial Advertiser published a 
telegram from its own correspondent, stating 
that " to Lieutenant G. [should be J.] L. Dupey- 
ster and to General Shepley belongs the honor of 
hoisting our flag on the capitol" of Richmond. 
This was corroborated by the correspondent of 
the New York Herald, dated " Herald Rooms, 
Richmond, Virginia, April 11, three P. M." Pub- 
lished 13, A. M. 

Lieutenant de Peyster was subsequently quar- 
tered in the residence of Jeff'erson Davis. He 



describes the house as a perfect gem, as to inte- 
rior anrangements, although th'j exterior was 
altogether unattractive. The furniture was mag- 
nificent — rosewood the predominant material. 
Large pier glasses were to be found in every 
room. Some of the mirrors were enormous. 
The floors were covered with splendid carpets, 
so thick that the foot actually sunk into their 
rich material. All this lavish ex])enditure was 
made in accordance with the acts of the Rebel or 
Confederate Congress, while the j)eoplewere naked 
and starving, and their army in want of shoes. 

At the age of sixteen. Lieutenant de Peyster 
greatly assisted in raising a company for the regi- 
ment of Colonel Cowles. Almost all the recruits 
from the northern district of the town of Red 
Hook and adjacent, were due to his exertions and 
the contributions of his relations and connections. 

Although he was actually in command for a 
few days, it was by some trickery he lost the fruit 
of his labors. Colonel Cowles expressed a very 
high opinion of him as an oificer, and regretted 
that he could not retain him. In the spring of 
1864 he was mustered into the Thirteenth New 
York artillery, and appointed Post Adjutant to 
Major Hassler's Battalion. Thence he was trans- 
ferred to the staff" of Brigadier-General Shepley, 
Military Governor of Norfolk, afterwards chief 
of staff" to General "Weitzel before Richmond, 
and first loyal Military Governor of the rebel 
capital. 

On the 28th of June, Lieutenant de Peyster 
received official notice that His Excellency, Gov- 
ernor Fenton, in pursuance of the extraordinary 
power vested in him by the Legislature the last 
winter, had breveted him a " Lieutenant-Colonel 
for his meritorious conduct as a "New York volun- 
teer in the service of the United States, and for 
raising the first national ensign over the capitol 
in Richmond, Virginia, after the insurgents were 
driven therefrom." 

Women of the South. — A letter from Lin- 
coln County, Tennessee, written in July, 1861, 

" I witnessed many a scene in this rural district, 
which the gay ladies of our fashionable cities may 
well ponder on, with the reflection of surprise, of 
how little they know of the hardships which their 
sex are forced to undergo to sustain and support 
their families, while their husbands and brothers 
are absent fighting the battles of our country. 
On the small farms throughout this section all is 
life, activity, and industry. Many a woman, who 
never before held a plough, is now seen in the 
cornfield ; many a young girl, who would have 
blushed at the thought of handling a plough-line, 
now naturally and unconsciously cries, * Gee up ! ' 
to Dobbin, to the silvery tones of Avhich the good 
brute readily responds, as if a pleasure to comply 
with so gentle a command. Many a Ruth, as of 
old, is seen to-day binding and gleaning in the 
wheat-fields ; but, alas ! no Boaz is there to con- 
sole or to comfort. The picture of the rural sol- 
dier's home is at this time but a picture of primi- 
tive life. Throughout the countr}% at every farm- 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS, 



363 



house and cottage, the regular sound of the loom, 
as the shuttle flies to and fro, with the whirl of 
the spinning-wheel, is heard, telling of home in- 
dustry. Cotton fabrics, of neat, pretty figures, 
the production of home manufactory, are now al- 
most wholly worn in Tennessee, instead of cali- 
coes. But it is a sad thought, that while these 
exertions of thrinng industry are being made for 
the sujjport of the soldier's family, his little cottage 
home, of which he nightly dreams, is to be aban- 
doned and left unprotected by the falling back of 
our troops, and subject to the pillage and plunder 
of the vandal infidels. Such, at least, I fear will 
be the case in the Counties of Bedford and Coffee, 
from which we have fallen back." 



The Attack on the Sewauds. — The follow- 
ing account of the sensations experienced at the 
time of their attempted assassination by Payne, 
was given by Mr. Secretaiy Seward and liis son 
Fi'ederick : 

" Mr. Frederick Seward said, that on stepping 
from his bed-room into the passage, and seeing 
the assassin, he merely wondered what he was 
doing there, and called him to account. On his 
resisting the fellow's endeavor to pass into Mr. 
Seward's room, the assassin dre^v a revolver, which 
he presented at Mr. Frederick Seward's head. 
Wliat followed, it must be remembered, took place 
in a few seconds. Mr. Frederick Seward's first 
thought was, ' That's a navy revolver.' 

" The man pulled the trigger, but it only snapped; 
and his intended victim thought, ' That cap missed 
fire.' 

" His next sensatiozi was that of confusion ; and 
being upon the floor, resting upon his arm, which, 
like his father's jaw, was barely recovered from a 
bad fracture, — the assassin had felled him to the 
floor with the butt of the pistol, — he put his hand 
to his head, and finding a hole there, he thought, 
' That cap did not miss fire after all.' 

" Then he became insensible, and remained so 
for two days or more. His first indication of re- 
turning consciousness was the question, 'Have 
you not got the ball out ? ' after which he fell off 
again into a comatose condition, which was of long 
continuance. 

" On the very afternoon of the day when Mr. 
Lincoln was assassinated, Mr. Frederick Seward, 
who was Assistant Secretary of State, had asked 
his father what preparation should be made for the 
presentation of Sir Frederick Bruce, which was to 
take place the next day. Mr. Seward gave him 
the points of a reply to be made to Sir Fred- 
erick, and he laid the outline of the speech upon 
the President's table, and, as I have previously 
informed my readers, Mr. Lincoln that afternoon 
WTote out the reply, adopting Mr. Seward's sug- 
gestions, and thus preparing the reception of the 
British Minister by President Johnson, which was 
regarded at the time by the people to whose rep- 
resentative it was adcbessed as so friendly, and 
fair, and dignified. 

" Mr. Frederick Sewai'd's first inquiiy, after he 
came fully to his senses, which was a long time 



after the assassination, was, ' Has Sir Frederick 
Bruce been presented ? ' He thought that only 
one night had passed, since he knew not what had 
happened to him, and his mind took up matters 
just where it had left them. 

"Mr. Seward's mental experience during his 
supposed assassination was in its nature so like 
that of his son, that it raises the question whether 
this absence of consternation and observation of 
minute particulars is not common in circumstances 
of unexpected and not fully apprehended peril. 
Mr. Sev/ard Avas lying upon his side, close to the 
edge of the bed, with his head resting in a frame, 
which had been made to give him ease and pro- 
tect his broken jaw from pressure. 

"He was trying to keep awake, having been 
seized upon by a sick man's fancy — it was, if he 
slept he would wake up with lockjaw. He 
was brought to full consciousness by the scuffle 
in the passage-way, followed by the entrance of 
the assassin, and the cry of Miss Seward, ' O, he 
will kill my father ! ' But he saw nothing of his 
assailant until a hand appeared above his face, 
and then his thought was, ' What handsome cloth 
that overcoat is made of ! ' The assassin's face then 
appeared, and the helpless statesman only thought, 
* What a handsome maa ! ' (Payne was a fine- 
looking fellow.) 

" Then came a sensation as of rain striking him 
smartly upon one side of Ms face and neck, then 
quickly the same upon the other side, but he felt 
no severe pain. This was the assassin's knife. 
The blood spouted ; he thought, ' My time has 
come,' and falling from the bed to the floor, fainted. 
His first sensation of returning consciousness was, 
that he was drinking tea, and that it ' tasted good.' 
Mi'S. Seward was giving him tea with a spoon. 
He heard low voices around him, asking and re- 
plying as to whether it would be possible for him 
to recover. He could not speak, but his eyes 
showed his consciousness, and that he desired to 
speak. They brought him a porcelain tablet, on 
which he managed to write, ' Give me some tea ; 
I shall get well.' And from that moment he 
has slowly but steadily recovered his health and 
strength." 



HisTOKY OF A Torpedo Boat. — General 
Dabney H. Maury, in his report of the defence 
of Mobile, narrates the followng eventful history 
of a toqDedo boat : 

" It was built of boiler iron, was about thirty- 
five feet long, and was mamied by a crew of nine 
men, eight of whom worked the propeller by 
hand. The ninth steered the boat and regulated 
her movements below the surface of the water. 
She could be submei'ged at pleasure to any de- 
sired depth, or could be propelled upon the sur- 
face. In smooth, still water her movements were 
exactly controlled, and her speed was about four 
knots. It was intended that she should approach 
any vessel lying at anchor, pass under her keel, 
and di-ag a floating torpedo, which would explode 
on striking the side or bottom of the ship at- 
tacked. 



364 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND mCIDENTS. 



" She could remain submerged more than half 
an hour without inconvenience to her crew. 

" Soon after her arrival in Charleston, Lieuten- 
ant Paj-nc, of the Confederate navy, with eight 
others, volunteered to attack the Federal fleet 
with her. While preparing for their expedition, 
the sv/ell of a passing steamer caused the boat 
to sink suddenly, and all hands, except Lieutenant 
Payne, who was standing in the open hatchway, 
perished. She was soon raised and again made 
ready for service. Lieutenant Payne again vol- 
unteered to command her. While lying near 
Fort Sumter she capsized, and again sunk in deep 
water, drovvning all hands, except her commander 
and two otliers. 

" Being again raised and prepared for action, 
Mr. Aiuiley, one of the constinictors, made an 
experimental cruise in her in Cooper River. 
While submerged at great depth, from some un- 
known cause, she became unmanageable, and re- 
mained for many days on the bottom of the river 
with her crew of nine dead men. 

" A fourth time was the boat raised, and Lieu- 
tenant Dixon, of Mobile, of the Twenty-first 
volunteers, with eight others, went out of Charles- 
ton harbor in her, and attacked and sunk the 
Federal steamer Housatonic. 

" Her mission at last accompHshed, she disap- 
peared forever with her crew. Nothing is known 
of their fate, but it is believed they went down 
with the enemy." 

How I Enlisted. — A soldier of the Second 
regiment of Ohio cavalry writes : " On New 
Year's day, 1864, as our regiment was lying in 
line of battle beyond Mossy Creek, in East Ten- 
nessee, the proposition to reenlist as veteran vol- 
unteers was submitted to that grim organization. 
Peter Longstreet's ragged but plucky sku-mish 
line was a stone's throw in front, with a forward 
tendency; snow was on the liills; the Second 
Ohio cavaliers had drawn no rations from Uncle 
Sam in fifteen days, and not an average of 
one eighth ration during the jDreceding four 
months ; their diapliragms were devoid of bur- 
den ; they had not ' lived in tents ' for an eighth- 
month ; the supply of pone and cerulean hog 
was failing in tliat land, and zero was biting at the 
noses of the cavaliers. Amid all these favorable 
surroundings the cavaliers said, * Go to, let us 
have more of this good thing ; give unto us yet 
thirty and six moons of this goodly service.' 
Thus the thing was done. Under such circum- 
stances our veteran volunteers enlisted. 

*' While the cavaliers were signing their names 
to the enlistment roll, at the rate of a hundred 
per hour, a ludicrous memory of a former enlist- 
ment came to us. Two days after Sumter fell, 
on a bright April morning, big church full of 
indignant sovereigns and enthusiastic women ; 
organ thundered, hand crashed out ' Hail Colum- 
bia ; ' impromptu banners wagged briskly, and 
the air was redolent of patriotism. Music ceased. 
Speeches folloAved. Holl was opened, and vol- 
unteers called for. Five hundred pau-s of starry 
eyes waited to illume the path of the first vol- 



unteer. Five hundred pairs of little white hands 
were nervous to begin clapping at the advent of 
the fii'st mascub'ne sacrifice. He came, and Em- 
perors have had poorer receptions. He was 
apotheosized. More followed. The pressure in- 
creased. I cowered in my pew, imagining that 
every woman of sense, and every girl of beauty, 
was saying to herself, ' Why don't Jie go ? ' I 
reasoned with myself, but the clapping and wav- 
ing of white kerchiefs made me dizzy. With a 
mighty efi"ort, I made a resolution. I mentally 
bade adieu to all terrestrial matters. I buried 
from view aU relatives nearer than second cous- 
ins, drew the veil of forgetfuhiess over the dear 
form of Julia, and most of my outstanding debts, 
made up my mind to be shot for my country, and 
began to stride up the aisle. What a path to a 
graveyard ! The male audience yelled — the fe- 
male audience waved kerchiefs with unexampled 
energ)^, and they were perfumed with divine 
odors. I saw nothing but a dancing sea of snow- 
white foam, interspersed with smilmg stars. I 
heard nothing but an undefined roar — to me an 
echo from eternity, to which I regarded myself 
as rapidly going. I scrawled my name on the 
elongated foolscap, and thus added my two hun- 
dred pounds to the growing hecatomb. I was a 
volunteer ! That night I dreamed of battles. 
Next day, twenty-seven Testaments, thirteen 
' housewifes,' eleven pin-cushions, and thirty- 
eight rolls of bandages, were left at my board- 
ing-house, each with a touching note from the 
fair donors. Such was three months' soldiering 
* in the brave days of old.' Then we were green 
— how sadly veteran we are now ! " 



The PtiDE OF THE Woins*DED Brigade. — B. 
F. Taylor, the army correspondent of the Chicago 
Journal, wrote thus, from the army of the Cum- 
berland, of a night's ride of the wounded bri- 
gade, after the battle. of Chickamauga : "They 
were loaded upon the train ; two platform cars 
were j^aved •n-ith them, forty on a car. Seven 
boxes Avere so packed you could not set your 
foot down among them as they lay. The roofs 
of the cars were tiled with them ; and away we 
pounded, all day, all night, into the next morn- 
ing, and then Nashville. Half of the boys had 
not a shred of a blanket, and it rained steadily, 
pitilessly. AVhat do you think of platform cars 
for a triumjAal procession wherein to bear wound- 
ed heroes to the tune of * The soldier's return 
from the war ? ' Well, what I would come at is 
this : the stores of the Sanitary Commission, and 
the gifts of such ladies as are now, I believe, 
making your city a Bethel — a place of angels — 
kept the boys' hearts up through all those weary, 
drizzhng hours. It is midnight, and the attend- 
ants are going through the train with coffee, 
graced with milk and sugar — think of that ! — 
two fresh, white, crisp crackers apiece, and a lit- 
tle taste of fruit. Did your hands prepare it, 
dear lady ? I hope so, for the little balance in 
your favor is set down in the ledger of God. 

" But here they come vdih a canteen ; will you 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



365 



go with them ? Climb through that window into 
a car black as the Hole of Calcutta. But mind 
where you step ; the floor is one layer deep with 
wounded soldiers. As you swing the lantern 
round, bandages show white and ghastly every- 
where ; bandages, bandages, and now and then 
a rusty spot of blood. What worn-out, faded 
faces look up at you ! They rouse like wounded 
creatures hunted down to their lairs as you come. 
The tin cups, extended in all sorts of hands but 
plump, strong ones, tinkle all around you. You 
are faii-ly gu'dled with a tin-cup horizon. How 
the dull, faint faces brighten as those cups are 
filled! On we go, out at one window, in at 
another, stepping gingerly among mangled limbs. 
We reach the platform cars, creaking with their 
drenched, chilled, bruised burdens ; and I must 
tell you — it's a shame, though — that one poor 
fellow among them lay with a tattered blanket 
pinned around him ; he was literally sans cu- 
lotte ! ' How is this ? ' I said. ' Haven't got my 
descriptive list — that's what's the matter,' was 
the reply. 

" Double allowance all around to the occupants 
of the platforms, and we retrace our steps to the 
rear of the train. You should have heard the 
ghost of a cheer that rose and fluttered like a 
feeble bird, as Ave went back. It was the most 
touching vote of thanks ever oflfered ; there was 
a little flash up of talk for a minute, and all sub- 
sided into silence and darkness again. Wearily 
wore the hours, and heavily hammered the train. 
At intervals the guard traversed the roofs of the 
cars, and pulled in the worn-out boys that had 
jarred down to the edges — pulled them in to the 
middle of the cars without waking them ! Occa- 
sionally one slips over the eaves, I am told, and 
is miserably crushed. What a homeward march 
is all this to set a tune to. 

" By some error in apportionment there was not 
quite cofiee enough for all on deck, and two slips 
of boys on the roof of the car where I occupied 
a corner were left without a drop. Whenever we 
stopped — and that was two hours there and 
three hours here, waiting for this and for that ; 
there was no hurry, you know, and the side-door 
was slid back in its groove — I saw two hungry 
faces stretched down over the car's edge, and 
heard two feeble voices crying, ' We have had 
nothing up here since yesterday noon, we two — 
there are only us two boys — please give us some- 
thing. Haven't you got any hard tack ? ' I heard 
that pitiful appeal to the officers in charge, and 
saw those faces till they haunted me, and to-day 
I remember those plaintive tones as if I were 
hearing a dirge. 

" I felt in my pockets and haversack for a 
cracker, but found nothing. I really hated my- 
self for having eaten my dinner, and not saved it 
for them. A further search was rewarded with 
six crackers from the Cliicago Mechanical Bakers', 
and watching my chance when Pete's back was 
turned, — the cook, and a smutty autocrat was 
Pete in his way, — I took a sly dip with a basin 
into the coffee-boiler. As the car gave a lurch in 
the right direction I called from the window. 



' Boys ! ' I heard them crawling to the edge, and 
handed up the midnight supper. 'Bully for 
you ! ' they said, and I saw them no more. When 
the train reached Nashville, and I clambered 
down to solid ground again, I looked up at the 
roof; it was bare. God grant the boys are with 
their mothers to-night. And how do you like 
the Ride of the Wounded Brigade .-"' 



Ohio at Stone Rfver. — On the memorable 
31st of December, at Stone River, after the right 
right wing was broken, the centre driven back, 
and destruction was holding wide its jaws to 
crush the Union army, to a few regiments of the 
gallant Crittenden's left wing was reserved the 
distinguished honor of turning back the- tide of 
adverse battle. For thi'ee horrible hours, while 
Bragg was massing his victorious and exultant 
columns, and hurling them successively upon 
Crittenden's position with reckless desperation, 
that in the moment of expected triumph lavishes 
oceans of blood and ages of life to make the 
final victory, the 26th Ohio, under Major Squires, 
held its ground from first to last, and amid the 
tempest of confusion around, and the deluge of 
death pouring upon it, completely run over by 
more than one entire regiment, that had been 
shivered by the shock on its right and front, itself 
still firm as a rock, a very breakwater against the 
tide of ruin, three times saw the solid masses 
of the enemy stagger, recoil, and break up within 
short pistol range of its bayonets, and fiee from 
the horrible slaughter. On this field the 26th 
Ohio was baptized in blood. When the struggle 
was over, one third of the command lay dead and 
bleeding on the ground they fought over." 



" Out Raking Oysteks." — A correspondent 
at Brandy Station, Va., records the following: 
" On our late reconnoissance, a new recruit, be- 
longing to the Third Michigan regiment, and 
who had not been in any ' forward movement ' 
before, asked an old soldier, one of his comrades, 
'Where are we going?' 'Out reconnoitring,' 
replied the vet. ' Out raking oysters ? ' exclaimed 
the recruit, with astonishment. ' Good heav- 
ens! what does the General want to take the 
whole corps out to rake oysters for ? I should 
think a brigade could rake all the oysters _ he 
wanted to eat ! ' I rather guessed at the time 
that he thought it an awful long distance to where 
the oysters were. We did not get quite to the 
spot where the raking was taking place, and 
believe there were not many found ; but the 
' shells ' were around us at one time pretty thick, 
and our recruit had a; taste of them for the first 
time." 



Anecdote of President Lincoln. — The 
President's stories grew better and better as he 
grew older. One of the best was told to a visitor 
who congratulated him on the almost certain pur- 
pose on the part of the people to reelect him for 
another term of four years. Mr. Lincoln replied 



366 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



that he had been told this frequently before, and 
that when it was fii-st mentioned to him he was 
reminded of a farmer in Illinois who determined 
to trj' his own hand at blasting. After success- 
fully boring and filling in with powder, he failed 
in his effort to make the powder go off; and afteu 
discussing with a looker-on the cause for this, 
and failing to detect anything wrong in the pow- 
der, the farmer suddenly came to the conclusion 
that it would not go off because it had been shot 
before. 

SONG OF THE SOLDIERS. 

BY CHAULES G. HALPINE. 

Air : ^^ Jamie 's on the Stormy Sea." 

CoMKADES known in marches many, 
Comrades tried in dangers many, 
Comrades bound by memories many, 

Brothers ever let us be. 
Wounds or sickness may divide us, 
Marching orders may divide us. 
But whatever fate betide us. 

Brothers of the heart are we. 

Comrades known by faith the clearest, 
Tried when death was near and nearest, 
Bound we are by ties the dearest. 

Brothers evermore to be : 
And, if spared, and growing older, 
Shoulder still in line with shoulder. 
And with hearts no thrill the colder. 

Brothers ever we shall be. 

By communion of the bamier, . 
Crimson, white and starry banner, 
By the baptism of the banner 

Children of one church are we. 
Creed nor faction can divide us, 
Race nor language can divide us, 
Still, whatever fate betide us, 

Children of the flag are we ! 



A Hero at Gettysburg. — First Lieutenant 
Bayard Wilkeson, son of Samuel AVilkeson of 
the New York Tribune,* commanding Battery G, 
Fourth United States artillery, was killed in the 
extreme front of the first day's battle, while pour- 
ing grape and canister into Ewell's advancing col- 
umns. He was but nineteen years old. Before 
he was eighteen he was recommended for promo- 
tion as Captain, by General Peck, for gallantry in 
the battle of the " Deserted House," on the Black- 
water. His battery was considered the model 
one of the Eleventh corps, and was assigned the 
advance in the order of march. He actually 
fought his battery after his leg was shot off. In 
his devotion to his command, Avhich was proverb- 
ial in the army, he ordered the four men who car- 
ried him a short distance off the field, to leave 
him and go back to their pieces. This generous 
heroism insured his loss. Immediately after, the 
advance was routed and driven in disorder into 
and through Gettysburg, and the brave artillery 

* See account of the battle of Gettysburg, by Mr. 
Wilkeson, a7ite. 



oflScer fell into the hands of the rebels and died 
for want of amputation. 



The CoMiknssiONS. — A soldier correspondent 
at Stevenson, Alabama, writes : " The Sanitary 
and Christian Commissions are the means, in 
God's hand, of accomplishing an infinite amount 
of good. I know the soldiers are directly bene- 
fited by the essentials and ' gocdies ' prepared 
by the devoted mothers and loving sisters of our 
dear ' dear men in blue.' The trouble is, too 
many of them want the identical cookie his mother 
made." 

Bravery at Chickajuuga. — A wi-iter re- 
lates the following instances of heroic conduct at 
the battle of Chickamauga : " Commendatory ar- 
ticles, touching the acts and bearing of different 
persons and officers in the late -battle of Chicka- 
mauga, appearing, have led me, for the first time 
in my life, to volunteer an item or two for the 
public eye. JNIy notices here are unsolicited and 
gratuitous, without the knowledge or consent of 
either of those of whom I design to speak. Dis- 
interested spectators are generally allowed to be 
unbiassed. Thus situated, I shall write freely, and 
leave the consequences to take care of themselves ; 
naming some three or four, who, occupying subal- 
tern positions, are almost wholly unnoticed by 
the paid contributors of the press. Let the rec- 
ord be made with fidelity, and an enlightened 
public will give a just verdict. First, I would 
name the noble Harrison, Colonel of the Thirty- 
ninth mounted infantry, an Achilles, baptized in 
blood at Shiloh, and Stone River, with his full 
regiment of veterans, with a Vulcan's armor (the 
dreaded sight-shotted Spencer rifles), the only gun 
known worthy to grace the hands of such sol- 
diers. Henceforth may our Government give 
her brave boys no other small arm for the field. 
Late in the afternoon of Sunday, when the mighty 
numbers of the enemy were carrying everything 
before them, and sweeping round to the road 
leading to Chattanooga, the only outlet to a large 
portion of our beleaguered army, he met them 
there. Enthusiastic with success, and confident 
through superiority of numbers, the foe charged 
desperately on his steady lines ; a continued sheet 
of flame burst upon them. Unaccustomed to such 
swift and fatal volleys, they calculate on a cessa- 
tion to load, and rush on, only to see their front 
ranks full almost to the last man, and still the 
livid lightning was unabated. Mortal man can- 
not face such sweeping fires. Backward they 
rush, impetuously, and the ground is held ; the 
Avay remains o]ien ; the flanking columns were 
here hurled back upon their centre, resulting in 
safety to many teams and thousands of our disor- 
ganized troops. Such was the worth of Thomas 
J. Harrison, the quiet and noble Americaii officer. 

" Next in order stands the energetic German, 
General Turchin, whose decisive will saved Gen- 
eral Reynolds', General Brannan's, and a part of 
General Palmer's divisions from almost certain 
capture. Late on Sunday afternoon, when some 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



367 



were talking of a surrender, being almost sur- 
rounded, General Turchin was called upon to give 
an opinion as to the best plan of action. ' What, 
surrender ? ' said he, ' No, sir ; never ! I shoost 
takes my prigade, and cuts my way right out. 
When I tells my men to sharge, dey sl^irges right 
through. I tells, sir, we never surrender ! ' 
Speaking and acting with increasing vehemence, 
and a detei-mination as irresistible as it was 
prompt, silencing all opposition, which was, in- 
deed, useless, and seemed out of the question, 
and, true to his promise, he did takfe his ' pri- 
gade " and burst through the closing lines of the 
enemy, with an irresistibility equalled only by 
his energy and indomitable will, amid one of the 
most ten-ific storms of shot and shell, and whistling 
bullets, that has, perhaps, ever burst upon amov- 
ing column of men without checking them. Such 
was, and is. General Turchin. Though possibly 
he be not a Ulysses in the council, he is an Ajax 
in the ' sharge.' When our columns were just 
put in motion for this desperate charge, the ready 
thought of a Provost Marshal was most oppor- 
tune, and its effects perfectly electrical. It was 
Lieutenant S. Fortner, who, taking off his hat, 
and waving it, as for a triumph, shouted: 'A 
cheer, boys, as we take on the double-quick. 
Huzza for General Thomas and victory!' One 
long and deafening shout rose above the thunder 
of the battle, along those dusty lines. How tame 
is language ! how utterly futile the attempt to 
tell the thrilling interests of such a scene at such 
a moment ! There I saw Assistant Dewey, of the 
One Hundred and First Indiana, on foot, and 
still with his regiment, the only surgeon of the 
divisions, then, who remained unflinchingly with 
his command tlu-ough every storm of those two 
bloody days, and through the chilly night, where 
they rested in line of battle, and where he found 
and relieved, as far as possible, the suffering of 
spme seventeen or eighteen wounded left in an 
old house, and lost sight of by their commands. 
The Twenty-fourth and Thirty-sixth Ohio and 
Thii-ty-sixth Indiana were represented in this dis- 
mal hut, moaning and asking for water. Assist- 
ance is ordered, water procured ; a lonely ride 
of miles is at once taken to order ambulances for 
then- removal, a promise extorted for their early 
appearance on the ground ; returns to the lines ; 
a sleepless, lingering, frosty night slowly wears 
away ; ambulances have not come. As daylight 
approaches, coffee is procured, and the sufferers 
eagerly partake, v.hile cheering hopes are given 
that the conveyances will soon come ; all is made 
safe. The amljulances do come just in time to 
get off before battle opens — a terrible carnage 
sweeps that spot — the house is bm-ned away. 
Who can appreciate services like these, unless they, 
too, have suffered such necessities ? Some have 
gone to their long rest, here in the hospital. 
But to om- subject. Quietly he passes through 
the terrific storm, halting briefly to bandage a 
bleeding arm for a comrade, and to give a little 
water from his canteen to even a pleading enemy, 
wounded and helpless. On scathless he passes, 
protected by unseen hands. A Confucius on the 



billows of Mars — a blending of patriotism and 
philanthropy. The blood-stained laurels of con- 
quering heroes pale before those which heaven- 
born charity Avreathes. Such are a few incidents 
among many as brave and noble, no doubt ; and, 
in recalling and recording, we do not forget those 
not here cited, least of all, we do not — we could 
not — forget the great Agamemnon of the army, 
our noble commander, General Thomas, the angel 
of our safety." — Nashville Press. 



A Night Scene at Fredericksburg. — The 
following graphic story was told by " Carleton," 
the accomplished correspondent : 

" Fkedericksburg, May 17, 1804. 

" The day is past. The cool night has come, 
refreshing the fevered cheek, cooling the throb- 
bing pulse, and soothing the aching wounds of 
the thousands congregated in this city. I have 
made it in part a day of observation, visiting the 
hospitals, and conversing with patients and nurses ; 
and now, wearied, worn, with nerves unstrung by 
sickening sights, I make an attempt to sketch the 
scenes of the day. 

" The city is a vast hospital ; churches, all pub- 
lic buildings, private dwellings, stores, chambers, 
attics, basements, — all are occupied by patients, 
or are attended by medical officers, or by those 
who have come to take care of the wounded. All 
day long the trains of ambulances have been ar- 
riving from the field hospitals. There are but 
few wounded left at the front, — those only whom 
to move would be certain death. Those able to 
bear removal have been sent in, that the army 
may move on to finish its appointed work. 

" A red flag is flung out at the Sanitary Com- 
mission rooms — a white one at the rooms of 
the Christian Commission. There are three hun- 
dred volunteer nurses in attendance. The Sani- 
tary Commission have fourteen wagons bringing 
supplies from Belle Plain. The Christian Com- 
mission has less transportation facilities, but in 
devotion, in hard work, in patient efibrt, it is the 
compeer of its more bountifully supplied neigh- 
bor. The nurses are divided into details, — some 
for day service, some for night work. Each State 
has its relief committee. 

" Governor Smith, of Vermont, is here; Sena- 
tor Sprague, of Rhode Island ; Senator Sherman, 
of Ohio ; Senator Pomeroy, of Kansas ; Ex-Mayors 
Bunton and Smyth, of Manchester, N, H. ; Ex- 
Mayor Fay, of Chelsea ; Rev. Mr. Means, of 
Roxbury ; and scores of men, aside from the 
Commissions' nurses, doing what they can to 
relieve the necessities, and alleviate the suffer- 
ings, of the wounded. 

" How patient the brave fellows are ! Not a 
word of complaint, but thanks for the slightest 
favor. There has been a lack of crutches. This 
morning I saw a soldier of a California regiment, 
an old soldier who fought with the lamented 
Baker at Ball's Bluff, and who has been in more 
than twenty battles, and who, till Thursday last, 
has escaped unharm,ed, hobbling about with the 



368 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



arms of a settee nailed to strips of board. His 
regiment Avent home to-daj-, its three years of 
service having expired. It was but a score or 
two of weather-beaten, battle-scarred veterans. 
The disabled comrade could hardly keep back the 
tear as he saw them pass down the street. ' Few 
of us left. The bones of the boys are on every 
l)attle-field where the army of the Potomac has 
fought,' said he. 

" There was a sound of the pick and spade in 
the churchyard, a heaving up of new earth — a 
digging of trenches, not for defence against the 
enemy, but the preparation of the last resting- 
place of departed heroes. There they lie — a 
dozen of them — each wrapped in his blanket — 
the last bivouac ! For them there is no more 
war — no charges into the thick, leaden rain- 
drops — no more hurrahs — no more cheering 
of the dear old flag, bearing it onward to victory. 
They have fallen, but the victory is theirs, theirs 
the roll of eternal honor. One by one — side by 
side — men from Massachusetts, and from Penn- 
sylvania, and from Wisconsin — from all the 
States, resting in one common grave. Peace to 
them — blessings on those whom they have left 
behind ! 

" Go into the hospitals, — armless, legless men, 
wounds of every description. Men on the hard 
floor, on the hard seats of church pews, lying in 
one position all day, unable to stir till the nurse 
going the rounds comes to their aid. -They must 
wait till their food comes. Some must be fed 
with a spoon, as if they were little children. 

" • O that we could get some straw for the 
brave fellows,' said Rev. Mr. Kimball, of the 
Christian Commission. He had wandered about 
town, searching for the article. ' There is none 
to be had. "We shall have to send to Washing- 
ton for it.' 

" ' Straw ! I remember two stacks, four miles 
out on the Spottsylvania road. 1 saw them last 
night as I galloped in from the front.' 

" Armed with a requisition from the Provost 
Marshal to seize two stacks of straw, with two 
wagons driven by intelligent contrabands, four 
Christian Commission delegates, and away we 
went across the battle-field of December — ford- 
ing Hazel Run — gained the heights, and reached 
the straw stacks, owned by Rev. Mr. Owen. 

" ' By whose authority do you take my prop- 
erty ? ' 

" ' The Provost Marshal's, sir.' 

" Rev. Mr. Kimball was on the stack pitching it 
down. I was pitching it in, and the young men 
were stowing it away. 

" •■ Are you going to pay me for it ? ' 

" ' You must see the Provost Marshal, sir. If 
you are a loyal man, and will take the oath of 
allegiance, doubtless you will get your pay.' 

" ' It is pretty hard. My children are just ready 
to starve. I have nothing for them to eat, and 
you come to take mv property without paying 
for it.' 

" ' Yes, sir ; war is hard. You must remember, 
sir, that there are thousands of wounded men — 
your wounded as well as ours. If your children 



are on the point of starving, those men are on 
the point of dying. We must have the straw for 
them. What we don't take to-night we will get 
in the morning. Meanwhile, sir, if anybody at- 
tempts to take it, please say to them that it is 
for the hospital, and they can't have it.' 

" Thus with wagons stuffed we leave Rev. Mr. 
Owen, and return to make glad the hearts of 
several thousand men. O, how they thank us ! 

" ' Did you get it for me ? God bless jou, sir ! ' 

" It is evening. Thousands of soldiers, just ar- 
rived from Washington, have passed through the 
town to take their places in the front. The hills 
all around are while with innumerable tents and 
thousands of wagons. 

" A band is playing lively airs to cheer the 
wounded in the hospitals. I have been looking 
in to see the sufferers. Two or three have gone. 
They will need no more attention. A surgeon is 
at Avork upon a ghastly wound, taking up the ar- 
teries. An attendant is pouring cold water upon 
a swollen limb. In the Episcopal Church a nurse 
is bolstering up a wounded officer in the area 
behind the altar. Men are lying in the pews, on 
the seats, on the floor, on boards on the top of 
the pews. 

" Two candles in the spacious building throw 
their feeble rays into the dark recesses, faintly 
disclosing the recumbent forms. There is heavy, 
stifled breathing, as of constant effort to sup- 
press involuntary cries extorted by acutest pain. 
Hard it is to see them suffer and not be able to 
relieve them. 

" Passing into the street, you see a group of 
Avomen, talking about our wounded — rebel 
wounded who are receiving their especial atten- 
tion. The Provost Marshal's patrol is going its 
rounds to preserve order. 

" Starting down the street, you reach the rooms 
of the Christian Commission. Some of the men 
are writing, some eating their rations, some dis- 
pensing supplies. Passing through their rooms, 
you gain the grounds in the rear — a beautiful 
garden once — not unattractive now. The air is 
redolent with honeysuckle and locust blossoms. 
The pennifolia is unfolding its delicate milk-white 
petals — roses are opening their tinted leaves. 

" Fifty men are gathered round a summer-house 
— wai'm-hearted men — who have been all day 
in the hospitals. Their hearts have been wrung 
by the scenes of suffering, in the exercise of 
Christian charity imitating the example of the 
Redeemer of men. They have given bread for 
the body and food for the soul. They have given 
cups of cold water in the name of Jesus, and 
prayed with those departing to the silent land. 
The moonUght shimmers through the leaves of 
the locust. 

" The little congregation breaks into singing — 

' Come, thou fount of every blessing.' 

" After the hymn, a chaplain says : ' Brethren, 
I had service this afternoon in the First division 
hospital of the Second corps. The surgeon in 
charge, before prayer, asked all who desired to 
be prayed for to raise their hands ; and nearly 




' \^' 



£-as 



Gl-:\ .r E. B STL AKT. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



369 



every man who had a hand raised it. Let us 
remember them in our j^rayers to-night.' 

" A man in the summer-house — so far off that 
I cannot distinguish him in the shadow — says : 
* There is manifestly a spirit of prayer among 
the soldiers of the Second division of the Sixth 
corps hospital. Every man there raised his hand 
for prayers ! ' 

" Similar remarks are made by others, and then 
there are earnest prayers offered that God will 
bless them, relieve their sufferings, give them 
patience, restore them to health ; that He will 
remember the widow and fatherless far away — 
that Jesus may be their Friend. 

" Ah ! this night scene ! There was an allusion, 
by one who prayed, to the garden scene of Geth- 
semane — the blood of the Son of God, and in 
connection to the blood shed for our country. 
You who are far aAvay can understand but little 
of the reality of these scenes. Friends, every- 
where, you have given again and again, but con- 
tinue to give — you cannot repay these brave de- 
fenders of our country. Give as God has pros- 
pered you, and great shall be your reward. — 
Faint, feelale, tame, lifeless is this attempt to 
portray the scenes of a day at Fredericksburg. 
Picture it as you may, and you will fall short of 
the reality." 

THE EAGLE OF CORINTH.* 

Did you hear of the fight at Corinth, 

How we whipped out Price and Yan Dorn ? 

Ah ! that day we earned our rations 

(Our cause was God's and the Nation's, 
Or we'd have come out forlorn ! ) — 

A long and a terrible day ! 

And, at last, when night grew gray, 

By the hundred there they lay' 

(Heavy sleepers, you'd say) — 
That wouldn't wake on the morn. 

Our staff was bare of a flag ; 
AVe didn't carry a rag 

In those brave marching days : 
Ah ! no ; but a finer thing ! 
With never a cord or string, — 
An eagle, of ruffled whig, 

And an eye of awful gaze ! 

The grape, it rattled like hail ; 
The minies were dropping like rain. 
The first of a thunder-shower — 

The wads were blowing like chaff 
(There was pounding, like floor and flail. 
All the front of our line ! ) 
So we stood it, hour after hour — 
But our eagle, he felt flne ! 

'Twould have made you cheer and laugh, 
To see, through that iron gale, 
How the old fellow'd swoop and sail 
Above the racket and roar — 
To right and to left he'd soar, 
But ever came back, without fail, 

And perched on his standard staff. 

* "The finest thing I ever saw was a live American 

eagle, carried by the Eighth Iowa in the place of a flag. 

He would fly off over the enemy during the hottest of 

the fight, then would return and seat himself upon his 

24 



All that day, I tell you true, 

They had pres^d us, steady and fair, 
Till we fought in street and square 

(The affair, you might think, looked blue) — 
But we knew -vve had them there ! 

Our works and batteries were few ; 

Every gun, they'd have sworn, they knew — 

But, you see, there was one or two 
We had fixed for them, unaware. 

They reckon they've got us now ! 

For the next half hour 'twill be warm — 
Ay, ay, look yonder ! — I vow. 
If they weren't secesh, how I'd love them ! 

Only see how grandly they form 
(Our eagle whirling above them). 

To take Robinette by storm ! 
They're timing ! — it can't be long — 
Now for the nub of the fight ! 

(You may guess that we held our breath). 
By the Lord, 'tis a splendid sight ! 
A column, two thousand strong, 
Marching square to the death ! 

On they came, in solid column ; 

For once, no whooping nor yell 
(Ah ! I dare say they felt solemn) — 
Front and flank — grape and shell 
Our batteries pounded away ! 
And the minies hummed to remind 'em 
They had started on no child's play ! 
Steady they kept a going. 
But a grim wake settled behind 'em — 
From the edge of the abatis 

(Where our dead and dying lay. 
Under fence and fallen tree), 

Up to Robinette, all the way 
The dreadful swath kept growing ! 
'Twas butternut, flecked with gray. 

Now for it, at Robinette ! p. 

Muzzle to muzzle we met fc 

(Not a breath of bluster or brag, |- 

Not a lisp for quarter or favor) — •■* 
Three times, there, by Robinette, * 

With a rush, their feet they set 
On the logs of our parapet, - 

And waved their bit of a flag — 
What could be finer or braver ! 

But our cross-flre stunned them in flank ; 
They melted, rank after rank — 
(O'er them, with terrible poise. 

Our bird did circle and wheel ! ) 
Their whole line began to waver — 
Now for the bayonet, boys ! 

On them with the cold steel ! 

Ah ! well — you know how it ended — 

We did for them, there and then ; 
But their pluck throughout was splendid. 

pole, clap his pinions, shake his head, and start again.. 
Many and hearty were the cheers that arose from our • 
lines as the old fellow would sail around, first to the- 
right, then to the left, and always return to his post,., 
regardless of the storm of leaden hail that was aroundi 
him. Something seemed to tell us that that battle wa» 
to result in our favor ; and when the order was givem 
to charge, every man went at them with fixed bayonets, 
and the enemy' scattered in all directions, leaving us in 
possession of the battle-field." — Letter from Chester 
D. Howe, company E, Twelfth Illinois volunteers. 



370 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



(As I said before, I could love them ! ) 
They stood, to the last, like men — 
Only a handful of them 

Found the way back again. 

Red as blood o'er the town, 
The angry sun went down, 
Firing flag-staff and vane — 
And our eagle — as for him, 
There, all ruffled and grim, 

He sat, o'erlooking the slain ! 

Next morning you'd have wondered 

How we had to drive the spade ! 
There, in great trenches and holes 
(Ah ! God rest their poor souls ! ) 
We piled some fifteen hundred, 

Where that last charge was made ! 

Sad enough, I must say ! 

No mother to mourn and search, 
No priest to bless or to pray — 
We buried them where they lay, 

Without a rite of the church — 
But our eagle all that day 

Stood solemn and still on his perch. 

'Tis many a stormy day 

Since, out of the cold, bleak North, 
Our great war eagle sailed forth 
To swoop o'er battle and fray. 
Many and many a day 

O'er charge and storm hath he wheeled — 
Foray and foughten-field — 

■Tramp, and volley, and rattle ! — 
Over crimson trench and turf, 
Over climbing clouds of surf. 
Through tempest and cannon-rack, 
Have his terrible pinions Avhirled — 
(A thousand fields of battle ! 
A million leagues of foam ! ) 
But ovLT bird shall yet come back, 

He shall soar to his eyrie home — 
And his thunderous wings be furled, 
In the gaze of a gladdened world. 
On the nation's loftiest dome. 

H. H. B. 



A Heroic Chaplain. — Rev. F. Denison, the 
Chaplain of the Third Rhode Island heavy artil- 
lery, is the hero of the following incident : 

Acting as aid to a commander of cavalry, who 
was out on a scouting or reconnoitring expedi- 
tion from Port Royal, the Chaplain, with only his 
unarmed colored servant, became separated, in the 
darkness, from his companions, Avhen coming sud- 
denly upon a' body of six armed rebels, and find- 
ing escape impossible, with wonderful presence of 
mind he instantly leaped from his horse directly 
among them, drew his sword, and ordered them 
to surrender, threatening them with instant death 
unless they fired off their guns and submitted un- 
conditionally to his demand, which, in their mo- 
ment of surprise, they concluded to do, and were 
at once marched in triumph to the Union camp, 
a distance of two miles, by the redoubtable Chap- 
lain and his colored servant. 



A Raid from Petersburg. — Martin Rei- 
chenbacher, a Sergeant in the Second artillery, 
regular troops, in a letter to a friend, relates the 
following: "Yesterday (December 2, 1864) we 
returned from one of the most successful raids 
the cavalry ever made. It was as follows : On 
the 30th of November, we received orders to 
be in full marching order, which were most 
promptly obeyed. On the morning of the 1st 
of December, about four o'clock, we broke camp, 
taking what is known as the Lee's Mill road, run- 
ning in a south-westerly direction from a point 
on the Norfolk Railroad, where our camp is. 
The same day, about eleven o'clock, we suddenly 
found ourselves near the Stony Creek Station, 
on the Weldon Railroad, where the rebels were 
known to have large quantities of stores, and 
much valuable lumber, guarded, as they ima- 
gined, very well indeed by fortifications and earth- 
works of various descriptions, with a considera- 
ble garrison and some heavy guns, they not in 
the least thinking that we would be so bold as 
to go twenty-five miles, that being the distance, 
with cavalry, and attack, whip them handsomely, 
and carry off and destroy all the property in that 
vicinity, besides demolishing the depot and saw- 
mills which were close by. When the harm was 
done, they must have felt very much ashamed, 
for, in addition to all I have mentioned, we cap- 
tured a great number of prisoners — say over 
two hundred. This,' it will be remembered, was 
the cavalry force that accomplished this, the bat- 
tery which I belong to being included, as we took 
part in the fight. When the rebels saw all their 
buildings in flames, they formed and made a most 
desperate charge on our line of battle, our battery 
occupying a position in the centre. We received 
them very warmly, in every sense of the word, 
with fire, shot, and shell, as the cavalrymen 
say. AVhen asked how the battery fire acts, 
the reply is generally, ' The ten-pound checks the 
rebels do not appreciate that you fire from those 
bull-dogs ; " and true, on most every occasion, a 
charge is successfully checked by our battery, as • 
it was this time. When the rebels found us pre- 
pared, and they handsomely repulsed, our men 
rent the air with cheers, and our battery received - 
considerable of a large share of them. I again - 
commanded a section of ten-pounder rifle guns. • 
Finally, Ave fell back in good order, and safely ■ 
arrived in camp with our prisoners, and tropliies ■ 
of the battle-field, consisting of wagons, horses, '- 
mules, and many useful articles, too numerous to 
mention. It is, in our military circles, pronounced 
a most brilliant success." 



Ho\v THE Officers lost their Boots. — 
During the winter of 1863-4 a division of Fed- 
eral cavalry encamped in the vicinity of Hunts- 
ville, Ala., for the purpose of keeping down 
guerrillas and encouraging whatever Union senti- 
ment might happen to generate there under the 
humane system of General George Crook, w-ho 
was commander of the division. The railroad 
was not in running order, and the nearest point 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



371 



from which to procure supplies was nearly a hun- 
dred miles distant. In consequence of the limited 
transportation a sufficient quantity of Government 
stores could not be obtained, and the exigencies 
of the situation compelled the men to resort to 
illegitimate means to supply the demand. Among 
other articles, boots and shoes were decidedly 
scarce, and when a soldier lay down at night he 
would sleep with his boots on, if he had any ; for 
it required a hard exercise of faith to believe that 
he would find them in the morning if left in a 
place less secure. Every dwelling and out-house 
in the town and surrounding country was ran- 
sacked and compelled to pay tribute to the feet of 
the Yankee invaders, and even then the supply 
did not begin to equal the demand. The contra- 
bands, as they came into our lines, would involun- 
tarily swap their boots and shoes with our men, 
and as a general thing would get the worst of the 
bargain. Picket duty in general is not pleasant, 
but at that time was very desirable, for the men 
invariably came into camp better shod than when 
they went out, though in most cases they had 
great difficulty in getting their feet into the stir- 
rups, from the largeness of the brogans lately worn 
by the negroes. It was not an uncommon occur- 
rence to see the adopted Union citizens of the 
place in their stocking feet when they ventured 
out at night, e:ichanging their boots for the well- 
ventilated ones of the Federal troopers. 

On the occasion of a review it was noticed by 
some of the men of the 4th U. S. cavalry that 
General Crook and staff had little reason to com- 
plain of the article which they so much needed. 
On returning to camp a plan was devised to re- 
lieve the General and his officers of their boots. 
A young man named Adams procured some fe- 
male apparel in a negro shanty, and having rub- 
bed his face slightly with burnt cork, proceeded 
at night to the hotel where the General and his 
staff were quartered. Adams, besides his wild 
and frolicsome disposition, was young, well for- 
med, and a little under the medium height. It 
was not his first adventure of the kind ; and in 
his new guise, he presented the appearance of a 
tall finely-formed mulatto girl of interesting at- 
tractions. Proceeding to the officer's room, he 
inquired if they wanted their boots blacked. 
Whether they required blacking or not, he had lit- 
tle difficulty in getting all the boots he could stuff 
in a corn sack, very considerately numbering each 
pair to prevent mistakes. He received injunction 
to hurry up, and in some cases got paid in ad- 
vance. About the time Adams had returned to 
camp and divided the spoils among his friends 
the officers began to suspect that the female boot- 
black was bestowing unusual pains on their boots, 
and had they not been confined to their stocking 
feet, would no doubt have ventured down stairs 
to look her up. As each officer was unaware of 
the visit of the fair mulatto to any one else but 
himself, they individually consoled themselves 
with the assurance that their boots would be found 
at the door in the morning. How each one sup- 
plied himself with another pair is probably un- 
known to any but himself and the sutlers. But 



Adams and his friends wore their boots quietly, 
none being suspected of the theft but the vagrant 
negroes about town, in whose employ the wench 
Mas supposed to be engaged. — The Citizen. 



THE MEN OF THE CUMBERLAND. 

BY THE AUTHOR. OF "THE NEW PRIEST." 

This ship went down on the 0th of March, under 
liioutcnant Georfjc M. Jlorris, with her flag- flying-, and 
her guns firing- (wliile the water was closing over them) 
at the iron monster, Virginia, which had cut two yawning 
lioles in her side. 

Cheer ! cheer ! for our noble Yankee tars, 

That fought the ship Cumberland ! 
Not a sigh for these, with their maims and scars, 

Or their dead that lie off the strand ! 

Who whines of the ghastly gash and wound. 

Or the horrible deaths of war ? 
Where, where should a brave man's death be found, 

And what is a true heart for ? 

Cheer ! cheer ! for these men ! Ah ! they knew 
when 
Was the time for true hearts to die ! 
How their flag sank, apeak, will flush the brave 
cheek, 
While this earth shall hang in the sky ! 

In the bubbling waves they fired their last, 

Where sputtered the burning wad ; 
And fast at their post, as their guns were fast. 

Went a hundred and more before God ! 

Not a man of all but had stood to be shot 
(So the flag might fly), or to drown ; 

The sea saved some, for it came to their lot, 
And some with their ship went down ! 

Then cheer for these men ! they want not gold ; 

But give them their ship once more, 
And the flag that yet hangs in wet and cold 

O'er their dead by that faithless shore. 

Our sunken ship we'll yet weigh up, 

And Ave'll raise our deep-drowned brav^, 

Or we'll drain those Roads till a baby's cup 
May puddle their last shoal wave. 

And we'll tell in tale, and sing in song, 

How the Cumberland was fought 
By -men who knew that all else was wrong 

But to die when a sailor ought. 



Passing to the Front. — It so happened in 
the course of human events, that a goodly num- 
ber of delegates to the Christian Commission at 
Chattanooga found themselves landed at Bridge- 
port without any visible means of further con- 
veyance. Anxious to make their way through to 
Chattanooga immediately, they tried all round 
the tented village for something — anything that 
would carry them over the mountain, and finally, 
through the intervention of Providence, succeeded 
in securing one very diminutive female specimen 
of the asinine species. Here then was a quan- 
dary. Who, and how many, should ride ? After 
some miscellaneous discussion on this point, it 



372 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



was finally agreed that the distinguished honor 
should be conferred on a Bostonian brother alone, 
the fit of whose boots and quality of whose cloth 
being, no doubt, taken into consideration ; for be 
it known that a walk of forty miles on the roads 
of that country, and slee2:)ing out by the wayside, 
were calculated to take the nap off of French 
goods. 

Well, they started, the " hub " man astride of 
the little personification of injured innocence, and 
the rest with a Government train. Their journey 
was without accident or incident worthy of men- 
tion until they had rounded the top of Wallen's 
Ridge and were coming down the side — which, 
by the waj^, is verj' declivous — when, all of a 
su-:lden, the thing the Eastern delegate was riding 
got mulish, stopped, and the parson went on — 
tilted square over its head, his feet unfortunately 
held tight by the stirrups. As soon as his breth- 
ren, who were a little way behind, heard of the 
disaster, they rushed to his relief, and found the 
position thus : The quadruped was standing stock 
still, and so was brother A., vai-ying, however, 
from the usual manner in this, that the end which 
custom has established as proper for men to have 
up, when appearing in company, was in his case 
just the opposite. He was, in fact, standing on 
bis hands — a slight improvement on the Neb- 
uchadnezzar style — his feet yet fast in the 
stirrups, and sticking up either side of the beast's 
neck, very much after the fashion of a goose 
yoke ; meanwhile he was earnestly calling for 
help, but holding still for life. From this undig- 
nified and no less unpleasant situation his breth- 
ren very soon relieved him, and all were rejoiced 
to learn that, with the exception of a few scratches 
on his hands and a few sjjecks of mud — each 
the size of a man's hat — on his clothes, he was 
uninjured. 

But, favorable as it turned out, the mishap did 
not pass so easily from the mind of the Puritan 
brother. He went on to Chattanooga, but an un- 
broken cloud seemed to rest on his countenance, 
and after a few days, no doubt full of trouble, 
he bent his steps towards the Monumental Cityj 
where desperate adventures and hair -breadth es- 
capes are not looked upon as mere matters of 
amusement or subjects for joke. 



Among the curiosities of army life is this : 
Dress eighty or a hundred thousand men pretty 
nearly alike, and everybody resembles his neigh- 
bor, and nobody looks like himself. Take those 
men and sprinkle " a half section," as they say 
in Illinois, pretty thickly with them, put them 
under the big umbrellas of the camps, chink a 
little town full of them till every house swarms 
like a hive in June, set them all in the usual mo- 
1 ion of army life, and then begin to look for your 
" next best friend," and I wish you joy of your 
journey ; you might better be " Japhet in search 
of his father." Perhaps you may remember hav- 
ing passed a familiar friend who was reclining in 
the chair with his face upturned, as is the fashion 
of those who come under the barber's hands — 



passed without recognizing him. Of course it 
was the unwonted position that gave him the look 
of a stranger ; the shadows fell in new places, 
and the effect was a new impression. You would 
be struck with this in looking down upon the 
faces turned towards heaven after a battle, either 
on the field or in the hospital ; the light falls 
squarely down ; no shadows under the brow, no 
shading beneath the chin, and the whole face so 
clears up, softens and grows delicate, that you 
may be looking upon a friend and not know it. 
Death generally impairs the beauty of women, 
but it sometimes makes homely men wonderfully 
handsome. 

A Southern Martyr. — When the secret 
history of current events at the South is brought 
to light, there will be revelations of sacrifice and 
sufl'ering for loyalty to the Union that will show 
that the age of heroism has not wholly gone by. 
A letter from a lady in Charleston, of undoubted 
authenticity, gives an account of a martyr to loy- 
alty whose name will be honored in the history 
that is to be written of the great events of this 
age, though now concealed from motives of pru- 
dence : 

" Poor F is dead ; before the fall of Sum- 
ter he exerted all his influence, using both pen 
and voice against the rebellion, until he was 
thrown into prison. At first he was treated as 
an ordinary criminal awaiting trial ; but after the 
battle of Manassas, the Confederates seemed 
drunk with triumph at their victory, and mad 
with rage over the vast number of victims who 
fell in their ranks. I wrote you with what pomp 
this city mourned her dead ; amid it all, when the 

Confederate host seemed like to win, F was 

offered freedom and promotion if he would es- 
pouse the Confederate cause. His military and 
scientific attainments were considerable, which 
made them anxious for his services. ' I have 
sworn allegiance to the Union,' said he, * and am, 
not one to break my pledge.' When tempted 
with promotion if he could be prevailed upon to 
enlist beneath their banner, he said, ' You cannot 
buy my loyalty. I love Carolina and the South ; 
but I love my country better'.' Finding him faith- 
ful to the flag he loved, he was made to feel the 
power of his enemies. He was cast into a mis- 
erable, damp, ill-ventilated cell, and fed on coarse 
fare ; half the time neglected by his drunken 
keeper. His property was confiscated, and his 
wife and children beggared. Poor fellow ! he 
sank beneath his troubles, and was soon removed 
from the persecution of his oppressors. The day 
before his death he said to his wife : ' Mary, you 
are beggared because I Avould not prove disloyal.' 
' God be thanked for your fidelity ! ' replied the ' 
wife. ♦ They have taken your wealth and life, 
but could not stain your honor, and our children 
shall boast of an unspotted name. My husband, 
rejoice in your truth.' She returned to her friends 
after his death, openly declaring her proudest 
boast should be, her husband died a martyr to 
his patriotism. Who shall say the day of hero- 
ism has passed ? " 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



373 



Pets in the Akmy. — They have the strang- 
est pets in the army, that nobody would dream 
of " taking to " at home, and yet they are little 
touches of the gentler nature that give you so 
much cordial feeling when you see them. One of 
the boys has carried a red squu-rel through " thick 
and thin " over a thousand miles. " Bun " eats 
hard tack like a veteran, and has the freedom of 
the tent. Another's affections overflow upon a 
slow-winking, unspeculative little owl, captured 
in Arkansas, and bearing a name with a classical 
smack to it — Minerva. A third gives his heart 
to a young Cumberland Mountain bear ; but chief 
among camp pets are dogs. Riding on the sad- 
dle-bow, tucked into a baggage wagon, mounted 
on a knapsack, growling under a gun, are dogs 
brought to a premature end as to ears and tails, 
and yellow at that; pug-nosed, square-headed 
brutes, sleek terriers, delicate morsels of spaniels, 
" Tray, Blanche, Sweetheart, little dogs and all." 
A dog, like a horse, comes to love the rattle and 
crash of musket and cannon. There was one in 
an Illinois regiment, and regarded as belonging 
to it, though his name might not be on the mus- 
ter-roll, that chases half-spent shot as a kitten 
frolics with a ball of worsted. He has been under 
fire and twice wounded, and left the tip of his 
tail at the battle of Stone River. Woe to the 
man that shall wantonly Idll him. But I was 
especially interested in the fortunes of a little 
white spaniel that messed with a battery and de- 
lighted in the name of " Dot." No matter what 
was up, that fellow's silken coat must be washed 
every day ; and there was need of it, for when the 
batteiy was on the march, they just plunged him 
into the sponge-bucket — not the tidiest chamber 
imaginable — that swings like its more peaceful 
cousin, the tar-bucket, under the rear axle of the 
gun-carriage — plumped him into that, clapped 
on the cover, and Dot was good for an inside 
passage. One day the battery crossed a stream 
and the water came well up to the guns. Nobody 
thought of Dot, and when all across, a gunner 
looked into the bucket ; it was full of water, and 
Dot was as dead as a little dirty door mat. — B. F. 
Taylor. 

A Curious Story. — The Southern papers 
told a curious story about a ghostly army that 
was seen down there. Nobody has pretended to 
give a solution of the mystery ; but it Avas wisely 
suggested that it was an optical illusion. Here is 
the story : 

" A remakable phenomenon was witnessed a 
few miles west of Lewisburg, Greenbrier County, 
Va., on the 1st of October, 1863, about three 
o'clock P. M., by Mr. Moses Dwyer, who hap- 
pened to be seated in his porch at the time, as 
well as by others at or near the house. 

" The weather was quite hot and dry ; not a 
cloud could be seen ; no wind even ruffled the 
foliage on the surrounding trees. All things be- 
ing propitious, the grand panorama began to 
move. Just over and through the tops of the 
trees on the adjacent hills, to the south, immense 
r.umbers of rolls, resembling cotton or smoke, ap- 



parently of the size and shape of doors, seemed 
to be passing rapidly through the air, yet in beau- 
tiful order and regularity. The rolls seemed to 
be tinged on the edge with light green, so as to 
resemble a border of deep fringe. There were ap- 
parently thousands of them ; they were perhaps an 
hour in getting by. After they had passed over 
and out of sight, the scene was changed from the 
air above to the earth beneath, and became more 
intensely interesting to the spectators who were 
witnessing the panorama from different stand- 
points. 

" In the deep valley beneath, thousands upon 
thousands of (apparently) human beings (men) 
came in view, travelling in the same direction as 
the rolls, marching in good order, some thirty or 
forty in depth, moving rapidly — ' double-quick ' 
— and commenced ascending the almost insur- 
mountable hills opposite, and had the stoop pecu- 
liar to men ascending a steep mountain. There 
seemed to be a great variety in the size of the 
men ; some were very large, wliilst others were 
quite small. Their arms, legs, and heads could 
be distinctly seen in motion. They seemed to ob- 
serve strict military discipline, and there were no 
stragglers. 

" There was uniformity of dress ; white blouses 
or shirts, with white pants ; they were without guns, 
swords, or anything that indicated ' men of war.' 
On they came through the valley and over the 
steep road, crossing the road, and finally passing 
out of sight, in a direction due north from those 
who were looking on. 

" The gentleman who witnessed this is a man 
with whom you were once acquainted, Mr. Editor, 
and as truthful a man as we have in this country, 
as b'ttle liable to be carried away by 'fanciful spec- 
ulations ' as any man living. Four others (re- 
spectable ladies) and a servant girl witnessed this 
strange phenomenon. 

" On the 14th instant the same scene, almost 
identical, was seen by eight or ten of the Confed- 
erate pickets at Runger's Mill, and by many of the 
citizens in that neighborhood ; this is about four 
miles east of Percy's. It was about an hour 
passing." 

The Chickamauga Battle-Field. — A South- 
ern writer gives the following description : 

" As it grows darker, we observe a bright light 
about one mile in front of us ; which our guide 
informs us is the burning of their second line of 
works, which the Yankees fh-ed 'before leaving. 
' You will see some awful sights if you go there,' 
remarked he. Ere long, 

'The pale moon rose up slowly, and calmly she 

looked down 
On the red sands of the battle-field with bloody 

corses strewn.' 

" And wending our way among the grand old 
oaks of the forest, now scarred and withered by 
the strife enacted beneath them, and picking our 
Avay among the dead bodies of men and horses, 
we at length reached the works constructed by 
the enemy on Saturday night, and defended with 



374 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



such obstinacy on Sunday. Notwithstanding I 
have seen some dozen battle-fields during the 
war, I have never seen anything to compare with 
the horrors of the scene presented here. As I 
stated before, the enemy had set fire to their 
works when forced to leave them, and the fire had 
communicated to the forests and lit uj) the scene 
far and wide. The dead and wounded lay in 
heaps, literally piled upon each other, and in 
many instances the fire had burned them to a 
cinder, and many of the wounded had their clothes 
burned off", and their bodies were a perfect blister. 
The cries of these poor, wretched creatures were 
awful to hear, and many implored us to kill 
them and put them out of their misery. 

" Upon examining their haversacks, nothing Avas 
found but corn bread, and several told me that 
they had been eating that for five days without 
food or water, and that their leaders did not care 
for them after they had received a wound. It 
was a scene long to be remembered — the gi'oups 
of dead men and horses, and writhing forms of 
the wounded there in that dreary forest, only seen 
by the scattered moonbeams as they stole through 
the branches, and the flickering fire light, as it 
crept slowly but steadily up to where they lay, 
and the fearful cries of those who watched its ad- 
vance, unable to drag their broken limbs beyond 
the reach of the destroyer : and then the dis- 
torted and upturned faces of those whose bodies 
were lying amidst the grim shadows which fell 
around, conspicuous among which was the shadow 
of death. AH the pompous pageantry of the 
scene was gone, and nought remained of all the 
glory lost and won upon that bloody field save 
the wretched forms of those who no more will 
spring forward at the call to arms." 



The Battle of Frederickton. — The vic- 
tory of the national troops at Fredericktou, next 
to their own bravery and daring, may be ascribed 
to the agency of an old negro, Avho informed 
them of the ambuscade by Jeff Thompson, into 
vrhich, if they had fallen, a terrible slaughter 
would have followed. The agency of this negro 
is described as follows : 

" I saw but two white men in the town as Ave 
marched through. No one came out to meet our 
advance. This was a little mysterious and omi- 
nous. The negroes told us that the troops had 
left by the south road, indicating the direction by 
pointing. While Ave were sleeping, a Lieutenant 
Avas Avalking a little south of the toAvn, accompa- 
nied by an old darky, Avho said, ' Heap of men, 
massa, out souf in de timber dar.' ' Guess not ; 
you are mistaken.' ' No mistake, massa.' The 
Lieutenant thought enough of the remark to 
mention it to a Major near by, Avho also remarked, 
' It must be a great mistake.' The old darky 
had foUoAved up, and, hearing the reply, said, 
' No mistake, no mistake.' The INIajor thought 
he Avould go Avith the neAvs to Colonel Carlin, Avho 
also thought it a mistake ; but, concluding it best 
not to be fooled, he sent a man to reconnoitre. 
The timber referred to lies about a mile south of 



the tOAvn, and skirts both sides of the road by 
Avhich the enemy Avere said to have left. The 
scout found the timber all alive Avith armed men 
— infantry and cavalry. Tlie old darky had be- 
trayed them, and their trick Avas all revealed, viz., 
to get us into an ambush Avhile following them. 

" Tlie man galloped back Avith the information. 
The soldiers Avere roused up, ordered into line, 
and in less than ten minutes our whole brigade 
Avas ready to march, and most of the regiments 
AA'ere in motion. The artillerymen had got a 
twenty-four-pounder out ready to shell the tim- 
ber ; also a six-pounder AVas placed. The enemy, 
seeing himself found out, prepared to make the 
most of it. He had judged Avell Avhere our 
cannon Avould be placed, and had artillery bearing 
directly on those points. When I first waked up, 
I heard the report of a six-pounder. ' Hallo ! 
guess they're cleaning out their guns.' This 
roused all, and, before we had got our traps on, 
several guns had sounded, and noAV they bellowed 
thick and fast. ' A fight, boys ! They'i'e at it ! ' 
rung along the line. 

" The enemy had begun the firing, and per- 
formed well, their second shot haA'ing smashed a 
Avheel on our six-pounder. Thus the battle began. 
Not ten minutes had yet elapsed since the time 
the scout had returned." 



Colonel Mosey Outwitted. — On the 25th 
of March, 18G4, Captain E. B. Gere, of the Gris- 
Avold Light Cavalry, Avas sent out from the Union 
camp, Avith one hundred and tAventy-five men, to 
the neighborhoods of Berryviile and Winches- 
ter, Va., on a scout, and encamped at Milhvood, 
some six or eight miles from the former place. 
After the men had got their fires built, Sergeant ' 
Weatherbee, of company B, Corporal Simpson, 
of company H, and a private, Avent some tAVO 
miles from camp to get supper at a farm-house, 
and Avhile waiting for the long-delayed tea, Avere 
surprised to find several revolvers suddenly ad- 
vance into the room, behind each pair of Avhich 
Avas either Colonel Mosby, a rebel Captain, or a 
Lieutenant, all rather determined men, Avith 
" shoot in their eyes," who demanded the imme- , 
diate surrender of the aforesaid Yankees. The ~ 
aim being Avicked, the three TAventy-firsters saAV ' 
they Avere " under a cloud," and so quietly gave ; 
up the contest. 

Colonel Mosby was much elated Avith his good 
fortune, and required his prisoners to foUoAV him ,^ 
supperless on his rounds to his headquarters at 
Paris ; the private, however, Avhile pretending to 
get his horse, hid himself in the hay and escaped, 
Mosby not daring to Avait and hunt him up. 

On the Avay to Paris the Colonel amused him-^ 
self by constantly taunting his prisoners Avith ^ 
questions. " Were they Avith Major Cole Avhenhe 
thrashed him at Upperville ? " " AVere they with 
Major Sullivan, of the First Veterans, Avhen his ■ 
men ran aAvay and left him ? " " Hoav did they • 
fancy his gray nag? — he took that from a Yan- 
kee Lieutenant." " Didn't the Yanks dread him 
and his men more than they did the regular 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



375 



rebel cavalry ? " " How did they " (the prison- 
ers) " like his style of fighting ? " and a hundred 
such remarks, that indicated the man as being 
more of a vain braggart than a hero. 

He was, in the mean time, engaged in gather- 
ing his men with the avoAved intention of attack- 
ing Capt. Gere's force at daylight, and, if possi- 
ble, of cutting it to pieces. His followers live in 
the farm-houses of Loudon, Clarke, and Jeffer- 
son Counties, and are either rebel soldiers or 
Union citizens, as the case may require. He 
would ride up to a house, call Joe or Jake, and 
tell them that he wanted them at such an hour at 
the us^ial place — to go and tell Jim or Mose. 
Almost every farm turned out somebody in answer 
to his call, proving that these men, with the cer- 
tified oath of allegiance in their pockets, and with 
passes allowing them to come in and go out of 
our lines at will, are not only in sympathy with 
the enemy, but are themselves perjured rebels. 

When they arrived at Paris, Colonel Mosby 
dismounted and stepped into the house where be 
had his headquarters, leaving his pistols in the 
holsters. The Lieutenant, with drawn revolver, 
watched the prisoners, while the Captain endeav- 
ored to find an orderly to take the horses. Cor- 
poral Simpson, who had been marking the road 
for future use, and had been long looking for it, 
saw his chance, and pretended to tie his horse, 
but really putting his foot into the stirrup of 
Mosby's saddle, and laying hold of one of the 
overlooked pistols. The Lieutenant, detecting the 
move, fired at him, when S. shot him through the 
heart with the weapon he had secured. The 
Captain turned round and fired, and Colonel 
Mosby came to the door to see " what all that 

row was about," just in time to hear a bullet 

whiz unpleasantly close to his head, that S. fired 
at him, "just for luck," as he and his comrade 
left — yelling back : " Colonel Mosby, hoiv do you 
like our style of fighting'} We belong to the 
Twenty first New York." And away they went, 
leaving Colonel Mosby dismounted, and outwit- 
ted of his best horse, saddle, pistols, and over- 
coat, two Yankee prisoners, and with at least one 
vacancy among his commissioned oificers. Cor- 
poral Simpson rode twelve miles to the camp, 
closely followed by the Sergeant, and gave Cap- 
tain Gere such notice of the enemy's intentions 
that they thought best not to pitch in at the ap- 
pointed time. 

Obedience to Orders. — When Stonewall 
Jackson was ordered from the valley of Western 
Virginia to take pai't in the operations of General 
Lee against the national troops threatening Rich- 
mond, General Whiting's division was sent to 
join him. Li this division was the celebrated 
Texas brigade of General Hood. These men had 
never seen Jackson, and knew him only by repu- 
tation. As the movement was of the highest im- 
portance, it was necessary to keep it as secret as 
possible. Orders were accordingly issued to the 
men to refuse to give information of any kind to 
civilians on the route, and to answer all questions 
with, " I don't know." 

On the second day of the march. General Jack- 



son saw two of Hood's men leave the ranks and 
start for a cherry tree in the neighboring field. 
Riding up to them, he demanded, sternly, — 

" Where are you going? " 

" I don't know," replied one of the men, coolly, 
not knowing to whom he was speaking. 

" What is your name ? " 

" I don't know." 

" What regiment do you belong to ? " 

" I don't know." 

" What does this mean ? " asked the General, 
turning to the other man, who stood by silently. 

"Why, you see," replied the soldier, "Old 
Stonewall gave orders yesterday that we are not 
to know anything until after the next fight, and 
we mean to obey him." 

The General smiled — he rarely laughed — and 
sent the men back to their regiment. 



AFTER THE FIGHT. 

One of the boys lies dead in hia tent, 

All alone. 
Soldier, go in, go in, 
And smooth back his hair. 
And close the dead eyes. 
So dreamily blue, 
That are staring straight through 
The night, towards the skies. 

Where his soul has gone ! 

Ay, and we made a desperate charge 

Through the smoke. 
And the terrible roar, for the guns 
That had growled all day 
From the rebel right — 
Rank after rank. 
On our wearied flank. 
Had gone down in the fight. 

When those cannons spoke. 

Scorching hot, from their grinning jaws, 

With a shout. 
Came the whirling shot 
And the bursting shell. 
And the air grew gray 

With the drifting smoke. 
That quivered and broke 
And heaved and fell. 

When the roar burst out. 

And Death rode over the battle-field, 

Through the storm, 
Like the withering breath of a curse ; 
And his voice rang out. 
With a shrill report. 

When the rifles flashed 
And the bayonet gashed 
The quivering heart. 

And the knife struck home. 

Up through the smoke and the driving shot, 

And the strife. 
Ring the bugle-notes sounding a charge ; 
And the spurs strike deep. 
And away we plunge, 

With a deafening shout, 
And our swords are out, 
For the ghastly lunge 

At the foeman's life. 



376 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



Still are the guns for a space, as though 

Without breath ; 
And our men go gallantly down, 
With unbroken ranks, 
And a shout for the " Stars." 
There's a swift, bright flash 
From the guns, and a crash, 
And the red earth jars 

'Neath the thunder of death. 

And many a brave boy fell when that fire 

Burst out. 
"i et we hurled the foe heavily back, 
In the fierce, wild fight. 
And the victory was won ; 
But the dead lay white 
In the ghastly light. 
As the sinking sun 

Looked in on the rout. 

This one came from the fight with a ball 

In his side ; 
And he sleeps so peacefully now 
That we'll leave him to rest 
By our camp on the hill. 
Yet never will come. 
To the loved ones at home. 
Who watch for him still. 

The Soldier who died. 



Thomas' Great Fight. — The following 
graphic description of the contest at Cliicka- 
mauga was written by a correspondent of the Cin- 
cinnati Gazette, on Monday, September 21, 1863, 
the day after the second day's operations. 

" As soon as the sun was fairly risen, I mounted 
my horse, intending to ride to the extreme left of 
our line, and thence proceed from left to right, so 
as to get as accurate an idea of it as possible be- 
fore the real work of the day should commence. 
Riding about a mile, I saw troops coming into 
the road from the woods to the east of it, and had 
I not perceived through my glass that they were 
habited in blue, should have judged from the di- 
rection whence they came, that they were a por- 
tion of the rebel army. Suddenly I saw a courier 
shoot out from the crowd, and coming towards me 
hatless and with frantic speed. 

"As he came, a dozen rifle cracks from the 
woods skirting a cornfield along which he was 
riding, informed me that hostile demonstrations 
of some kind were being made in our immediate 
vicinity. I halted until the courier came up. He 
delivered his despatches to another horseman, who 
immediately started with them towards the head- 
quarters of General Thomas. I then asked the 
hatless courier what troops those were ahead. 
He informed me they were two brigades (Colonel 
Mitchell's and Colonel McCook's) of General 
Gordon's corps, who had been skirmishing the day 
before in the neighborhood of Koid's Bridge and 
of Ringgold, as I have already described. They 
had come to form a junction with the main army, 
had halted, and were waiting for orders. 

" ' Are you going back to them now ? ' I in- 
quii-ed of the courier. 

" ' I am,' he replied, ' but it is hazardous busi- 



ness ; for the woods just on the other side of that 
cornfield are lined with rebel sharpshooters, who 
fire at any one passing along the road ; just now 
they fired quite a volley at me as I came through.' 

" As I wished to reach these troops of General 
Granger's in order to learn from them what they 
had been doing the day before, this answer was a 
little discouraging. Nevertheless, my curiosity 
finally prevailed over my apprehensions, and my- 
self and the courier started back upon a full gallop. 
Of course the sharpshooters paid us their re- 
spects, and more than one bullet whistled uncom- 
fortably close to our ears while we were running 
this dangerous gantlet. But fortunately none of 
them hit either of us, although one cut the hair 
from my horse's mane. 

" Scarcely had I reached our troops in safety 
when an order from General Rosecrans, which 
had reached General Granger by another route, 
directed the two brigades to fall back at once to 
Rossville, get a supply of rations for the three 
days, and hold themselves in readiness to march 
at a moment's notice. As the close proximity of 
the rebels rendered it somewhat difficult just then 
to reach General Bird's men, who were nearest 
to me on the right, I ' fell back ' with General 
Granger's troops, and remained in the vicinity of 
Rossville until the sound of battle in the direction 
whence I had come attracted my attention. A 
wild gallop back to the left immediately ensued. 
I was accompanied in the ride by a member of 
the Corps of Topographical Engineers, attached 
to General Rosecrans' headquarters, and a citizen 
who had accompanied him in the morning on an 
excursion undertaken for the purpose of gaining 
knowledge of the surrounding country. 

" All three of us agreed that it was a hazardous 
experiment to attempt making our way back to 
the army, the nearest portion of which was distant 
half a dozen miles. But the citizen wanted to 
get back, the engineer said he pught to be back, 
and my own duties in that direction were ab- 
solutely imperative. So off we started. 

" Here comes a single soldier, covered with dust 
and sweat. Let us question him. 

"'Where do you belong?' 'To the regular 
brigade.' 

" ' Has 
should think it had. 

" ' With what result ? ' 'It was nearly all cut 
to pieces.' 

" ' What regiment is yours ? ' ' The Sixteenth 
United States infantry.' 

" 'Did it suffer much ? ' ' Only thirty or forty 
of its members are left.' 

" Here is a man with an arm roughly bandaged 
and very bloody. The blood has dried upon it, 
and hangs to it in great black clots. ' Who are 
you ? ' ' Private , of the Thirty-eighth In- 
diana.' 'What news have you?' 'Bad news 
enough.' ' Has your regiment been in the 
fight ? ' 'If it has not, no one has.' ' AVith 
what result?' 'One third of its number are 
killed and wounded.' 'Were you whipped?' 
' Our brigade was loft unsupported, overpowered 
by numbers, and compelled for a time to give 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



377 



way.' ' Is Colonel Scribner safe ? ' 'So far as 
I know, he is.' 

" Another with a ghastly wound in the head has 
upon his jacket the red stripes which show him 
to be an artilleryman. 'Whose battery do you 
. belong to ? ' ' Gunither's.' ' Why, that is the 
regular battery belonging to General King's bri- 
gade ; what has it been doing ? ' 'It has been 
taken by the enemy.' ' Can it be possible ? ' 
' It is, but I have heai'd since that it was reta- 
ken.' ' How came it lost ? ' ' The infantry sup- 
ports gave way, and the horses being nearly all 
killed, of course, the guns were captured.' 

" The stream grew stronger and stronger. Strag- 
glers were run over by wagons dashing back 
towards the rear. Ambulances, filled with wound- 
ed, came in long procession from towards where 
the battle was raging. Men with wounds of 
every imaginable description, not affecting their 
locomotion, came staggering by on foot, and 
scores even of those who had been shot in their 
lower limbs, hobbled slowly on thi'ough blinding 
masses of dust, which at times concealed every- 
thing from view. 

" The brigade commanded by Colonel B. F. 
Scribner, Thirty-eighth Indiana, one of the very 
first in the army, was left particularly exposed, as 
its right flank had been somewhat too far ad- 
vanced where it had taken position in the morn- 
ing. Almost before its pickets were driven in, 
it found itself literally surrounded by thi'ice its 
numbers, who came on with their infernal yells, 
pouring volley after volley of deadly bullets into 
the very bosom of this gallant brigade. For a 
moment it was thrown into confusion, and that 
moment sufiiced to place the rebels upon its 
front, flanks, and rear. But it was not destined 
to surrender. The Second, Thirty-third, and Nine- 
ty-fourth Ohio, the Thirty-eighth Indiana, the 
Tenth Wisconsin, and Loomis' battery are com- 
posed of the best material in their respective States, 
and their commander, Scribner, had succeeded in 
infusing into them his own magnanimous and 
gallant spirit. Gathering together their broken 
ranks under the infernal fire which every instant 
mowed them down, and following their heroic 
leader, they charged the dense legions surround- 
ing them, and like a whirlwind in a forest, tore 
their way through. 

" But, alas ! the guns of the immortal First 
Michigan battery were left behind — those black, 
stern-looking rifle cannon, each one of which I 
had come to regard with a feeling of almost rev- 
erential awe, because upon a dozen battle-fields I 
had seen them fiinging destruction into the ranks 
of traitors, and never knew them once turned 
against a legion of my country's enemies which 
they did not scatter like leaves before the blast. 
Even in the opinion of the rebels themselves, 
Loomis had made these guns invincible. They 
were commanded now by a young man who, pos- 
sessing naturally the noblest qualities, had thor- 
oughly learned the lessons of his teacher, and 
promised to prove a most worthy successor, even 
to Loomis himself — Lieutenant Van Pelt. Van 
Pelt loved his pieces with the same unselfish 



devotion which he manifested for his life. In the 
desperate conflict which broke around Scribner's 
brigade, he managed the battery with much dex- 
terity and coolness, and for some moments rocked 
the very trees over the heads of the rebels by the 
fiery blasts from his guns. But his horses were 
shot down. Many of his artillerists Avere killed 
or wounded. The infantry supporting him had 
been compelled to turn and cut their way through 
the enemy, and a horde of traitors rushed to the 
muzzles of the now harmless pieces. Van Pelt, 
almost alone, stationed himself in front of them, 
and drew his sword. ' Scoundrels,' said he, ' dare 
not touch these guns ! ' The miserable barba- 
rians, unable to appreciate true heroism, brutally 
murdered him where he stood. The history of 
the war furnishes not an incident more touching, 
more sublime, than the death of Lieutenant Van 
Pelt. 

" All the guns of the battery, save one, fell 
into the enemy's hands. 

" Along the entire line of the left and centre 
there were simdar instances of heroism, only two 
or three of which I have time to mention. 

" At one time the guns of the Fourth Indiana 
battery (Captain Bush) were all in the hands of 
the enemy, but were retaken subsequently, by a 
simultaneous charge of the infantry and artillery- 
men. This battery is attached to General Stark- 
weather's brigade. 

" During the fierce assault upon the First di- 
vision, the Second Ohio, being in confusion, was 
rallied by General Baird in person, and led back 
to a most efi"ective charge. 

" Major-General J. J. Reynolds, who combines 
the chivah-ous courage of an olden knight with 
the cool, calm ability of a Turenne, had time, not 
only to keep his own division in efiective order, 
but to give his generous assistance to the forces 
around him. A tremendous onslaught of the 
enemy broke General Palmer's lines, and scat- 
tered several of his. regiments in wild dismay 
towards the rear. Amongst these was the Sixth 
Ohio, which, in charge of the fine-spirited Ander- 
son, had, up to that moment, nobly maintained 
its ground. General Reynolds, perceiving the 
danger, quick as lightning threw himself amongst 
the brave but broken Guthries. 

" ' Boys,' he shouted, ' are you the soldiers of 
the Sixth Ohio who fought with me at Cheat 
Mountain ? You never turned your backs upon 
traitors in Virginia ; will you do it here ? ' 

" ' No, no,' they screamed almost frantically ; 
' lead us back, lead us back ! ' 

" From every quarter came rushing up the scat- 
tered fragments of the regiment ; with magic 
swiftness they re-formed the ranks ; with General 
Reynolds at their head, they charged the insolent 
enemy, and, after a moment's struggle, every 
rebel in front of them, not killed or wounded, 
was in confused retreat. 

" The rebels had been manoeuvring all day on 
Friday about the position at Gordon's Mill, and 
seeing its great strength, had menaced our left 
flank, doubtless with the express purpose of com- 
pelling General Rosecrans to abandon it. As the 



378 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



left must be protected at all hazards, their plan 
partially succeeded, and the immense transfer of 
Thomas from right to left on Friday night, so far 
suited their designs. But it rendered our own left 
so strong that it became impossible for the rebels 
to turn it, as they had all along hoped and intended 
to do. The attempt, on our part, to hold Gor- 
don's Mill after this transfer, perhaps, occasioned 
too great a lengthening of our lines, and conse- 
quently too little solidity. True, it seemed every 
way adapted to prevent the enemy from flanking 
us upon the right ; but the simple withdrawal of 
our right wing to Mission Ridge, allowing it to 
rest there, would have fully secured that flank, 
enabled us to bid defiance to the rebels in that 
direction, greatly contracted our front, and re- 
leased, for immediate service on Saturday, the 
splendid divisions of Negley and Wood. The 
entire distance over which the line extended was 
little short of three and a half miles. 

" It was between ten and eleven when Croton's 
brigade, of Brannan's division, going down to ford 
the creek, just opposite their position, encountered 
the enemy, who was advancing in force, and, after 
a gallant combat, was driven back. Reenforce- 
ments immediately coming up from the remainder 
of Brannan's division, the rebels were, in turn, 
driven pell-mell towards the ford. Another fierce 
charge, by a largely increased force of the enemy, 
pushed back the Avhole of Brannan's division, in- 
volving General Baird, who at once became 
fiercely engaged. The regulars, outflanked, after 
the withdrawal of Brannan's men, fought like 
tigers, but rolled back and over Scribner's bri- 
gade (the right of which, being rather too far 
advanced, was crumpled up, and the brigade liter- 
ally surrounded), until, by unparalleled gallantry, 
it cut its way through. The storm, rolling from 
left to right, fell next upon Johnston, and almost 
simultaneously upon Reynolds, who both fought 
with desperate valor, wavering at times, but 
again regaining their firmness, — giving back a 
little, but again advancing, — until the troops of 
Brannan and Baird, rallied by their able leaders, 
and by the personal exertions of Thomas him- 
self, whose courage was as conspicuous as his 
coolness, came up once more to the work. 

" Then the order was issued for the entire line 
to advance ; and nothing in history exceeds in 
grandeur the charge of that powerful corps. 
Longstreet's men from Virginia were directly op- 
posed to the troops of Thomas ; and although 
they fought with stubborn determination, they 
could not for an instant check the slow and state- 
ly march of our battalions. In vain they rallied 
and re-rallied ; in vain they formed double lines, 
which fired simultaneously ; in vain they wheeled 
their cannons into a score of new positions. 
Thomas moved resistlessly on. Much of our ar- 
tillery lost in the morning was recaptured. Seven 
pieces were taken from the enemy. They had been 
pushed already three quarters of a mile, and 
Longstreet was threatened with actual annihila- 
tion, when a new danger caused Thomas to halt. 

" While our left was so remorselessly driving 
the rebels, Polk and Hill, collecting theu' chosen 



legions, threw them, with great impetuosity, upon 
Palmer and Van Cleve, in order to effect a diver- 
sion in favor of Longstreet. An obstinate con- 
test ensued, but the overpowering numbers of the 
enemy speedily broke to pieces large portions of 
our two divisions, especially Van Cleve's. In fact, 
the rout of this part of our line Avas becoming as 
complete as that of the enemy's right, when Davis, 
who had been marching up as rapidly as possible 
to intersect with Van Cleve's left, arrived upon 
the ground, went in most gallantly, and, for a 
time, restored in that locality the fortunes of the 
day. But the enemy, knowing that all depended 
upon his effecting a diversion in favor of the de- 
feated Longstreet, massed nearly the whole of his 
available force, hurled it upon Van Cleve, and 
Davis drove the former to the left and the latter 
to the right, and entered boldly the opening thus 
made. It was just at this juncture that Thomas' 
troops, whose attention had been called to the ex- 
treme danger of our centre, began to return. 
Reynolds immediately sent the heroic Wilder to 
the assistance of Davis, and the celebrated ori- 
gade of mounted infantry at first scattered the 
enemy in terror before them. But the persever- 
ing rebels rallying again, and charging in fresh 
numbers, even Wilder began to fall slowly back. 
General Sheridan, who had been following after 
Davis, now came up, and led Colonel Bradley's 
brigade into the fight. It held its own nobly, 
until the rebels, in large force, getting possession 
of a piece of timber near its flank, opened upon 
it an enfilading fire, which compelled it to give 
way. 

" But noAv new actors appeared upon the scene. 
Wood and Negley, who had gallantly repelled the 
assaults of the enemy at Owen's Ford (assaults 
intended as a feint to conceal the design of the 
rebels against our left), came up to the rescue. 
Their troops went to work with a will. The prog- 
ress of the enemy against Davis, Van Cleve, and 
Sheridan Avas speedily checked. Reynolds, re- 
turning from the pursuit of Longstreet, assisted 
in rallying the broken battahons of Palmer. 
Thousands of our scattered troops reorganized 
almost of their own accord. Baird, Brannan, and 
Johnston resumed their places. A consuming fire 
swept all along our front. The rebels retired ev- 
erywhere before it ; and before sunset our line was 
again in battle array upon almost precisely the 
ground held that morning. 

" The morrow came. No sound of crackb'ng 
musketry, or roaring cannon, or bursting shell dis- 
turbed the peacefulness of that Sabbath morning. 
The Sabbath ! Yes, it was the blessed day of rest 
— rest given in mercy by kind Heaven to ungrate- ; 
ful man. Will the battle be renewed to-day? J 
If so, it will be by the action of the enemy, for .j 
General Rosecrans does not wilhngly fight on the 
Sabbath. The first hour after sunrise passed. 
' Surely,' said our officers and soldiers, ' there will 
be no fight, for if the enemy had intended to at- 
tack us, he would, following his usual tactics, have 
fallen upon us at daybreak.' 

" Two hours more had gone by, and some drop- 
ping musketry began to be heard along the various 3 






ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



379 



parts of our lines. Finally, at about ten o'clock 
there were several fierce volleys, and the loud 
booming of half a dozen pieces of artillery an- 
nouncing that the enemy had again, as on the day 
before, assaulted our left. 

"And now that the battle has begun, let us 
glance one moment at the contending forces. On 
one side is our old army which fought at Stone 
Kiver, reenforced by two divisions (Brannan's 
and Reynolds' corps,) and Starkweather's brigade 
of Baird's division. But counterbalancing these 
to some extent, Post's brigade of Davis' division, 
and Wagner's of Wood's, were both absent. We 
might or might not also rely for assistance upon 
Steadman's division of General Granger's corps. 

" Opposed to these was the old army of the 
Tennessee, which Bragg had so long commanded, 
Longstreet's formidable corps from Virginia, one 
half of Johnston's army from Mississippi, Buck- 
ner's division from East Tennessee, Dabney Mau- 
ry's division from Mobile, Brigadier-General Lee's 
command from Atlanta, and from twelve to fifteen 
thousand fresh troops in the service of the State 
of Georgia — in all, amounting to at least seventy- 
five thousand men. The Union army confronting 
them was certainly not more than fifty-five thou- 
sand strong. 

" The fight upon the extreme left commenced 
by a desperate assault of the enemy upon General 
John Beatty's brigade of Negley's division. The 
brigade, as well as its famous leader, stood their 
ground nobly, but being someAvhat isolated 
from the remainder of the line, finally retired. 
It will be remembered that the other brigades of 
Negley's division were posted much farther to 
the right. A desire to reunite the two portions 
of his command induced General Rosecrans to 
send General Wood to take General Negley's 
place in line until the latter should efiect the re- 
union of his brigades. Wood proceeded imme- 
diately to execute the order, filling up the gap 
as Negley retired. The rebels, understanding the 
movement of Negley's to be a retreat, immediately 
advanced theii* skirmishers, not only here, but all 
along the left, and the fighting at once became 
terrific, as I have described. The rebels, howev- 
er, soon ceased to attack General Wood's front, 
and for a time appeared to devote their entire 
attention to General Thomas. I went down to 
the extreme left of General Wood's position 
about this time, and looking thence into some 
cornfields, could see the desperate efforts of the 
enemy to break the lines of Brannan and Rey- 
nolds. The soldiers of these two noble divisions 
were lying behind rude breastworks of logs and 
rails constructed the night before. Their artillery 
in the rear fired over their heads, and it really 
seemed as if that long line of defence was some 
immense serpent, instinct with hideous Hfe, and 
breathing continually from his huge, rough sides 
volumes of smoke and flame. Colonel Vander- 
veer, Thirty-fifth Ohio, of Brannan's division, 
was fighting here with a brigade second to but 
few in the service. The Colonel himself is a true 
hero, and the command and the commander are 
worthy of each other. Here also was th e brave 



and able Turchin, with a brigade composed prin- 
cipally of Ohio troops, who won for themselves 
and the State that sent them forth immortal 
honor during the conflicts of that day. 

"Again and again the rebel lines, advancing 
from the cover of the woods into the open corn- 
fields, charged with impetuous fury and terrific 
yells towards the breastworks of logs and rails ; 
but each time the fiery blasts from our batteries 
and battalions swept over and around them, and 
their ranks were crumbled and swept away as a 
bank of loose clay washed by a rushing flood. 
But as fast as one line fell off' another appeared, 
rushing sternly on over the dead and bleeding 
bodies of their fallen comrades. Longstreet's 
corps was seeking to regain its lost laurels of yes- 
terday. D. H. Hill, at the head of Hardee's old 
corps, was lending them the assistance of a di- 
vision, and Buckner's troops were throwing their 
weight into the scale. Thomas fought only with 
his forces of Saturday weakened by Saturday's 
heavy losses. It was an unequal contest, and a 
pang of agony shot through my heart as I saw 
our exhausted veterans begin to waver. To waver 
in the face of the charging, shouting, thundering 
host which confronted them, was to lose all ; and 
the next moment wave after wave of the rebel 
sea came surging down towards the breastworks, 
dashing madly against and over the barrier, and 
greedily swallowing up its defenders, with all 
their materiel. Never was resistance more stub- 
born and determined, but never Avas attack pros- 
ecuted with more devilish pertinacity. 

" Meantime, as General Reynolds was so sorely 
pressed. General Wood was ordered to march in- 
stantly by the left flank, pass Brannan, and go to 
his relief. Davis and Sheridan were to shift over 
to the left, and thus close up the fine. As the 
occasion was urgent, General Wood drew in his 
skirmishers with considerable haste, and the reb- 
els, for the second time mistaking a withdrawal 
for a flight, pressed forward like a torrent, and 
poured into the ranks of General Wood a storm 
of musket balls, canister, and grape. Moving 
upon the double-quick, the men endeavored for 
a time to keep their files in order, but as that pit- 
iless storm of lead and iron continued to be 
hurled against them, the regiments began to 
spread out like a fan, wider and wider, until final- 
ly they Avere torn to flinters. This Avas espe- 
cially the case Avith the brigade commanded by 
Colonel BueU. The undaunted Wood, Avith Har- 
ker's brigade,. comparatively intact, passed on to 
his destination, 

" Here Avas the great turning-point in the bat- 
tle. Here, indeed, the battle Avas lost. 

" Davis, coming up to fill the vacancy occa- 
sioned by Wood's withdraAval, Avas caught upon 
the left flank by the fiery rebel torrent noAv pouring 
through the opening and pushed off" toAvards the 
right in utter disorder, Hke a door Avhich is SAvung 
back upon its hinges, and shattered by the same 
bloAV. Van Cleve and what remained of Palmer 
Avere struck upon the other side, and shivered as 
a sapling by a thunderbolt. Even the personal 
exertions of Rosecrans himself, Avho, Avith draAvn 



380 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



sword, and at the head of his devoted staff, en- 
deavored to check the rout, were ineffectual. 

" After that fatal break our line of battle was 
not again re-formed during the day. 

" It was about half past twelve, when, hearing 
a heavy cannonade open upon the right, I galloped 
over in that direction to see what it might mean. 
A longitudinal gap in Mission Ridge admits the 
Rossville road into Chattanooga valley, and sku-ts 
along a large cornfield at the mouth of the gap. 
Looking across the cornfield from the gap, you see 
thick woods upon the other side. The cornfield 
itself is a sort of ' cove ' in the ridge ; and here 
were numbers of all sorts of army vehicles min- 
gled with the debris of dismantled and discom- 
fited batteries. Fragments of Davis' flying squad- 
rons had also lodged in this field. 

" While I stood gazing upon this scene from 
the summit of the ridge, some rebel skirmishers 
ajjpeared in the skirts of the woods opposite the 
gap I have mentioned, and flung perhaps a dozen 
musket balls into the field. Instantly men, ani- 
mals, vehicles, became a mass of struggling, curs- 
ing, shouting, frightened life. Everything and 
everybody appeared to dash headlong for the nar- 
row gap, and men, horses, mules, ambulances, 
baggage wagons, ammunition wagons, artillery 
carriages, and caissons were rolled and tumbled 
together in a confused, inextricable, and finally 
motionless mass, completely blocking up the 
mouth of the gaps. Nearly all this booty sub- 
sequently fell into the hands of the enemy. Sick- 
ened and disgusted by the spectacle, I turned 
away to watch the operations of General Thom- 
as' corps, upon which alone depended the safety 
of the army. 

" General Thomas had withdrawn his men al- 
most entirely from the valley, and taken up a po- 
sition on the side of Mission Ridge. His left still 
rested upon the Lafayette road, and his right upon 
the ridge near the gap I have already spoken of. 
Here were collected the shattered remains of 
the powerful corps which had so long breasted 
the fierce assaults of the enemy in the forenoon. 

" Not long was the new line of battle permitted 
to remain idle. Cannon bellowed against it ; 
missiles of every kind were hurled against it ; 
shells burst above it; rifle balls went tearing 
through it ; but still it remained firm. 

" It was certain, however, as truth itself, that 
unless assistance should reach it from some quar- 
ter, and that right speedily, it must at length 
succumb, for the rebel leaders, emboldened by 
the rout of !McCook and Crittenden, were gather- 
ing their hosts to hurl them in a last mighty ef- 
fort against the feeble band that confronted them. 
Whence should that succor come ? 

" Suddenly a vast cloud of dust was seen to 
rise above the trees away to the left, and a few 
minutes afterwards long lines of men emerged 
from the woods, crossed the Lafayette road, and 
began advancing towards us over the fields. Their 
discipline seemed very perfect, and it was an im- 
posing pageant when, as they came, their banners 
fluttered above their heads, and their glittering 
arms flashed back the sunlight through the thick 
clouds of dust. 



" Captain Johnson, of General Negley's staff, 
who, on being severed from his own division, had 
immediately reported to General Thomas for 
duty, had already, at great personal risk, ascer- 
tained that the advancing battalions were infan- 
try ; and now the question arose, was it our own 
or the enemy's. Hope and fear alternately agi- 
tated our bosoms, until at last, looking through 
our glasses, we could clearly distinguish the red 
and blue, with the Avhite crescent ! It was the 
battle flag of General Granger, and the troops we 
saw were two brigades, Mitchell's and Whitaker's, 
of Steadman's strong division. 

" As soon as General Granger had reported to 
General Thomas for duty, he was sent by the 
latter to bring over an ammunition train from 
the Rossville road. The train had fallen into the 
hands of the enemy ; but the march in search of 
it brought Steadman at once into contact with the 
rebels, and a desperate conflict immediately en- 
sued. It was now that the brilliant courage of 
Colonel John G. Mitchell, commanding one 
of General Steadman's brigades, became con- 
spicuous. Now General Whitaker had an oppor- 
tunity of baptizing in glory the star recently placed 
upon his shoulder ; and now the troops of the 
reserve corps, comparatively unused to battle, 
had an opportunity of testing their mettle. 
Nobly did all pass through the ordeal ; and al- 
though once thrown into confusion by the con- 
centrated fire from a score of rebel regiments 
and half as many batteries, they rallied under 
the fire, and drove the enemy from a hill almost 
as formidable as that which formed the key of 
General Thomas' position. The rebels made 
one desperate endeavor to retake this jJosition, 
but were bloodily repulsed ; and almost for the 
first time since the fight began there was a lull in 
the fearful storm. 

*' An hour passed by, and it became evident 
that Bragg would not be foiled in his attempt to 
annihilate our gallant army without another 
efi"ort. Polk's corps, assisted by the Georgia 
State troops, by Dabney Maury's division, and by 
various detached fragments of the rebel army, 
were to try their hands upon the heroic band, who, 
as the forlorn hope of the army, still held the 
hill. Our feeble ranks were gathered up. The 
thinned battalions were brought closer together. 
The dozen pieces of artillery were planted to 
sweep all approaches to the hill ; and each man, 
looking at his neighbor, vowed, some mentally 
and others audibly, to die right there, if it were 
necessary, for their country, for freedom, and for 
mankind ! 

" All along the woods skirting the cleared 
fields at the south-eastern foot of the hill, in the 
hollows and ravines to the right, and away to the 
left, upon and beyond the Lafayette road, the 
rebel legions were seen gathering for the onset. 

" Just before the storm broke, the brave and 
high-souled Garfield was perceived making his 
way to the headquarters of General Thomas. He 
had come to be present at the final contest ; and 
in order to do so had ridden all the way from 
Chattanooga, passhig through a fiery ordeal upon 
the road. His horse was shot under him, and 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



381 



his orderly was killed by his side. Still he had 
come through, he scarcely knew how ; and here 
he was, to inspire fresh courage into the hearts of 
the brave soldiers who were holding the enemy 
at bay, to bring them words of greeting from 
General Rosecrans, and to inform them that the 
latter was reorganizing the scattered troops, and 
as fast as possible would hurry them forward to 
their relief. 

" The fight around the hill now raged with 
terror inexperienced before, even upon this terri- 
ble day. Our soldiers were formed in two lines, 
and as each marched up to the crest and fired a 
deadly volley at the advancing foe, it fell back a 
little way, the men lay down upon the ground to 
load their guns, and the second line advanced to 
take their place. These, too, in their turn, 
retired; and thus the line kept marching back 
and forth, and delivering their withering volleys 
till the very brain grew dizzy as it watched them. 
And all the time not a man wavered. Every 
motion was executed with as much precision as 
though the troops were on a holiday parade, not- 
withstanding the flower of the rebel army was 
swarming around the foot of the hill, and a score 
of cannon was thundering from three sides upon 
it. Every attempt of the enemy to scale it was 
repulsed; and the gallant Harker looked with 
pride upon his lines, standing or lying just where 
they were when the fight began. 

" But our troops are no longer satisfied with 
the defensive. General Turchin, at the head of 
his brigade, charged into the rebel lines, and cut 
his way out again, bringing with him three hun- 
dred prisoners. Other portions of this brave 
band followed Turchin's example, until the legions 
of the enemy were fairly driven back to the 
ground they occupied previous to commencing 
the last fight. Thus did twelve or fifteen thou- 
sand men, animated by heroic impulses and in- 
spired by worthy leaders, save from destruction 
the army of the Cumberland. Let the nation 
honor them as they deserve ! 

" At night General Thomas fell back to Ross- 
ville, four miles from Chattanooga, around and 
in which city the army lies to-night. 

" Our losses have been most severe, and can 
scarcely fall short of one thousand seven hundred 
killed, and eight thousand wounded. Colonel 
Barnett tells me that our loss in artillery will not 
fall short of fifty pieces. Our deficiency in trans- 
portation and baggage cannot now be estimated." 



THE BRIER-WOOD PIPE. 

BY CHARLES DAWSON SHANLY. 

Ha ! Bully for me, again, when my turn for picket 
is over ; 

And now for a smoke, as I lie, with the moonlight, 
out in the clover. 

My pipe, it's only a knot from the root of the brier- 
wood tree ; 

But it turns my heart to the northward — Harry 
gave it to me. 



And I'm but a rough, at best — bred up to the row 
and the riot ; 

But a softness comes over my heart when all are 
asleep and quiet. 

For many a time in the night strange things appear 
to my eye. 

As the breath from my brier- wood pipe sails up be- 
tween me and the sky. 

Last night a beautiful spirit arose with the wisping 
smoke ; 

0, I shook, but my heart felt good as it spread out 
its hands and spoke. 

Saying, " I am the soul of the brier ; we grew at the 
root of a tree 

Where lovers would come in the twilight, two ever, 
for company ; 

Where lovers would come in the morning, ever but 
two, together, 

When the flowers were full in their blow, the birds 
in their song and feather ; 

Where lovers would come in the noon-time, loiter- 
ing, never but two. 

Looking in each other's eyes, like the pigeons that 
kiss and coo. 

And O, the honeyed words that came when the lips 
were parted. 

And the passion that glowed in eyes, and the light- 
ning looks that darted. 

Enough : love dwells in the pipe, so ever it glows 
with fire ! 

I am the soul of the bush, and spirits call me ' sweet- 
brier.' " 

That's what the brier-wood said, as nigh as my 
tongue can tell ; 

And the words went straight to my heart, like the 
stroke of the fire bell ! 

To-night I lie in the clover watching the blossoray 
smoke ; 

I'm glad the boys are asleep, for I ain't in the hu- 
mor to joke. 

I lie in the hefty clover : between me and the moon 

The smoke from my pipe arises : my heart will be 
quiet soon. 

My thoughts are back in the city. I'm everything 
I've been. 

I hear the bell from the tower, I run with the swift 
machine. 

I see the red shirts crowding around the engine- 
house door ; 

The foreman's hail through the trumpet comes with 
a sullen roar. 

The reel in the Bowery dance-house, the row in the 
beer saloon. 

Where I put in my licks at Big Paul, come between 
me and the moon. 

I hear the drum and the bugle, the tramp of the 
cowskin boots ; 

We are marching to the capital, the Fire Zouave re- 
cruits ! 

White handkerchiefs move before me : O, but the 
sight is pretty ! 

On the white marble steps, as we march through 
the heart of the city. 

Bright eyes and clasping arms, and lips that bid us 
good hap, 

And the splendid lady who gave me the Havelock 
for my cap. 

O, up from my pipe-cloud rises, between me and 
the moon, 

A beautiful white-robed lady: my heart will be 
quiet soon. 



382 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



The lovely golden-haired lady ever in dreams I see, 
Who gave me the snow-white Havelock — but what 

does she care for me ? 
Look at my grimy features : mountains between us 

stand — 
I with my sledge-hammer knuckles, she with her 

jewelled hand ! 
What care I ? The day that's dawning may see me, 

when all is over. 
With the red stream of my life-blood staining the 

hefty clover. 
Hai k ! the reveille sounding out on the morning 

air ! 
Devils are we for the battle — will there be angels 

there ? 
Kiss me again, sweet-brier ! The touch of your lips 

to mine 
Brings back the white-robed lady, with hair like the 

golden wine ! 



A month had hardly passed before hundreds 
who saw the phenomenon were wondering whether 
the tragedy of April had not been dimly pre- 
figured in the flying clouds of that fitful day in 
March. 



President Lincoln's Inauguration, March 
4, 1865. — The days of omens and presages are 
past. The Roman warriors and sages were fre- 
quently influenced, in the most important acts, by 
the feeding of the sacred chickens, the flight of 
a flock of birds, or the quivering of the flesh of a 
victim. 

The appearances of nature which take place at 
the time of great historical events are often long 
remembered, and subsequent occurrences reflect 
upon them a striking and painful emphasis. 

This is true of the following incident, which 
was witnessed, at the second inauguration of 
President Lincoln, by the editor of this volume. 
The 4th of March, 1865, as commonly happens 
in the latitude of Washington, was one of those 
fitful March days when cloud and sunshine chase 
each other, in vivid alternation, across the land- 
scape. The editor was standing, with Hon. S. B. 
Colby, Register of the Treasury, on the Senate 
portico of the Capitol, in the midst of the vast 
and expectant throng, who were awaiting, with 
suppressed enthusiasm, the stepping out of that 
tall, familiar figure that had for four years moved 
at the head of our public affairs. He who now 
sits in the Executive chair had just made that 
famous speech in which the plebeian extraction 
of a great number of the prominent men of 
America was so distinctly brought forward. All 
eyes were now turned in one direction^ and at 
this instant the gaunt figure, surmounted by the 
kindly face, was seen moving forward to the 
place where the Chief Justice of the United 
States was waiting to administer the sacred oath 
of office. 

At this moment a bar of bright sunlight, burst- 
ing through the rifts of a flying cloud, rested for 
a moment upon the head of Lincoln, and sur- 
rounded it as with a halo, which was greeted with 
murmurs of admiration, and exclamations of de- 
light, from thousands of lips. It lasted but an 
instant. The deep shadow of a storm-cloud 
swept across the Capitol, and the vast crowd by 
which it was surrounded ; and that head, which 
a moment before had been bright with an un- 
natural lustre, was shrouded now in gloom. 



Incident of the Southern Service. — Von 
Borcke, chief of staff to General J. E. B. Stuart, 
in his reminiscences of the war, relates the follow- 
ing incident : 

" During the night, there came a telegram for 
General Stuart, which I opened, with his other 
despatches, and found to contain the most pain- 
ful intelligence. It announced the death of little 
Flora, our chiefs lovely and dearly-loved daugh- 
ter, five years of age — the favorite of her father 
and of his military family. This sweet child had 
been dangerously ill for some time, and more 
than once had Mrs. Stuart summoned her husband 
to Flora's bedside ; but she received only the re- 
sponse of the true soldier : ' My duty to • my 
country must be performed before I can give way 
to the feelings of a father.' I went at once to 
acquaint my General with the terrible tidings ; 
and. when I had awakened him, perceiving, from 
the grave expression of my features, that some- 
thing had gone wrong, he said, ' What is it. Ma- 
jor? Are the Yankees advancing?' I handed 
him the telegram without a word. He read it, 
and, the tenderness of the father's heai-t over- 
coming the firmness of the warrior, he threw his 
arms around my neck, and wept bitter tears upon 
my breast. My dear General never recovered 
from this cruel blow. Many a time afterwards, 
during our rides together, he would speak to me 
of his lost child. Light blue flowers recalled her 
to him. In the glancing sunbeams he caught the 
golden tinge of her hair j and whenever he saw a 
child with such eyes and hair, he could not help 
tenderly embracing it. He thought of her even 
on his death-bed, when, drawing me towards him, 
he whispered, ' My dear friend, I shall soon be 
with little Flora again ! ' " 



Incidents of Gettysburg. — A soldier who 
participated in the battle relates the following : 
" Let me mention something which is, after all, 
the real occasion for the Avriting of this letter. 
I have a Bible taken from the knapsack of a dead 
rebel which has a history. On the first cover of 
the Bible (which fastens with a clasp) is the name 
of ' Miss Almira Alice Wilson, Presqu'lsle, Au- 
gust 18, '52 or '62 ' — I cannot clearly see which. 
On the first leaf is the name of ' Moses C. Ames, 
or Amors.' Upon the opposite page is the name 
of ' Wm. M. Nichols, company F, 21st regiment, 
Georgia V. L, May 27, 1863.' Upon the last leaf 
and cover is written, ' William Martin Nichols' 
Book ; picked up on the battle-field near Chan- 
cellorsville. May 31, 1863.' To which I have 
added, ' Taken from the knapsack of a dead rebel 
at Warehouse Hospital, Gettysburg, July, 1863.' 
My theory is this : Miss Wilson gave the Bible to 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



383 



Moses Ames ; Ames, like a loyal son of Maine, 
enlisted and fought at Chancellorsville. Either 
killed, wounded, or a prisoner, his knapsack was 
rifled by a Georgian named Nichols. Nichols in 
turn was wounded and captured at Gettysburg, 
where he dies, and the Bible falls into the hands 
of a nurse from Maine, who is anxious to restore 
it to the original owner. 

" Among the wounded in the battle were sev- 
eral Germans, from a German regiment, and when 
one of them died the boys proposed the German 
chaplain should officiate at the funeral. Accord- 
ingly a grave was dug, and the body, attended 
by many comrades, was borne to its last resting- 
place. Arriving there the German chaplain be- 
gan : 

" ' Mine frens, dis ish de first time dis man 
has diedJ Observing a titter among his au- 
dience, he began again in a tone of Christian 
severity : 

" ' Mine frens, I say, dis ish de first time dis 
man has died.' Human nature could bear no 
more, and the boys shouted. Indignant at the 
disrespect shown him as a minister, the chaplain 
turned round, pointed to the open grave, and 
simply saying, ' Stick him in,' marched away. 
Remember I do not vouch for the story, but I 
laughed over it till I cried when I heard it told." 



A March in Tennessee. — J. P. Glezen, in 
the story of a march from Montgomery to Lon- 
don, Tennessee, relates the following incidents : 
" A tramp in these mountains at this time (Octo- 
ber, 1863) affords few things calculated to cheer 
the hearts of soldiers. The ravages of war have 
made desolation more desolate, and rendered the 
poor inhabitants more destitute. In some neigh- 
borhoods we occasionally passed houses that were 
tenanted and fields that were cultivated. Some- 
times, however, we would march all day without 
seeing a field or even a garden, in cultivation, or 
a house that was occupied. Unoccupied cabins 
and uncultivated fields are the unmistakable evi- 
dences of the fideUty and patriotism of their for- 
mer occupants and owners. The doors and Avin- 
dows of dwellings have been broken in, fences 
have been burned, and ragweeds and briers have 
taken the place of corn and grain. Now and then 
the stacks of chimneys and the charred ruins of 
some dwelling mark the spot where there once 
lived a man who revered the flag of the Union, 
and honored the government of our fathers ; and 
for this his dwelling has been consumed by the 
torch of some merciless incendiary, and his fam- 
ily have been driven from a comfortable home, to 
seek refuge in a lonely cavern among the rocks. 
The inhabitants themselves, who ventured out to 
the road from the difterent by-paths to see us 
pass, looked as poor as the country they live in, 
and a majority of them appeared nearly as desti- 
tute of intelligence as their country is of forage. 
At one place three Avomen came to the road to 
get a peep at the ' Yanks.' They were all bare- 
footed, and each had a pipe in her mouth, a baby 



in her arms, and a sharp-nosed dog following her. 
But they generally appear to be clever people, 
and they will, no doubt, feel sorry when they re- 
ceive the painful intelligence of the death of An- 
drew Jackson. We occasionally fell in with brave 
mountaineers, armed and mounted, who, being 
animated with the love of liberty that character- 
ized the early inhabitants of the mountains of 
Switzerland and the Highlands of Scotland, have 
formed confederate bands to punish their tormen- 
tors and strike down their cruel invaders. 

" Near the town of Montgomery is an extensive 
cave in the movmtains, called Beatty's Cave. In 
that rich valley, Beatty, the leader of those moun- 
tain patriots, is intrenched and fortified, and 
thousands of acres are there cultivated in corn 
and other gi-ain for their subsistence. 

" Before the late advance of our army, Beatty 
kept pickets constantly posted to warn him of 
the approach of the enemy, and whenever a rebel 
force was discovered in the vicinity, the sound of 
Beatty's horn, the signal of alarm, was simulta- 
neously responded to by a hundred other horns 
amongst the neighboring hills, when the mem- 
bers of the Union League would start for Beatty's 
cave for safety and defence. At one time the 
rebel cavalry, fifteen hundred strong, made an 
assault on Beatty at this cave, whom he repulsed 
with desperate slaughter. When the pen of the 
historian shall have faithfully recorded the chiv- 
alrous deeds of ' Tinker Beatty,' he will be re- 
garded by his countrymen as the ' William Tell ' 
of the Cumberland Mountains." 



Rip Van Winkle in Virginia. — When the 
Union troops under McClellan and Rosecrans, in 
the summer of 1861, were penetrating the moun- 
tain region of West Virginia, as they marched 
through a quiet nook on the side of Laurel Ridge, 
they saw a venerable matron standing in the door 
of a log cabin. 

One of the men fell into conversation with her, 
and found her views on the issues of the day were 
not very well defined. At length he said : 

" You'll not refuse to hurrah for Old Abe, will 
you, old lady ? " 

" Who's Old Abe ? " asked the dame, growing 
more astonished every minute. 

" Abraham "Lincoln, President of the United 
States." 

" Why, hain't Genrul Washington President ? " 

"No! he's been dead for more than sixty 
years." 

" Genrul Washington dead ? " she repeated in 
blank amazement. 

Then, rushing into the cabin, she called, " Yeou, 
Sam! — " 

"Well, what is it, mother ? " said a voice within. 

In a moment she reappeared with a boy of 
fifty, whom the men afterwards learned was 
her son. 

" Only to think, Sam," she cried excitedly, 
" Genrul Washington's dead. Sakes alive ! I 
wonder what's going to happen next." 



884 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



THE SLEEPING SENTINEL. 

BY FRANCIS DE HAES JANVIER, 

[The incidents woven into the following beautiful 
verses relate to William Scott, a young soldier from 
Vermont, who, while on duty as a sentinel at night, fell 
asleep, and, having been condemned to die, was pardoned 
by the President. They form a brief record of his life at 
home and in the field, and of his glorious death in de- 
fence of the Union.] 

'TwAs in the sultry summer-time, as war's red rec- 
ords show, 

"When patriot armies rose to meet a fratricidal 
foe; 

When from the North, and East, and West, like 
the upheaving sea. 

Swept forth Columbia's sons, to make our cotmtry 
truly free. 

Within a prison's dismal walls, where shadows 

veiled decay. 
In fetters, on a heap of straw, a youthful soldier 

lay ; 
Heart-broken, hopeless, and forlorn, with short and 

feverish breath. 
He waited but th' appointed hour to die a culprit's 

death. 

Yet, but a few brief weeks before, untroubled with 
a care. 

He roamed at will, and freely drew his native moun- 
tain air — 

Where sparkling streams leap mossy rocks, from 
many a woodland font, 

And waving elms and grassy slopes give beauty 
to Vermont ; _ — 

Where, dwelling in a humble cot, a tiller of the 

soil, 
Encircled by a mother's love, he shared a father's 

toil — 
Till, borne upon the wailing winds, his suffering 

country's cry 
Fired his young heart with fervent zeal, for her to 

live or die. 

Then left he all : — a feAV fond tears, by firmness 
half concealed, 

A blessing, and a parting prayer, and he was in the 
field — 

The field of strife, whose dews are blood, whose 
breezes war's hot breath. 

Whose fruits are garnered in the grave, whose hus- 
bandman is death ! 

Without a murmur he endured a service new and 
hard ; 

But, wearied with a toilsome march, it chanced one 
night, on guard, 

He sank, exhausted, at his post, and the gray morn- 
ing found 

His prostrate form — a sentinel asleep upon the 
ground ! 

So, in the silence of the night, aweary on the sod, 
Sank the disciples, watching near the suffering Son 

of God ; 
Yet Jesus, with compassion moved, beheld their 

heavy eyes. 
And, though betrayed to ruthless foes, forgiving, 

bade them rise ! 



But God is love — and finite minds can faintly com- 
prehend 

How gentle Mercy, in His rule, may with stern 
Justice blend ; 

And this poor soldier, seized and bound, found 
none to justify. 

While war's inexorable law decreed that he must 
die. 



'Twas night. — In a secluded room, with measured 

tread and slow, 
A statesman of commanding mien paced gravely 

to and fro. 
Oppressed, he pondered on a land by civil discord 

rent; 
On brothers armed in deadly strife : — it was the 

President ! 

The woes of thirty millions filled his burdened 
heart with grief; 

Embattled hosts, on land and sea, acknowledged 
him their chief; 

And yet, amid the din of war, he heard the plain- 
tive cry 

Of that poor soldier, as he lay in prison, doomed 
to die ! 



'Twas morning. — On a tented field, and through 
the heated haze. 

Flashed back, from lines of burnished arms, the 
sun's effulgent blaze ; 

While, from a sombre prison-house, seen slowly to 
emerge, 

A sad procession, o'er the sward, moved to a muf- 
fled dirge. 

And in th^ midst, with faltering step, and pale and 

anxious face. 
In manacles, between two guards, a soldier had his 

place. 
A youth — led out to die ; — and yet it was not 

death, but shame. 
That smote his gallant heart with dread, and shook 

his manly frame ! 

Still on, before the marshalled ranks, the train pur- 
sued its way 

Up to the designated spot, whereon a cofiin lay — 

His coffin ! And, with reeling brain, despairing, 
desolate — 

He took his station by its side, abandoned to his 
fate! 

Then came across his wavering sight strange pic- 
tures in the air : 

He saw his distant mountain home ; he saw his 
parents there ; 

He saw them bowed Avith hopeless grief, through 
fast declining years ; 

He saw a nameless grave ; and then, the vision 
closed — in tears ! 

Yet once again. In double file, advancing, then, 
he saw 

Twelve comrades, sternly set apart to execute the 
law — 

But saw no more : — his senses swam — deep dark- 
ness settled round — 

And, shuddering, he awaited now the fatal volley's 
sotmd ! 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



38r> 



Then suddenly was heard the noise of steeds and 

■wheels approach, — 
And, rolling through a cloud of dust, appeared a 

stately coach. 
On, past the guards, and through the field, its rapid 

course was bent. 
Till, halting, 'mid the lines was seen the nation's 

President ! 

He came to save that stricken soul, now waking 
from despair; 

And from a thousand voices rose a shout which 
rent the air ! 

The pardoned soldier understood the tones of ju- 
bilee, 

And, bounding from his fetters, blessed the hand 
that made him free ! 



'Twas Spring. — Within a verdant vale, where 
Warwick's crystal tide 

Reflected, o'er its peaceful breast, fair fields On 
either side : 

Where birds and flowers combined to cheer a syl- 
van solitude, 

Two threatening armies, face to face, in fierce defi- 
ance stood! 

Two threatening armies ! One invoked by injured 
Liberty — 

Which bore above its patriot ranks the symbol of 
the Free ; 

And one, a rebel horde, beneath a flaunting flag of 

bars, 

^ A fragment, torn by traitorous hands from Free- 
dom's Stripes and Stars ! 

A sudden burst of smoke and flame, from many a 
thundering gun. 

Proclaimed, along the echoing hills, the conflict had 
begun ; 

While shot and shell athwart the stream with fiend- 
ish fury sped, 

To strew among the living lines the dying and the 
dead ! 

Then, louder than the roaring storm, pealed forth 
the stern command, 

" Charge ! soldiers, charge ! " and, at the word, 
with shouts, a fearless band. 

Two hundred heroes from Vermont, rushed on- 
ward, through the flood, 

And upward, o'er the rising ground, they marked 
their way in blood ! 

The smitten foe before them fled, in terror, from 
his post — 

While, unsustained, two hundred stood, to battle 
with a host ! 

Then, tiirning, as the rallying ranks, with murder- 
ous fire replied. 

They bore the fallen o'er the field, and through 
the purple tide ! 

The fallen ! And the first who fell in that unequal 
strife 

Was he whom Mercy sped to save when Justice 
claimed his life — 

The pardoned soldier ! And, while yet the con- 
flict raged around — 

While yet his life-blood ebbed away through every 
gaping wound — 

25 



While yet his voice grew tremulous, and death be- 

dimmed his eye — 
He called his comrades to attest he had not feared 

to die ! 
And, in his last expiring breath, a praj'er to heaven 

was sent, 
That God, with his unfailing grace, would bless 

our President I 



On the Battle-Field. — A correspondent 
of a Southern paper gives the following descrip- 
tion of the feelings of a soldier for the first time 
on a battle-field : 

" No person who was not upon the ground, 
and an eye-witness of the stirring scenes which 
there transpired, can begin to comprehend from 
a description the terrible realities of a battle ; 
and even those who participated are competent 
to speak only of their own personal experience. 
Where friends and foes are falling by scores, and 
every species of missile is flying through the air, 
threatening each instant to send one into eterni- 
ty, little time is afforded for more observation or 
reflection than is required for personal safety. 

" The scene is one of the most exciting and 
exhilarating that can be conceived. Imagine & 
regiment passing you at ' double-quick,' the men 
cheering with enthusiasm, their teeth set, their eyes 
flashing, and the whole in a frenzy of resolution. 
You accompany them to the field. They halt. 
And aid-de-camp passes to or from the command- 
ing General. The clear voices of officers ring 
along the line in tones of passionate eloquence, 
their words hot, thrilling, and elastic. The word 
is given to march, and the body moves into 
action. For the first time in your life you listen 
to the whizzing of iron. Grape and canister fly 
into the ranks, bombshells burst overhead, and 
the fragments fly all around you. A friend falls ; 
perhaps a dozen or twenty of your comrades lie 
wounded or dying at your feet ; a strange, invol- 
untary shrinking steals over you, which it is im- 
possible to resist. You feel inclined neither to 
advance nor recede, but are spell-bound by the 
contending emotions of the moral and physical 
man. The cheek blanches, the lip quivers, and 
the eye almost hesitates to look upon the scene. 

" In this attitude you may, perhaps, be ordered 
to stand an hour inactive, havoc meanwhile mark- 
ing its footsteps with blood on every side. Finally 
the order is given to advance, to fire, or to charge. 
And now, what a metamorphosis ! With your 
first shot you become a new man. Personal 
safety is your least concern. Fear has no exist- 
ence in your bosom. Hesitation gives way to an 
uncontrollable desire to rush into the thickest 
of the fight. The dead and dying around you, 
if they receive a passing thought, only serve to 
stimulate you to revenge. You become cool and 
deliberate, and watch the effect of bullets, the 
shower of bursting shells, the passage of cannon- 
balls as they rake their murderous channels 
through your ranks, the plunging of wounded 
horses, the agonies of the dj-ing, and the clash 
of contending arms, which follows the dashing 



386 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



charge with a feeling so calloused by surrounding 
circumstances that your soul seems dead to every 
sympathizing and selfish thought. 

" Such is the spirit which carries the soldier 
through the field of battle. But when the excite- 
ment has passed, when the roll of musketry has 
ceased, the noisy voices of the cannons are stilled, 
the dusky pall of sulphurous smoke has risen 
from the field, and you stroll over the theatre of 
carnage, hearing the groans of the wounded, dis- 
covering here, shattered almost beyond recogni- 
tion, the form of some dear friend whom only an 
hour before you met in the full flush of life and 
happiness, there another perforated by a bullet, 
a third with a limb shot away, a fourth with his 
face disfigured, a fifth almost torn to fragments, 
a sixth a headless corpse, the ground ploughed 
up and stained with blood, human brains splashed 
around, limbs without bodies and bodies without 
limbs scattered here and there, and the same pic- 
ture duplicated scores of times, — then you begin 
to realize the horrors of war, and experience a 
reaction of nature. The heart opens its flood- 
gates, humanity asserts herself again, and you 
begin to feel. 

" Friend and foe alike now receive your kindest 
miiiisterings. The enemy, whom, but a short time 
before, full of hate, you were doing all in your 
power to kill, you now endeavor to save. You 
supply him with water to quench his thirst, with 
food to sustain his strength, and with sympathiz- 
ing words to soothe his troubled mind. All that 
is human or charitable in your nature now rises 
to the surface, and you are animated by that 
spirit of mercy ' which blesseth him that gives 
and him that takes.' A battle-field is eminently 
a place that tries men's souls." 



The Fight at Kelley's Island. — Colonel 
Wallace had been accustomed to send his mount- 
ed scouts to diff"erent posts along the several 
approaches to Cumberland. There were only 
thii'teen of the scouts ; but they were picked men, 
who, from such practice, had become accustomed 
to their peculiar duty. The following are their 
names and companies : 

Company A — D. B. Hay, E. H. Backer. Com- 
pany B — Ed. Burkett, J. C. Hollenback. Compa- 
ny C — Tim. Grover, James Hollowell. Company 
D — Thos. Brazier. Company E — Geo. W. Hue- 
bargar. Company F — Lewis Farley. Company 
H — Frank Harrison. Company I — P. M. Dun- 
lap. Company K — Robt. Dunlap, E. P. Thomas. 

On the 27th of June, 1861, the Colonel 
found it impossible to get reliable information 
of the enemy. Uniting the scouts in a body, he 
gave them in charge of Corporal D. B. Hay, with 
directions to proceed to a httle town on the pike 
from Cumberland to Romney, named Frankfort, 
and ascertain if rebel troops were there. 

Hay was sharp, cunning, and bold — the very 
man for the business. Filling their canteens and 
haversacks, the brave men strapped their rifles 
on their backs, and started on their mission. 
Their horses were of the class now known as 



condemned. Hay's was the only good one. He 
had some reputation as a racer, and went by the 
name of " Silverheels. " His rider had captured 
him in a scuffle a few days before, and prized 
him highly as a trophy. All the rest had been 
impressed into the service, and now made sad 
profert of their ribs by way of protest against 
then." usage. 

A rumor passed through the camp that morn- 
ing that Hay was going to fight before he re- 
turned. His procedure was certainly that of a 
man in search of one. He took the turnpike to 
Romney, and never drew rein, until, from a little 
eminence, he looked down into the straggling 
village of Frankfort. The street was full of in- 
fantry. The horses picketed about indicated a 
large body of cavalry. Most men would have 
been anxious, after that sight, to return to camp 
as quickly as possible. Not so Hay and his com- 
rades. Sitting on their horses, they coolly made 
up their estimate of the enemy's number, and 
when they were perfectly agreed on the point, 
turned about, and rode leisurely away. On the 
return, they took another road veiy much broken, 
and which, threading among the hills, after many 
devious windings, finally brought up to the track 
of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. The taking 
of this road was a mere freak of fancy. It was 
by no means the shortest to camp, nor was its 
exploration of any probable use ; yet it led to a 
fight ; and if the scouts had known that before- 
hand, it is not likely they would have changed 
their course. Three or four miles from Frank- 
fort, while descending a mountain side, after tui'n- 
ing a sharp elbow in the road, the men came 
suddenly upon a party of rebel cavalry. Each 
instinctively drew his bridle rein, and for an 
instant halted. Rapidly they commenced count- 
ing. 

" Forty-one of them, boys ! " cried Hay, turn- 
ing in his saddle. "What do you say? Will 
you stand by me ? " 

" Go in, Dave," was the unanimous vote. 

It took but a moment to unsling their rifles. 

" Are you ready ? " asked Hay. 

" All ready," they replied. 

" Come on, then," shouted the leader. " The 
best horse gets the first man ! " 

With the last word they were ofi". 

It happened the rebels themselves were going 
in the same direction. They were also somewhat 
below them in the descent of the road. With his 
usual shrewdness, and quick as thought. Hay 
grasped his advantage of position. An abrupt 
declivity on the left of the narrow road made it 
impossible for the enemy to form line. Neither 
could the rebels turn and charge up hill. They 
must go on to escape. If they stopped, " Silver- 
heels " would go through like a thunderbolt. 

The rebels heard the shout, and, in surprise, 
halted and took a look. The sight, under or- 
dinary circumstances, would have been interest- 
ing to them. Not seventy-five yards behind, 
they saw Hay and his party galloping down the 
decline at break-neck speed ; their glance rested 
briefly on the little jackets, and big gray breeches, 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



387 



on the short, brown rifles shaken menacingly 
over the scarlet-tipped caps, and on the straining 
horses ; their ears recognized the yell of pursuit ; 
and then they staid not on their order of going. 
What they said, and whether they counted the 
assailants, we know not ; but they began a retreat 
that soon took the form of a promiscuous fox 
chase, except that the shouts, which momentarily 
neared them, had little likeness to the joyous 
halloo of hunters. 

Hay led the pursuit ; Farley was next ; the 
others followed as best they could ; not one hung 
back. It is to be doubted whether in his best 
days " Silverheels " had made better time. A 
short distance from the foot of the hill he over- 
took the rebels. Just before the collision, Hay 
rose in his stirrups, and fired his rifle into the 
party. He was so close that to miss would have 
been an accident. SM'inging the w'eapon round 
his head, he hurled it at the nearest man, and the 
next moment, with drawn pistol, plunged furi- 
ously amidst them. They closed around him. 
The pistol shooting became sharp and quick. 
Hay received one wound, and then another, but 
for each one he killed a man. When his revolver 
was empty, he drew his sabre bayonet. The rebel 
Captain gave him from behind a heavy cut on the 
head. Still he sat on his horse, and, though 
weakened by the blow, and half blind with blood, 
he laid out right and left. He fared illy enough, 
but it would have been worse, had not Farley 
then come up, and pitched loyally into the miUe. 
Close at his heels, but singly or doubly, according 
to the speed of their horses, rode all the rest. 
The rebel Captain was shot before he could re- 
peat his sabre blow. Farley w^as dismounted by 
the shock of the collision. He clinched a foe- 
man in like situation ; a struggle ensued ; he 
was thrown, but his antagonist was knocked 
down by young HoUowell before he could use 
his victory. Farley caught another horse. The 
eager onset relieved Hay, and again started the 
rebels, who, in their flight, took to the raih-oad. 
Not a moment was allowed them to turn upon 
their pursuers. Over the track helter-skelter 
they went. Suddenly they came to a burnt cul- 
vert. It was too late to dodge it : over or into 
it they had to go. Eight men were killed in the 
attempt to cross it. Hay, in close pursuit, saw 
the leap just as it was unavoidable. " Silver- 
heels " in his turn cleared the culvert, but fell 
dead a few yards beyond. The chase ended there. 
When his comrades crossed over, they found Hay 
sitting by his horse crying like a child, on ac- 
count of his death. 

The scouts then proceeded to collect the spoils. 
When they were all in, the net proceeds of the 
victory were seventeen horses, with their equip- 
ments, and eleven dead rebels — three on the 
hill-side and eight in the culvert. Hay remounted 
himself, and started with the party for Cumber- 
land. It may be imagined with what satisfaction 
the brave victors pictured to each other their 
triumphal entry into camp. After going a few 
miles Hay became so faint from loss of blood that 
he had to be taken out of his saddle. The dilem- 



ma in which they found themselves was settled 
by sending two of their number to a farm-house 
for a wagon ; meantime they laid their leader in the 
shade, and brought water for him from the river. 
While they were thus nursing him back to 
strength, a fire was suddenly opened upon them 
from a hill on the left. This was a surprise, but 
their coolness did not desert them. Hay bade 
thenyiut him on a horse, and leave him to take care 
of himself. They complied : clinging painfully to 
the saddle, he forded the Potomac and was safe. 
The others could probably have saved themselves, 
but in a foolish effort to save their horses, they 
lost the opportunity. Farley then became leader. 

" Let the horses go, and give the rebels thun- 
der," was his simple, emphatic order. 

The fire thickening on thefn was then returned. 
Years before Farley had lost one of his eyes ; 
the sound one, however, Avas now admirably used. 
He saw the rebels were trying to surround the 
party, and would succeed if better cover was not 
soon found. Behind them ran Patterson's Creek. 
The ground on its opposite shore was scarcely 
higher than that which they occupied, but it was 
covered with rocks washed naked by the flowing 
stream. Farley saw that to get there would be a 
good exchange. 

" It's a pretty slim chance, boys," he coolly said, 
" but it won't do to give in or stay here. Let's 
make a rush for the big rocks yonder, and get 
the creek between them and us." 

The rush was made ; under a sharp fire they 
crossed the creek, and took shelter behind the 
boulders. Ten of them were there, but, to use 
their own language, they were all " sound as new 
fifty-cent pieces, and not whipped by a long 
sight." 

Peeping over the rocks, they counted over sev- 
enty rebels on foot making at full speed for the 
creek, evidently with the intention of crossing it. 
Each one felt that the trial had come. 

•' Look out now^, and don't waste a cartridge. 
Recollect they are scarce," said Thomas. 

"Yes, and recollect Buena Vista," said Hol- 
lowell. 

The first rebel entered the creek before a gun 
was fy'ed, so perfectly calm were those ten men. 
Then crack, crack, in quick succession, went the 
rifles, scarcely a bullet failing in its mark. The 
assailants recoiletl, ran back, and finding cover as 
best they could, began the exciting play of sharp- 
shooters. This practice continued for more than 
an hour. The sun went down on it. About that 
time, a small party of horsemen galloped down 
the road, and hitching their horses, joined the 
enemy. One of the new comers made himself 
conspicuous by refusing to take to the ground. 
Walking about, as if in contempt of the minies 
which were sent whistling round him, he gave 
directions which resulted in another sudden dash 
for the creek. Again the rifle went crack, crack, 
in quick succession, and M'ith the same fatal con- 
sequence : but this time the rebels had a leader ; 
men were seen to fall in the water, but there was 
no second recoil ; tlie obstructions were cleared in 
the face of the rifles, and with much cursing and 



388 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



shouting the attacking party closed in upon the 
Zouaves. 

The fight was hand-to-hand. No amount of 
courage could be effective against the great odds 
at such close quarters. Nevertheless, all that 
was possible was done. Night was rapidly closing 
upon the scene ; over the rocks, and through the 
tangled thicket, and in the fading twilight, the 
struggle for revenge and life went on. There 
was heroism on both sides ; that of the Zouaves 
was matchless, because it was in no small degree 
the prompting of despair. 

Farley found himself again engaged Avith the 
leader of the rebels, a man of as much strength 
as courage. Hollowell saved his life at the cost 
of his rifle, but snatching the dead man's pistols, 
he resumed the fight. The pistols were brought 
into camp, and next morning presented to the 
young hero by the Colonel. 

Thomas killed two by rifle shots ; while loading 
a third time, he was struck by a pistol ball on 
the side of the temple, and fell senseless. A man 
in the act of striking him with a sabre was shot 
through by Grover, and died on Thomas. It was 
dark when Thomas recovered. Hearing no sound 
of fighting, he pushed the dead body from him, 
secured his rifle, and hid himself in vines and 
bushes. In a little while the rebels came to re- 
move the dead. He saw them carry thirteen 
bodies across the creek. In searching the island 
they found Hollenback, who had been shot 
through the body. Thomas heard the exclama- 
tion announcing tlie discovery. 

" Here's a Yankee ! " was the shout. 

*' Kill him, kill him ! " arose on all sides. 

" Come, get out of this ! " said a strong voice. 

" I can't, I'm shot," feebly protested Hollen- 
back. 

Yet they made him rise, and wade the creek. 
When all was still, Thomas escaped by wading 
and swimming the Potomac. 

Baker and Dunlap, of company I, the men 
sent for the wagon, hearing the second engage- 
ment, galloped with all speed to camp, and re- 
ported. The regiment was on drill when they 
arrived. Fifty men, under Major Robinson, were 
instantly detailed to go to the rescue. When 
t!ie detachment reached the edge of the town it 
was swelled to two hundred : the guards found it 
impossible to keep the Zouaves in the lines. The 
relief travelled fast, but arrived too late. The 
i-rland was deserted. Pistols, broken guns, dead 
horses, and rocks stained with blood, told the 
story. 

The detail returned late in the night. Early 
next morning, two companies, under Major Rob- 
inson, were sent down to search for some of the 
missing men and property, and bury such dead 
as they might find. In the afternoon the Major 
came back with some trophies, eight horses, and 
]>oor Hollenback. He had found Hollenback ly- 
i;ig on a farmer's porch, dead, but warm and 
bleeding, with a bullet hole and a bayonet thrust 
through his body. The woman of the house 
tiild Major Robinson how he died. 

" The man wasn't dead when they brought him 



here," she said ; " but a little while ago, when 
they heard you coming, they set him on a horse 
to take him off with them ; but he fainted : he 
couldn't stand it. A man then stuck a bayonet 
into his back." 

The Major glanced at the porch, and observed 
blood on the floor. 

" Did they bring anybody else here, madam ? " 
he asked. 

" O, yes ! I reckon they did. Me and my man 
came out while they were at work, and we count- 
ed twenty-three men laid out, side by side, on 
the porch there. Two or three of them were 
wounded. I heard some one say that they had 
brought some of the dead men down the railroad. 
Ashby was one of the wounded." 

The Ashby alluded to was a brother of the 
Colonel Ashby of Black Horse Cavalry renown. 
He afterwards died of his Avounds. 

By five o'clock the day after the fight the scouts 
were all in camp. They straggled in one by one. 
Citizens and soldiers turned out to receive them. 
Never did returning heroes have more sympa- 
thizing and admiring audiences. Thomas showed 
the kiss of the bullet on his temple. Baker wore 
the cap of a rebel — his own had been shot ofl' 
his head. Dunlop had three bullet holes through 
his shirt. Hollowell exhibited his captured pis- 
tols and broken rifle. Farley yet retained the 
handle of his sabre bayonet, shivered in the fray. 
Several of the men testified to his killing six 
enemies with his own hand. Not a man but had 
some proofs of the engagement, such as torn 
clothes and bruised body. But Hay was the 
hero. Three ghastly wounds entitled him to the 
honor. 

The final escape of each had been in the same 
manner. Finding themselves overpowered and 
separated, each one, at the first opportunity, had 
abandoned the battle ground, which proved to be 
Kelley's Island, at the mouth of Patterson's 
Creek, and plunging into the river, succeeded in 
crossing it. The enemy followed to the canal, on 
the northern side. 

Hollenback Avas buried in the cemetery. A 
more solemn funeral never took place in the old 
town. The sorrow was universal. Loyal men 
thought : 

' ' To every man upon this earth 
Death cometh soon or late ; 
And where can man die better 
Than facing fearful odds, 
For the ashes of his fathers. 
And the temples of his Gods ! " 

Indiana's Roll of Honor. 

Incidext of Chickamauga. — On the fu-st 
day of the engagement, Captain Ogan, of com- 
pany K, Fourteenth Ohio regiment, was taken 
prisoner by the rebels. As they were approach- 
ing their lines, the idea of practising a little 
finesse, or military stratagem, suggested itself; 
so, pretending to be highly gratified with the 
idea of being a prisoner, he told his captors that 
this was what he wanted — that he had long been 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



389 



anxious to get out of the war, and was well sat- 
isfied with that mode of getting out. " But," 
said he, " you are taking me right back into the 
Federal lines." They, supposing they had be- 
come confused in the heat and hurry of the 
movement, turned around, and carried him back 
within the Federal lines, Avhen it became his turn 
to reciprocate by capturing his captors, and com- 
manding them to deliver up their arms, which 
they did in a very gracious manner, taking their 
places among the rebel prisoners. 

General Steedman won great praise for his gal- 
lantry on the field. His horse was shot from un- 
der him, and in the fall his hand became seri- 
ously injured. Upon rising, he discovered some 
of his men straggling from his division, when he 
commenced pelting them with stones, driving 
them back to their work — concluding that if 
words would not do, he would try the virtues of 
harder material. For a long time he held the 
Union colors in his own hand, in the heat of the 
conflict. 

Colonel P. P. Baldwin, of the Sixth Indiana, 
commanding a brigade, fell from his horse 
in the earlier part of the engagement, badly 
wounded. He had seized a flag, which had fallen 
from the hands of one of his slain Color-Ser- 
geants, and, waving it aloft, amid the confusion, 
shot, and shell of the enemy, was gallantly lead- 
ing his brigade to meet a charge of the enemy, 
when he fell, wounded, between the two lines. 



THE LITTLE DRUMMER. 
A soldier's story. 

BY K. H. STODDARD. 



'Tis of a little drummer, 

The story I shall tell. 
Of how he marched to battle, 

And all that there befell. 
Out in the West with Lyon 

(For once the name was true). 
For whom the little drummer beat 

His rat-tat-too. 



Our army rose at midnight. 

Ten thousand men as one. 
Each slinging on his knapsack. 

And snatching up his gun : 
" Foncard ! " and off they started, 

As all good soldiers do. 
When the little drummer beats for them 

The rat-tat-too. 



Across a rolling country. 

Where the mist began to rise, 
Past many a blackened farm-house, 

Till the sun was in the skies, 
Then we met the rebel pickets. 

Who skirmished and withdrew, 
AVhile the little drummer beat and beat 

The rat-tat-too. 



Along the wooded hollows 

The line of battle ran ; 
Our centre poured a volley. 

And the fight at once began ; 
For the rebels answered shouting, 

And a shower of bullets flew ; 
But still the little drummer beat 

His rat-tat-too. 



He stood among his comrades. 

As they quickly formed the line. 
And when they raised their muskets 

He watched the barrels shine ! 
When the volley rang, he started ! 

For war to him was new ; 
But still the little drummer beat 

His rat-tat-too. 



It was a sight to see them. 

That early autumn day. 
Our soldiers in their blue coats. 

And the rebel ranks in gray : 
The smoke that rolled between them. 

The balls that whistled through. 
And the little drummer as he beat 

His rat-tat-too ! 



His comrades dropped around him — 

By fives and tens they fell, 
Some pierced by minie bullets. 

Some torn by shot and shell ; 
They played against our cannon. 

And a caisson's splinters flew ; 
But still the little drummer beat 

His rat-tat-too ! 



The right, the left, the centre — 

The fight was everywhere : 
They pushed us here — we wavered - 

We drove and broke them there. 
The gray-backs fixed their bayonets. 

And charged the coats of blue, 
But still the little drummer beat 

His rat-tat-too ! 



" Where is our little drummer ? " 

His nearest comrades say. 
When the dreadful fight is over. 

And the smoke has cleared away. 
As the rebel corps was scattering 

He urged them to pursue, 
So furiously he beat and beat 

The rat-tat-too ! 



He stood no more among them. 

For a bxillet, as it sped. 
Had glanced and struck his ankle. 

And stretched him with the dead ! 
He crawled behind a cannon. 

And pale and paler grew : 
But still the little drummer beat 

His rat-tat-too ! 



390 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



They bore him to tlie surgeon ; 

A busy man was he ; 
"A drummer boy — what ails him ? ' 

His comrades answered, " See ! " 
As they took him from the stretcher, 

A heavy breath he drew, 
And his little fingers strove to beat 

The rat-tat-too ! 



The ball had spent its fury : 

" A scratch," the surgeon said, 
As he wound the snowy bandage 

Which the lint was staining red ! 
" I must leave you now, old fellow." 

«< O, take me back with you, 
For I know the men are missing me, 

And the rat-tat-too! " 



Upon his comrade's shoulder 

They lifted him so grand, 
With his dusty drum before him, 

And his drumsticks in his hand ! 
To the fiery front of battle, 

That nearer, nearer drew — 
And evermore he beat and beat 

His rat-tat-too ! 



The wounded as he passed them 

Looked up and gave a cheer : 
And one in dying blessed him, 

Between a smile and tear ! 
And the gray-backs — they are flying 

Before the coats of blue. 
For whom the little drummer beats 

His rat-tat-too ! 



When the west was red with sunset. 

The last pursuit was o'er, 
Brave Lyon rode the foremost, 

And looked the name he bore ! 
And before him on his saddle. 

As a weary child would do, 
Sat the little drummer fast asleep, 

With his rat-tat-too. 



Southern Snowballing. — The author of 
" Memoirs of the Confederate AVar," Van Borcke, 
gives the following account of a snowball en- 
gagement in General Lee's army : " We were 
enlivened by snowball fights, which commenced 
as skirmishes near our headquarters, but extend- 
ed over the neighboring camps, and assumed the 
aspect of general engagements. In front of our 
headquarters, beyond an open field of about half a 
mile square, Hood's division lay encamped in a 
piece of wood ; in our immediate rear stretched 
the tents and huts of a part of M'Law's division. 
Betweeen these two bodies of troops animated 
little skirmishes frequently occurred whenever 
there was snow enough on the ground to furnish 
the ammunition ; but on the morning of the 4th, an 
extensive expedition having been undertaken by 



several hundred of M'Law's men against Hood's 
encampments, and the occupants of those finding 
themselves considerably disturbed thereby, sud- 
denly the wliole of the division advanced in line 
of battle, with flying colors, the officers leading 
the men, as if in real action, to avenge the insult. 
The assailants fell back rapidly before this over- 
whelming host, but only to secure a strong posi- 
tion, from which, with reenforcements, they might 
resume the offensive. The alarm of their first 
repulse having been borne M'ith the swiftness of 
the wind to their comrades, sharpshooters in 
large numbers were posted behind the cedar 
bushes that skirt the Telegraph Road, and hun- 
dreds of hands were actively employed in erect* 
ing a long and high snow wall in front of theii 
extended lines. The struggle had now the ap- 
pearance of a regular battle, with its charges 
and counter-charges ; the wild enthusiasm of the 
men and the noble emulation of the officers find- 
ing expression in loud commands and yet louder 
cheering, while the air was darkened with the 
snowballs as the current of the fight moved to 
and fro over the well-contested field. Nearer and 
nearer it came towards our headquarters, and it was 
soon evident to us that the hottest part of the en- 
gagement would take place on our neutral terri- 
tory. Fruitless were the eftbrts of Stuart and 
myself to assert and maintain the neutrality of 
our camp, utterly idle the hoisting of a white 
flag : the advancing columns pressed forward in 
complete disregard of our signs and our outspo- 
ken remonstrances. Clouds of snowballs passed 
across the face of the sun, and ere long the over- 
whelming Avave of the cu;itlict rolled pitilessly 
over us. Yielding to the unavoidable necessity 
which forbade our keeping aloof from the con- 
test, Stuart and I had taken position, in order to 
obtain a view over the field of battle, on a big 
box, containing ordnance stores, in frout of the 
General's tent, where we soon became so much 
interested in tlie result, and so carried away by 
the excitement of the moment, that we found 
ourselves calling out to tlje men to hold their 
ground, and urging them again and again to 
the attack, while many a stray snowball, and 
many a well-directed one, took effect upon our 
exposed persons. But all the gallant resis- 
tance of M'Law's men was unavailing. Hood's 
lines pressed resistlessly forward, carrying everj'- 
thing before them, taking the formidable fortifi- 
cations, and driving INI'Law's division out of the 
encampments. Suddenly, at this juncture, we 
heard loud shouting on the I'ight, Avhere two of 
Anderson's brigades had come up as reenforce- 
ments. The men of M'Law's division, acquiring 
new confidence from this support, rallied, and in 
tiu-n drove, by a united charge, the victorious foe 
in headlong flight back to their own camps and 
woods. Thus ended the battle for the day, un- 
happily with serious results to some of the com- 
batants, for one of Hood's men had his leg bro- 
ken, one of M'Law's men lost an eye, and there 
were other chance wounds on both sides. This 
sham-fight gave ample proof of the excellent 
spirits of our troops, who, in the wet, wintry 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



391 



weather, many of them without blankets, some 
without shoes, regardless of their exposure and 
of the scarcity of provisions, still maintained 
their good humor, and were ever ready for any 
sort of sport or fun that offered itself to them." 



" The Gallant Sixty-Ninth." — Two gallant 
sons of Erin, being just discharged from the ser- 
vice, were rejoicing over the event with a " wee 
taste of the cratur'," when one, who felt all the 
glory of his own noble race, suddenly raised his 
glass above, and said, " Arrah, Mike, here's to the 
gallant ould Sixty-ninth : The last in the field and 
the first to leave ! " " Tut, tut, man," said Mike, 
"you don't mane that." "Don't mane it, is it? 
Then what do I mane ? " " You mane," said Mike, 
and he raised his glass high, and looked lovingly 
at it, "Here's to the gallant ould Sixty-ninth — 
equal to none ! " And so they drank. 



The Death of Colonel Ellsworth. — On 
the evening of the 23d of May> 1861, there was 
a feverish flush and ill-suppressed anxiety among 
the political and military circles of the Federal 
capital. It was generally understood, though not 
announced, that some very important military 
movement was on foot, and that an " enterprise " 
of great pith and moment would in a few hours, 
perhaps, agitate the whole American people. 

Yet, as the night advanced, the excitement wore 
away, and the city of magnificent distances fell 
into its usual tranquillity. 

Not so, however, at the camp along the Po- 
tomac, and especially at the quarters of the Fire 
Zouaves. 

This splendid and dashing regiment had come 
out from New York a month before, and had 
electrified that city and the less excitable citizens 
of Washington by the splendor of their costume, 
the perfection of their drill, and the fine figure and 
well-known martial qualities of their leader, Col- 
onel Ellsworth. Their brethren of the fire com- 
panies in New York had turned out en masse to 
escort them to the steamer, and after twenty days 
in Washington, they had now received marching 
orders, and their quiet camp was to-night to real- 
ize all that poets ever wrote of the wild and ro- 
mantic scenery of war. 

The night was uncommonly still and clear, and 
the moon was so bright that the line of white 
cones marking their camp could be distinctly seen 
from the other side of the broad Potomac. 

As the visitor ajiproached, sounds of bustle 
filled the air, and the rustle of arms and the tramp 
of the men on drill were now and then drowned 
in the powerful chorus of manly voices rolling out 
upon the night air the great national songs of Co- 
lumbia. 

It was felt by all that the hour of bloodshed 
was now come. Aside from the four men killed 
by the explosion of a gun at Sumter, and the kill- 
ing of Ladd and Whitney by the Baltimore mob, 
no lives had as yet been ofiered up ; the crimson 
current had not begun to flow» 



Yet all felt that some one must be the first vic- 
tim — that ere many days, or hours perhaps, the 
sacred soil of Virginia would be wet with the 
blood of the first contestants in the mighty strug- 
gle. Yet who could have foreseen that the fine, 
youthful, vigorous, manly figure of the Colonel, 
whorn we now see moving about among the men 
that idolized him, would be the first to be pierced 
by rebel balls — that he was to be the proto- 
martyr of the holy cause. 

It is midnight now, and the men that were a 
little while ago singing " Columbia, the gem of 
the ocean," with all the fervor they could bring to 
it, are still in their tents. The knapsacks are 
packed. The guns are oiled and polished. Am- 
munition is in the cartridge boxes and cooked 
rations in the haversacks. They are ready to start 
at a drum tap. 

Though it is past midnight. Colonel Ellsworth 
is still at his table, in his tent, completing the 
official arrangements that remained, and carefully 
instructing his subordinates as to the line of con- 
duct proper in this or that emergency. 

An hour later, and he is done, and not now 
occupied with the rough plans of brave exploits. 
A sadder and a tenderer task occupies the young 
soldier's pen. He writes those last words to his 
parents : " To-night, thinking over the probabil- 
ities of the morrow, and the occurrences of the 
past, I am perfectly content to accept whatever 
my fortune may be, confident that He who noteth 
even the fall of a sparrow will have some pur- 
pose even in the fate of one like me. My dar- 
ling and ever-loved parents, good by ! " Other, 
and perhaps still more tender and touching adieus 
are clashed off" with rapid pen and full heart ere the 
young figure leaves the table, and wraps his army 
blanket around him for an hour of sleep. 

x\ little after two o'clock, the encampment be- 
gan to show signs of activity again. Captain 
Dahlgren, the commander of the navy yard, came 
to announce that all was ready for transportation. 
The men mai'ched forward in line, and were drawn 
up by companies along the beach. 

The night air along the water side is chill, and 
some of the men were Avrapjied from head to foot 
in great red blankets. Most were clad in their 
gray jackets and trowsers, and embroidered caps. 
These vivid costumes of the men — the lines of 
tents, glowing from the lights within like huge 
lanterns — the glittering rows of bayonets and 
gun-barrels — the woods and hills in the dis- 
tance — the placid river in front — and, to add 
historic significance, the dome of the Capitol 
towering sublime and calm in the still moonlight, 
— all these combined to form a picture which Avas 
not effaced from the memory of those who saw it 
by the long succession of darker and bloodier 
scenes which followed. 

The embarkation was rapidly conducted, and, 
just as dawn light began to break over hill and 
river, the last of the regiment was aboard, and 
the boats steamed slowly down the river. 

Armed resistance to any invasion of the " sa- 
cred soil " of Virginia was confidently expected. 
So much ferocious talk had poured from the Rich.- 



392 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



mond press that it was fair to suppose that every 
wharf would have its Leonidas, and every street- 
crossing be defended by a Horatius Codes. 

But the rebel strategy was different. John- 
son's head was cool, and his judgment sound. 
He saw that Alexandiia was no point for serious 
resistance, and when the Pa\vnefi..seftt a...yawl 
filled with ai'med marines," and proposed terms 

>V ^'f'f submission, the Confederates had consented 
^ tfii.yacate withiii a, specified time. 

'•'^ About five o'clock the Zouaves landed, and 

Colonel Ellsworth gave rapid directions for tear- 
ing up some of the rails at the railroad station, 
and then turned his attention to the means of 
destroying all communication southward by the 
telegraph — a step which he regarded as very 
important. 

As he started away to execute this duty in per- 
son, with the dash and enthusiasm peculiar to his 
youth and his ardent nature, he took as his 
guard but a small squad of men from the first 
company, with Sergeant Brownell at their head. 
Mr. Wisner, the Military Secretary of the regi- 
ment, Mr. Dodge, the Chaplain, and a journalist 
of the New York Tribune, went with him. 

The little group, amounting to about ten men 
in all, walked rapidly through the quiet streets, 
and were about turning a corner to go in the di- 
rection of the telegraph office, when the Colonel 
saw flaunting from the top of a hotel a reb&l flag, 

a^Xaa which had long been visible from the balcpjiies 
Qj^^^vijf jhe.President's house in Washington. 

Ijjjk He immediately sent back the Sergeant with 

'^'^"*\ an order for the first company of the regiment 
to advance and join him. 

Here was the fii'st instance of the rashness of 
youthful enthusiasm on the part of Colonel Ells- 
worth. He did not wait for the arrival of the 
company, but passed rapidly on to the tavern, 
which he entered, and accosted the fii'st man he 
saw with the question — " What sort of a flag is 
that hanging over the roof of this house ? " The 
man seemed a good deal alarmed, and said he 
knew nothing about it, as he was only a boarder 
there. Without calling for the proprietor of the 
house, or making any demand for the removal of 
the obnoxious emblem. Colonel Ellsworth ran up 
stairs, and reached the topmost story, where by 
means of a ladder he clambered to the roof, and 
borrowing Mr. Wisner's knife, cut the small rope, 
and pulled the flag away from the mast from 
which it floated. 

This was the work of but a few moments, and 
the iJarty now turned to descend from the roof. 
Brownell went first, and Colonel Ellsworth close be- 
hind him carrying the flag. As Brownell reached 
the first landing-place or entry after a descent 
of a dozen or more steps, a man stepped quickly 
out from a dimly-lighted passage, and \s-ithout 
noticing the private levelled a double-barelled 
shot-gun full at Colonel Ellsworth's breast. Brow- 
nell made a quick pass to throw up the muzzle 
of the piece, but the fellow's hand was fii'm, and 
his aim was not diverted. 

Another second and the load of one barrel, 
either slugs or buckshot, went crashing through 



the vitals of Colonel Ellsworth, and killed him 
instantly. He was on the third step from the 
bottom when he received the shot, and fell for- 
ward with that horrible, headlong weight and 
heavy thud upon the floor of the passage which 
mi"ht have been expected from death so sudden. 

The assailant now turned like a flash, and 
brought the other barrel to bear on Brownell. 
But the Zouave was this time too quick for him, 
and struck the piece so the load passed over his 
head and through a door behind him. The next 
instant the contents of his own rifle were dis- 
charged full in Jackson's face, and following up 
the ball with the bayonet, he lunged it through 
his body, and pushed" it down the second flight of 
steps. 

The three reports followed each other with as 
much rapidity as the successive loads of a revol- 
ver can be discharged, and the frightful conse- 
quences were seen in the bodies of two men, 
Ellsworth and Jackson, who lay each at the foot 
of a flight of stairs, dead and weltering in a pool 
of blood. 

The body of Colonel Ellsworth was taken up 
and laid on a bed in an adjoining room. The 
blood was wiped from his clammy and marble but 
manly features, and the rebel flag, on account of 
which two men had so suddenly passed into eter- 
nity, lay soiled with blood acr9ss his feet. 

In a few moments Jackson's wife came out 
from a room on the second floor, and saw the 
body of her husband lying dead in the passage 
in a pool of blood. She flung her arms into the 
air, cried wildly, and seemed utterly abandoned 
to desolation and agony. She offered no re- 
proaches, nor seemed conscious of the crowd of 
strange soldiers around. No one could witness 
such agonizing grief and horror without emotion. 

The only remark which seemed for a moment 
to arrest her attention was an assurance on the 
pai't of some of the Union soldiers that her chil- 
dren should not be molested. 

The dead body of the Colonel of the Zouaves 
was now carried sadly away on a litter of muskets, 
and the thrilling story of that morning's bloody 
work went over the wires in all directions. Col- 
onel Ellsworth throughout one section, being la- 
mented as the first costly sacrifice laid on the 
altar of loyalty, and Jackson as much praised 
throughout the Soutli for the prompt audacity 
with which he had avenged the first insult to 
rebel bunting. 

Heroism of the " M. D's." — The mule dri- 
ver of the army abolishes the step between the 
sublime and ridiculous by making the ridiculous 
sublime. There, for mstance, emerging from the 
leafy curtain of woods on the thither side of 
the creek, comes mule team No. 1, thundering 
with locked wheels — " quadrupedante sonitii," — 
down the abrupt declivity. The treacherous cause- 
ways of brush and mud give way under the 
weight ; the ponderous wagon, blocked l)y the 
log corduroy, careens on the sinking wheels, and 
to'pples quivering on the brink of a disastrous up- 
set into the Stygian creek, where the water is deep 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



393 



and the mud fathomless. Not Hercules could 
lift the embedded -wain from the engorging rut. 
The spectators, gathered in the leafy galleries of 
the surrounding bluffs, and in the muddy pit of 
the river bank, shriek at the imminent catastrophe. 
All but the imperturbable M. D. are appalled 
at the impending overthrow. .For M. D., seated 
on his stalwart wheeler, like a king upon his 
throne, a quiet glance behind and before suffices 
to reveal the nature of the exigency. There is a 
majestic repose in his features, and a placid con- 
fidence in his own powers, as he urgently waves 
away the proffered help, which stamps him the 
master of the situation. In that moment, grim 
and dingy though he be, the M. D. is sublime ; 
he rises to the classic grandeur of the calm he- 
roic, like the famous " statue on the gates of 
Altorf." 

A hush of thrilled and awful expectation 
falls upon the audience. The M. D. speaks one 
low cabalistic word. The single guiding line in 
his left hand throbs like a nerve with the electric 
quiver of his potent will, and flaps the flanks of 
his leaders. In that single word and motion of 
the guiding rein he has organized and concen- 
trated the sextuple power of his muscular mo- 
tives in one simultaneous impulse. There is a 
zigzag tug and twist to the right and left, and al- 
most before you know it the enormous wagon is 
lifted from the abysmal mud, and is rolling tri- 
umphantly over the shaking bridge. Already the 
mighty hybrids are clambering and straining up 
the steep ascent. 

This is the real crisis of the play. To go back 
is to go to the devil ; but the M. D., rising to the 
magnitude of the emergency, unfolds new and 
awful powers. The hero becomes a fury. His 
placid eye flashes with a fierce and wrathful fire. 
From the statuesque calm of his severe but dirty 
visage bursts a terrific storm of stunning curses. 
His huge whip, till now unused, writhes and cracks 
like a thunderbolt over the backs of his imper- 
turbable mules. They go on. They falter and 
pause half way up the steep ascent. The wheels 
go back, and all seems lost. Ajax and Tela- 
mon, and all the Titans, spring to the wheels, 
to avert the threatened retrogression down to 
Styx. 

But ordinary human agencies avail nothing, till 
the deus ex machina appears on the off side, in the 
person of the wagon master, with a monstrous and 
horrific thong. There is another, wilder, louder, 
fiercer tempest of imprecations on the heads, 
eyes, hearts of the dumb beasts, and a double 
crash of lashing thunderbolts from front to rear. 
Onward and upward rolls the wagon up and over 
the hills ; the miracle is achieved, and the mules 
are browsing on the level plain above as if noth- 
ing uncommon had happened. This, a hundred 
times repeated with a hundred variations, such as 
the idiosyncrasy of the actor or the circumstances 
inspire, with an occasional breakdown and upset, 
and all the comic by-play of comment and jest, 
stands, for the day, in place of politics and war 
— of Charleston and Chattanooga. — St. Paul 
Fress. 



THE MAUL. 



BY MARY E. NEALY. 



1 SAW a boy in a black-jack wood. 

With a tall, lank, awkward " figger," 
Striking away with his heavy maul, 

By the side of a young slave " nigger." 
And he said to himself, "I'll maul away. 

And cleave a path before me ; 
I'll hew all ' black-jacks ' out of my way, 

'Till the Star of Fame shines o'er me." 

I saw him again on a broad swift stream ; 

But the maul this time was a paddle, 
And I watched the tiny rainbow's gleam. 

As he made the waves skedaddle. 
And he said, " I'll paddle away, away. 

Till space shall flee before me ; 
And I yet shall live to see the day 

When the Star of Fame shines o'er me." 

I saw him again, with his musty books, 

A-pondering Coke and Story ; 
And little there was in his homely looks 

To tell of his future glory. 
But he said, •' I'll master, I know I will, 

The difficult task before me ; 
I'll maul my way through the hard world still, 

Till the Star of Fame shines o'er me." 

I saw him again, when he rose to cope, 

Hand to hand, with the " Western Giant ;" 
His eye lit up with a beam of hope, 

On his sinewy strength reliant. 
<' I'll fight him," he said, " with the maul of Truth, 

Till he shrink and quail before me, 
Till he stand abashed in astonished ruth. 

While the Star of Fame shines o'er me." 

I saw him again in the White House chair, 

A- writing the Proclamation ; 
And the pen he used was the he-aviest maul 

In this rail-mauling nation. 
And he said, " 'Tis the only way to make 

The traitors flee before us ; 
While the light it sheds will leave a wake 

That will shine when the sod grows o'er us." 

I saw him again but the other night. 

And he shook my hand in greeting ; 
And little he thought how soon I'd write. 

And tell the world of our meeting. 
The hand I clasped has swung the maul, 

And my own has written its story. 
But never, I ween, could any hand 

Write half of its toil and glory. 



DRAiiE De Kay's Exploit. — This dashing 
soldier was one day out on James River, doing 
some corsair work in one of the Cumberland's 
launches. 

Some distance to leeward he saw his persistent 
foe, the Teaser, but kept on his course with " a 
wet sheet and a flowing sea." But all at once 
she whirled, and getting into the blaze of the af- 
ternoon sun, steamed down on Drake. 

As quickly, Drake had his helm hard up, and 
soon his five oars were out, and the launch head 
on for shore. Bang! went the Teaser'a bow rifled 



594 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



gun. De Kaj' shouted back in derision, and 
fired his revolver. The chase now assumed a 
desperate interest. At every puff of smoke from 
the Teaser's bow, De Kay put down his helm a 
little, and threw the launch out of range. Nice 
seamanship, a quick eye, and a cool head, car- 
ried him through, though shot and shell from the 
Teaser were screaming and splashing all around 
him. But Drake was irrepressible, and kept up 
an audacious pantomime of defiance, till his 
launch touched the river bank. 

He was not many seconds in pulling out the 
plug from the boat's bottom, tumbling out his 
five men, the oars, mast, and sail, and ordering 
them to run for the bluff. Nor was the Teaser 
any longer in dropping a launch, getting a dozen 
men and as many muskets into her, and pushing 
off in pursuit. 

Drake saw the approaching danger, and planned 
his defence. 

Running to a picket fence close by, he tore off 
six pickets, and gave one to each of the men, 
who drew up in formidable order on the edge of 
the bluff, and had their launch apparently cov- 
ered by an array of six deadly gun-barrels. 

The launch of the Teaser passed, viewed the 
situation through a double-barrelled sea-glass, 
and, thinking discretion the better part of valor, 
turned, and De Kay's launch was saved by the 
formidable bristle of the pickets' battery. 



Shelling, and how Shells are Dodged. 
— A correspondent, writing from Morris Island, 
says : " At night we can see the path of a shell 
thi'ough its journey, lighted as it is by a burn- 
ing fuse. When the range is two miles, the 
track of a shell from a mortar describes very near 
half the arc of a circle. On leaving the mortar, 
it gracefully moves on, climbing up and up into 
the heavens till it is nearly or quite a mile above 
the earth, and then it gHdes along for a moment, 
apparently in a horizontal line ; but quickly you 
see that the little fiery orb is on the home stretch, 
describing the other segment of the circle. 

"A shell from a Parrott rifle-gun, in going 
two and a half miles, deviates from a straight 
line not quite as much as a shell from a mor- 
tar. But in passing over this space, considerable 
time is required. The report travels much faster 
than the shot. A shell from a mortar makes the 
distance of two miles in about thirty seconds, 
and from a Parrott gun in about half that time. 
The flash of a gun at night, and the white smoke 
by day, indicate the moment of discharge, and 
fifteen or twenty seconds give an abundance of 
time to find a cover in a splinter proof, behind 
a trench, or somithing else. It is wise and sol- 
dierly to do so, but many pay no attention to 
those hissing, screaming, flying, in the day-time 
invisible devils, except to crack jokes at their ex- 
pense ; and occasionally one pays with his life for 
this foolhardiness." 

A Scene in Wae, — Chaplain Quint relates the 
following painful episode in war : 



" It was a military execution. The person thus 
punished belonged to the Third Maryland. His 
crime was desertion. It was his second offence. 
For the first he had been sentenced only to three 
months' labor and loss of pay ; for the second, 
death ! 

" While the army was passing through Fred- 
erick, Maryland, he had got out of camp, ilis 
regiment passed on, and he went to Baltimore. 
Arrested there, he was returned to the army, was 
convicted, and was sentenced. 

" On Tuesday his sentence was formally read to 
him. He was to be shot to death with musketry 
on the next Friday, between the hours of noon 
and four P. M. But he had learned the decision 
on the Sunday before. 

" There is no Chaplain to the Third Maryland 
regiment. But Chaplain Welsh, of the Fifth Con- 
necticut, in the same brigade, ministered to him 
in spiritual matters faithfully, and like himself, 
day by day. At last it fell to me to see him, and 
to be with him during most of his remaining 
hours. But what could be done, in the way of 
instruction, had been done by Mr. Welsh, and for 
it the man was grateful. 

" The day of his execution was wet and gloomy. 
I found him in the morning in the midst of the 
provost guard. He was sitting on a bag of grain, 
leaning against a tree, while a sentry, with fixed 
bayonet, stood behind, never turning away from 
him, and never to turn away, save as another took 
his place, until the end. Useless seemed the watch, 
for arms and feet had been secured, though not 
painfully, since the sentence was read. 

" The captain of the guard had humanely done 
all he could, and it was partly by his request that 
I was there. A Chaplain could minister where 
others could not be allowed. 

" The rain fell silently on him. The hours of 
his life were numbered — even the minutes. He 
was to meet death, not in the shock and excite- 
ment of battle ; not as a martyr for his country ; 
not in disease ; but in full health, and as a 
criminal. 

" I have seen many a man die, and have tried 
to perform the sacred duties of my station. I 
have never had so painful a task as that, because 
of these circumstances. Willingly, gladly, he con- 
versed, heard, and answered. What he said is, 
of course, not a matter for publicity ; for the in- 
terviews of a minister with the one with Avhom he 
has official relations are sacred everywhere. Yet, 
while painful is such a work, it has its bright side, 
because of the ' exceeding great and precious 
promises ' it is one's privilege to tell. 

" When the time came for removal to the place 
of execution, he entered an ambulance, a Chap- 
lain accompanying him. Next, in another ambu- 
lance, was the coffin. Before, behind, and on 
either side, a guard. Half a mile of this sad 
journey brought him to within a short distance 
of the spot. Then leaving the ambulance, he 
walked to the place selected. The rain had 
stopped. The sun was shining on the dark lines 
of the whole division drawn up on three sides of 
a hollow square. With guard in front and rear, 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



395 



he passed with steady step through an opening 
left in the head of the square, still with the Chap- 
lain, and to the open side. There was a grave 
just dug, and in front of it was his coffin placed. 
He sat upon his coffin ; his feet were re-confined, 
to allow of which he lifted them voluntai-ily, and 
his eyes were bandaged. 

" In front of him, the firing party, of two from 
each regiment, were then di'awn up, — half held 
as reserve, — during which there was still a little 
time for words with his Chaplain. The General 
stood by, and the Provost Marshal read the sen- 
tence, and shook hands with the condemned. 
Then a prayer was ofi'ered, amid uncovered heads 
and solemn faces. A last hand-shake with the 
Chaplain, which he had twice requested ; a few 
words from him to the Chaplain, ; a lingering 
pressure by the hand of the condemned ; his lips 
moving with a prayer-sentence which he had been 
taught, and on which his thoughts had dwelt be- 
fore, and he was left alone. 

" The word of command was immediately given. 
He fell over instantly, unconscious. A record of 
wounds was made by the Surgeons. The troops 
filed by his grave on the banks of the swollen 
stream, and then passed ofl", under cover of the 
woods, as they had come, to avoid being seen by 
the enemy. And so, twenty years old, and with 
only a mother and sister, he was left there. The 
sun was soon covered with clouds, and the rain 
poured down on his solitary grave." 



I.NXIDENTS IN TENNESSEE. — The scenes during 
the march of General Burnside into Tennessee 
were myriad and peculiarly aff'ecting. " We had 
not extended our march far into the State," wrote 
a soldier, " before we had evidence of the preva- 
lence of the most intense loyalty, and, in conse- 
quence, the most severe sufiering. We had pre- 
viously seen nothing like it. It is unconditional, 
and without regard to any of those questions of 
policy which have been so damaging to the unity 
of the Union men in Kentucky, and of which the 
masses here are bUssfuUy ignorant. They kindle 
into rapture at the sight of our advancing col- 
umns, and are moved to tears at the sight of the 
Stars and Stripes, that ' banner of beauty and 
glory,' which symbolizes the institutions of our 
country. We were hailed with tears of joy and 
with shouts of rapture as their deliverers and 
defenders. Notwithstanding the many vacant, de- 
serted houses, the many exiles from their homes, 
which have resulted in so extensive a depletion of 
population, there were groups of men, women, 
and children at every turn to greet us with ex- 
pressions of joy and gratitude, and to tell of 
Avrongs and sufferings which were calculated to 
touch the hardest heart and to make the ear to 
tingle. 

" Never, perhaps, have patriotism and wrath 
been so combined, gratitude and vengeance so 
commingled in expression, as by this loyal, down- 
trodden, and long-suffering people. It would 
be impossible to narrate the numerous incidents 
of interest in this connection of which we were | 



witnesses. One or two may serve as illusti-ations 
of their unrestrained and rustic manner in the 
expression of their feelings. 

" On the day we left Montgomerj', the head of 
our column was startled by the voice of an aged 
woman, shouting * Glory to God in the highest ! ' 
whilst, with streaming eyes, she expressed her 
gratitude that she had lived to see the deliverers 
of her State, and, with clasped hands, as she 
pursued our advancing commands, she prayed 
most fervently that the God of battles would be 
with us, to prosper, and defend, and preserve us. 
Her petitions were ever and anon interrupted by 
the narration of her suffering, which was made 
only the more telling by the presence of her hus- 
band, who limped behind her, as he leaned with 
one hand upon a staff, whilst the other rested upon 
the thigh of his wounded leg, which was made to 
support more than its wonted share of his body, 
he having been severely wounded in the other 
leg by some dastardly, prowling rebel, by which 
he was made a cripple for life. She would appeal 
to him for the confirmation of the truth of her 
statements in regard to their sufferings, and then 
point him to om- soldiery as those who would 
avenge his wrongs and be his future security and 
defence. At one time, being near Major-General 
Hartsuff, whom she readily recognized as chief 
in command, she made him the subject of her 
petition, which he acknowledged by respectfully 
lifting his hat from his head and holding it in his 
hand the while. Taking the scene altogether, it 
was an interesting and moving exhibition of pa- 
triotism, gratitude, and keen sense of wrongs 
endured, which, in her esteem, called for ven- 
geance. 

" A scene somewhat similar occurred the same 
day, by another family and group of friends, who, 
amid shouts of welcome to the ' Yankees,' ex- 
tended the warm hand of friendly greeting to the 
soldiers, as they passed, until the eyes of an old 
lady rested upon a prisoner in our custody, whom 
she recognized as the despoiler of her peace and 
home. She told him of the wrongs she and hers 
had suffered at his hands ; how he had driven 
her husband and herself from theii* home ; how 
he had hunted her son like a wild animal through 
the mountains, until he was driven from the 
State. She upbraided him with his thefts and 
murders, imploring us in the name of everything 
sacred not to release him. 

" Our entree into Knoxville was a grand ova- 
tion. The people of the surrounding country 
flocked in crowds to welcome us, and the city 
presented very much the appearance of an Inde- 
pendence Day. No pen can do justice to the 
scene, and my heart melts as I call it to mind. 
Old, gray-haired men and women, the middle- 
aged, and even little prattling children were per- 
fectly frantic with joy. We had a large number 
of men from this section in our army, who had 
been away from then* homes for two years ; and 
to see the re-union of these brave fellows with 
those they love better than life would melt the 
hardest heart. 



396 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



" I saw one woman, with two little girls, stand- 
ing on the sidewalk, and watching intently as the 
column passed. Presently a browned and weath- 
er-beaten soldier rode out from the ranks, and 
the scene that followed more than paid me for the 
two years of toil and hardship that I have passed 
in the armj'. It was his wife and little ones, 
whom he had not seen, and from whom he had 
not heard but once, for twenty-eight months. 
This was but one of many similar instances. It 
was a common thing, after we got into tliis vicinity, 
to see numbers of soldiers riding along in the 
ranks with one, two, and sometimes three little 
boys and girls on the horse with them. 

" One of the most thrilling scenes I ever had 
the pleasure to witness occurred on our arrival 
here. Generals Bumside, Carter, and Shaclde- 
ford took up their quarters at the fine house of 
a noted rebel who had left the place, and were 
followed there by an immense concourse of citi- 
zens clamorous for a speech. General Carter was 
first called out, he being an East Tennesseean. 
He was followed by Generals Bumside and 
Shackleford, and the excitement and enthusiasm 
of the crowd gained with every word. Mean- 
while I had taken my way around to the rear of 
the house, and had got upon the roof of the bal- 
cony, and as General Shackleford finished his 
speech I unfurled our large garrison flag, and 
threw it over the balcony. It was caught by the 
breeze, and as its beautiful folds streamed out 
upon the air, the people could no longer contain 
themselves. Shout after shout rent the air. Old 
men and gray-haired matrons took each other by 
the hand, and laughed, shook, and cried, all at 
the same time. Young men and maidens were 
uproarious, and little ciiildren were ' clean gone 
crazy.' I looked into the house and saw Generals 
Burnside, Carter, and Shackleford shaking hands, 
while tears rolled down their cheeks as if they 
' couldn't help it.' Some one sang out — ' Get 
under it, get under it' — and it seemed as if 
the crowd would trample each other under foot 
in their wild endeavors to do so. I never saw 
anything like it in my life, and felt some as I 
imagine the old Patriarch must have felt when he 
wanted to 'depart in peace.' You may think 
from the way I write there are no rebels here. 
There are a few, probably one tenth of the pop- 
ulation, but they look as if they ' enjoyed very 
poor health.' " 

How Breckinridge Escaped. — After John- 
ston's surrender, the rebel Secretary of War and 
Ex-Vice-President of the United States made his 
way to Florida, and with a few companions se- 
cured a little launch, in which they coasted down 
towards the Cedar Keys, and eventually got across 
to Cuba. 

From the mouth of Indian Inlet they had 
worked down the coast some fifty or sixty miles, 
when they beached their boat to hunt for turtle 
eggs and other provisions. 

At this time a United States war vessel was 
running down south between the shore and the 
Florida lleef, when the commander observed the 



party, and despatched a boat to ascertain who they 
were and what they were doing there. 

The approach of the boat, filled with the boys 
in blue, made some stir among the egg-hunters ; 
but " Breck," as the papers familiarly called him 
in 1856, is quite a strategist in his way, and de- 
cided to put a bold front on the affair and play 
a bluff game. Taylor Wood, a grandson of old 
" Rough and Ready," took two men, and, the 
others having retired to the cover of the palmet- 
toes, launched the boat, and went out to meet the 
advancing party. As he approached, an ofl&cer in 
the stern seat of the gig, revolver in hand, chal- 
lenged him, and put the usual marine questions. 

Taylor was at once the roughest long-shore 
wrecker and fisherman that ever lived in Florida. 
" His men were all paroled soldiers ; they had to 
live somehow, and till they could find something 
better, were glad to get turtle's eggs, and shell-fish 
driven on shore; they thought they might get 
down to Indian Key or Key West ; had a boat- 
load of papers, if he wanted to see them." 

The ready boys pulled out their parole papers, 
which were found all right. "The folks on shore 
Avere all of the same sort, had the same papers, 
and were trying to cook dinner if they could find 
some eggs or clams. Pr'aps the cap'n would like 
to go ashore ; he would be perfectly welcome to 
the best they had, and their papers too." After 
a little more good-natured talk, the officer pro- 
nounced that satisfactory dictum " all right," told 
his oarsmen to " give to," and away shot the gig 
to the steamer, greatly to the relief of the distin- 
guished fugitive, who was anxiously watching the 
interview from behind a shellbark. 

That evening the party left the shore Avith a 
few dozen eggs, a little bread, and a few small 
clams. In thirty-six hours they reached the banks, 
having spoken one ship and obtained a supply of 
fresh water. On the morning of the ninth day, 
after leaving the coast of Florida, they reached 
Cardenas, where they were received by the people 
and the authorities with great kindness. 



The Zouave and the Mule. — A soldier in 
the army of the Potomac relates the following : 
I was riding from Brandy Station to Stevens- 
burg in company with Colonel A., of the Michi- 
gan regiment, and had reached a pomt 

opposite General P.'s headquarters, when we 
were overtaken by a couple of soldiers mounted 
on two decidedly un-Rarey-fied mules. The boys 
had evidently been up to the sutler's, for they 
were a trifle topheavy. The road crosses a con- 
siderable creek, which the mules seemed to hold 
in strong aversion. Nevertheless, through the 
persuasive eloquence of two heavy sticks, they 
were urged on to the middle of the stream, and 
then they flatly refused to advance. The boys 
tried all the expedients at hand, but it was " no 
go ; " and when, at length, one of them caught 
the tail of the other's mule in his hand, and at- 
tempted to twist a forward movement out of him, 
the refractory animal reared, whirled to one side, 
kicked and snorted, and depositing his rider in 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS, 



397 



the dirty drink, he started on a keen run back 
towards the con-al. Zouave gathered himself up, 
and seeing that he could not overtake his fright- 
ened steed, he only followed with sundry exple- 
tives and imprecations not found in the West- 
minster Catechism. Colonel A., by the way, is 
a very pious man, and he took it upon himself 
to chide the exasperated and unfortunate " vet " 
for using such unchristian-like language ; but the 
soldier would have his joke : so, shaking what 
water he could out of his red pants, he waded to 
a dry spot on shore, and muttered that it was 
" damned hard if a feller couldn't cuss a mule." 
But soon appreciating the ludicrousness of his 
condition, he turned to the Colonel, and offered to 
lay a bet that that was the first time he ever saw 
a mule tear (muleteer) shed. It was some time 
before either the Colonel or myself was able to 
see the jiungency of the joke ; but it came to us 
after a while, and it helped amazingly to dry up 
the mud between there and Strasburg." 



An Incident of the Great Bethel Fight. 
— Orderly Sergeant Goodfellow, of Colonel Al- 
len's regiment, was mortally wounded in the 
breast. He handed his musket to a comrade, 
and several flocked around him. " O," said he, 
" I guess I've got to go ; " and he placed his hand 
upon the wound. " O, don't mind me, boys," 
he continued ; " go on with the fight ; don't stop 
for me ! " and pressing away those who attempted 
to support him, he sank down upon the gronnd. 
Just at that instant his Colonel passed ; and look- 
ing up to him, he gasped, " Good by. Colonel! " 
Colonel Allen turned ghastly white as he observed 
it. He bit his lips, too much moved to speak, 
and rushed on to avenge his death. 



Incidents of Chickajiauga. — A division 
Surgeon relates the following: He was riding 
across a field where the battle had raged fiercely, 
but just swept on, and was making his way slowly 
among the drifts of friends and foes, — the blue 
and the gray together, — when a wounded Fed- 
eral soldier asked for water. The Surgeon gave him 
the draught, when a voice from a gray heap near 
by said, " Won't you give me one too, Doctor ? " 
" Certainly I will ; " and he was just raising the 
rebel, and bringing round the canteen slung under 
his arm to put it to his lips, when a cannon shot 
from a rebel battery struck the earth on one side ; 
a second bounded by on the other. The man 
looked up in the Surgeon's face with a smile, " I'm 
afraid they mean us, Doctor." At that instant, a 
third shot hit the target, and a headless trunk fell 
from the supjiorting arm. There was another 
dead rebel. Of truth they did " mean us," and 
the Surgeon hastened away. 

Shells ai-e queerly behaved things, often harm- 
less against all probabilities, and when you think 
they must be deadly, only patching thunder. If 
a shell passes you by only a few feet before it 
bursts, you are pretty sure to be good for the 
next one that comes, since each fragment takes 



away its share of the motion and flies on. If a 
shell shows symptoms of " making a landing" just 
in front of you, your best route would seem to be 
towards and past the shell ; but how rapidly one 
could run in that direction I have no means of 
knowing, having never seen the man that tried 
it. A solid shot is the most deceptive of projec- 
tiles. It may seem to move lazily, to be almost 
dead ; but so long as it moves at all, beware of 
it._ Just^ before the battle an artilleryman re- 
ceived his discharge for disability ; but delaying 
for some reason his northward journey, he was 
yet with his battery on the eve of the engage- 
ment, and true to his instincts, took his old place 
beside his horse, and was just preparing to mount, 
when a solid shot came ricocheting across the 
field, bounded up and struck him in the lower 
part of the body. Crying out, " I've got the first 
ticket, boys ! " he sank down, and only added, 
with that strange dread of a little hurt a terribly 
wounded man almost always seems to feel, " lay 
me down by a tree where they won't run over me." 
They complied with his request, hastened into 
position, and saw him no more. The poor fellow's 
discharge was confirmed by Heaven. Now, that 
fatal ball, having finished its work there, leaped 
lazily on, and pushed out the skirt of the ar- 
tillerist's coat, as a hand would move a curtain, 
without rending it I 



THE SOUTHERN WAGON. 

Come, all ye sons of freedom, and join our Southern 

band ; 
We're going to fight the enemy, and drive them 

from our land. 
Justice is our motto, Providence our guide ; • 

So jump in the wagon, and Ave'll all take a ride. 

Chorus. 

0, wait for the wagon. 

The dissolution ; 
The South is our wagon, 

And we'll all take a ride. 

Secession is our watchword ; our rights we all de- 
mand ; 

And to defend our firesides we pledge our hearts 
and hand. 

Jeff Davis is our President, with Stephens by his 
side ; 

Brave Beauregard, our General, will join us in the 
ride. 

Our wagon is plenty big enough, the running-gear 



It's stuffed around with cotton, and made of South- 
ern wood ; 

Carolina is our driver, with Georgia by her side ; 

Virginia wiU hold her flag up, and we'll all take a 
ride. 

There are Tennessee and Texas also in the ring ; 
They .wouldn't have a government where cotton 

wasn't king. 
Alabama and Florida have long ago replied ; 
Mississippi and Louisiana are anxious for the ride.. 



398 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS, 



Missouri, North Carolina, and Arkansas are slow ; 
They must hurry, or we'll leave them, and then 

what will they do ? 
There's Old Kentucky and Maryland won't make 

up their mind ; 
So I reckon, after all, we'll take them up behind. 

The Tennessee boys are in the field, eager for the 

fray; 
They can whip the Yankee boys three to one, they 

say; 
And when they get in conflict, with Davis by their 

side. 
They'll pitch into the Yankee boys, and then you'll 

see them slide. 

Our cause is just and holy, our men are brave and 

true ; 
We'll whip the Lincoln cutthroats, is all we have 

to do. 
God bless our noble army ; in him we all confide ; 
So jump into the wagon, and we'll all take a ride. 



The First Union Volunteer. — Two days 
after the fall of Sumter, the Governor of Penn- 
sylvania called for three companies of militia from 
the Counties of Mifflin, Schuylkill, and Berks. 
On the 16th April, John T. Hunter, of Philadel- 
phia, telegraphed his application, and was enlisted 
for thi-ee months with the Logan Guard, of Lew- 
iston, Mifflin County, and was afterwards a mem- 
ber of the Nineteenth Pennsylvania volunteers. 



Adventures of a Spy. — Dan. R. Cole, a Ser- 
geant in company D, Third Indiana cavalry, was 
sent by General Hooker, on the 1st of March, 
1863, to Fredericksburg, as a spy. 

He crossed the Rappahannock below the Fed- 
eral lines, and went into Fredericksburg, looking 
for work, as a mechanic, in the shops. He found 
them mostly closed, and obtained from General 
Lee a pass to go to Richmond, where he went in 
company with some rebel citizens, and remained 
several days, obtaining much important informa- 
tion. 

But when he wished to leave, he met with diffi- 
culty in getting a pass, but fell in with a company 
of political prisoners, who were leaving at night, 
and passing as one of them, was conducted to 
Washington under guard. Here he ran from the 
guards, and reported at the war office with his 
information. 

A Yankee Sailor resorts to Strategy. — 
The United States brig " Bohio " was cruising in 
the Gulf of Mexico in the spring of 1862, when 
the crew saw a schooner in the horizon, and hoisted 
the Spanish ensign. But Avhen she changed it for 
the Stars and Stripes, the schooner took alarm 
and stood off. The brig put on sail and chased 
her, but she was a smart sailer, and kept out of 
the way. The Bohio then run out her guns and 
fired two shots at the schooner, of which she took 
no notice. 

The captain then ordered the sails to be wet 



down, and then began to come up with her. At 
last he resorted to strategy, and rigged a " smoke- 
stack " amidships, and built a fiye, and had " steam 
on." 

As soon as the schooner saw this she gave it 
up, thinking she was chased by a steamer, and 
must be overtaken. The captain of the Boliio 
now boarded her, and found her a blockade-run- 
ner, with a cargo of coffee and soap worth fifty 
thousand dollars. He took her in at the South- 
west Pass, and she became a prize, her officers 
having learned, by a forcible example, that ap- 
pearances are sometimes deceptive. 



The First Fatal Shot. — However indiffer- 
ent men -become to human life, they have the most 
vivid and minute remembrance of the first man 
they brought down with a deliberate aim. 

In the instant of time preceding the fatal shot, 
the fashion of features, color of eyes and hair, and 
even the expression of face, are all painted, by the 
vivid sympathies of the instant, in a picture that 
remains forever photographed on the brain. 

" My first man," said an artilleryman, " I saw 
but twenty seconds ; but I shall remember him 
forever. I was standing by ray gun, when a rebel 
infantry soldier rushed up and made a lunge with 
his bayonet at one of the horses. I whipped out 
my revolver, and took him through the breast. 
He tossed up his arms, gave me the strangest 
look in the world, and fell forward upon his face. 
He had blue eyes, brown, curling hair, a dark 
mustache, and a handsome face. I thought, the 
instant I shot, that I should have loved that man 
if I had known him. I tell you what, this war 
is terrible business ! " 



South Carolina vs. North Carolina. — 
Sisterly affection between these two adjacent 
sovereignties does not appear to be very warm, 
nor have the events of the civil war done much to 
draw them together, judging from the following 
journal of a North Carolina traveller, written in 
the fall of 1863 : 

" After spending a day or two in the neat and 
quiet village of Franklin, I went directly to Wal- 
halla, South Carolina, through Rayburn County, 
Georgia. At Walhalla I took the train to Co- 
lumbia, South Carolina, where I arrived at six 
o'clock P. M. I procured an omnibus to carry 
me to the Congaree House ; on arriving at which, 
I said to the negro who canned me uj) from the 
depot, ' What's the fare, boy ? ' ' One dollar, sah.' 
I pulled out a one dollar North Carolina treasuiy 
note, and presented it to the negro; on taking 
which, he exclaimed, *0, dis no good — no good, 
sah ; dis is North Ca'liner money ; North Ca'liner 
money no good here, sah ! ' I paid the negro in 
other money. 

" I thought but little of the circumstance, until 
I saw, the same evening, a North Carolina soldier 
attempt to purchase some bread with North Car- 
olina money, which he could not do. This was 
the first time I learned that North Carolina sol- 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



399 



diers could not buy something to eat with North 
Carolina money, however hungry they may be, 
while passing through the State of South Caro- 
lina. I do not know whether this disposition to 
receive North Carolina in this dashing State is 
general, or not. If it is, it is the duty of the 
people of North CaroUna to refuse South Caro- 
lina treasury notes — keep their shins out of our 
State. 

" After spending one night in Columbia, I left 
for Augusta. On the way down, three South 
Carolina gentlemen occupied the seats immedi- 
ately opposite me. I overheard one of them, 
whom the other gentleman called Major : * I 
really think North Carolina is the tail end of the 
Confederacy, and Tennessee is but little behind 
her — both these States are rotten to the core — 
neither of them is possessed of any national 
pride." The other two South CaroUna gentle- 
men concurred in the opinion. I felt indignant 
at the remark, and as the gentlemen presented 
the appearance of respectability, I felt inclined 
to resent the insult offered to my native State — 
so, after apologizing to^ the gentlemen for inter- 
rupting their conversation, I answered their maj- 
esties : 

" ' Sir, what are your reasons for making such 
a remark about North Carolina ? ' 

" ' Well, I have a reason for thinking so.' 

" ' Sir, I claim at least the privilege of asking 
what that reason is.' 

" ' Why do you claim such a right ? ' 

" ' Because, sir, I am a North Carolinian, to the 
manor horn, and feel insulted at your opprobrious 
remark.' 

" The South Carolina Major coughed, spit, 
cleared his throat, and repeated the operation; 
and, after a rather lengthy pause, during which his 
accomplices seemed not a little confused, at length 
said: 

" ' Your State is for reconstruction ! ' 

" I felt still more indignant, and rather tartly 
replied : ' I ask your pardon, sir ; but that is 
positively false. There is not one man in North 
Carolina who is in favor of reconstruction. I feel 
confident you have a greater proportion of recon- 
structionists in South Carolina than we have.' 

" My antagonist seemed a little confused, but 
gathered courage and retorted: 'North Carolina 
has never furnished the proportion of troops, nor 
have her troops won the distinction on the battle- 
field that South Carolina troops have.' 

" In reply to this very ungenerous charge, I 
referred the Palmetto worshippers to the fact 
that it was a North Carolinian who fii-ed the first 
gun of the war ; that a North Carolina regiment 
won the first victory (at Bethel) ; that a North 
Carolina regiment (Colonel Fisher's) captm'ed the 
first Yankee battery ; that North CaroHna troops 
had won distinguished laurels at Manassas, at the 
Seven Pines, during the ' Seven Days' Fight ' 
before Pdchmond (in which they lost half as 
many troops as all the other States together), at 
the second battle of Manassas, at ' Sharpsburg, 
Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, — 
indeed, wherever her troops have been called into 
action. This gentleman only replied that he was 



not familiar with what North Carolina had done. 
I told him I hoped he would never again be guilty 
of making such an ungenerous remark about a 
State and a people of which he was so ignorant." 



SHERIDAN'S RIDE. 



BY T. BUCHANAN BEAD. 



Up from the South, at break of day, 

Bringing to Winchester fresh dismay, 

The affrighted air with a shudder bore, 

Like a herald in haste, to the chieftain's door, 

The terrible grumble and rumble and roar, 

Telling the battle was on once more. 

And Sheridan twenty miles away. 

And wider still those billows of war 

Thundered along the horizon's bar, 

And louder yet into Winchester rolled 

The roar of that red sea, uncontrolled, 

Making the blood of the listener cold 

As he thought of the stake in that fiery fray, 

And Sheridan twenty miles away. • 

But there is a road to Winchester town, 

A good, broad highway, leading down ; 

And there, through the flush of the morning light, 

A steed, as black as the steeds of night, 

Was seen to pass as with eagle flight : 

As if he knew the terrible need. 

He stretched away with his utmost speed. 

Hill rose and fell ; but his heart was gay, 

With Sheridan fifteen miles away. 

Still sprung from those swift hoofs, thundering 

south, 
The dust, like the smoke from the cannon's mouth. 
Or the trail of a comet, sweeping faster and faster, 
Foreboding to traitors the doom of disaster ; 
The heart of the steed, and the heart of the master 
Were beating, like prisoners assaulting their walls, 
Im,patient to be where the battle-field calls. 
Every nerve of the charger was strained to full 

play, 
With Sheridan only ten miles away. 

Under his spurning feet the road 

Like an arrowy Alpine river flowed ; 

And the landscape sped away behind 

Like an ocean flying before the wind ; 

And the steed, like a bark fed with furnace ire. 

Swept on with his wild eyes full of fire. 

But lo ! he is nearing his heart's desire ; 

He is snuffing the smoke of the roaring fray, 

With Sheridan only five miles away. 

The first that the General saw were the groups 
Of stragglers, and then the retreating troops. 
What was done — what to do — a glance told him 

both; 
Then, striking his spurs, with a terrible oath, 
He dashed down the line 'mid a storm of huzzas. 
And the wave of retreat checked its course there, 

because 
The sight of the master compelled it to pause. 
With foam and with dust the black charger was 

gray. 
By the flash of his eye, and his red nostrils' play, 
He seemed to the whole great army to say : 
"I have brovight you Sheridan, all the way 
From Winchester down, to save you the day ! " 



400 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



Hurrah, hurrah, for Sheridan ! 

Hurrah, hurrah, for horse and man ! 

And -when their statues are placed on high, 

Under the dome of the Union sky — 

The American soldiers' Temple of Fame, — 

There, with the glorious General's name, 

E3 it said, in letters both bold and bright : 

"Here is the steed that saved the day 
By carrying Sheridan into the fight, 

From Winchester, twenty miles away ! " 



Incidents of Cavalry Sekvice. — When, 
on the 30th of June, 1863, the rear of General 
Kilpatrick's cavalry division was attacked in the 
town of Hanover, Pennsylvania, the first charge 
fell upon a remnant of the Eighteenth Pennsyl- 
vania cavalry. This command was somewhat 
scattered, and the rebels, passing through it, came 
upon the private ambulance of Dr. Wood, chief 
Surgeon of the division. Two soldiers, named 
Spaulding and Forsyth, occupied this vehicle — 
both hospital attendants. As the enemy ap- 
proached, they made a vigorous attack upon the 
covering of the wagon with their swords — cut- 
ting a dozen or more holes in the top — when 
Spaulding, who was sick, suggested to Forsyth, 
who was driving, that he (Spaulding) should 
drive, and the other drive off the assailants with 
a six-shooter one of the party had. This arrange- 
ment was carried into effect ; the enemy were 
driven away, and the Avorthy Surgeon's traps were 
saved to the service. 

In the same battle, Folger, a private in company 
H, Fifth New York cavalry, performed an act of 
great coolness and daring. He got mixed up 
some way in the charge upon the Eighteenth 
Pennsylvania cavalry. Not having time to reload 
his carbine, he jjicked up a loaded one some per- 
son had dropped, shot a horse upon which the 
rebel Colonel Payne was riding, the rider falling 
into a tan-vat, and it was with difficulty Folger 
saved him from drowning. Just at the moment 
the Colonel was safely out of the vat, his orderly 
rode up, and, presenting a pistol to Folger, ordered 
him to surrender. Folger hesitated, but looking 
up the street and seeing the advance of the Fifth 
in the celebrated charge made at that time, sud- 
denly seized upon his unloaded carbine, and 
aimjjig it at Mr. Orderly, in no very complimentary 
terms, ordered him to surrender or he would blow 
his brains out. The orderly, completely taken 
by surprise at this turn of affairs, surrendered 
without making any resistance, so that young 
Folger, by the display of a little coolness and 
daring in extremes, not only saved himself from 
capture, but captured a Colonel and a private from 
the ranks of the enemy during the heat of battle. 



A Flag-Raising in Kentucky. — In the fall 
of 1861, just before Grant made those masterly 
movements by which the upper end of the Mis- 
sissippi Valley was open to the Union arms, some 
of his troops were quartered at Camp McAulay, 
near Paducah, Kentucky. They were command- 
ed by Brigadier-General Smith. Some of his 
troops, particularly the Eleventh Indiana regi- 



ment, did not agree Avith him in his toleration of 
the emblems and expressions of disunion. 

A family named Woolfolk, living near the 
camp, had not only feiled to exhibit any Union 
flag, but on several occasions had waved a little 
rebel flag from the chamber window, greatly to the 
disgust of the loyal boys of the Eleventh Indiana. 
One afternoon, therefore, a party of officers procur- 
ed a beautiful flag, bearing the " Stars and Stripes," 
and headed by Adjutant Macauley, waited on the 
aforesaid family, reminded them of their late 
" suspicious " doings, and politely, but firmly, 
stated their intention of " placing the American 
flag upon their house." The lady requested them 
to wait until her husband (he being then absent) 
returned. To this they consented, not wishing 
to violate the domestic sanctity of any citizen. 
In the mean time one of the ladies wended her way 
over to Brigadier-General Smith's headquarters, 
and asked him to protect them from the " sacri- 
legious (?) outrage that was about to be committed 
upon their premises." In a few moments, and 
just as the husband of the lady returned, here 
came Brigadier-General Charles F. Smith bear- 
ing down, and in thundering tones demanded " by 
whose authority this was being done." Adjutant 
Macauley respectfully informed him " that it was 
being done by no constituted authority; but it 
was the wish of the Indiana Eleventh that the 
flag should be raised." General Smith replied, 
" I cai'e not what the Indiana Eleventh wants ; 
I'm commander of this post, by — . Disperse to 
your quarters ! " The officers then came back, 
and their non-success was soon known all through 
the regiment. General Smith's conduct was re- 
garded with indignation by the Zouaves, and from 
a murmur of indignation there soon arose a 
mighty hurricane. The idea that our flag should 
not be permitted to wave from any place occu- 
pied by us was more than they could tolerate. 
Soon the excitement became too intense to be 
easily quelled. AVith one thought and one mind 
the men all declared that that flag should be 
raised upon that traitor's house, General Smith's 
orders to the contrary notwithstanding ; " and 
woe to the man, no matter who, that should dare 
to pull it down." The flag was again brought 
forth, and headed by the band, the whole regi- 
ment " broke guard," marched to the aforesaid 
rebel's premises, and there distinctly informed 
him that " the Stars and Stripes must be imme- 
diately planted over his house." 

The man Woolfolk made his appearance, and 
tried to smooth matters over by making a set speech. 
" He was loyal to the State of Kentucky, and so 
long as the State was loyal to the Union, that long 
was he also a loyal citizen. A secession flag had 
not been in his house since the advent of our 
troops. As to my private sentiments, I am an- 
swerable to my God." 

Adjutant Macauley answered him — " That as 
Kentucky was loyal to the Union, and as the flag 
was emblematical of the Union, he should have 
no objection to its floating from the roof." 

" You have the power and the means ; you can 
do it then," was the reply. 



ANECDOTES, TOETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



401 



The roof was scaled, and the flag was waved 
from it. Three times three cheers and several 
"tigers" were given. The band played all the 
national " hims," and warmly were they greeted, 
we assm'e you. 

General Wallace, who had entered the crowd 
unobserved, here mounted a stand. 

" Boys, the flag is there ; your work is done ; 
go home ! " was all he said. That v;as sufficient. 



Chapl.vins. — The graphic correspondent, B. 
F. Taylor, in a letter from the army of the Cum- 
berland, gives the following : 

" ' But how about the Chaplains ? ' you ask ; and 
though an ungrateful business, I will be frank to 
tell you. I have met three dozen men, whose 
symbol is the cross, and of that number, two 
should have been in the ranks, two in the rear, 
one keeping the temperance pledge, one obeying 
the third commandment — to be brief about it, 
five repenting, and eight getting common sense. 
The rest were efiicient, faithful men. Not one 
Chaplain in fifty, perhaps, lacks the paving-stones 
of good intentions, but the complex complaint 
that carries ofl" the greatest number is ignorance 
of human nature, and want of common sense. 
Four cardinal questions, I think, will exhaust the 
qualifications for a chaplaincy : Is he religiously 
fit ? Is he physically fit ? Is he acquainted with 
the animal, ' man ? ' Does he possess honest 
horse sense ? Let me give two or three illustra- 
tive pictures from life. Chaplain A has a, putter- 
ing demon ; he is forever not letting things 
alone. Passing a group of boys, he hears one 
oath, stops sliort in his boots, hurls a command- 
ment at the author, hears another and reproves 
it, receives a whole volley, and retreats, pained 
and discomfited. Now, Mr. A is a good man, 
anxious to do his duty ; but that habit of his, that 
darting about camp like a ' devil's darning nee- 
dle,' with a stereotype reproof in his eye, and a 
pellet of rebuke on the tip of his tongue, bolts 
every heart against him. Chaplain B preaches a 
sermon — regular army fare, too — on Sunday, 
buttons his coat up snugly under his chin all the 
other days of the week, draws a thousand dol- 
lars, and is content. Chaplain C never forgets 
that he is C ' with the rank of Captain,' per- 
fumes like a civet cat, never saw the inside of a 
dog-tent, never quite considered the rank and 
file fellow-beings. Of the three, the boys hate 
the first, despise the second, and d — n the third. 

" * Demoralize ' has become about as common 
a thing in the army as a bayonet, though the 
boys do not always get the word right. One of 
them — ' one of 'em,' in a couple of senses — 
was talking of himself one night. ' Maybe you 
wouldn't think it, but I used to be a regular, 
straight-laced sort of a fellow ; but since I joined 
the army I have got damnably decomposed!' 
Now, a drunken General and a 'decomposed' 
Chaplain are about as useless lumber as can cum- 
ber an army. 

"There is Chaplain D, well equipped with 
heart, but with no head ' to speak of,' and with 
26 



the purest intentions, a perfect provocative to 
evil. It was next to impossible for a man to put 
the best side out when he was by ; a curious two- 
footed diachylum plaster, he drew everybody's 
infirmities to the surface. I think the regiment 
grew daily worse and worse, and M'hcre he was, 
words Avcre sure to be the dirtiest, jokes the 
coarsest, deeds the most unseemly. Tlie day be- 
fore the battle of Chickaraauga, the regiment had 
signed, almost to a man, a paper inviting him 
to resign ; but on the days of the battle he thrcAV 
ofl" his coat, and carried water to the men all day. 
In the hottest places there was Chaplain D, wa- 
ter here, water there, assisting the wounded, aid- 
ing the Surgeons, a very minister of mercy. I 
need not add that the 'invitation' lighted 
the fire under somebody's coff"ee-kettle on Mon- 
day night. The Chaplain had struck the right 
vein at last; the boys had found something 
to respect and to love in him, and the clergy- 
man's future usefulness was insured. The bond 
between Chaplain and men was sealed on that 
field with honest blood, and will hold good until 
doomsday. 

" One noble Illinois Chaplain, who died in the 
harness, used to go out at night, lantern in hand, 
among the blended heaps of the battle-field, and 
as he went, you could hear his clear, kind voice, 
' Any wounded here ? ' and so he made the terri- 
ble rounds. That man was idolized in life and 
bewailed in death. Old Jacob Trout, a Chaplain 
of the Revolution, and who preached, if I re- 
member right, a five minute sermon before the 
battle of Brandpvine, was the type of the man 
that soldiers love to honor. His faith was in 
' the sword of the Lord and of Gideon,' but his 
Avork was with the musket of Jacob Trout. I do 
not mean to say that the Chaplain should step 
out from the little group of non-combatants that 
belong to a regiment, but I do say, that he must 
establish one point of contact, quicken one throb 
of kindred feeling between the men and himself, 
or his vocation is as empty of all blessings and 
honor as the old wine flasks of Herculaneum. 
No man can honestly misunderstand Vrhat I have 
Avritten. The Chaplaincy, at best, is an office 
difficult and thankless. It demands the best 
men you have to fill it well and worthily — men 
whose very presence and bearing put soldiers 
' upon their honor ; " and it is safe to say that he 
who is fit to be a Chaplain is fit to rule a people. 
How nobly many of them have labored in the 
army of the Cumberland, I need not testify;. 
ministers of mercy, right-hand men of the Sur- 
geons, and the Nightingales, bearers of- the cup of 
cold water and the word of good cheer ; the strong 
regiment may be the Colonel s, but the wounded 
brigade is the Chaplain's. To mingle with the 
men, and share in their frolics, as well as their 
sorrows, without losing self-respect ; to be with 
them, and yet not of them ; to get at their hearts 
without letting them know it, — these are indeed 
tasks most delicate and difficult, requiring a tact 
a man must be born M'ith, and a good, honest 
sense that can never be derived from Gill's 
'Body of Divinity.' How do you like Chaplain 



402 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



S., I asked of a group of Illinois boys, one day. 
' We'll freeze to him, every time,' was the char- 
acteristic reply ; and not unanticipated, for I had 
seen him dressing a wound, helping out a blun- 
dering boy, whose fingers M'ere all thumbs, with 
his letter to ' the girl he left behind him,' play- 
ing ball, running a race, as well as heard him 
making a prayer and preaching a sermon. The 
Surgeon and the Chaplain are co-workers. I 
said the former should report to the women, and 
I half believe that the Chaplain should do like- 
wise." 

A Noble Richmond Girl. — Early in the 
war, S. R. McCullough entered the ranks of the 
First Wisconsin regiment, and soon after became 
its hospital steward. At the disastrous battle of 
Chickamauga, in company with three thousand 
others, he was taken prisoner, and passed through 
Atlanta, on his way to Richmond. Here, he says, 
the loyalty of a great number of the Southei'n 
Avomen was distinctly proved ; more than a hun- 
dred came to the cars where the prisoners were 
confined, and handed them blankets and other 
clothing, M'ithin which were rolled greenbacks, 
varying in amount from tv/o to ten dollars. Simi- 
lar demonstrations took place at various other 
points along the route ; and at R,ichmond he 
found a friend indeed in a pretty looking young 
ladj', to whose agency he and a comrade owe 
their escape. She did the planning, and part of 
the execution ; they the remainder. This young 
lady met young McCullough, and sent to the hos- 
pital for him a pretty bag, containing about a 
pound of tobacco. It occurred to McCullough 
that there might be something besides tobacco in 
it ; and sure enough, at the bottom of the bag was 
a slip of paper, containing substantially these 
words : " Would you be free ? Then be prepared 
to act — meet me to-morrow at ." The meet- 
ing took place. In a few hasty words her plan 
was unfolded ; a day for its attempt was agreed 
upon, and the parties separated without attract- 
ing the attention of the guard. 

A subsequent note, conveyed in like manner, 
told him he might arrange for a single comrade ; 
that necessary clothes would be provided, and 
gave short, but specific directions for the future. 
The to him important day approaches ; he can 
think of no way to pass the guard but to feign 
sickness and death. It is adopted, and on the 
day four of his fellow-prisoners carry him between 
lilankets to tlie " dead house " beyond the guard, 
but within the high fenced enclosure, where he 
lies, " dead as a nit," from midday till dusk, 
all the time fearing that some troublesome guard 
might peep in, or a real dead one be brought, 
and his deception disclosed ; but neither hap- 
pened. At length he raised up and listened ; 
then made a short reconnoissance barefooted, and 
finding all right, returned, put on his traps, and 
sallied forth. Meanwhile, a sham fight was got- 
ten up in another part of the enclosure among a 
lot of prisoners, to quell which drew the guard 
fi'om their legitimate line, during which the com- 
rade passed beyond to a designated negro hut, 



where he was safely stowed away till little pebble 
stones thrown against it by ^IcCuUough told him 
to come forth. The two proceeded to scale the 
high fence by one clambering upon the shoulders 
of the other, thus reaching the top, then draM'ing 
up his comrade. After a while they reached the 
place appointed by the lady (not far distant), and 
had been there but a few moments when she joined 
them, directed that they follow her at such a dis- 
tance only as to be able to keep in view a white 
handkerchief which she carried in her hand. They 
did follow her for twenty-five blocks, when she led 
them into a house, which proved to be that of her 
father. Up to this time her father did not know a 
word of her doings ; but still he received the res- 
cued men cordially, and at once set to work to 
get them safely oft". He procured two passes for 
them, for which he paid twenty-five hundred dol- 
lars in Confederate currency. In a few days, dis- 
encumbered of everything that could by possi- 
bility expose them if examined, the good man 
furnished them a carriage ; and with his blessing 
and that of his family, they set forth for the Fed- 
eral lines, which they reached on the 23d of De- 
cember, 1863. Once, on the road, they were 
stopped and examined by Confederate detectives, 
but there being no apparent reasons for their de- 
tention, vrere allowed to proceed. 



Anecdotes of Judge Chase. — Durmg the 
visit of Chief Justice Chase to New Orleans he 
received many elegant attentions. 

An evening party was given him by a relative 
in Jackson Street, where Miss Chase, his accom- 
plished daughter, was the cynosure of all eyes. 
The Chief Justice, Avho has very little official 
stiffness, indulged during the evening in many 
a delightful anecdote, some of whicli were far 
more interesting than reports of the Supreme 
Court. 

" While at Key West," said the Chief Justice, 
" I fell in with an intelligent contraband, who, 
after eying me intently for a wliile, approached 
me Avith a broad grin, and said : 

" ' Ise — Ise seen you somewhere, massa.' 

" Thinking this smiling recognition worth some- 
thing, I pulled out a greenback, which the negro 
recognized better than your humble servant, and 
with a still broader grin, sputtered out : 

'"0, I know you now, massa, I know you 
now ; you'se Old Greenbacks.' " Whereupon the 
Chief Justice also smiled with a smile of satis- 
faction, and told another. 

" One summer, during my administration, when 
the Treasury was more than usually low, I had 
occasion to visit a body of troops that had not 
been paid off for a long time. Among the men 
was one with whom I had some acquaintance, but 
who did not seem to recognize me, whereupon I 
introduced myself. 

" ' O, yes, Mr. Chase, Secretary of the Treasury. 
I recollect,' he said ; ' but it is so long since we 
have seen your picture that I had almost forgot- 
ten you." 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



403 



THE KENTUCKY PARTISAN. 

BY PAUL H. HAYNE. 

Hath the wily Swamp Fox 

Come again to earth ? 
Hath the soul of Sumter 

Owned a second birth ? 
From the Western hill- slopes 

Starts a hero-form, 
Stalwart, like the oak tree, 

Tameless, like the storm ! 
His an eye of lightnjng ! 

His a heart of steel ! 
Flashing deadly vengeance, 

Thrilled with fiery zeal ! 
Hound him down, ye minions ! 

Seize him — if ye can ; 
But woe worth the hireling knave 
Who meets him, man to man ! 

Well done, gallant Morgan ! 

Strike with might and main, 
Till the fair fields redden 

With a gory rain ; 
Smite them by the roadside. 

Smite them in the wood, 
By the lonely valley, 

And the purpling flood ; 
'Neath the mystic starlight, 

'Neath the glare of day, 
Harass, sting, affright them, 

Scatter them, and slay ; — 
Beard, who durst, our chieftain ! 

Blind him — if ye can, — 
But woe worth the Hessian thief 
Who meets him, man to man ! 

There's a lurid purpose 

Brooding in his breast, 
Born of solemn passion 

And a deep unrest : 
For our ruined homesteads 

And our ravaged land. 
For our women outraged 

By the dastard hand, 
For our thousand sorrows 

And oiir untold shame, 
For our blighted harvests. 

For our towns aflame — 
He has sworn, (and recks not 

Who may cross his path) — 
That the foe shall feel him 

In his torrid wrath — 
That, while will and spirit 

Hold one spark of life, 
Blood shall stain his broadsword, 

Blood shall wet his knife : — 
On ! ye Hessian horsemen ! 

Crush him — if ye can ! 
But woe worth your stanchest slave 
Who meets him, man to man ! 

'Tis no time for pleasure ! 

Doff the silken vest ! 
Up, my men, and follow 

Marion of the West ! 
Strike with hira for freedom } 

Strike with main and might, 
'Neath the noonday splendor, 

'Neath the gloom of night ; 



Strike by rock and roadside, 
Strike in wold and wood ; 
By the shadowy valley. 

By the purpling flood ; 
On ! where Morgan's war-horse 
Thunders in the van ! 
God ! who would not gladly die 
Beside that glorious man ? 

Hath the wily Swamp Fox 

Come again to earth ? 
Hath the soul of Sumter 

Owned a second birth ? 
From the Western hill-slopes 

Starts a hero-form. 
Stalwart, like an oak tree. 

Restless, like the storm ! 
His an eye of lightning ! 

His a heart of steel ! 
Flashing deadly vengeance. 

Thrilled with fiery zeal ! 
Hound him down, ye robbers ! 

Slay him — if ye can ! 
But woe worth the hireling knave 
Who meets him, man to man ! 



The Execution of a Spy, — When a man 
meets death with true courage, our sympathies 
are drawn towards him, no matter what may have 
been his crimes. And no military duty is more 
painful _ than the execution of a spy, especially 
when his bearing is manly, and he displays senti- 
ments of honor and magnanimity at the foot of 
the scaffold. 

The following account gives the particulars of 
an event of this character which took place at 
Pulaski, about eighty miles south of Nashville, 
Tennessee, in December, 1863. 

On Friday the citizens and soldiers of Pulaski 
witnessed one of those painful executions of stern 
justice which makes war so terrible, and, though 
sanctioned by the usages of war, is no more than 
men in the service of their country expose them- 
selves to every day. 

Samuel Davis, of General Coleman's scouts, 
having been found within the Federal lines Avith 
despatches and mails destined for the enemy, 
was tried on the charge of being a spy, and, be- 
ing found guilty, was condemned to be hung be- 
tween the hours of ten o'clock A. M. and six 
o'clock P_. M., on Friday, November 27, 1863. 

The prisoner was apprised of his sentence b\ 
Captain Armstrong, local Provost Marshal, an'd 
though somewhat surprised at the sentence of 
death, did not manifest any outward signs of agi- 
tation. Chaplain Young, of the Eighty-first Ohio 
infantry, visited the prisoner, and administered 
spiritual consolation. 

The prisoner expressed himself resigned to hi8 
fate and perfectly prepared to die. He exhibited 
a firmness unusual for one of his age, and up to 
the last showed a lively interest in the news of 
the day, expressing regret when told of the de- 
feat of Bragg. The scaffold for the execution of 
the prisoner was built upon the ridge east of the 
town, near the seminary — a position which could 
be seen from any part of the town. A^ precisely 



404 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



ten o'clock A. jSI., the p-isoner was taken from 
his cell, his hands tied behind him, and, accom- 
panied by the Chaplain of the Eighty-first Ohio, 
was placed in a wagon, seated upon his coffin, 
and conveyed to the scaffold. Provost Marshal 
Armstrong conducted the proceedings. At pre- 
cisely five minutes past ten o'clock the wagon 
containing the prisoner and the guards entered 
the hollow square formed by the troops, in the 
centre of which was the scaffold. The prisoner 
then stepped from the wagon, and seated him- 
self upon a bench at the foot of the scafi'old. 
He displayed great firmness, glancing casually 
at his coffin as it was taken from the wagon. 
Turning to Captain Armstrong, he inquired how 
long he had to live, and was told he had just fif- 
teen minutes ; he then remarked, " We would 
have to fight the rest of .the battles alone." 

Captain Armstrong — "I am sorry to be com- 
pelled to perform this painful duty." 

Prisoner, with a smile — " It does not hurt 
me. Captain. I am innocent, though I am pre- 
])ared to die, and do not think hard of it." 

Captain Chickasaw then asked the prisoner if it 
would not have been better for him to have ac- 
cepted the ofier of life upon the disclosm-e of 
facts in his possession; when the prisoner an- 
swered, with much indignation : 

" Do you suppose I would betray a friend? 
No, sir ! I would die a thousand times first ! " 

He was then questioned upon other matters, 
but refused to give any information which could 
be of service. 

The prisoner then mounted the scaffold, accom- 
panied by the Chaplain, James Young, whom he 
requested to pray with him at his execution. 

The prisoner then ste])j)ed upon the trap, the 
rope was adjusted about his neck, and the cap 
drawn over his head. In a moment the trap was 
sprung, and the prisoner fell suspended in the 
air. Por a few moments he struggled with his 
hands and feet. This was succeeded by a shght 
quivering of the body, v.iiich ceased at three and 
a half minutes from the time he-felh After be- 
ing suspended seventeen and a half minutes, 
the officiating Surgeon (D. W. Vayles, Sixty- 
sLxth Indiana) pronounced the prisoner dead, and 
he was cut down and placed in his coffin. It was 
supposed, from the protracted animation which 
the prisoner exhibited, that the fall had not bro- 
ken his neck, and that he died by strangulation ; 
but upon subsequent examination his neck was 
found to be completely broken. 

So fell one whom tlie fate of war cut down in 
early youth, and who exhibited traits of charac- 
ter which, under other circumstances, might have 
made him a valuable friend and member of soci- 
ety. 



The Fight in Hampton Roads. — On Sat- 
urday, the 8th March, 1862, about noon, the 
United States frigate Cumberland lay off in the 
roads at Newport News, about three hundred 
yards from shore, the Congress being two hun- 
dred yards south of her. The morning was mild 
and pleasant, and the day had opened without 
any noteworthy incident. 



Soon after eleven o'clock a dark-looking object 
was seen coming round Craney Island through 
Norfolk Channel, and making straight for the 
two Union war vessels. It was instantly recog- 
nized as the Merrimac. The officers of the Cum- 
berland and of the Congress had been on the 
lookout for her for some time, and were as well 
prepared for the impending fight as wooden ves- 
sels could be. 

As the strange-looking craft came ploughing 
through the water right onward towards the port 
bow of the Cumberland, she resembled a huge, 
half submerged crocodile. Her sides seemed of 
solid ii'on, except where the guns pointed from 
the narrow ports, and rose slantingly from the 
water like the roof of a house, or the arched back 
of a tortoise. Probably the entire height of the 
apex from the water's edge was ten perpendicular 
feet. At her prow could be seen the iron ram 
projecting straight forward somewhat above the 
water's edge, and apparently a mass of iron. 
Small boats were slung or fastened to her sides, 
and the rebel flag from one staff, and a pennant 
to another at the stern. There was a smoke- 
stack near her middle ; but no side-wheels or 
machinery was visible, and all exposed parts of 
the formidable craft were heavily coated with 
iron. 

Immediately on the appearing of the Merrimac, 
both Union vessels made ready for action. All 
hands were ordered to places, and the Cumber- 
land was swung across the channel, so her broad- 
side would bear on the hostile craft. The arma- 
ment she could use against the Merrimac was 
about eleven nine and ten-inch Dahlgren guns, 
and two pivot guns of the same make. The 
enemy came on at the rate of four or five knots 
an hour. When within a mile, the Cumberland 
opened on her with her pivot guns, and soon 
after with broadsides. Still she came on, the 
balls bounding from her sides like India rubber, 
making apparently no unpression except to cut 
away the flag-stafl'. 

The INIerrimac passed the Congress, dischar- 
ging a broadside at her, one shell from which 
killed and disabled every man at Gun No. 10 
but one, and made directly for the Cumberland, 
which she struck on the port bow just starboard 
of the main chains, knocking a hole in the side 
near the water line as large as the head of a 
hogshead, and driving the vessel back upon her 
anchors with great force. The water at once 
commenced pouring into the hold, and rose so 
rapidly as to reach in five minutes the sick-bay 
on the berth-deck. Almost at the moment of the 
collision the jSIerrimac discharged from her for- 
ward gun an eleven-inch shell. This shell raked 
the whole gun-deck, killing ten men at Gun No. 1, 
among whom was Master Mate John Harrington, 
and cutting oft" both arms and legs of Quarter- 
Gunner Wood. The water rushed in from tlie 
hole made below, and in five minutes the ship 
began to sink by the head. Shell and solid shot 
from the Cumberland were rained on tlie Merri- 
mac as she passed ahead, but the most glanced 
harmlessly from the incUne of her iron-plated 
bomb-roof. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



405 



As the Merrimac rounded to and came up, she 
again raked the Cumberland with heavy fire. At 
this fire sixteen men at Gun No. 10 were killed 
or wounded, and were all subsequently carried 
down in the sinking ship. 

Advancing with increased momentum, the Mer- 
rimac struck the Cumberland on the starboard 
side, smashing her upper works and cutting an- 
other hole below the water-line. 

The ship now began rapidly to settle, and the 
scene became most horrible. The cockpit was 
filled with the wounded, whom it was impossible 
to bring up. The forward magazine was under 
water, but powder was still supplied from the 
after magazine, and the firing kept steadily up by 
men who knew that the ship was sinking under 
them. They worked desperately and unremit- 
tingly, and amid the din and horror of the con- 
flict gave cheers for their flag and the Union, 
which were joined in by the wounded. The decks 
were slippery with blood, and arms and legs and 
chunks of flesh were strewed about. The Merri- 
mac lay off at easy point-blank range, dischar- 
ging her broadsides alternately at the Cumberland 
and the Congress. The M'ater by this time had 
reached the after magazine of the Cumberland. 
The men, however, kept at work, and several 
cases of powder were passed up, and the guns 
kept in play. Several men in the after shell-room 
lingered there too long in their eagerness to pass 
up shell, and were drowned. 

The water had at this time reached the berth 
or main gun-deck, and it was felt hopeless and 
useless to continue the fight longer. The word 
was given for each man to save himself; but after 
this order Gun No. 7 was fired, when the adjoin- 
ing Gun, No. G, was actually under water. This 
last shot was fired by an active little fellow named 
Matthew Tenney, whose courage had been con- 
spicuous throughout the action. As his port was 
left open by the recoil of the gun, he jumped to 
scramble out ; but the water rushed in with so 
much force that he was washed back and drowned. 
When the order was given to cease firing, and to 
look out for then* safety in the best way possible, 
numbers scampered through the port-holes, whilst 
others reached the spar-deck by the companion- 
ways. Some were unable to get out by either of 
these means, and were carried down by the'rapidly 
sinking ship. Of those who reached the upper 
deck, some swam off to the tugs that came out 
from Newport News. 

The Cumberland sank in water nearly to her 
cross-trees. She went down with her flag still 
flying — a memento of the bravest, most daring, 
and yet most hopeless defence that has ever been 
made by any vessel belonging to any navy in the 
world. The men fought with a courage that could 
not be excelled. There was no flinching, no 
thought of surrender. 

The whole number lost of the Cumberland's 
crew was one hundred and twenty. 

The Cumberland being thoroughly demolished, 
the Merrimac left her — not, to the credit of the 
rebels it ought to be stated, firing either at the 
men clinging to the rigging, or at the small boats 



on the propeller Whildin, which were busily em- 
ployed rescuing the survivors of her crew — and 
proceeded to attack the Congress. The officers 
of the Congress, seeing the fate of the Cumber- 
land, and aware that she also would be sunk if 
she remained within reach of the iron beak of the 
Merriniac, had got all sail on the ship, Mith the 
intention of running her ashore. The tug-boat 
Zouave also came out and made fast to the Cum- 
berland, and assisted in towing her ashore. 

The Merrimac then surged up, gave the Con- 
gress a broadside, receiving one in return, and 
getting astern, raked the ship fore and aft. This 
fli'e was terribly destructive, a shell killing every 
man at one of the guns except one. Coming 
again broadside to the Congress, the Merrimac 
ranged slowly backward and forward, at less than 
one hundred yards distant, and fired broadside 
after broadside into the Congress. The latter 
vessel repHed manfully and obstinately, every gun 
that could be brought to bear being discharged 
rapidly, but with little eflect upon the iron mon- 
ster. Some of the balls caused splinters of iron 
to fly from her mailed roof, and one shot, enter- 
ing a port-hole, dismounted a gun. The guns of 
the Merrimac appeared to be specially trained on 
the after magazine of the Congress, and shot 
after shot entered that part of the ship. 

Thus slowly drifting down with the current and 
again steaming up, the ^Merrimac continued for an 
hour to fu'e into her opponent. Several times the 
Congress was on fire, but the flames were kept 
down. Finally the ship was on fire in so many 
places, and the flames gathering such force, that 
it was hopeless and suicidal to keep up the de- 
fence any longer. The national flag was sorrow- 
fully hauled down, and a white flag hoisted at the 
peak. 

After it was hoisted the Merrimac continued to 
fire, perhaps not discovering the white flag, but 
soon after ceased firing. 

A small rebel tug that had followed the Mer- 
rimac out of Norfolk, then came alongside the 
Congress, and a young officer gained the gun- 
deck through a port-hole, announced that he 
came on board to take command, and ordered the 
officers on board the tug. 

The officers of the Congress refused to go on 
board, hoping from the nearness to the shore that 
they would be able to reach it, and unwilling to 
become prisoners whilst the least chance of es- 
cape remained. Some of the men, supposed to 
number about fortj^, thinking the tug was one of 
our vessels, rushed on board. At this moment 
the members of an Indiana regiment, at Newport 
News, brought a Parrott gun down to the beach 
and opened fire upon the rebel tug. The tug 
hastily put off, and the Merrimac again opened 
fire upon the Congress. The fire not being re- 
turned from the ship, the Merrimac commenced 
shelling the woods and camps at Newport News, 
fortunately, however, without doing much dam- 
age, only one or two casualties occurring. 

By the time all were ashore, it was seven o'clock 
in the evening, and the Congress was in a bright 
sheet of flame, fore and aft. She continued to 



406 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



burn until twelve o'clock at night, her guns, which 
•were loaded and trained, going off as they became 
heated. A shell from one struck a sloop at New- 
port News, and blew her up. At twelve o'clock 
the fire reached her magazines, and with a tre- 
mendous concussion her charred remains blew up. 
There were some five tons of gunpowder in her 
magazine. 

After sinking the Cumberland and filing the 
Congress, the Merrimac, with the Yorktown and 
Jamestown, stood off in the direction of the steam- 
frigate ^linnesota, which had been for some hours 
aground, about three miles below Newport Ncavs. 
This was about five o'clock on Saturday evening. 
The rebel commander of the Merrimac, either 
fearing the greater strength of the Minnesota, or 
wishing, as it afterwards appeared, to capture this 
splendid ship without doing serious damage to 
her, did not attempt to run the Minnesota clown, 
as he had run down the Cumberland, He stood 
off about a mile distant, and with the Yorktown 
and Jamestown threw shell and shot at the frigate. 
The Minnesota, though, from being aground, un- 
able to manoeuvre, or bring all her guns to bear, 
was fought splendidly. She threw a shell at the 
Y'orktown, which set her on fire, and she was 
towed off by her consort, the Jamestown. From 
the reappearance of the Yorktown next day, the 
fire must have been suppressed without serious 
damage. The after cabins of the Minnesota were 
torn away, in order to bring two of her large guns 
to bear from her stern ports, the position in Avhich 
she was lying enabling the rebels to attack her 
there with impunity. She received two serious 
shots : one, an eleven-inch shell, entered near the 
waist, passed through the chief engineer's room, 
knocking both rooms into ruins, and wounding 
several men. Another shot went clear through 
the chain plate, and another passed through the 
mainmast. Six of the crew were killed outright 
on board the Minnesota, and nineteen wounded. 
The men, though fighting at great disadvantage, 
stuck manfully to tlieir guns, and exhibited a 
spirit that would have enabled them to compete 
successfully with any ordinary vessel. 

About nightfall, the Merrimac, satisfied with 
her afternoon's work of death and destruction, 
steamed in under Sewall's Point. The day thus 
closed most dismally for the Union side, and with 
tlie most gloomy apprehensions of Avhat would 
occur the next day. The Minnesota was at the 
mercy of the Merrimac ; and there appeared no 
reason why the iron monster might not clear the 
Roads of the fleet, destroy all the stores and 
warehouses on the beach, drive the troops into the 
Fortress, and command Hampton Roads against 
any number of wooden vessels the Government 
might send there. Saturday was a terribly dis- 
mal night at Fortress Monroe. 

About nine o'clock, Ericsson's battery, the Mon- 
itor, arri-ved at the Roads ; and upon her perform- 
ance was felt that the safety of their position in a 
great measure depended. Never was a greater 
hope placed upon apparently more insignificant 
means ; but never was a great hope more tri- 
umphantly fulfilled. The Monitor was the reverse 



of formidable, lying low on the water, with a plain 
structure amidships, a small pilot-house forward, a 
diminutive smoke-pipe aft: at a mile's distance she 
might be taken for a raft, with an army ambulance 
amidships. ^ 

When Lieutenant Worden was informed of what 
had occurred, though his crew were suffering from 
exposure and loss of rest from a stormy voyage 
around from New York, he at once made prepara- 
tions for taking part in whatever might occur next 
day. 

Before daylight on Sunday morning, the Mon- 
itor moved up, and took a position alongside the 
^Minnesota, lying between the latter ship and the 
Fortress, where she could not be seen by the reb- 
els, but was ready, with steam up, to shp out. 

Up to this time, on Sunday, the rebels gave no 
indication of what were their further designs. 
The ]\Ierrimac lay up towards Craney Island, in 
view, but motionless. At one o'clock she was ob- 
served in motion, and came out, followed by the 
Yorktown and Jamestown, both crowded with 
troops. The object of the leniency towards the 
Minnesota on the previous evening thus became 
evident. It was the hope of the rebels to bring 
the ships aboard the Minnesota, overpower her 
crew by the force of numbers, and capture botli 
vessel and men. 

As the rebel flotilla came out from Sewall's 
Point, the Monitor stood out boldly towards them. 
It is doubtful if the rebels knew what to make of 
the strange-looking battery, or if they despised it. 
Even the Yorktown kept on approaching, until a 
thirteen-inch shell from the Monitor sent her to 
the right about. The Merrimac and the Monitor 
kept on approaching each other, the latter Avail- 
ing until she would choose her distance, and the 
former apparently not knowing what to make of 
her funny-looking antagonist. The first shot from 
the Monitor was fired when about one hundi'ed 
yards distant from the Merrimac, and this distance 
was subsequently reduced to fifty yai'ds, and at no 
time during the furious cannonading that ensued 
were the vessels more than two hundred yards 
apart. 

It is impossible to reproduce the animated de- 
scriptions given of this grand contest between two 
vessels of such formidable offensive and defensive 
powers. The scene was in plain view from For- 
tress Monroe, and in the main facts all the spec- 
tators agree. At first the fight was very furious, 
and the guns of the ^Monitor were fired rapidly. 
As she carried but two guns, whilst the Merrimac 
had eight, of course she received two or three 
shots for every one she gave. Finding that her 
antagonist was much more formidable than she 
looked, the Merrimac attempted to run her down. 
The superior speed and quicker turning qualities 
of the Monitor enabled her to avoid these shocks, 
and to give the jSIerriniac, as she passed, a shot. 
Once the Merrimac struck her near amidships, 
but only to prove that the battery could not be 
run down nor shot down. She spun round like 
a top ; and as she got her bearing again, sent one 
of her formidable missiles into her huge opponent. 

The officers of the Monitor, at this time, had 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



40: 



gained such confidence in the impregnabiHty of 
theii* battery, that they no longer fired at random, 
nor hastily. The fight then assumed its most in- 
teresting aspects. The Monitor ran round the 
Merrimac repeatedly, probing her sides, seeking 
for weak points, and reserving her fire with cool- 
ness, until she had the right spot and the exact 
range, and made her experiments accordingly. In 
this way the Merrimac received three shots, which 
seriously damaged her. Neither of these shots 
rebounded at all, but cut their Avay clear through 
iron and wood into the ship. Soon after receiving 
the third shot, the Merrimac turned towards Sew- 
all's Pomt, and made oft" at full speed. 

The Monitor followed the INIerrimac until she 
got well inside Sewall's Point, and then returned 
to the Minnesota. 

The Merrimac then took the Patrick Henry 
and Jamestown in tow, and proceeded to Norfolk. 
In making the plunge at the Monitor, she had 
lost her enormous iron beak and damaged her 
machinery, and vvas leaking considerably. 

Thus ended the most terrific naval engagement 
of the war. The havoc made by the Merrimac 
among the wooden vessels of the Federal navy 
was appalling ; but the providential arrival of the 
Monitor robbed the rebel craft of its terrors, and 
the destruction of that one Saturday afternoon in 
March was the last serious mischief she ever did. 



A Square Meal. — One of the Wisconsin 
boys, on the reception at the return of the Fifth 
regiment of that State, said : " This is the first 
square meal I've had since I left home." Being 
asked what a square meal was, he replied, " Four 
cups of cofi'ee, all the ham I can eat, with bread, 
butter, pies, cakes, pickles, and cheese in propor- 
tion, with ladies smiling to inspire the appetite." 



Anecdote of President Lincoln. — It will 
be remembered that an extra session of Con- 
gress was called in July following Mr. Lincoln's in- 
auguration. In the message then sent in, speaking 
of secession, and the measures taken by the 
Southern leaders to bring it about, there occurs 
the following remark : " With rebellion thus 
sugar-coated, they have been drugging the public 
mind of their section for more than thirty years, 
until at length they have brought many good men 
to a willingness to take up arms against the 
Government," &c. Mr. Defries, the Government 
printer, told me that, when the message was being 
printed, he was a good deal disturbed by the use 
of the term " sugar-coated," and finally went to 
the President about it. Their relations to each 
other being of the most intimate character, he 
told Mr. Lincoln frankly that he ought to remem- 
ber that a message to Congress was a diff'erent 
afl"air from a speech at a mass meeting in Illinois ; 
that the message became a part of history, and 
should be written accordingly. 

"What is the matter now?" inquired the 
President. 



"Why," said Mr. Defrees, "you have used an 
undignified expression in the message ; " and 
then, reading the paragraph aloud, he added, " I 
would alter the structure of that, if I were you." 

" Defrees," replied Mr. Lincoln, " that word ex- 
presses precisely my idea, and I am not going to 
change it. The time will never come, in this 
country, vvhen the people won't know exactly 
w^hat sugar-coated means ! " 



THE COMMON SOLDIER. 

Nobody cared, when he went to war, 

But the woman who cried on his shoulder ; 

Nobody decked him with immortelles : 
He was only a common soldier. 

Nobody packed in a dainty trunk 

Folded raiment and ofRcer's fare : 
A knapsack held all the new recruit 

Might own, or love, or eat, or wear. 

Nobody gave him a good-by fete. 

With sparkling jest and flower-crowned wine : 
Two or three friends on the sidewalk stood 

AVatching for Jones, the fourth in line. 

Nobody cared how the battle went 

With the man who fought till the bullet sped 
Through the coat undecked with leaf or star 

On a common soldier left for dead. 

\ 
The cool rain bathed the fevered wound, 

And the kind clouds wept the livelong night : 
A pitying lotion Nature gave, 

Till help might come with morning light — 

Such help as the knife of the surgeon gives, 
Cleaving the gallant arm from shoulder ; 

And another name swells the pension-list 
For the meagre pay of a common soldier. 

See, over yonder all day he stands — 
An empty sleeve in the soft wind swaj's. 

As he holds his lonely left hand out 
For charity at the crossing ways. 

And this is how, with bitter shame. 
He begs his bread and hardly lives ; 

So wearily ekes out the sum 

A proud and grateful country gives. 

What matter how he served the guns 

When plume and sash were over yonder ? 

What matter though he bore the flag 

Through bhnding smoke and battle thunder ? 

What matter that a wife and child 
Cry softly for that good arm rent ? 

And wonder why that random shot 
To him, their own beloved, was sent ? 

O patriot hearts, wipe out this stain ; 

Give jewelled cup and sword no more ; 
But let no common soldier blush 

To own the loyal blue he wore. 

Shout long and loud for victory won 
By chi&f and leader stanch and true ; 

But don't forget the boys that fought — 
Shout for the common soldier too. 



408 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



An Incident of tbe "Wilderness. — During 
one of the battles on the left of Grant's army, in 
1865, a soil in one of the New York regiments 
met his father in one of the rebel regiments, and 
took him prisoner. It was an actual occurrence, 
vouched for upon good authority, and the manner 
of it was this. Just before the war commenced, 
the son left his home, and went to the State of 
New Yorii ; he enlisted in the Federal service, 
and went down into General Grant's army, and 
for gallantry in action was promoted to a Lieu- 
tenancy. The father was in the ranks yet. On 
the day of the battle, while charging the rebel 
works on the left, this son, by some curious hap- 
pening of providence, came directly upon his 
father on the other side. " Hold ! " he cried, 
hastily, as he noticed his father was levelling his 
gun upon him ; " don't you know whom you are 
filing at? " During the four years of his service, 
this son had grown so much that the father did 
not know him. " Well," says he, " I am your 
son, and you ai'e my prisoner." The father looked 
up, came quickly to a recognition of his offspring, 
and went to the rear. The head of the family 
was once a shoemaker in the city of Petersburg. 



A Patriotic Artist. — A correspondent who 
visited the studio of Powers, at Florence, says : 

" Though courted and petted by the English, 
wrto have been among his best patrons, Powers has 
always been true to his country — loyal to the core. 
I was reminded of a little incident which occurred 
a few months before, when he was in his studio, 
and an English lady, or some one of secession 
proclivities, asked him if he had ever executed a 
bust of Jefferson Davis. * No, madam,' said he, 
his bright eye flashing with fire, ' I hope that be- 
fore long, an artist of another profession than 
mine maj- have the pleasure of executing him.' 
We spoke of the readiness of the English to be 
on our side, now that success had crowned our 
arms, ' Ah,' said he, ' I know not which is the 
more annoying, when you are trying to get a 
heavy load up hill, to have some one hitch on his 
horse behind and pull you back, or when you are 
going down hill, to have him put on his horses 
before, and dash away with all fury, to the risk of 
upsetting your load and breaking your neck.' " 



A Night in Missouri. — Until I began to 
follow the camp, I had never known, save by 
auricular evidence, of those unpoetical insects 
known as fleas ; but one night in Syracuse, Mo., 
" our mess " experienced the cruelty and savage- 
ness of tlie diminutive foes of man, to our bodies' 
extremest dissatisfaction. We were all lounging 
in the tent, reading, undi'eaming of enemies of 
any kind, when we all became restless, and the 
interest of our books began seriously to dimin- 
ish. There were various manual applications to 
various parts of the body, multifarious shiftings 
of position, accompanied with emphatic expletives 
that sounded marvellously like oaths. 



" What is the matter ? " was asked by one of 
us to the other. " What renders you so uneasy? " 

" Heaven knows," was the answer ; " but I 
itch like Satan." 

" My body is on fire," observed one. 

" I wonder," said another, " if I have contracted 
a loathsome disease." 

" Confound it ! what ails me ? " 

*' And me ? " " And me ? " " And me ? " was 
echoed from my companions. 

One hand became insufficient to allay the irri- 
tation of our corporeality. Both hands became 
requisite to the task, and our volumes were ne- 
cessarily laid aside. No one yet appeared aware 
of the cause of his suffering. If we were not all 
in Tophet, no one could deny we had gone to the 
old Scratch. We seemed to be laboring under 
an uncontrollable nervous complaint. We threw 
our hands about wildly. We seized our flesh 
rudely, and rubbed our clothes until they nearly 
ignited from friction. One of the quartet could 
stand it no longer. He threw off his coat and 
vest spasmodically, and even his undergarments, 
and solemnly exclaimed : 

" Flee from the wrath to come ! " 

The mystery was explained, the enigma solved. 

The martyr's person was covered with small 
black spots, that disappeared and reappeared in 
the same instant. 

To be practically expressive, he was covered 
with fleas. 

The rest of us followed his example, and con- 
verted ourselves into model artists. 

We M'ere all covered Avith fleas. 

Fleas were everywhere. Tent, straw, books, 
blankets, valises, saddles, swarmed with them. 

The air scintillated Avith their blackness. 

We rushed out of the tent. 

They were there in myriads. 

The moonlight fell in checkered beams through 
their innumerable skippings. 

They made a terrible charge, as of a forlorn 
hope, and drove us back. 

We roared with anger and with pain, and 
loud curses made the atmosphere assume a vio- 
let hue. 

Three of the flea-besieged caught up canteens 
of whiskey and brandy, and poured the contents 
over their persons and down their throats ; 
scratching meanwhile like a thousand cals of the 
Thomas persuasion, and leaping about like dan- 
cing dervishes. The more the fleas bit, the more 
the victims drank ; and I, having no taste for 
liquor, began to envy them, as, in thcAr increas- 
ing intoxication, they seemed to enjoy themselves 
after a sardonic fashion. The fleas redoubled 
their ferocity on me, and I surrendered at discre- 
tion, and at last became resigned to their at- 
tacks, until, a few minutes after, a storm that 
had been gathering burst with fierce lightJiing, 
heavy thunder, and torrents of rain. 

A happy idea seized me. 

I caught up my saddle and bridle, and placed 
them on my sable steed, " Festus," Avhich stood 
neighing to the tempest, a few feet from the 
camp. I mounted the fleet-footed horse, and, 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



409 



nude as the Apollo Belvedere, cried, " Go," to the 
restive animal ; and off we sped, to the amaze- 
ment of the sentinels, through the darkness and 
the storm. Every few moments the lightning 
blazed around us with a lurid sheen, as we 
went like the wind through the tempestuous 
night. 

" Festus " enjoyed it, as did his rider ; and sk 
swift-speeding miles were passed ere I drew the 
rein upon the neck of the panting beast, covered 
with white Hecks of foam. 

I paused, and felt that the fleas had been left be- 
hind. The pelting rain and rushing blast had been 
too much for them, while the exercise had made 
my attireless body glow into a pleasant warmth. 
" Festus " galloped back, and soon I was in the 
tent, rolled so closely in the blanket that no new 
attack of the fleas could reach me. My com- 
panions, overcome with their exertions, suffer- 
ings, and potations, had lain down ; but the fleas 
were still upon them, and they rolled and tossed 
more than a rural tragedian in the tent scene of 
"Richard the Third." They were asleep, and yet 
they moaned pitcously, and scratched with de- 
moniac violence. In spite of my pity for the poor 
fellows, I could not refrain from laughing. 

With the earliest dawn I awoke, and the tent 
was vacant. 

Horrid thought ! 

Had the fleas carried them off? 

I went out to search for them, and, after dili- 
gent quest, found them still in Nature's garb, 
distributed miscellaneously about the encamp- 
ment. In their physical torture they had uncon- 
sciously rolled out of the tent. One lay in an 
adjacent ditch, a second under an artillery wag- 
on, and the third was convulsively grasping the 
earth, as if lie were endeavoring to dig his own 
grave ; believing, no doubt, that in the tomb 
neither Fortune nor fleas could ever harm him 
more. The unfortunate' two were covered with 
crimson spots, and looked^ as if recovering from 
the small-pox. I pulled them, still stupid from 
their spiritual excess, into the tent again, and 
covered them with blankets, though they swore 
incoherently as I did so, evidently believing 
that some giant flea was dragging them to per- 
dition. 

When they were fully aroused, they fell to 
scratching again most violently, but knew not 
what had occurred until they had recalled the 
events of the previous night. They then blas- 
phemed afresh, and unanimously consigned the 
entire race of fleas to the bottomless pit. The 
fleas still tried to bite, but could find no new 
places, and my companions had grown accus- 
tomed to them. 

They felt no uneasiness for the coming night ; 
they were av/are that the new fleas would retire 
from a field so completely occupied, and that the 
domesticated creatures were in sufficient force to 
rout all invaders. 

So ended that memorable Noche Triste, an ex- 
emplification of the scriptural declaration : 

" The wicked flee when no man pursueth," 



Servile Insurkections. — In the first year 
of the war the people of the South in many 
places felt that they were standing over a smoul- 
dering volcano. It was feared, and by many be- 
lieved, that a general servile insurrection would 
take place simultaneously with the advance of 
the Union forces, and that Southern society would 
be crushed to pieces by the combined action of 
hostile pressure from without and terrible com- 
motions within. 

In fact, disturbances of this kind did take place 
in vai'ious parts of the South, and when they 
were quieted and the mutineers M-ere arrested 
there followed scenes of horrid torture and sick- 
ening executions which have had no equal on the 
continent, except in the Indian wars. The fol- 
lowing account of an insurrection in South Caro- 
lina and the executions that followed it is from a 
private letter written from Charleston in the fall 
of 1861: 

" No general insurrection has taken place, 
though several revolts have been attempted ; 
two quite recently, and in these cases ivliole fam- 
ilies loere murdered before the slaves iccre subdued. 
Then came retaliation of the most fearful char- 
acter. At any time where servants assail or 
murder white persons, speedy and severe punish- 
ment is administered ; but now they do not Avait 
for the action of the law. Lynch law prevails. 
In these revolts, which occurred in the interior 
of the State, most of the servants who partici- 
pated were either shot in the conflict or as soon 
as captured, and two of them were burned to 
death. 

"To say they were burned to death seems a 
simple sentence, devoid of any special horror; 
but the scene, as described to me by a witness, 
was too dreadful for mortal eyes. Imagine the 
poor wretches, red with the blood of their mas- 
ters, cowering in the hands of those from whom 
they need not look for pity ; not even for time 
to repent of deeds which exclude them from hope 
hereafter. They are dogged and defiant towards 
then- captors, until their doom is pronounced — a 
fate of which they have a special horror. Dragged 
to the place of execution, within sight of their 
own houses, surrounded by their fellow-servants, 
who are compelled to witness the sight, they are 
bound to strong trees, with great heaps of' pine 
knots piled close around their persons. Directly 
the torch is applied, and the inflammable pine 
bursts into a vivid flame. When the blaze reaches 
the bodies, and the sensitive flesh peels and 
crackles, their cries are too fearfid to be heard by 
human ears. Nor is the torment soon over. The 
flames scorch the upper part of the bodies, pro- 
ducing exquisite agony, but slowly burn into the 
vitals, until the wretched sufferers go to judg- 
ment with all their crimes upon their heads. 

" I undertook to say the apprehension of ser- 
vile insurrection lost its power when, as time 
passed, all seemed peaceful; so we easily fell 
back into dreams of security until these events 
aroused us to watchfulness. This news is sup- 
pressed as far as possible, and kept entirely from 
the papers, for the negroes hear what is published, 



410 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



if they do not read it, and such examples might 
produce disastrous consequences." 



A Sailor's Story. — On the 10th of April, 
18G2, a month after the great naval fight in 
Hampton Roads, there was a grand reception in 
New York of the surviving heroes of the Con- 
gress and the Cumberland. 

In the course of the evening Mr. Willard, one 
of the sailors on the Congress, gave, in his vigor- 
ous waj', an account of the action, as follows : 

" Gentlemen and ladies : I am not acquainted 
Avith this kind of speaking. I am not used to it. 
I have been too long in a man-of-war. I enlisted 
in a man-of-war when I was thirteen years of 
age. (I am nov/ forty.) I have been in one ever 
since. We had been a long time in the Congress, 
waiting for the Merrimac, with the Cumberland. 
I claim a timber-head in both ships. I belonged 
to the Cumberland in the destroying of the navy 
yard and the ships at Norfolk. On the 8th of 
March, when the Merrimac came out, we were as 
tickled as a boy would be with his father coming 
home with a new kite for him. [Loud laughter 
and applause.] She fired a gun at us. It went 
clean through the ship, and killed nobody. The 
next one was a shell. It came in at a port-hole, 
killed six men, and exploded and killed nine more. 
The next one killed ten. Then she went down to 
the Cumberland. She had an old grudge against 
her, and she took her hog-fashion, as I should 
say. [Great laughter.] The Cumberland fought 
her as long as she could. She fired her spar-deck 
guns at her after her gun-deck was under water ; 
but the shot had no more eflect than peas. She 
sunk the Cumberland in about seven fathoms of 
water. You know what a fathom is — six feet. 
We lay in nine fathoms ; and it would not do to 
sink in that. We slipped our cable, and ran into 
shallower water to get our broadside on the Mer- 
rimac, but we got her bows on. That gave them 
a chance to rake us as they did. The com- 
mander opened a little port-hole and said : 
' Smith, will you surrender the ship ? ' Says he, 
' No, not as long as I have got a gun, or a man 
to man it.' They fired a broadside. The men 
moved the dead bodies away, and manned the 
guns again. They fired another broadside, and 
dismounted both the guns, and killed the crews. 
When they first went by us, they set us afire by 
a shell exploding near the magazine. (I know 
where the magazine is — you folks don't.) Last 
broadside she killed our commander, Mr. Smith, 
our saihng-master, and the pilot. We had no 
chance at all. We were on the spar-deck — most 
of us — the other steamers firing at us, and we 
dodging the shot. No chance to dodge down 
below, because you could not see the shot till 
they were inside of the ship. We had no chance, 
and we surrendered. The rebel officers — we 
knowed 'em all — all old playmates, shipmates — 
came home in the Germantown with them — all 
old playmates, but rascals now. She left us, and 
she went toward Norfolk to get out of the way. 
She returned in the morning to have what I'd call 



a ' fandango ' with the Minnesota ; and tlie first 
thing she knowed, the little bumble-bee, the 
Monitor, was there, and she went back. I have 
no more to say, people ; but there is the flag that 
the fathers of our country left us, and, by the 
powers of God above us, we'll — " 

The brave sailor's closing sentence was broken 
off" by long and repeated cheers from the audi- 
ence. 

Anecdote of President Lincoln. — Presi- 
dent Lincoln, having been applied to to pardon a 
repentant slave-trader who had been sentenced to 
prison, answered the applicant : '■ My friend, if 
this man had been guilty of the worst murder 
that can be conceived of, I might, perhaps, have 
pardoned him. You know the weakness of my 
nature — always open to the appeals of repent- 
ance or of grief ; and with such a touching letter, 
and such recommendations, I could not resist. 
But any man who would go to Africa and snatch 
from a mother her children, to sell them into in- 
terminable bondage, merely for the salie of pecu- 
niary gain, shall never receive pardon from me." 



Taking the Oath. — A very shrewd, sensible 
man in Maury County, Tennessee, who had been 
a strong Union man until the Yankees got there, 
but who, after that, became equally as strong a 
Southerner, went to Columbia one day, and was 
brought before General Negley. " Well," said 
General Negley, " Mr. B., you must take the 
oath before you go home." 

"Very well," said B. ; "just have it boxed up. 
General, and I'll take it out." 

" O," said General Negley, " you don't un- 
derstand me ; you must take the oath to support 
the Government of the United States." 

" Why, General," said friend B., " I have a 
wife and several children, and it's as much as I 
can do to support them. I am a poor man, and 
I can't think of supporting the ivliole United 
States — that's rather too much." 

By this time Negley became rather impatient. 
" Here," said he, handing B. the printed oath, 
" read it for yourself." 

" I can't read," said B. 

" Well, then," said Negley, turning to the Pro- 
vost ]\Iarshal, " give him a pass anyhow ; he has 
no sense." 

And thus he went home without taking the 
oath, and the Yankee General was outwitted. 



Get off that Stump. — Among the paroled 
rebel soldiers who were sent to Cairo was a man 
a little over seven and a half feet in height. He 
started out with the Missouri troops at the com- 
mencement of the war, and stuck to them until 
the " dog was dead," and never received a scratch. 
Soon after he was mustered into the rebel ser- 
vice, the regiment to which he belonged ap;;eared 
before the Colonel on dress parade, and the Col- 
onel, who prided himself on the fine appearance 
and good size of his men, cast his eyes along the 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



411 



line with a smile of self-satisfaction, until they 
rested on the towering form of the tall Missourian, 
when he knit his brows, and called out fiercely in 
thunder tones, ') Get off that stump, you imperti-i 
^nent scoundrel, or I'll order you under arrest."! 
The soldiers looked at each other, wondering Avhat 
the Colonel meant, but no one moved. Finding 
his authority treated with disrespect, he fairly 
boiled with rage, and advancing to the soldier, 
he exclaimed, " What in the devil are you stand- 
ing on ? " The soldier respectfully replied, " On 
my feet. Colonel." The Colonel was completely 
taken back, as he surveyed this tall specimen of 
humanity from head to foot in blank amazement ; 
he mumbled an apology for his rude remarks, and 
hastened away, leaving his men convulsed with 
laughter. " Get off that stump " became a by- 
word with the Missouri rebels, and it will, no 
doubt, live as long as the long Missourian. 



The Captuke of Jefferson Davis. — An 
officer who accompanied Davis in his flight from 
Richmond, and who was present at his capture, 
gives the following account of that affair : 

" Davis ran his risks and took his chances, fully 
conscious of imminent danger, yet powerless, fi-om 
physical weariness, to do all he designed doing 
against the danger. When the musketry firing 
was heard in the morning, at ' dim gray dawn,' it 
was supposed to be between the rebel marauders 
and Mr. Davis' few camp defenders. Under this 
impression he hurriedly put on his boots, and 
prepared to go out for the purpose of interpos- 
ing, saying : _ 

" ' They will at least as yet respect me.' 

"As he got to the tent door thus hastily 
equipped, and with this good intention of pre- 
venting an effusion of blood by an appeal in the 
name of a fading, but not Avholly faded authority, 
he saw a few cavalry ride up the road and de- 
ploy in front. 

" ' Ha, Federals ! ' was his exclamation. 

" ' Then you are captured,' cried Mrs. Davis, 
with emotion. 

" In a moment she caught an idea — a woman's 
idea — and as quickly as Avomen in an emergency 
execute their designs, it was done. He slept in 
a wrapper — a loose one. It Avas yet around him. 
This she fastened ere he was aware of it, and then, 
bidding him adieu, urged him to go to the spring, 
a short distance off, where his horses and arms 
were. Strange as it may seem, there was not even 
a pistol in the tent. Davis felt that his only course 
was to reach his horse and arms, and complied. 
As he was leaving the door, followed by a servant 
with a water-bucket, Miss Howell flung a shawl 
over his head. There Avas no time to remove it 
without exposure and embarrassment, and as he 
had not far to go, he ran the chance exactly as 
it Avas devised for him. In these tAVO articles con- 
sisted the Avoman's attire of Avhich so much non- 
sense has been spoken and written, and under 
these circumstances, and in this Avay, was Jeffer- 
son Davis going forth to perfect his escape. 

" But it Avas too late for any effort to reach his 



horses, and the Confederate President Avas at last 
a prisoner in the hands of the United States." 



Bob, the " Bully Boy." — Among the sharp 
boys in Sherman's army, on the grand march, 
Avas a graduate of the common schools of North- 
ern Ohio — the only son of a widowed mother. 
The fond mother had no word from her son from 
the time the army left Chattanooga till it reached 
Atlanta. She Avaited for tidings Avith much anx- 
iety, Avatching daily the neAVS])aper reports. At 
length, several days after the taking of Atlanta 
had been announced, a letter Avas brought her, 
which read as follows : 

" Atlanta. 

" Dear Mother : Bully boy all rigljt. 

" Bob." 

In due time, Sherman marched from Atlanta 
to Savannah. There Avas a fight behind Savan- 
nah. The AvidoAved mother read in the newspa- 
pers that the company to which her boy belonged 
Avas in that fight. With almost sleepless anxiety 
she waited for ncAvs from him. One day she re- 
ceived a note which read thus : 

" Saaovnnaii. 
" Dear Mother : Bully boy got a hole in his 
hide — not bad. Bob." 

In the march of events, Sherman's men reached 
Washington, Avere mustered out, and the com- 
pany to Avhich " Bob " belonged Avent to the cap- 
ital of Ohio. Here "Bob" had his final, honor- 
able discharge, and when he had made it "all 
right " Avith the paymaster, and Avas again a citi- 
zen, he sent the following telegram : 

" C0LUM3U3. 

" Dear Mother : Bully boy home to-morrow. 

" Bob." 

When asked by a friend, to Avhom the infre- 
quency and brevity of his epistles home had been 
mentioned, Avhy he did not Avrite oftener, and at 
greater length, he ansAvered : 

" Bully boy's got his haversack full. Keep it 
all to tell by Avord of mouth. Won't he have a 
good time talking up the old lady ? " 



The First Rebel Admiral. — Harry Maury 
was a dashing young Southron, a nephew of the 
Lieutenant of National Observatory memory. 
He had been educated for the navy, and Avas 
only thoroughly alive in scenes of adventure and 
peril. He rushed into Walker's Nicaragua ex- 
pedition as if it had been a schoolboy frolic ; and 
his escapade of capturing the revenue cutter Su- 
san, Avith all on board, oflBcers and men, and run- 
ning her off to the West Indies, Avithout compass 
or pilot, and making his Avay back by the corks 
he left in his Avake, are yet fresh in the memory. 

In January, 1861, this young " Harry " mount- 
ed one six-pound gun upon his bit of a pleasure 
yacht, laid in three hams and five barrels of 



412 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



whiskey for stores, anchored off Fort ^Morgan, in 
Mobile Bay, trained a pump-log against the for- 
tress, took observations with a table-leg, sent a 
summons to surrender, and thus inaugurated the 
Confederate navy. 

Subsequently he led an Alabama regiment, was 
badly vrounded, captured, and exchanged, and 
now, disabled either for mischief or for frolic, 
lingers out a painful life somewhere in Dixie. 

So much for the first Admiral of the rebel Ar- 
mada. — B. F. Taylor. 



Wanted to " get out." — The following 
story was told by a correspondent, at the depot 
of Prisoners of "War, at Johnson's Island : 

" Last night, a number of prisoners made a fu- 
tile attempt to escape by digging under the fence. 
They commenced a mine under the floor of a 
building next to the wall, and four succeeded in 
getting through, making their exit on the side of 
the fence. But fortunately the fifth was a size 
larger than he imagined himself to be, and stuck 
in the mud, as the boys say. He succeeded in 
getting his head through, but somehow got his 
arms in such a position that he could not move, 
being evidently under much excitement, and anx- 
ious to make his escape with all possible speed. 

" In the mean time, his comrades, who had made 
their escape, were anxious that he should accom- 
pany them on their imaginary journey South ; 
and after undergoing a severe operation of hair- 
pulling — as that was the only hold they could 
get — he declined going any farther at that time. 
And after bidding his more fortunate comrades 
to take a lock of his extricated hair with them 
to his sweetheart in Dixie, he bade them fare- 
well ; and they left him in this ludicrous position, 
perfectly disgusted. 

" But now arose the second difficulty : his 
friends on the inside thought that he was intrud- 
ing upon their rights, and informed him that if 
he did not intend to go any farther it was very 
impolite to stop up the hole with his precious 
self, and keep them from going too. After much 
persuading, by way of pulling at his legs, and 
again pushing, of no avail, they, too, abandoned 
the enterprise of extricating the poor, miserable 
wretch. But what this unlucky being lacked in 
the organ of size he made up in the organ of en- 
durance, for he actually remained in this tight 
place from nine o'clock in the evening until half 
past five in the morning. It was raining nearly 
the Mhole night, and was uncomfortably cold. 
The first that was discovered of him was by the 
sentinel, who heard a suppressed voice, saying : 

" ' I want to get out o' this.' 

" Sentinel — ' Where are you ? ' 

" Rebel — ' Here, under the fence. I want to 
get out ! ' 

" Sentinel — ' Well, get out, or I'll shoot you.' 

" Rebel — ' I am fast ! Don't shoot ! I am 
fast ! ' 

" The Corporal of the guard was called, who 
brought a light, and, sure enough, there was a 
rebel planted, with his head protruding out of 
the solid earth. 



" It was agreed among the boys, that with the 
addition of a head-board, with his name inscribed 
on it, ' Captain Pole, who stuck in the hole,' he 
would be buried decently enough. But after 
consulting the officer of the guard they concluded 
to dig him out. The ludicrous appearance he 
presented created great merriment ; muddy, drip- 
ping, half foundered, forth he came, wringing 
himself as he went, ' with the look of a " wet- 
down " rooster in a fall rain storm.' He said he 
was the first who attempted to escape, but no re- 
liance was placed on his statement, and pickets 
were sent out, and those prisoners who were out 
were discovered in the back part of the island 
building a raft, and were brought in and se- 
cured." ^ 

An Incident of Fair Oaks. — On the dark 
nights that followed the firet and the disastrous 
day at Fair Oaks, hundreds of soldiers remember 
with what fierce enthusiasm Meagher and his Irish 
brigade pressed forward over the dead and dying. 
Then early the following morning there came the 
wild shout, the rush, the clash, the dead stillness, 
and then the yell of victorious Erin. 

In the midst of that red battle scene there oc- 
curred one of those touching incidents in Avhich 
this unhappy civil war has abounded. 

Among General Meagher's men was one O'Neill, 
a soldierly appearing fellow, aged, perhaps, thirty, 
dark complexioned, robust, and undfiubtedly full 
of pluck. On that terrible Sabbath morning a 
portion of the Irish brigade swept over the rail- 
road and into an adjacent swamp, full of dead hor- 
rors, for there was one scene of the previous day's 
struggle. A rebel Lieutenant, at the head of those 
who remained of his company, dashed madly on 
the Irish line of steel, which stood firm as the rock 
of Cashel ; and the impotent, insurrectionary wave 
was repelled with a reactionary shock that scat- 
tered it like spray. Forty rebels lay dead and 
wounded ; and foremost among them all the young 
Lieutenant, a bullet having shattered his left knee. 
Of course he fell into our hands a prisoner, and 
with his companions was thereafter soon carried 
to the rear. This young man — long hair, dark 
eyes, straight and soldierly — was admired for his 
bearing, which was that of a proud foe, foiled, but 
not vanquished. There was a halt near the station, 
where the O'Neill alluded to above then \f as, as a 
temporary guard over some other prisoners. As 
he gazed at the wounded rebel officer, a visible 
change overspread his features. He asked one 
of his superiors if he might speak to the Lieuten- 
ant. His joy knew no bounds Avhen he learned 
that this was Phil O'Neill, C. S. A., a younger 
brother, of whom the family had had no tidings 
for fifteen years. He had lived as a clerk in Sa- 
vannah, had enlisted as a private, for good con- 
duct had been promoted, and was at length a 
prisoner. The young Confederate, when fully 
aware of this interesting discovery, again wept 
tears of joy, and the scene was one never to be 
forgotten. The romantic circumstance was made 
known to General Meagher, to Avhom the Lieu- 
tenant was introduced, a-iid for whom the General 
did everything in his power. Though the cap- 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



413 



tured ofi&cer would not fight on our side, he would 
not be exchanged, and went North, where, in a 
brief period, he took the oath of allegiance. His 
brother was killed while butting under Burnside 
against the stone wall at Fredericksburg, and his 
evergreen sprig teas nearest to the enemy. 



Speech of Mrs. Booth. — On the 3d of 
April, 1864, the widow of Major Booth, who was 
killed in the barbarous attack on Fort Pillow, 
arrived at Fort Pickering, below Memphis, Ten- 
nessee. Colonel Jackson, of the Sixth United 
States heavy artillery, had his regiment formed 
into line for her reception. In front of its centre 
stood fourteen men, as fine, brave fellows as tread 
the earth. They were the remnant of the first 
battalion of the regiment now drawn up — all 
who had escaped the fiendish scenes of Fort 
Pillow — scenes that have stamped the deepest 
blackness on the infamous brow of treason. 

Mrs. Booth came forward. In her hand she 
bore a flag, red and clotted Avith human blood. 
She took a position in front of the fourteen he- 
roes, so lately under her deceased hu.sband's com- 
mand. 

The ranks before her observed a silence that 
was full of solemnity. Many a hardy face showed 
by twitching lids and humid eyes how the sight 
of the bereaved lady touched bosoms that could 
meet steel, and drew on the fountain of tears that 
had remained dry even amid the piteous sights 
witnessed on the battle-field after a fierce action. 

Turning to the men before her, she said: 

" Boys, I have just come from a visit to the 
hospital of Mound City. There I saw your com- 
rades, wounded at the bloody struggle in Fort 
Pillow. There I found this flag — you recognize 
it. One of your comrades saved it from the in- 
sulting touch of traitors at Fort Pillow ! 

"I have given to my country all I had to give 
— my husband — such a gift ! Yet I have freely 
given him for freedom and my country. 

"After my husband's cold remains, the next 
dearest object left me in the world is this flag — 
the flag that waved in proud defiance over the 
works of Fort Pillow ! 

" Soldiers : this flag I give to you, knowing 
that you will ever remember the last words of 
my noble husband: 'Never surrender the flag 
to traitors.' " 

Colonel Jackson then received from her hand, 
on behalf of his command, the blood-stained flag. 
He called upon the regiment to receive it as such 
a gift ought to be received. At that call he and 
every man of the regiment fell upon their knees, 
and, solemnly appealing to the God of battles, 
each one sAvore to avenge their brave and fallen 
comrades, and never — never to surrender the 
flag to traitors ! 

The scene was one never surpassed in emotional 
incident. Beside the swift-rolling waters of the 
Mississippi — within the enclosure that bristled 
with the death-dealing cannon — knelt these 
rough soldiers, whose bosoms were heaving with 
emotion, and on many of whose cheeks quivered 



a tear they tried to hide, though it did honor to 
their manly natures. Beside them stood in her 
grief the widow of the loved officer they had 
lost, and above them was held the bloody flag — 
that eloquent record of crime which has capped 
the climax of rebellion, and which will bring a 
reckoning so fearful. 

In a few pointed words. Colonel Alexander 
pledged himself and his command to discharge 
to the uttermost the solemn obligation of jus- 
tice they had that day taken. 

Colonel Kappan followed him, expressing him- 
self in favor of such retaliatory acts of justice 
as the laws of warfare required, in a case of such 
fiendish and wicked cruelty. 



Adventure of a Long Isl.\nd Girl. — A 
Western journalist relates this story of a young 
woman's adventures : " Miss Fanny Wilson is 
a native of Williamsburg, Long Island. About 
four years ago, or one year prior to the war, she 
came West, visiting a relative who resided at La 
Fayette, Indiana. While here her leisure mo- 
ments were frequently employed in communicat- 
ing, by afi"ectionate epistles, with one to whom 
her heart had been given, and her hand had been 
promised, before leaving her native city — a 
young man from New Jersey. After a residence 
of about one year with her Western relative, and 
just as the war was beginning to prove a reality, 
Fanny, in company with a certain Miss Nelly 
Graves, who had also come from the East, and 
there left a lover, set out upon her return to her 
home and familj'. While on their way thither, 
the two young ladies concocted a scheme, the ro- 
mantic nature of which was doubtless its most 
attractive feature. 

" The call for troops having been issued, and 
the several States coming quickly forward with 
their fia'st brave boys, it so happened that those 
two youths whose hearts had been exchanged for 
those of the pair Avho now were on their happy 
way towards them, enlisted in a certain and the 
same regiment. Having obtained cognizance of 
this fact, Fanny and her companion conceived 
the idea of assuming the uniform, enlisting in the 
service, and following their lovers to the field. 
Soon their plans were matured and carried into 
eS'ect. A sufficient change having been made in 
their personal appearance, their hair having been 
cut, and themselves reclothed to suit their wish, 
they sought the locality of the chosen regiment, 
ofi'ered their services, were accepted, and mus- 
tered in. In another company from their town, 
of the same regiment (the Twenty-fourth New- 
Jersey), were their patriotic lovers, ' known, 
though all unknowing.' On parade, in the drill, 
they were together — they obeyed the same com- 
mand. In the quick evolutions of the field, thfy 
came as close as they had in other days, even on 
the floor of the dancing-school ; and yet — so 
says Fanny — the facts of the case were not 
made known. 

" But the Twenty-fourth, by the fate of war, 
was ordered before Vicksburg, having already 



414 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



served through the first campaign in Western 
Virginia ; and here, alas for Fanny ! she was to 
suffer by one blow. Here her brave lover was 
wounded. She sought his cot, watched over him, 
and half revealed her true nature in her devotion 
and gentleness. She nursed him faithfully and 
long, Isut he died. Next after this, by the reverse 
of fortune, Fanny herself and her companion 
were both thrown upon their hospital cots, ex- 
hausted, sick. With others, both wounded and 
debilitated, they were sent to Cairo. Their at- 
tendants v/ere more constant and more scrutiniz- 
ing. Suspicion was first had ; the discovery of 
Fanny's and Nelly's true sex was made. Of 
course, the next event in their romantic history 
was a dismissal from the service. But not until 
her health had improved sufficiently, was Fanny 
dismissed from the sick-ward of the hospital. 
This happened, however, a week or two after her 
sex had become known. Nelly, who up to this 
time had shared the fate of her companion, was 
now no longer allowed to do so ; her illness be- 
came serious, she was detained in the hospital, 
and Fanny and she parted — their histories no 
longer being linked. Nelly we can tell no fur- 
ther of ; but Fanny, having again entered society 
in her true position, what became of her ? 

" We now see her on the stage of a theatre at 
Cairo, Illinois, serving an engagement as ballet 
girl. But this lasts but a few nights. She turns 
up in Memphis, even as a soldier again. But she 
has changed her branch of the service ; Fanny 
has now become a private in the Third Illinois 
cavalry. Only two Aveeks has she been enlisted, 
when, to her surprise, while riding through the 
street vrith a fellow-soldier, she is stopped by a 
guard, and arrested for being ' a woman in men's 
clothing.' She is taken to the office of the detec- 
tive police, and questioned until no doubt can 
remain as to her identity — not proving herself, 
as suspected, a rebel spy, but a Federal soldier. 
An appropriate wardrobe is procured her, and 
her word is given that she will not again attempt 
a disguise. And here we leave her. Fanny is a 
young lady of about nineteen years ; of a fair 
face, though somewhat tanned ; of a rather mas- 
culine voice, and a mind sprightly and somewhat 
educated — being very easily able to pass herself 
off for a boy of about seventeen or eighteen." 



COTTON-DOODLE. 

Written by a lady on hearing that Yankee Doodle had 
been hissed in New Orleans. 

IIurhah for brave King Cotton ! 

The Southerners are singing ; 
From Carolina to the Gulf 

The echo's loudly ringing ; 
In every heart a feeling stirs 
t 'Gainst Northern abolition ! 
Something is heard of compromise, 

But nothing of submission. 

Cotton-doodle, boys, hurrah ! 

We've sent old Yankee hissing; 
And when we get our Southern rights, 

I guess he'll turn up missuig ! 



His poet, Lowell, is singing 

'Gainst " sacred compromises; " 
Prays, " God confound the dastard word," 

At which his " gall arises." 
No wonder that he hates it, 

He surely has good reason ; 
He broke the faith of Seventy-six, 

And it proclaims his treason. 

Cotton-doodle, boys, hurrah ! 

He does not love the negro ; 

That's but a pretext hollow 
To hide his greedy longing 

For the " almighty dollar." 
Where was his tender conscience, 

When for " blood-stained gold " 
His Narraganset captives 

Were into slavery sold ? 

Cotton-doodle, boys, hurrah ! 

'Gainst nullifying tariffs 

He raised a mighty din. 
And loudly talked in Thirty-two 

Of Carolina's sin ; 
But now appeals from Congress 

To the " higher law " of Heaven ! 
'Twas horrible in one, you know, 

But God-like in eleven ! 

Cotton-doodle, boys, hurrah ! 

Thank God, his day is passing ! 

He can no longer vex us ; 
For, State by State, we'll firmly stand, 

From Maryland to Texas. 
King Cotton is a monarch 

Who'll conquer abolition, 
And set his foot upon the neck 
Of treason and sedition. 

Cotton-doodle, boys, hurrah ! 

We've sent old Yankee hissing ; 
And when we get our Southern rights, 
I guess he'll turn up missing ! 



" Alex. Hayes." — A soldier of Gettysburg, a 
few days after the battle, wrote : 

" I wish you could have seen a picture, just at 
the close of last Friday's battle, on the left of our 
centre, of which his splendid figure formed a 
prominent part. Our little brigade, which had 
been lying on Cemetery Hill, was ordered over 
to the position that was so valiantly but unsuc- 
cessfully charged by Pickett's rebel division. We 
hurried there through a storm of shot and shell, 
but only arrived in time to see the grand finale, 
the tableaux vivanis, and, alas, mourants, at the 
close of the drama. The enemy's batteries were 
still playing briskly, and their sharpshooters kept 
up a lively fire, but their infantry, slain and 
wounded and routed, were pouring into our lines 
throughout their whole extent. Then enter Alex. 
Hayes, Brigadier-General United States Army, 
the brave American soldier. Six feet or more in 
height, and as many inches the length of his 
mighty mustache, erect and smiHng, lightly hold- 
ing well in hand his horse — the third within a 
half hour, a noble animal, his flanks be spattered 
with blood, tietl to his streaming tail a rebel flag 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



415 



that drags igiiominiously in the mud — he dashes 
along our lines, now rushing out into the open 
field, a mark for a hundred sharpshooters, but 
never touched, now quietly cantering back to our 
lines to be welcomed with a storm of cheers. I 
reckon him the grandest view of my life. I bar 
not Niagara. It was the arch spirit of glo- 
rious Victory wildly triumphing over the fallen 
foe. 

" The night after, I met General Hayes again. 
After the fight of Friday afternoon, we held the 
battle-field, our skirmishers forming a line on the 
outer edge of it. This field was strewn with 
rebel wounded. It was impossible for us to 
bring them in Friday night ; every apology for 
a hospital being crowded, our own wounded, in 
many cases, Ijing out all night. But Saturday 
morning bandsmen were sent out with litters to 
bring in the poor fellows, and were fired vpon hy 
the rebel sliarpsliooters so briskly that it teas im- 
possible to help them. Stories similar to this I 
had often heard, but never believed. This came 
under my own observation. So all day Saturday 
the poor fellows lay there, praying for death. 
When night fell, another officer of my regiment 
and myself got a few volunteers to go out with 
us, thinking there might be some Avho could 
creep into our lines, supported, on either side, by 
one of us. May God preserve me from such a 
position again ! We could do almost nothing, 
Of a thousand wounded men, we found one whom 
four of us carried into our lines in a blanket. 
Other poor souls would think they might accom- 
plish it, but, at the slightest change of position, 
would fall back, screaming in awful agony. Lit- 
ters we had none. Then appeared General Alex. 
Hayes in another light, less of the bravado, per- 
haps, not less of the hero. He sent out two com- 
panies, who cleared the rebel sharpshooters from 
a position they held in a ruined building, busied 
himself in procuring litters and bearers, and be- 
fore morning many of the poor fellows were safe 
within our lines. It is not my good fortune to 
be personally acquainted with this General Alex. 
Hayes ; but I wish every one, as far as I can 
effect it, to honor him as the bravest of soldiers, 
and love him as the best-hearted of men. A 
true chevalier he must be, sans peur et sans 
reproche." 

THE FALL OF LEXINGTON, MO. 

CoLOXEL Mulligan's own Stoky. 

"On the 10th of September, 1861," said Col- 
onel Mulligan, in his speech at Detroit, "a letter 
arrived from Colonel Peabody, saying that he was 
retreating from Warrensbm-g, twenty-five miles 
distant, and that Price was pursuing him with ten 
thousand men. A few hours afterwards. Colonel 
Peabody, with the Thirteenth Missouri, entered 
Lexington. We then had two thousand seven 
hundred and eighty men in ganuson, and forty 
rounds of cartridges. At noon of the 11th we 
commenced throwing up our first intrenchments. 
In six hours afterwards, the enemy opened then* 
fire. Colonel Peabody was ordered out to meet 



them. The camp then presented a lively scene ; 
ofiicers were hurrying hither and thither, drawing 
the troops in line and giving orders, and the 
commander was riding with his staff to the bridge 
to encourage his men and to plant his artillery. 
Two six-pounders were planted to oppose the 
enemy, and placed in charge of Captain Dan 
Quirk, who remained at his post till daybreak. 
It was a night of fearful anxiety. None knew at 
what moment the enemy would be upon the little 
band, and the hours passed in silence and anxious 
waiting. So it continued until morning, when 
the Chaplain rushed into headquarters, saying 
that the enemy were pushing forward. Two 
companies of the Missouri Thirteenth were or- 
dered out, and the Colonel, with the aid of his 
glass, saw General Price urging his men to the 
fight. They were met by Company K, of the 
Irish brigade, under Captain Quirk, who held 
them in check until Captain Dillon's company, of 
the Missouri Thirteenth, drove them back, and 
burned the bridge. That closed our work before 
breakfast. Immediately six companies of the 
Missouri Thirteenth and two companies of Illinois 
cavalry were despatched in search of the retreating 
enemy. They engaged them in a cornfield, fought 
with them gallantly, and harassed them to such 
an extent as to delay their progress, in order to 
give time for constructing intrenchments around 
the camp on College Hill. This had the desired 
effect, and we succeeded in throwing up earth- 
works three or four feet in height. This con- 
sumed the night, and was continued during the 
next day, the outposts still opposing the enemy, 
and keeping them back as far as possible. 

" At three o'clock in the afternoon of the 12th, 
the engagement opened with artillery. A volley 
of grape shot was thrown among the ofiicers, who 
stood in front of the breastworks. The guns 
within the intrenchments immediately replied 
with a vigor which converted the scene into one 
of the wildest description. The gunners were 
inexpei'ienced, and the firing M-as bad. We had 
five six-pounders, and the musketry was firing at 
every angle. Those who were not shooting at 
the moon were shooting above it. The men were 
ordered to cease firing, and they were arranged in 
ranks, kneeling, the front rank shooting and the 
others loading. The artillery was served Mith 
more care, and within an hour a shot from one of 
our guns dismounted their largest piece, a twelve- 
pounder, and exploded a powder caisson. This 
achievement was received with shouts of exulta- 
tion by the beleaguered garrison. The enemy 
retired a distance of three miles. At seven 
o'clock the engagement had ceased, and Lexing- 
ton was ours again. 

" Next morning General Parsons, with ten 
thousand men at his back, sent in a flag of truce 
to a little garrison of two thousand seven hunch-ed 
men, asking permission to enter the town and 
bmy his dead, claiming that when the noble Lyon 
went down, his corpse had fallen into his hands, 
and he had granted every privilege to the Federal 
officers sent after it. It was not necessary to 
adduce this as a reason why he should be per- 
mitted to perform an act which humanity woul^ 



416 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



dictate. The request was willingly granted, and 
we cheerfuUj' assisted in burying the fallen foe. 

" On Friday the work of throwing up intrench- 
ments went on. It rained all day, and the men 
stood knee deep in the mud, building them. 
Troops wore sent out for forage, and returned 
with large quantities of provisions and fodder. 
On Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, we stole seven 
days' provisions for two thousand seven hundred 
men. We had found no provisions at Lexington, 
and were compelled to get our rations as best we 
could. A quantity of powder was obtained, and 
then large cisterns were filled with water. The 
men made cartridges in the cellar of the college 
building, and cast one hundred and fifty rounds 
of shot for the guns, at the founderies of Lexing- 
ton. During the little respite the evening gave 
us, we cast our shot, made our cartridges, and 
stole our own provisions. We had stacks of 
forage, plenty of hams, bacon, &c., and felt that 
good times were in store for us. All this time, 
our pickets were constantly engaged with the 
enemy, and we were well aware that ten thousand 
men were threatening us, and knew that the 
struggle was to he a desperate one. Earthworks 
had been raised breast-high, enclosing an area of 
fifteen to eighteen acres, and surrounded by a 
ditch. Outside of this was a circle of twenty-one 
mines, and still farther down were pits to em- 
barrass the progress of the enemy. 

" During the night of the 17th, we were getting 
ready for the defence, and heard the sounds of 
preparation in the camp of the enemy for the 
attack on the morrow. Father Butler went 
around among the men and blessed them, and 
they reverently uncovered their heads and re- 
ceived his benediction. At nine o'clock on the 
morning of the 18th, the drums beat to arms, and 
the terrible struggle commenced. The enemy's 
force had been increased to twenty-eight thousand 
men and thirteen pieces of artillery. They came 
as one dark, moving mass — men armed to the 
teeth ; as far as the eye could reach, men, men, 
men, were visible. They planted two batteries 
in front, one on the left, one on the right, and one 
in the rear, and opened with a terrible fire, which 
was answered with the utmost bravery and deter- 
mination. Our spies had informed us that the 
rebels intended to make one grand rout, and 
bury us in the trenches of Lexington. The 
batteries opened at nine o'clock, and for three 
days they never ceased to pour deadly shot upon 
us. About noon the hospital was taken. It was 
situated on the left, outside of the intrenchments. 
I had taken for granted that it was not neces- 
sary to build fortifications around the sick man's 
couch. I had thought that, among civilized 
nations, the soldier sickened and wounded in the 
service of his country, would, at least, be sacred. 
]3ut I Mas inexperienced, and had yet to learn 
that such was not the case with the rebels. They 
besieged the hospital, took it, and from the bal- 
cony and roof their sharpshooters poured a 
deadly fire Avithin our intrenchments. It con- 
tained our chaplain and surgeon, and one hundred 
and twenty M'ounded men. It could not be 
allowed to remain in the possession of the enemy. 



A company of the Missouri Thirteenth was or- 
dered forward to retake the hospital. They 
started on their errand, but stopped at the breast- 
works, ' going not out because it was bad to go 
out.' A company of the Missouri Fourteenth 
Avas sent forward, but it also shrank from the 
task, and refused to move outside the intrench- 
ments. The Montgomery Guards, Captain Glea- 
son, of the Irish brigade, were then brought out. 
The commander admonished them that the others 
had filled, and with a brief exhortation to uphold 
the name they bore, gave the word to ' charge.' 
The distance was eight hundred yards. They 
started out from the inti-enchment, first quick, 
then double-quick, then on a run, then faster. 
The enemy poured a deadly shower of bullets 
upon them ; but on they went, a wild line of steel, 
and what is better than steel, human will. They 
stormed up the slope to the hospital door, and 
with irresistible bravery drove the enemy before 
them, and hurled them far down the hill beyond. 
At the head of those brave fellows, pale as marble, 
but not pale from fear, stood the gallant officer. 
Captain Gleason. He said, ' Come on, my brave 
boys,' and in they rushed. But when their brave 
captain returned, it was with a shot through the 
cheek and another through the arm, and with but 
fifty of the eighty he had led furth. Tlie hospi- 
tal was in their possession. This charge was one 
of the most brilliant and reekless in all history, 
and to Captain Gleason belongs tlie glory. Each 
side felt, after this charge, that a clever thing had 
been done ; and the fire of the enemy lagged. 
We were in a terrible situation. Towards night 
the fire increased, and in the evening word came 
from the rebels that if the garrison did not sur- 
render before the next day, they would hoist the 
black flag at their cannon and give us no quarter. 
Word was sent back that ' when we asked for 
quarter it Avould be time to settle that.' It was a 
terrible thing to see those brave fellows mangled, 
and with no skilful hands to bind their gaping 
wounds. Our surgeon was held with the enemy, 
against all rules of war, and that, too, when we 
had released a surgeon of theirs on his mere 
pledge that he wa.s such. Captain Moriarty went 
into the hospital, and with nothing but a razor, 
acted the part of a surgeon. We could not be 
without a chaplain or a surgeon any longer. 
There was in our ranks a Lieutenant Hickey, a 
rollicking, jolly fellow, who was despatched from 
the hospital with orders to procure the surgeon 
and chaplain at all hazards. Forty minutes later 
and the brave lieutenant was borne by severely 
wounded. As he Avas borne past I heard him ex- 
claim, ' God have mercy on my little ones ! ' And 
God did hear his prayers, for the gay Lieutenant 
is up, as rollicking as ever, and is now forming 
his brigade to return to the field. 

"On the morning of the 19th the firing was re- 
sumed, and continued all day. We recovered our 
surgeon and chaplain. The day was signalized 
by a fierce bayonet charge upon a regiment of the 
enemy, which served to show them that our men 
Avere not yet completely worried out. The ofii- 
cers had told them to hold out until the 19 th, 
when they would certainly be reenforced. Through 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



417 



that clay our little garrison stood with straining 
eyes, Avatching to see if some friendly 'flag was 
bearing aid to them — with straining ear, awaiting 
the sound of a friendly cannonade. But no recin- 
forcements appeared, and, with the energy of 
despair, they determined to do their duty at all 
hazards. The 19th was a horrid day. Our water 
cisterns had been drained, and we dared not leave 
the crown of the hill, and make our intrench- 
ments on the bank of the river, for the enemy 
could have planted his cannon on the hill and 
buried us. The day was burning hot, and the 
men bit their cartridges ; their lips were parched 
and blistered. But not a w^ord of murmuring. 
The night of the 19th two wells were ordered to 
be dug. We took a ravine, and expected to reach 
water in about thirty hours. During the night, I 
passed around the field, smoothed back the clot- 
ted hair, and by the light of the moon, shining 
through the trees, recognized here and there the 
countenances of my brave men who had fallen. 
Some were my favorites in days gone past, who 
had stood by me in these hours of terror, and had 
fallen on the hard fought field. Sadly we buried 
them in the trenches. 

" The morning of the 20th broke ; but no reen- 
forcements appeared, and still the men fought on. 
The rebels had constructed movable breastworks 
of hemp bales, rolled them up the hill, and ad- 
vanced their batteries in a manner to command 
the fortification. Heated shot were fired at them, 
but they had taken the jn-ecaution to soak the 
bales in the Missouri. The attack was urged 
with renewed vigor, and, during the forenoon, the 
outer breastworks were taken by a charge of the 
rebels in force. The whole line was broken, and 
the enemy rushed in upon us. Captain Fitz- 
gerald, whom I had known in my younger days, 
and whom we had been accustomed to call by the 
familiar name of ' Saxy,' was then ordered to op- 
pose his company to the assailants. As I gave 
the order, ' Saxy, go in,' the gallant Fitzgerald, 
at the head of company I, with a wild yell rushed 
in upon the enemy. The commander sent for a 
company on which he could rely ; the firing sud- 
denly ceased, and when the smoke rose from the 
field, I observed the Michigan company, under 
their gallant young commander. Captain Patrick 
McDermott, charging the enemy and driving them 
back. Many of our good fellows were lying 
dead, our cartridges had failed, and it was evident 
that the fight would soon cease. It was now 
three o'clock, and all on a sudden an orderly 
came, saying that the enemy had sent a flag of 
truce. With the flag came the following note 
from General Price : 

" ' Colonel : What has caused the cessation of 
the fight?' 

"The Colonel returned it with the following 
reply written on the back : — 

" ' General : I hardly know, unless you have 
surrendered.' 

" He took pains to assure me, however, that 

such was not the case. I learned soon after that 

the Home Guard had hoisted the white flag. The 

Lieutenant who had thus hoisted the Avhite flag 

27 



was threatened with instant death unless he 
pulled it down. The men all said, ' We have no 
cartridges, and a vast horde of the enemy is about 
us.' They were told to go to the line and stand 
there, and use the charge at the muzzle of their 
guns, or perish there. They grasped their weap- 
ons the fiercer, turned calmly about, and stood 
firmly at their posts. And there they stood with- 
out a nuu-mui-, praying, as they never prayed be- 
fore, that the rebel horde would show themselves 
at the earthworks. An officer remarked, ' This is 
butchery.' The conviction became general, and a 
council of war was held. And when, finally, the 
white flag was raised, Adjutant Cosgrove, of your 
city, shed bitter tears. The place was given up, 
upon what conditions, to this day I hardly know 
or care. The enemy came pouring in. One fop- 
pish officer, dressed in the gaudiest uniform of 
his rank, strutted up and down through the camp, 
stopped before our men, took out a pair of hand- 
cuff's, and holding them up, said, ' Do you know 
what these are for ? ' We were placed in file, and 
a figure on horseback, looking much like ' Death 
on the pale horse,' led us through the streets of 
Lexington. As we passed, the secession ladies 
of Lexington came from their houses, and from 
the fence tops jeered at us. We were then taken 
to a hotel with no rations and no proprietor. 
After we had boarded there for some time, we 
started with General Price, on the morning o( the 
30th, for ' the land of Dixie.' " 



THE RIVER EIGHT. 

BY H. H. BROWNELL. 

Do you know of the dreary land, 

If land such region may seem, 
Where 'tis neither sea nor strand, 
Ocean nor good dry land, 

But the nightmare marsh of a dream ? 
Where the ^Mighty River his death-road takes, 
'ilid pools and windings that coil like snakes, 
A hundred leagues of bayous and lakes, 

To die in the great Gulf Stream ? 

No coast-line clear and true, 
Granite and deep-sea blue, 

On that dismal shore you pass, 
Surf-worn boulder or sandy beach, — 
But ooze-flats as far as the eye can reach, 

With shallows of water-grass ; 
Reedy savannas, vast and dun, 
Lying dead in the dim March sun ; 
Huge rotting trunks and roots that lie 
Like the blackened bones of shapes gone by, 

And miles of sunken morass. 

No lovely, delicate thing 

Of life o'er the waste is seen ; 
But the cayman, couched by his weedy spring, 

And the pelican, bird unclean, 
Or the buzzard, flapping with heavy wing, 

Like an evil ghost o'er the desolate scene. 

Ah ! many a weary day 
With our leader there we lay, 

In the sultry haze qnd smoke, 
Tugging our ships o'er the bar, 
Till the spring was wasted far, 



418 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



Till his brave heart almost broke. 
For the sullen river seemed 
As if our intent he dreamed, — 

All his sallow mouths did spew and choke. 

But ere April fully passed, 
All ground over at last, 
And wc knew the die "was cast — 
Knew the day drew nigh 
\ To dare to the end one stormy deed. 
Might save the land at her sorest need, 
Or on the old deck to die ! 

Anchored we lay, — and a morn the more, 
To his captains and all his men 

Thus wrote our old Commodore — 
(He wasn't Admiral then) : 

"GENERAL ORDERS. 

" Send your to'gallant-masts down, 

Rig in each flying jib-boom ! ■ 

Clear all ahead for the loom 
Of traitor fortress and town. 
Or traitor fleet bearing down. 

" In with your canvas high ; 

We shall want no sail to fly ! 
Topsail, foresail, spanker, and jib 
(With the heart of oak in the oaken rib), 

Shall serve us to win or die ! 

" Trim every sail by the head, 

(So shall you spare the lead,) 
Lest, if vshe ground, your ship swing round. 

Bows in shore, for a wreck. 
See your grapnels all clear with pains, 
And a solid kedge in your port main-chains. 

With a whip to the main yard : 

Drop it heavy and hard 

When you grapple a traitor deck ! 

" On forecastle and on poop 
]Mount guns, as best you may deem. 

If possible, rouse them up 

(For still you must bow the stream). 

Also hoist and secure with stops 

Howitzers firmly in your tops, 
To fire on the foe a-beam. 

" Look well to your pumps and hose ; 

Have water-tubs fore and aft. 

For quenching flame in your craft, 
And the gun- crews' fiery thirst. 
See planks with felt fitted close, 

To plug every shot-hole tight. 
Stand ready to meet the worst ! 

For, if I have reckoned aright. 
They will serve us shot, both cold and hot. 

Freely enough to-night. 

" Mark well each signal I make 
(Our life-long service at stake. 

And honor that must not lag) — 
Whato'er the peril and awe, 
In the battle's fieriest flaw. 
Let never one ship withdraw 

Till the orders come from the flasr ! " 



AVould you hear of the River Fight ? 
It was two of a soft spring night ; 
God's stars looked down on all ; 
And all was clear and bright 



But t^e low fog's clinging breath : 
Up the River of Death 
Sailed the Great Admiral. 

On our high poop-deck he stood. 

And round him ranged the men 
Who have made their birthright good 

Of manhood once and again — 
Lords of helm and of sail. 
Tried in tempest and gale, 

Bronzed in battle and wreck. 
Bell and Bailey grandly led 
Each his line of the Blue and Red ; 
Wainwright stood by our starboard rail ; 

Thornton fought the deck. 

And I mind me of more than they, 
Of the youthful, steadfast ones, 
That have shown them worthy sons 

Of the seamen passed away. 

Tyson conned our helm that day ; 
Watson stood by his guns. 

What thought our Admiral then, 
Looking down on his men ? 

Since the terrible day 

(Day of renown and tears). 

When at anchor the Essex lay. 

Holding her foes at bay, — 
When a boy bj' Porter's side he stood. 
Till deck and plank-shear were dyed with blood : 
'Tis half a hundred years, — 

Half a hundred years to a day ! 

Who could fail with him ? 
Who reckon of life or limb ? 

Not a pulse but beat the higher ! 
There had you seen, by the starlight dim. 
Five hundred faces strong and grim : 

The Flag is going under fire ! 
Right up by the fort, with her helm hard a-port, 

The Hartford is going under fire ! 

The way to our work was plain. 
Caldwell had broken the chain, 
(Two hulks swung down amain 

Soon as 'twas sundered). 
Under the night's dark blue. 
Steering steady and true. 
Ship after ship went through, 
Till, as we hove in view, 

"Jackson" out-thundered. 

Back echoed " Philip ! " Ah ! then 
Could you have seen our men, 

IIow they sprung, in the dim night haze. 
To their work of toil and of clamor ! 
How the boarders, with sponge and rammer. 
And their captains, with cord and hammer, 

Kejat every muzzle ablaze. 
How the guns, as with cheer and shout 
Our tackle-men hurled them out. 

Brought up on the Avater-ways ! 

First, as we fired at their flash, 

'Twas lightning and black eclipse. 
With a bellowing roll and crash. 
But soon, upon either bow, 

AVhat with forts, and fire-rafts, and ships 
(The whole fleet was hard at it, now). 
All pounding away ! — and Porter 
Still thundering with shell and mortar — 

'Twas the mighty sound and form ! 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



419 



(Such you see in the far South, 
After long heat and drought, 

As day draws nigh to even. 
Arching from north to south. 

Blinding the tropic sun, 

The great black bow comes on> 
Till the thunder- veil is riven — 
When all is crash and levin, 
And the cannonade of heaven 

KoUs down the Amazon !) 

But, as we worked along higher, 

Just where the river enlarges, 
Down came a pyramid of fire — 

It was one of your long coal barges. 

(We had often had the like before.) 
'Twas coming down on us to larboard, 

Well in with the eastern shore ; 

And our pilot, to let it pass round, 

(You may guess we never stopped to sound), 
Giving us a rank sheer to starboard, 

Han the flag hard and fast aground ! 

'Twas nigh abreast of the Upper Fort ; 

And straightway a rascal Ram 

(She was shaped like the Devil's dam) 
Puifed away for us, with a snort, 

And shoved it, with spiteful strength. 
Right alongside of us to port. 

It was all of our ship's length — 
A huge crackling Cradle of the Pit ! 

Pitch-pine knots to the brim. 

Belching flame red and grim — 
What a roar came up from it ! 

Well, for a little it looked bad : 

But these things are, somehow, shorter 
In the acting than in the telling ; 
There was no singing out or yelling, 
Or any fussing and fretting. 

No stampede, in short ; 
But there we were, my lad. 

All afire on our port quarter 
Hammocks ablaze in the netting, 

Flame spouting in at every port. 
Our Fourth Cutter burning at the davit 
(No chance to lower away and save it). 

In a twinkling, the flames had risen 
Half way to main-top and mizzen. 

Darting up the shrouds like snakes ! 

Ah, how we clanked at the brakes. 

And the deep steaming-pumps throbbed under. 

Sending a ceaseless flow ! 
Our top-men, a dauntless crowd. 
Swarmed in rigging and shroud : 

There ('twas a wonder !) 
The bui'ning ratlines and strands 
They quenched with their bare hard hands ; 

But the great guns below 

Never silenced their thunder ! 

At last, by backing and sounding. 
When we were clear of grounding, 

And under headway once more, 
Tlie whole rebel fleet came rounding 

The point. If we had it hot before, 

'Twas now, from shore to shore. 

One long, loud thundering roar, — 
Such crashing, splintering, and pounding. 

And smashing as you never heard before ! 



But that we fought foul wrong to wreck, 
And to save the land we loved so well, 

You might have deemed our long gun-deck 
Two hundred feet of hell ! 

For above all was battle, 
Broadside, and blaze, and rattle, 

Smoke and thunder alone. 
(But, down in the sick-bay. 
Where our wounded and dying lay. 

There was scarce a sob or a moan.) 
And at last, when the dim day broke, 
And the sullen sun awoke. 

Drearily blinking 
O'er the haze and the cannon smoke. 
That ever such morning dulls, — 
There were thirteen traitor hulls 

On fire and sinking ! 

Now, up the river ! — through mad Chalmette 

Sputters a vain resistance yet. 

Small helm we gave her, our course to steer, — 

'Twas nicer work than you well would dream, 
With cant and sheer to keep her clear 

Of the burning wrecks that cumbered the stream. 

The Louisiana, hurled on high. 

Mounts in thunder to meet the sky ! 

Then down to the depths of the turbid flood, — 

Fifty fathom of rebel mud ! 

The Mississippi comes floating down 

A mighty bonfire, from off tlae town ; 

And along the river, on stocks and ways, 

A half-hatched devil's brood is ablaze, — 

The great Anglo-Norman is all in flames 

(Hark to the roar of her tumbling frames). 

And the smaller fry that Treason would spawn 

Are lighting Algiers like an angry dawn ! 

From stem to stern, how the pirates burn, 
Fired by the furious hands that built ! 

So to ashes forever turn 
The suicide wrecks of wrong and guilt ! 

But as we neared the city, 

By field and vast plantation, 

(Ah, millstone of our nation !) 
With wonder and with pity, 

What crowds we there espied 
Of dark and wistful faces, 
Mute in their toiling places. 

Strangely and sadly eyed ! 

Haply, 'mid doubt and fear. 

Deeming deliverance near. 

(One gave the ghost of a cheer !) 

And on that dolorous strand. 

To greet the victor brave 

One flag did welcome wave, — 
Raised, ah me ! by a wretched hand, 
All outworn on our cruel land, — 

The withered hand of a slave ! 

But all along the Levee, 

In a dark and drenching rain, 
(By this 'twas pouring heavy), 

Stood a fierce and sullen train. 
A strange and frenzied time ! 

There were scowling rage and pain, 
Curses, howls, and hisses. 
Out of Hate's black abysses, — 
Their courage and their crime 

All in vain — all in vain ! 



420 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



For, from the hour that the Rebel Stream, 
With the Crescent City lying abeam, 

Shuddered under our keel, 
Smit to the heart with self-struck sting, 
Slavery died in her scorpion-ring. 

And Murder fell on his steel ! 
'Tis well to do and dare ; , 

But ever may grateful prayer 
Follow, as aye it ought. 
When the good fight is fought. 

When the true deed is done ! 
Aloft in heaven's pure light 
(Deep azure crossed on white), 
Our fair Church pennant waves 
O'er a thousand thankful braves, 

Bareheaded in God's bright sun ! 

Lord of mercy and frown, 

Ruling o'er sea and shore, 

Send us such scene once more ! 
All in line of battle, 
When the black ships bear down 
On tyrant fort and town, 

'Mid cannon cloud and rattle ;. 

And the great guns once more 

Thunder back the roar 

Of the traitor walls ashore, 
And the traitor flags come down ! 



NOTES FROM THE SADDLE. 

FROM THE " COURIER." * 

Still pushing on ! Still watching the warm, 
white clouds, and the fields, green with the win- 
ter grain. Still weaving of way-side flowdrs a 
simple garland to fling in through the open gates 
of Janus, while our fancies wander homeward, as 
the youth of the Roman Republic loved to do in 
those early days of struggle and victory. The 
birds chatter in great flocks among the trees, and 
say, mockingly, " Go South with us." The hoarse 
brooks, intoxicated with the dissipation of plenty, 
go roaring along, tumbling over the stones, and 
making crooked paths over the meadow. Alas ! 
how poor ! for yesterday they were covered with 
the first and oldest resource of leaves, dark as 
Tempe, but now quite stripped bai'e, are driven 
along, tormented and complaining, out of the 
gardens into the Avaste. Only the wild flowers 
along the ravines hold their beauty, peeping out 
timidly between the gnarled roots of the leaning 
chestnuts, or smiling under some broad fern, like 
an Eastern lady behind her fan. To be sure, a 
few vines hang gracefully over gray limbs, and 
trail tenderly, as if to hide the poor bushes, 
whicli once called their foliage their own, and 
would not own how much they depended on the 
frail stem that clung to them for ]n-otection. 

But refinement is not weakness, and pride is 
not strength, and storm brings the judgment. 
Then we look over the swelling river with its tur- 
bid current, into Virginia, where t!ie masses of 
trees, and the clumps of shrubbery, and the open 
glades, reveal, after these same summer experi- 
ences, their own individuality. Golden and leaden, 

* Boston Courier, November 23, 18G1. 



purple and silver, with here and there a flash of 
green across the softer shades, as if the glorious 
clouds, just at sunset, heavy with quiet, chastened 
grief, had drooped too lov/, and could not sail 
away M'hen the sun crept dov/n behind the hills. 
And we Aveave our garland, conqueror of times 
and seasons, v.-hile the wind scatters the treasures 
of the forest about, and throws the leaves before 
our horses' feet, gilded with the golden sky and 
soft sun of the India-n summer until musing of 
changing scenes, of the fate of those who wander 
along life's way, and the city of unfading rest, we 
find that the leaves have fallen even from our gar- 
land, and like one of old, weeping in the midst cf 
triumph, only the thorns remain to us ! 

But this is- not so very sad, if, as a friend re- 
marks quietly, we are ourselves to leave so soon. 
Seaward and Southward is now the cry, and we 
long for our orders. On every hill, by every way, 
are the deserted camps of those who have moved 
before us. It is a singular feeling which creeps 
over you, as you sit and look into these same 
camping grounds. If it is sad to do anything 
for the last time, how much more to stand where 
there has been so much activity for the last time. 
Here are the streets laid out in order, where your 
feet seem to intrude, the trenches still full of 
water ; the outlines and walls of tents and rude 
coverings of trees ; the posts still waiting for the 
horse ; the ovens, which, weary of their weight, 
have fallen ; the broken jars and bones which are 
the skeletons of past feasts ! Here was the place 
called " home," here the guard tent, and there the 
place of s])ort, and beyond the scene of worship. 
It is Pompeii over again, vath its pavements and 
houses, its walls and posts, Avith dwellings and 
theatres and temples ! A deserted city, or, if you 
wish to believe it, a city whose inhabitants may 
return at any moment to ask Avhy you have taken 
such liberty in your inquisitiveness. The fire- 
places are full of water. The wood lies cut beside 
the cold embers. The grain still waits under the 
trees for the horses, or springs up in a carpet of 
green, to show you that nothing is lost ; and even 
the fruit of opportunities Avhich we throw aside, 
others may reap when we are gone. The fashion- 
able line of trees, and the arbors, where everyone 
sat under the pine and fir tree, lean away from the 
last storm. It is easy to see by the worn ground 
over what hills the sentry marched, or by Avhat 
trees the way towards the spring passed. But now 
only the crows sail away before you, and shout 
from the tree tops their inhospitable complaints. 

By this stake a rope passed to another, not 
twenty feet away, that the cavalry horses might 
be fastened. Just beyond stood some stafl" horse, 
and there a wagon. Pieces of torn caps, and 
boxes, and knapsacks, and broad shoes broken out 
at the sides, which I venture to say Cinderella 
could not have worn — and little rubber blankets, 
which served as coverings of miniature tents in 
this deserted village, under which Evangeline 
never could have plied the distaff, and fragments 
of envelopes, lie scattered about. But all this 
desolation may have happened long ago. The 
leaf retains the marks of its fibres, along which 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



421 



poured the tide of life, long after it is dead. 
Does not the print of the fiice remain on the M'alls 
of the theatre of Herculaneum, though the actor 
passed away at the first part, when the fiery del- 
uge surprised the attendants and drowned the 
applauses of the audience, and caught him just 
fleeing, unhappy man ! So this forsaken camp, 
with its impress of the mind, our fancy tells us, 
may have been peopled by a host of olden time, 
and haunted for three generations. And as we 
ride on in the moonlight, the old oaks throw their 
shadow over the straw and trenches, sighing like 
the tempest, and urging us on, as it did the poor 
Wandering Jew. 

They " found the man by the way ;" so they 
told me, with a tone which said, " He is only a 
stranger." The horses were feeding by the road- 
side, with their harness still on, and the reins 
fallen under their feet. From the top of the 
heavy army wagon the white canvas had been 
pushed slightly back, and two empty bags lay 
within. Upon these was an old man. His un- 
combed beard was gray, and his long, tangled 
hair hung in masses on his shoulders. His fea- 
tures were sharp with poverty, and his thin, bony 
hands were hard with labor. By his words we 
knew that he was from the West ; but we could 
tell nothing more. He was past the years of 
service, but of an ii'on constitution, which never 
gives way to such accidents as years until it is 
broken. He Avas very meanly di'essed, quite in 
rags, with a soiled cap and dirty flannel shirt. 
His hands were thrown wildly over his head, and 
his eyes rolled with unnatural brightness. AVe 
spoke to him, but he did not reply — only kept 
driving his horses, who, unused to the strange 
^one, were still at work on the green grass which 
sprang up under the wooden fence. He had evi- 
dently staid in his seat until overcome with the 
fever, and then, unknown and uncared for, had 
fallen backward into the wagon. They carried 
him to the hospital. Two days he grew thinner 
and more Aveak. Sometimes the light of intelli- 
gence seemed to rekindle ; but it was the light- 
ning in the tempest, a moment bright, only to 
leave the clouds more dark. It was late at night 
when I last saw him. A storm was raging 
through the trees, and shaking the thin canvas 
of the tent. By a single candle two men were 
busy over some vials in one corner, and at the op- 
posite end the two rows of silent forms, wrapped 
in coarse blankets, with faces which looked sallow 
and ghostly, seemed like some tomb. They sent 
for me because they thought he showed signs of 
reai'jon, and his mind grew more steady as the 
bark of life touched on the shores of eternitj'. It 
was too late. As he had lived, so he must die, 
by himself, without a man who knew him. At 
once I saw it was too late ; yet I leaned breath- 
lessly forward to listen to his answer, as one man 
kneeled by the bedside of the dying man. 

" Have you friends ? " Said he, " My money 
is not paid — what will they do ? " " Have you 
a wife P " He looked up a moment, and then be- 
gan to talk about his pay. " What is your 
name ? " He gave no answer. Whether he had 



friends or a family we could not tell. His very 
name was unknown, and he was dying. His 
long limbs trembled. His voice grew less strong. 
A group of pale faces, half seen in the flickering 
light about. There was a prayer, an awful si- 
lence. _ The old man grew qui'et, and only one 
trembling voice wrestled with the pattering of the 
rain and the moaning of the trees overhead. He 
hardly breathed. It M-as almost midnight. The 
next morning I heard that another had fallen by 
the way in the onward march of the army. He 
had nothing to leave. No one ever heard of 
his home or friends. In the broad West are 
doubtless some that think of him. How slowly 
will they believe that he is lost — hoping against 
hope, in silence taking comfort ! There are 
strange unwritten histories in camp, there are 
patient, unseen offerings, and they consecrate the 
cause by their silent tenderness. 

We happened in the town of Rockville on 
election day. Little boys strutted about with 
white tickets in their breasts, full of secession. 
Here and there a blue Union vote could be seen, 
as it was slyly slipped from pocket to pocket. A 
Httle electioneering was done by the more influ- 
ential ; but the most contented themselves with 
clinching their fists behind their backs and talk- 
ing in gusts, which died away and rose again, 
like the fitful storm. The Court House is of 
brick, of two stories height, and quite imposing 
for this miserable place. It is situated in the 
centre of the town, on a green lawn, which is 
enclosed by a neat iron fence. The soldiers were 
stationed opposite, and the sentries kept a quiet 
lookout across the street. Three men stood in 
the window to receive the votes, white and blue. 
From every street they came pouring in, — some 
on " hunters," some on " cobs." A father is held 
on by his boy, who sits behind. A great wagon, 
with votes and whiskey, stops the throng, and 
sends them on their way rejoicing. An old 
farmer mounts his ample plough-horse, and goes 
trotting on, his brains quite lost in a sombre 
black hat of unknown date, and a coat with 
bright buttons, that might have served his ances- 
tor at a fourth remove. There is a motley throng 
of long-haired, sallow, misanthropic beings, eager 
to save their feelings or their country, as the case 
may be. Everything moves quietly, despite some 
long-limbed boys with tanned faces and black eyes. 
Evidently they have grown too fast. Their short 
pants, and sharp voices, and restless gestures, 
seem to demand a quarrel. They are walking 
about, as if to say, " Who dares to blow this 
straw of a vote oft' my shoulder ? " but in the 
spirit of the dignified Government whose cause is 
at stake, the better educated representatives of 
liberty say, " It is but hollow, and very light. We 
will keep you quiet. The wind will take care of 
the straw." 

Close by the way stands the jail. The little 
jailer, grown thin and old, approaches the gate 
with the importance of St. Peter, moving his 
keys and admiring his lock, whose only value is 
its antiquity. It turns with a gloomy sound. On 
the right hang a few slave fetters, and within, 



422 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



another door opens into a 3'avtl. It is not thirty 
paces long, or twenty wide. The pile of wet 
wood in the comer mocks comfort, and the rain, 
grown stained and dirty, gathers timidly in the 
corner, trying to escape. A door opens from the 
yard into a passage lighted by two grated win- 
dows on the right. Our eyes grow familiar with 
darkness, as from the two cells opposite — long, 
and wide, and quite dark, only as a fire kindling 
in the great chimney lights it — come a dozen 
he avy hearts. They are all manacled — some by 
the hands, some by the feet. Some are even 
chained to the floor. The iron, as they move, 
sounds gloomy enough. Their faces look like 
despair. They are slaves who liked their free- 
dom. "Let them be quiet for a while — their 
time is coming !" said my friend to the jailer; 
and I heard their hands clasped in joy as they 
l)ent down over the floor. It was a wild scene. 
The flames danced over the wooden walls and 
polished floor, making the whitewashed chimney 
gleam with a mockery of neatness. A few rags 
were on the floor, and moving about were these 
dark shadows, clanking their chains, and moving 
their great e5-es in wonder. They had been taken 
without free papers, and are supposed to be fugi- 
tives. None care to claim them, or perhaps they 
do not know where they are ; and so they stay 
and drag along the hours, as if they too w^ere 
chained, and sit in the sullen sun, which gleams 
as if it had lost its spirit as it came through the 
bars. How fresh and free seemed everything as 
ve came out again into the street ! 

Like all the other roads, the Avay from Wash- 
ington is terribly rough. In the centre is the 
most stony road imaginable. On either side is 
the most muddy, and full of holes, ever conceived 
of. It begins to rain, and to get inside is a mat- 
ter of necessit}% Every stone shakes the car- 
riage. It is impossible to sit upright. On one 
side and the other, on trunks and mail-bags and 
wooden partitions, on stools and saddles and 
tables, roll our poor head and arms and body. 
There is no relief. Four hours in the rain under 
torture. How faint and hungry the violent exer- 
cise makes one ! How chilly, too ! And now 
the horses stop. We are fording a stream. The 
driver shouts, then the lash descends. It is use- 
less. The driver will not get out of the carriage, 
nor wUl they get out of the brook. Some one 
comes to our relief. With a spring they clear 
the brook, and begin to climb the hill. Again 
they stop. Whip and reins are alike useless. 
The front leader turns, and the tall pole horse, a 
foot higher than his little mate, shakes his head. 
Urge him, and he stands on his feet and looks 
over the hill for some Hercules to assist. It is a 
'• no go." The driver, in despair, gets three men 
10 assist. They pull the wagon, but not the 
horses. " Try waiting." And three clouds, drop 
hy drop, roll down the manes of the horses. 
" Fury ! " and the men, out of patience, jump out 
humming the ditty, " If I had a donkey," &c. 
Now the rails are broken, sticks are stripped and 
worn out, whips are like oat straws. Go ? Of 
course not. Here is a final eff'ort. All shout 



and pound together. I put my face up to the 
little hole in front, and shout lustily ; I who had 
frightened so many by my noise. The wagon 
runs back ; out plunges the passenger into the 
mud and rain, through the side, fearful of going 
over. " Once more it has started," says the 
mocking wagoner ; and that tall, large-boned 
horse rears, and then sits down on the pole. 
There is a smash, and we are fixed. All are in 
despair. Night is coming on. Six hours find us 
eighteen miles from Washington ! Another wagon 
is sent for. We must wait. 

Fortunately a little ruined cottage is left stand- 
ing beside the road. Shivering and wet, the coarse 
shelter seems delightful. I always sigh as I enter 
a deserted building. There are so many sad and 
pleasant things which must have been done there, 
yet no one cares for it. Now I draw back. A 
few rough men are seated on a wooden bench 
playing cards. They are not soldiers ; who can 
they be ? A little fire flickers in an enormous 
chimney, which seems ready to fall. Out beyond 
are rooms stripped of their roof and sides. The 
wind and rain drive me nearer. A few guns are 
hung upon the wall, and a great bed of straw is 
pushed into one corner. There are boxes to sit 
upon, and by the fire is a kettle boiling, the only 
sign of comfort. I cannot understand what the 
men were talking about, but by their gestures 
they seemed very angry. At any rate, through 
the chimney I looked up and saw the heavy clouds 
with despair. I pity the very rat who looks out 
through the broken chimney at me. How lonely 
a place ! Pieces of board were nailed over the 
window, and the light came in through the door, 
which certainly would not swing many times 
more. A broken door step, a green lawn reacljr 
ing awaj' to a large stream, a ruined house, and 
an intensely disagreeable road are all I see. The 
dingy rafters at least keep off the rain, and the 
floor is dry, but it is not pleasant to spend the 
night in such company. It is growing dark. 

At length a wagon with five mules waits for 
me — an army wagon, a heavy, tough wagon, 
without the slightest suspicion of springs. It 
starts furiously. I only remember, in the dark- 
ness, a battery of artillery go by, a camp fire, and 
then stopping to arrange the harness. The ter- 
rible noise of the wagon drowns the cracking of 
whips, and the shouts of the drivers who rode the 
mules. I thought I should not survive the ter- 
rible jar ; it was a torment. Had I not a coach 
and five, outriders, a carriage for thirty, four led 
horses ? What was left to desire for a Bourbon ? 

The mules stopped at length ; and, tired as I 
was, I felt happy to plod through the deep mud, 
and wade the pools, amid the darkness of the for- 
est and a furious storm. I had quiet, at least, 
though the sound still rang in my ears, and the 
feverish flush of the terrible exercise remained on 
the cheeks. 

Have we not been long enough on the way ? 
The sun does not always shine, and it is not per- 
petual summer in camp. Doubtless, when we 
look back on the campaign, there will be more 
lights than shadows ; and under the direction of a 



AJ^ECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



423 



hand more skilful than our own, a beautiful pat- 
tern will be wrought of the many-colored threads, 
which we maj' look upon in the halls of our mem- 
ory, as one looks upon the tapestries of the Vati- 
can — once a mystery and rarity to the artisan, 
but a simple unity to the mind of Raphael, who 
walked with him by the way. 



Yankees — Hyenas. — "Justinian," a corre- 
spondent of the Sguthern Literary Messenger, 
sends the following to that periodical : 

" The comparison so well made by President 
Davis, in his recent speech, of Yankees to Hyenas, 
had been frequently suggested to my mind, not only 
from the fiendish and felonious character of both 
animals, but from having referred to the deriva- 
tion of the term Yankee, or Yanhee, as given in 
' Aubury's Travels in America,' in the year 1791, 
That author asserts that Yankee, or Yanhe, is de- 
rived from the Cherokee word Eanke, or Eanhe, 
which signifies, in that language, coward, and was 
applied by the Vu-ginians to the people of the 
North for not arming and joining them to resist 
the assaults of the Cherokees in the year 1780. 
If, then, the true orthography of the word Yankee 
be Yanhe, it may be assimilated to the word Hy- 
ena, by the simple rule of transposition, as fol- 
lows : In the term Yanhe, the letters are the 
same — the y in hyena being the second, the a 
being fifth, the n being the fourth, the h being the 
first, and the e being the third. I therefore think 
that we are fully authorized in denominating the 
Yankees as Hyenas." 



Female Bushwhackers. — The women of the 
South are the goads that prick the men to action. 
I should have said first that there are female as 
well as male bushwhackers. When a woman 
takes one of these creatures to her home or heart, 
as the case may be, she becomes a partner to his 
guilt, according to the common law. She thus 
recognizes his vocation, and applauds him in his 
robberies. She is the receiver, and the receiver 
is as bad as the thief. All the country is infested 
by these guerrillas and bushwhackers ; they have 
certain haunts, where they make their headquar- 
ters and store away then- plunder. These haunts 
are invariably presided over by that creature (God 
help her, after all) of modern growth, and the 
ofi'spring of the miseries of war — the " war wid- 
ow." They are, without exception, bitter and in- 
veterate secesh. Usually, indeed in all cases, 
ignorant and wholly uneducated, they are en- 
tirely controlled by passion. Being in destitute 
circumstances, and lonely, they gladly become the 
accomplices of the herd of robbers proM'ling about. 
I am not to be understood as saying that all the 
women of the South who unfortunately have lost 
their husbands in this war, are of the class known 
as " Avar widows." Far be it from me. I have 
found many such women as intelligent, refined, 
and pure as any I have ever known. But every- 
body knows, or is supposed to know, what the 
real " war widow " is, and it is of her I write. She 



makes a good home bushwhacker ; aids and abets 
freely and voluntarily in all the depredations of 
her warring accomplice. She feeds and clothes 
him, secretes him when hunted down, encourages 
him in his bad work, and does all she can (and 
women are all-powerful for good or evil) to make 
him a reckless and depraved outlaw. There is a 
certain sort of superstitious poetry of innocence 
attached to woman's being, which has been handed 
down to us from the time Adam beheld the beau- 
tiful image of Eve in the clear, crystal water. 
While I Avould regret to despoil woman of any of 
the romance of her nature, I must say that, as far 
as regards women bushwhackers, there is nothing 
in theii- natures except poetical depravity — a 
license in hcentious liberty, which mars and black- 
ens her nature. As liars, they cannot be excelled 
in the universe. Actually, they would lie any- 
thing or anybody out of existence. And they do 
it with such brazen impudence — such a shame- 
less air of innocence. Their little hearts are aw- 
fully corrupt. While out with scouting parties, 1 
have repeatedly asked for various kinds of infor- 
mation from these frail creatures, and, looking 
into my face as innocent as an unwooed maiden, 
they have told lie upon lie, yes, mountains of 
them. Their moral perception of right and wrong 
is very blunt, while their perceptive faculties are 
quite acute in judging of the relative value of a 
ring, a blanket, a watch, or other article brought 
them by their bushwhacking lords. — " Dr. Ado- 
nis" in the Louisville Journal. 



The Battle of Dunksbukg. — The follow- 
ing amusing account of a battle that occurred in 
the wilds of Missouri has not yet taken its ap- 
propriate place in the history of the rebellion : 

" The village of Dunksburg is situated in the 
north-east corner of Pettis County, Missouri, and 
very near the stream known as the Black Water. 
In the south-east part of Lafayette County, and 
immediately in the neighborhood of Dunksburg, 
there is a large German settlement. From the 
very commencement of the present troubles in 
Missouri, the Germans have been loyal to the 
Government, and as they were the first against 
whom the vengeance of the secessionists was di- 
rected, they were the first to take up arms in the 
defence of their adopted country, and a small 
company of some forty or fifty banded them- 
selves together for the purposes of self-defence, 
making the church at Dunksburg their temporary 
headquarters. Late one afternoon they were no- 
tified of the approach of a considerable body of 
rebels from Pettis and Saline Counties, and they 
prudently determined to retreat from the position 
they held in the church, behoving that they would 
be unable to defend it against greatly superior 
numbers. 

" The attacking party, not aware that the Ger- 
mans had retreated, advanced cautiously, under 
cover of night, and by a dexterous movement 
succeeded in surrounchng the church, and at a 
signal agreed on, immediately commenced a 
heavy fire upon the building, which being only 



424 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



weather-boarded with thin pine or poplar plank, 
offered scarcely any resistance to the bullets 
which were rapidly discharged from rifles and 
shot guns, and which, passing through and 
thi'ough the house, killed and wounded many of 
the assailants. Unprepared for what they mis- 
took for a vigorous defence on the part of the 
Germans, after considerable loss in killed and 
wounded, they retreated to their camp a short 
distance off ; but dissatisfied with the result, and 
believing it entirely in their power to capture the 
small force which had peppered them so severely, 
they determined to return to the charge, and to 
carry the church at the point of the bayonet. 

" The same precaution was used in making 
their advances for the second attack, and they 
completely surrounded the buUding before the 
word was given to fire. Greatly to their aston- 
ishment, at the first volley many of their men 
were killed, and being in close proximity to the 
l3uilding, several were seriously wounded by 
splinters, which were scattered in every direction 
by the balls passing through the house. The 
fire was so destructive that no time Avas lost in 
forcing the doors of the building, with the pur- 
pose of making a finish of all the Dutch inside ; 
but greatly to their disappointment and mortifi- 
cation, they discovered that there was not a sin- 
gle Dutchman anywhere about the house, and 
that they had been guilty of the extreme folly of 
shooting each other. Thus ended the battle of 
Dunksburg — an event long to be remembered 
by the peaceful inhabitants of that quiet village, 
which has thus become famous among the bloody 
localities of Missouri." 



THE OLD RIFLEMAN. 

BY FRANK TICKNOK, M. D, 

Now, bring me out my buckskin suit, 

My pouch and powder too ; 
"We'll see if seventy-si.x can shoot 

As sixteen used to do. 

Old Bess, we've kept our barrels bright, 
Our triggers quick and true — 

As far, if not &s,fine a sight, 
As long ago we drew. 

And pick me out a trusty flint — 

A real Avhite and blue ; 
Perhaps 'twill win the other tint 

Before the hunt is through. 

Give boys your brass percussion caps ; 

Old " shut-pan " suits as well : 
There's something in the sparks, — perhaps 

•There's something in the smell. 

We've seen the red-coat Briton bleed ; 

The red-skin Indian too ; 
We never thought to draw a bead 

On Yankce-doodle-doo. 

But, Bessie, bless your dear old heart, 

Those days are mostly done ; 
And now Ave must revive the art 

Of shooting on the run. 



If Doodle must be meddling, why, 

There's only this to do — 
Select the black spot in his eye. 

And let the daylight through. 

And if he doesn't like the way 

That Bess presents the view. 
He'll, may be, change his mind, and stay 

Where the good Doodles do, — 

Where Lincoln lives — the man, you knovr, 

Who kissed the Testament; 
To keep the Constitution ? No, 

To keep the Government ! 

We'll hunt for Lincoln, Bess, old tool, 

And take him half and half ; 
We'll aim to hit him, if a fool. 

And miss him, if a calf. 

We'll teach these shot-gun boys the tricks 

By which a war is won ; 
Especially, how Seventy-six 

■Took Tories on the run. 



The DRtJ]VEv[ER-BoY of the Eighth Michi- 
gan. — Charles Howard Gardner was a school- 
boy thirteen and a half years old, in the city of 
Flint, Michigan, when the Avar commenced. His 
father Avas connected Avitir a military organization 
of long standing, and under the first call for sev- 
enty-five thousand troops, immediately left for 
the defence of the national capital. Soon there 
came a second call for three hundred thousand 
more, Avhen Charlie's teacher, S. C. Guild, a most 
exemplary young man, soon to enter the ministry, 
joined the army. Between Charlie and him 
there existed a very ardent attachment, and Cap- 
tain Guild seconded Charlie's earnest entreaties 
that he might go Avith him as a drummer. He 
had been famous from his babj^hood for his mu- 
sical ability, and had acquired a good deal of 
merited notoriety for his skilful handling of the 
drumsticks. " If I can go to the war Avith my 
drum, and thus take the ])lace of a man who can 
handle a musket," Avas Charlie's persistent plea, 
" I think it is my duty to go, especially as you, 
mother, do not greatly need me at home." So, 
reluctantly, the poor mother, Avho had surrendered 
her husband, consented that her boy should join 
the Eighth Michigan infantry. 

The regiment was ordered to Port Royal, and 
on their Avay thither, Charlie met his father in 
Washington. As they Avere returning from the 
navy yard, Avhere they had been for their arms, 
he saAv his father a little Avay ofl', and forgetting 
mihtary rule, he broke from the ranks, and Avith 
child-like joy ran to his father's arms. It Avas 
their last earthly meeting, as the November fol- 
lowing Mr. Gardner died of typhoid fever at Al- 
exandria. Charlie's letters to liis mother after 
this bereavement, Avritten from Port Iloyal, are 
exceedingly touching, and remarkably thoughtful 
for a boy not yet fourteen. " I am near broken- 
hearted," he Avrites : " I try to be cheerful, but it 
is of no use ; my mind continually runs in the 
direction of home, a fresh gush of tears comes to 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



425 



my eyes, and I have to weep. But, mother, if 
this is so hai'd for me, what must it be for you ? 
Don't take it too much to heart, for remember 
that you have me left, and I will do my best to 
help you. I shall send you all my money here- 
after, for I do not really need money here." 

This promise he fulfilled to the letter. Al- 
ways cheerful, he was a great favorite with the 
officers and men, for whom he never did a favor 
but they would compel him to receive some small 
compensation in return. These small gains he 
carefully husbanded, and increased them by ped- 
dling papers and periodicals, making enough for 
his little extra expenses, and invariably, on ev- 
ery pay-day, he sent his money to his widowed 
mother. None of the vices of the camp clung 
to him, and amid the profane, and drunken, 
and vulgar, he moved, without assoiling the 
whiteness of his young soul. His teacher and 
Captain guarded him like a father ; he shared his 
bed and board with Charlie, and the two loved 
one another with an affection so unusual that it 
was everywhere the subject of comment. 

By and by we hear of the fearless little fellow, 
small beyond his years, on the battle-field with 
the surgeon, where the grape and canister were 
falling like hail around them, pressing forward to 
the front, during an engagement, with the hospi- 
tal flag in his hand, to aid in the care of the 
wounded. Only a peremptory order from a su- 
perior officer was able to turn him back to the 
rear ; and there, when the wounded were brought 
in, he Avorked all night and the next day, carry- 
ing water, and bandages, and lint,' and lighting up 
the sorrowfulness of the hour by his boyish but 
unfailing kindness. Never was he more service- 
able than during a battle. At the terrible battle 
of James' Island, in an assault on the fort, his 
beloved Captain, always foremost in the fight, 
had climbed to the parapet of the fort, when a 
shot struck him, and he fell backward, and Avas 
seen no more. Now was Charlie indeed bereaved 
— his teacher, captain, friend, father, lover, dead 
on the battle-field, and even the poor satisfaction 
denied his friends of burying his remains. His 
letters, after this event, are one long wail of sor- 
row — he could not be comforted ; and yet, al- 
ways thoughtful for others, he writes : " 0, how 
I pity liis poor mother !" 

Months passed, and the Eighth Michigan was 
ordered to Vicksburg, to reenforce Grant, who 
had beleaguered that doomed city. Battle after 
battle ensued — nineteen of them — in all of 
which Charlie more or less participated, often es- 
caping death as by a mh-acle. Something of the 
fierce life led by this regiment may be inferred 
from the fact that one thousand six hundred and 
fifty-three men have enlisted in it since it fii-st 
took the field ; of these, only four hundred sur- 
\\\e to-day, all but eight of whom have just re- 
enlisted. Tlu'ough all battles, all marches, all 
reconnoissances, all campaigns, Charlie kept with 
the regiment, crossing the mountains with them 
to Knoxville, in Burnside's corps, on rations of 
three ears of corn per day, and then for weeks 
shut up in that city, besieged by Longstreet's 



force, and subsisting on quarter rations. Yet not 
one word of complaint ever came from the pa- 
triot boy, not one word of regret, only an earnest 
desire to remain in the service till the end of the 
war. 

At last there came a letter from the surgeon. 
During the siege of Knoxville, Charlie had been 
wounded for the first time. A chance shot, that 
passed through the window of the house in which 
he was, struck him on the shoulder, and entered 
the lung. " He has been in a very dangerous 
condition," wrote the surgeon, " but he is now 
fast recovering. He is a universal pet, and is 
well cared for in the officers' quarters." The next 
tidings were more joyful. The regiment were on 
their way to Detroit, on a thirty days' furlough, 
and would remain to recruit. Now the telegraph 
notified those interested that they were in Louis- 
ville — then in Indianapolis — in Michigan City 
— at last in Detroit. 

With a happy heart the good mother tele- 
graphed to have her boy sent to Chicago as 
soon as possible ; and then she watched the arri- 
val of the trains. " He will be here to-night — 
he will be here to-morrow," she said; and ev- 
ery summons to the door she was sure was her 
Charlie. Everything was in readiness for the 
darling — his room — his clothes — the supper- 
table set with the luxuries he loved — and there 
sat mother, sister, and brother, waiting for him. 
A knock at the door — all start — all rush — 'tis 
CharHe ! No, only a telegram. God help the poor 
broken hearts, as they read it — " The regiment 
has arrived, hut Charlie is dead ! " And this 
was all. 

A Shell on Board Ship. — A shell from a 
rifled cannon must be a very nice visitor to " drop 
in " to a small party, if Ave may judge from the 
exploits of one Avhich struck the United States 
steamer Massachusetts, off' Ship Island, and which 
a writer Avho Avas on board describes as foUoAvs : 

"During the action I think Ave hit hei", the 
Florida, fom* times, and I knoAv she hit us once 
with a sixty-eight pound rifle shell (that is the 
Avay Ave got the exact size of her rifled gun). The 
shell entered on our starboard quarter, just above 
the iron part of the hull ; it came through the 
side angling aft (as Ave were a little abaft her beam 
Avhen it struck us), and took the deck in the pas- 
sage Avay between tAvo state-rooms, and com- 
pletely cut off" eighteen of the deck planks, and 
then struck a beam, Avhicfa canted it up a little, so 
that it took the steam-heating pipes under our 
dining-table, cutting off" five of them, and tearing 
our dining-table all to pieces — then went through 
the state-room, bulkhead, and ceiling of the ship 
on the opposite side, and struck one of the outside 
timbers, and broke every plank abreast of it short 
ofi", from the spar to the gun deck : it then fell 
doAvn on to the cabin deck and exploded, knock- 
ing four state-rooms into one, breaking all the 
glass and crockery Avare, shattering the cabin very 
badly, breaking up the furniture, and setting fire 
to the ship ; but Ave had three streams of Avater 
upon the fire at very short notice, and put it out 



426 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



before it did any damage — keeping up our chase 
as though nothing had happened." 

A letter from the Surgeon of the Massachu- 
setts, Dr. John H. Mackie, gives information that 
he Avas the only person wounded by this destruc- 
tive visitor. He was struck by a splinter on the 
shin. ______ 

A Colored Hero. — During the thickest of 
the fight at Belmont, the body servant of General 
McClernand, a mulatto named William Stains, 
exhibited conspicuous courage.. He was close by 
the General during the whole engagement, cheer- 
ing the soldiers, and swearing that he would shoot 
the first man that showed the white feather. 
Many of the soldiers laughed heartily at the 
fighting negro, while the bullets flew about like 
hail. 

In the course of the fight a captain of one of 
the companies was struck by a spent ball, which 
disabled him from walking. The mulatto boy, 
who was mounted, rode up to him, and shouted 
out, " Captain, if j-ou can fight any longer for the 
old Stars and Stripes, take my horse and lead 
your men." He then dismounted and helped the 
wounded officer into his saddle, and as he was 
walking away, a rebel di-agoon rushed forw^ard at 
the officer to take him prisoner. The negro drew 
his revolver, and put a ball through the rebel's 
head, scattering his brains over the horse's neck. 



Passing the Battekies. — The world knows 
how Vicksburg was taken. After four months of 
ineffectual but constant labor to flank it on the 
north, and to cut a canal across the bend so as to 
divert the river from its course. Grant suddenly 
projected a new and brilliant line of strategy, 
which was croM'ned with success. 

That was to march his armj' down past the 
stronghold, on the Louisiana shore, run six or 
eight boats by the batteries and take them down 
twenty-five miles to Bruiusburg, just beloAv Jefi' 
Davis' Plantation, and act as ferry-boats in taking 
the army across. Then his problem w-as to 
march north, cut the roads between Vicksburg 
and Jackson, and establish a base of supplies on 
the Yazoo Paver, and forcing the army of Pem- 
berton back into the " Gibraltar of the South," 
surround it, and either storm or starve it into sur- 
render. This was the plan that succeeded. 

But the most hazardous part of this enterprise 
was to run the batteries. Volunteers, however, for 
this dangerous service, were numerous, and among 
others three army correspondents of leading New 
York papers were on board — Mr. Richardson of 
the Tribune, ]Mr. Browne of the Herald, and Mr. 
Colburn of the World. 

These knights-errant of the quill have each 
given to the world their story. But the narrative 
of Mr. Colburn, especially what relates to the 
passing of the batteries, is not surpassed by either 
of the others in thrilling interest. 

" It was ten o'clock on a beautiful moonlight 
night," says Mr. C, " even for those latitudes, 
when we cast loose at Milliken's Bend, and our 



little tug snorted down the river accompanied by 
the transport A. D. Hine. 

" Our adieus said, we quietly chatted, and fin- 
ished a solitary bottle of dry Catawba which some 
good friends had sent on board for our comfort. 
We had on board, as a guard, fifteen sharp- 
shooters from the Forty-seventh Ohio, under 
Captain Ward, Surgeon Davidson, the tug's crew 
of eight, four persons on their way to join their 
regiments, and our party of three, all volunteers. 

" I should here mention, as illustrating the tem- 
per of that army, that when fourteen volunteers 
were called for, the whole regiment stepped for- 
ward. Company A was selected, and still there 
was a squabble to go. Fourteen were then marked 
off; a fifteenth begged permission of the Colonel, 
and one actually paid a premium of five dollars to 
his comrade for the privilege of going on this haz- 
ardous service. The barges were covered with 
tiers of hay in order to protect the tug, but the 
hay was deemed almost unnecessary, and so put 
on quite loosely, and the ends of the boat were 
quite exposed. 

" At midnight we came in sight of Vicksburg. 
At half past twelve, as we were steaming across 
the upper side of the point, the rebel pickets on 
the Louisiana shore began to fire upon us ; their 
shots, however, did no damage. 

" At quarter before one a rocket shot up fi'om 
the upper batteries. There was no need of such 
a warning, for the boats might be seen almost as 
clearly as by sunlight, and the loud puff of our 
exhaust pipe gave ample warning when we were 
three miles distant. 

"At five minutes past one the first shot was fired, 
and struck so near as to leave us in doubt whether 
the barges were hit. A lull of a few minutes, 
then another, closely followed by a round. It 
kept up in this way as we were rounding the 
bend, the shots all seeming to come very near to 
us, but few striking, as we could perceive by the 
momentary throb of the hull when struck. 

" With the exception of Captain Ward, the 
pilots, engineers, and firemen, the rest of us were 
posted along the barges, on the alert for an at- 
tempt at boarding. 

" By reference to a map of the locality, it will be 
seen that the river forms a kind of loop in front 
of Vicksburg ; so that we had to run a portion 
of the distance by, and then turn under fire, and 
run the whole line back again. In this way we 
were exposed to a fu-e from the stai-board side, 
then from the bow, and, when fairly in front of 
the batteries, from all three directions to a con- 
centrated fire. 

" At first there were efforts to peer from behind 
the rampart of hay bales and duck on peixeiving 
the flash of the rebel guns ; but soon the shots 
were so rapid, and from points so widely apart, 
that that exciting amusement was drojjped. The 
screaming of the shells as they went over us, the 
splashing and spray, were for a time subjects of 
jesting and imitation, when a shell burst three 
feet over our heads with a stunning report. 

" Twenty minutes (long minutes those) under 
fire, and nobody hurt ! 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



427 



" The barges still floating, and the little propeller 
making eight miles an hour. We had already 
passed the upper batteries, and were congratu- 
lating ourselves on our good luck, the guns pour- 
ing broadsides at us with amazing noise, as we 
were but four hundred yards from the guns, and 
it seemed in the clear air as if we were right in 
front of the muzzles. Several shots struck the 
barges very heavily ; still there was no stoppage. 
It must have been about a quarter before two, 
when all the roar of the guns was drowned in 
one terrific report, as if a magazine had burst 
under us. 

" My first thought was that the powder had been 
stowed on the barges, and had ignited ; but, on 
clambering up among smoke and flames, I could 
see indeed nothing like a tug. She had exploded, 
and the wliite hot cinders Avere thrown up in a 
spouting shower, while steam and smoke envel- 
oped the barges like a pall. 

" Almost at the same minute the batteries com- 
menced a vengeful, and, as it seemed to me, a 
savage fii'e upon us, faster and faster. The shells 
burst all round and above us for a few moments 
with a stunning and blinding efi'ect. The coals 
had set fire to the hay bales in several places ; the 
bursting shells had aided in the work. In vain 
did we trample upon them, and throw them over- 
board, burning our hands, feet, and clothing in 
the efibrt. No buckets were to be found. They 
had been blown away. On looking down between 
the barges, there hung the fragments of the tug 
by the tow ropes. The little craft, being nearly 
all boiler, had been shattered to atoms, as we 
learned afterwards, by a ten-inch shell. 

" The rebels then set up a hideous yell from the 
blufTs, as if in mockery at our crippled condition. 
The batteries kept on firing, the blazing hay light- 
ing up the river. We were then slowly di-ifting 
with the current past the front of the city. Our 
disaster happened right abreast of the court- 
house, when we had passed more than half the 
batteries, and under the fire of them all. 

" As soon as we could clearly see through the 
blinding smoke, we found Mr. Browne standing 
bareheaded on the topmost bale, as if he were a 
defiant target for the rebel gunners. Captain 
Ward had been blown forward thirty feet from 
the tug into the river, and two of his men were 
engaged in fishing him up. The wounded and 
scalded men were crying for help, answered only 
by an occasional shell or malicious cheer. 

" After a few moments of hasty and rather in- 
formal consultation, it was deemed best to quit 
the barges, as the flames were crowding us very 
closely. Bales of hay were then tumbled off into 
the river, and the wounded placed upon them. 

" The heat now became intense. Mr. Browne and 
myself remained till all were off", and then, with 
but one bale for the two, stripped for the plunge. 
Just as we were ready, a solid shot whistled be- 
tween us, and ploughed into the water under Mr. 
Richardson's feet, overturning him from his bale, 
and producing a fountain of spray where he had 
sunk. 

" Our eyes were gladdened at his return to the 
surface unhurt. 



" We leaped into the muddy flood and buf- 
feted the waves for some minutes — with a sense 
of relief from the insupportable heat. Junius 
followed, and together we commenced swimming 
for the Louisiana shore, supposing that our pick- 
ets occupied it. 

" We had been in the water for half an hour 
perhaps, when the sound of the stroke of oars 
reached us, and presently a yawl pulled round 
the barges. Our first emotions were pleasant 
enough, but they were all destroyed when we saw 
the gray clothing of the boatmen. They scooped 
us in by the time we had drifted two miles below 
the city, and with some roughness impressed upon 
us the fact that we were prisoners. Dripping 
and shivering, we were marched up to the city 
and taken before the Provost Marshal and regis- 
tered." 

Willie Johnson, thirteen years old, of St. 
Johnsbury, a drummer boy in company D, Third 
Vermont regiment, received a medal for his he- 
roic conduct in the seven days' fight before Rich- 
mond. On the retreat, when strong men threw 
away their guns, knapsacks, and blankets, that 
they might have less weight to carry, this little 
fellow kept his di'ura, and brought it safely to 
Harrison's Landing, where he had the honor of 
drumming for division parade, being the only 
drummer who brought his drum from the field. 
When these facts were reported to the War De- 
partment by the division commander, Willie was 
presented with the star medal of honor by Secre- 
tary Stanton in person. 



Story of the Draft. — The enrolling officer 

of district, was very active and thorough 

in the performance of his duties. One day he 
went to the house of a countryman, and finding 
none of the male members at home, he made in- 
quiry of an old woman about the name and age 
of the " males " of the family. After naming 
several, the old lady stopped. "Is there any 
more ? " asked the officei*. " No," replied the 
woman, " none except Billy Bray." " Billy Bray ? 
Where is he ? " '•' He was at the barn a moment 
ago," said the old lady. Out went the officer, but 
he could not find the man. Coming back, the 
worthy officer questioned the old lady as to the 
age of Billy, and went away, after enrolling his 
name among those to be drafted. The time of 
drafting came, and among those on whom the 
draft fell was Billy Bray. No one knew him. 
Where did he live ? The officer who enrolled 
him was called upon to produce the conscript: 
and lo and behold, Billy Bray was a jackass ! 
and stands now on the list of drafted men as 
forming one of the quota of Maryland. 



A Beautiful Incident. — A Washington 
correspondent mentions the following incident as 
showing the kindness of heart of President Lin- 
coln : 



428 



ANECDOTES, POETEY, AND INCIDENTS. 



At the reception this afternoon, at the Presi- 
dent's house, many persons present noticed three i 
little girls, poorly dressed, the children of some 
mechanic or laboring man, who had followed the 
visitors into the house to gratify their curiosity. 
They passed round from room to room, and were 
hastening through the reception room with some 
trepidation, when the President called to them, 
" Little girls! are you going to pass me without 
shaking hands ? " Then he bent his tall, awk- 
ward form down, and shook each little girl warmly 
by the hand. Everybody in the apartment Avas 
spell-bound by the incident, so simple in itself, 
yet revealing so much of Mr. Lincoln's chax-acter. 
His heart overflows with kindness, he possesses 
deep anti-slavery convictions, and he never takes 
a backward step, even if he does sometimes hesi- 
tate long before taking one in advance. 



" That Dear Old Flag." — Perhaps no man, 
since the days of Falstaff and the Merry Wives 
of Windsor was ever more tormented by women 
than was General Butler, after the issue of his 
famous " Order, No. 28," du-ected to the women 
of New Orleans. The secesh crinoline from that 
time forward delighted to tease, vex, and iritate 
him. Numberless were the pretexts they would 
get up to go and call on him, and extract impa- 
tient or angry retorts from him, which they would 
retail to their friends afterwards, with the great- 
est gusto. " To take the oath," was with them 
the height of infamy ; nevertheless, there were 
found men, who not willingly only, but gladly re- 
newed their fealty to the tfnited States Govern- 
ment. Of these, one man, who had always been 
known as a Union man, but whose wife was in- 
tensely Southern in her views and feelings, 
promptly came forward and " took the oath." It 
was not long before she became acquainted with 
the hideous fact, and she determined upon some 
sort of revenge. A magnificent looking woman 
she was, and of elegant and commanding man- 
ner. Attiring herself in the most elaborate and 
becoming style and costume, she Avaited upon the 
General, gave her husband's name, and was re- 
ceived with eminent distinction and courtesy. 
After exchanging a few elegant and gracious 
compliments with the General and his staff, and 
attracting the attention of every one in the 
room, she proceeded to unfold the object of 
her visit. 

" General," said she, " some of my friends have 
taken the oath ; my husband has taken the oath ; " 
and clasping her hands upon her breast, and roll- 
ing her eyes heavenward, she exclaimed in tones 
that Mrs. Siddons, even, might have envied, " I 
have come down to swear allegiance to that dear 
flag." The denouement was as irresistible as 
it was unexpected. Bursts of laughter rung 
through tlie presence-chamber, and Butler, seeing 
that he Avas sold, retorted angrily, " We don't 
want your oath, madam ; go home and take care 
of your house and your family ; that's the proper 
place for Avomen." 



A Loud Outcry. — General Sherman, before 
starting on that great campaign, passed some part 
of the winter of 1863-4 in Hunts ville, Alabama. 

As this community had been from the first in- 
tensely and bitterly disloyal, he did not regard 
them as entitled to any special leniency or pro- 
tection. Houses A^acated by fugitive reiaels Avere 
generally taken for quarters by his officers, and 
the expression of open and defiant disloyalty Avas 
checked by the bayonet. This natural result of 
the success of the Union arms is commented on 
and described in the following terms by a Hunts- 
ville correspondent of a Southern paper, signing 
himself " Exile :" 

" It is but a short time since I left Huntsville, 
Alabama. The iron hand of despotism is upon 
the people ; not perhaps as roughly, nor as gross- 
ly, as two years ago, when the impotent Mitchel 
commanded there ; nevertheless, the hand is iron, 
and thumb-screws are in it, Avhich daily are tight- 
ened, sloAvly, but surely, a little more and a little 
more. The people, as a body, are true to our 
cause, and the principles involved in it ; yet there 
are a feAv, four or five at the most, Avho are not 
only untrue, but vilely and fetidly dishonorable 
in their conduct towards men who are honorable, 
and Avhose degradation to their unholy level is a 
jjrime object in their movement. It would do no 
good to name them ; the absentees, refugees, and 
exiles from Hunts\'ille know them ; but per- 
sonal wrongs inflicted by these men tempt strong- 
ly to name, and hold the Avretches up to a just 
and blasting reprobation. A few days ago, a 
body of gentlemen, unexceptionable in character, 
and conservative by age, were exiled upon a four- 
teen hours' order to leave, because they refused 
to take an oath of allegiance to a Government 
they abhor in their inner souls. The promptness 
and alacrity with Avhich they obeyed the order 
appeared to chagrin the domestic traitors, and 
rather exasperate the enemy in possession of the 
place. This is evidenced by a change of policy 
after the departure of the gentlemen alluded to, 
because the grace Avith Avhich they left, indicated 
that it Avas no trial at all to their faith or spirit 
of martyrdom, if you choose so to call it. They 
— the officers in charge — have determined not 
to make any more exiles, by sending the recu- 
sants of the oath South ; they will, henceforth, be 
ordered North, and buried in Northern bastiles. 
Already they haA'e immured one heroic old soul, 
Wilham McDoAvell, in the penitentiary in Nash- 
ville. They intend to murder him, and in this 
Avay — but, thank Heaven, they have elected one, 
Avho, God willing, Avill be up to the emergencj'. 
If his country calls on him for the sacrifice, I 
knoAV no man (and I know him Avell) Avho Avill 
more cheerfully, more heroically, make it. As 
another indication of Yankee barbarism, brutali- 
ty, cruel and relentless, I will mention an inci- 
dent, all the more cruel because it involved not 
Avounds of the body, not torture of the nerve and 
flesh, but terrific convulsions of the soul itself, 
and the more painful because that soul, or rather 
those souls, are up to the highest standard of 
moral perfection, and susceptible of keenest tor- 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



429 



ture. The venerable Ex-Governor Chapman re- 
ceived an order, on the 19th of January, to leave 
his house and family at nine o'clock A. M. on the 
20th ; and when in the arms of his family, bid- 
ding adieu to the loved ones, on "whom the winds 
of heaven had never blown roughly, — at that 
painful moment, as if to sound the depths of 
their own depravity, and the unknown depths of 
sensitive souls, a Yankee order was thrust into 
his hands, requiring wife and daughters to vacate 
their premises by two o'clock P. M. the same 
day, not allowing any article to be removed ; and 
a guard was placed to carry out the order. The 
circumstances, with the fortitude manifested, pre- 
sented to me a spectacle of moral grandeur oc- 
casionally read of — rarely witnessed. Whilst 
speaking of the heroism of the old Governor, I 
will mention an incident that occurred in an in- 
terview between him and the Yankee Colonel 
commanding the post. The Governor, knowing 
he would be compelled to leave in a day or so, 
to secure some of the commonest claims of hu- 
manity towards his family during his absence, ap- 
proached the Colonel, who replied: 'Governor 
Chapman — I believe that is your name.' ' Yes, 
sir.' ' Did you not, in a public speech, in Hunts- 
ville, say, that to secure secession, you Avould 
sacrifice your property and your life ? ' After a 
moment's hesitation, the venerable man replied, 
with emphasis, ' No, sir. To the best of my rec- 
ollection, Colonel, I have made no public speech 
since the revolution commenced. I was in Europe 
at the time. You know my principles. Colonel, 
from the conversations I have had with you ; and 
though I do not recollect any such " speech," or 
expression, my principles, as you very well know, 
lead in that direction. And, lest you might 
suppose I would desire to evade consequences 
and responsibilities attachable to such princi- 
ples,' rising to the full height of person and dig- 
nity, ' I will say it noic, and more — not only will 
I sacrifice myself and property, but, sir, wife and 
children, to the preservation of our holy cause.' 
The statement of these honorable incidents runs 
out this to great length ; but I will state a fact or 
two : * Greenbacks ' are two and a half for one in 
gold in Huntsville and Nashville; and though 
the money quotations in Northern papers place 
them one hundred and fifty-nine td one hundred 
and sixty, the truth is, two months ago, in New 
York, in Wall Street, no ' operation ' could be per- 
formed at less rate than two for one. The Yankee 
troops in Huntsville, whose term of service has 
expired, are converting their ' greenbacks ' into 
Confederate currency to take home. I state this 
for an incontrovertibleyacf. Not in one instance 
only, but I witnessed several of the same. The 
streets are becoming foul ; the groves and wood- 
land around the town being swept away, all the 
lesser houses about the town are being torn down 
to floor and weather-board winter quarters for 
them. Every house in the city has been surveyed 
for occupation by them — not in a desultory man- 
ner, but regularly and systematically. It is the 
duty of an officei', one Lieutenant Cliff, to assign 
these quarters ; thus, according to rank or per- 



sonal standing (if any) at home, are they i)laced 
in palaces of average respectability in appear- 
ance. Colonel G. P. Birney's mansion is assigned 
as headquarters for General Sherman & Co. A 
regular system of operating is thus instituted, 
and as an entering wedge to confiscation, this is 
the object of this procedure. But, through all, 
the people are true and devoted. I would men- 
tion more, but already I have written at too much 
length. You may rely on the women — God 
bless them — in North Alabama. I do know, how- 
ever, one or two disgraceful and unpatriotic ex- 
ceptions." 



The House that Jeff Built. — The Hart- 
ford Post published the following history of the 
celebrated edifice erected by J. Davis, Esq., as 
authentic. It was written for the purpose of giv- 
ing infant politicians a clear, concise, and truthful 
description of the habitation, and the fortunes and 
misfortunes, and doings of the inmates : 

" I. The Southern Confedeeacy. — This is 
the house that Jeff built. 

" II. The Ethiopian. — This is the malt that 
lay in the house that Jeff built. 

"III. The Undergkound PvAIlroad. — This 
is the rat that ate the malt that lay in the house 
that Jeff built. 

"IV. The Fugitive Slave Lav\^ — This is 
the cat that killed the rat that ate the malt that 
lay in the house that Jeff built. 

"V. The Personal Liberty Bill. — This 
is the dog that worried the cat that killed the rat 
that ate the malt that lay in the house that Jeff 
built. 

" VI. Chief Justice Taney. — This is the 
cow with crumpled horn that tossed the dog that 
worried the cat that killed the rat that ate the 
malt that lay in the house that Jeff built. 

" VII. James Buchanan. — This is the maiden 
all forlorn that milked the cow with crumpled horn 
that tossed the dog that worried the cat that killed 
the rat that ate the malt that lay in the house that 
Jeff built. 

" VIIL C. Cesh. -— This is the man all tattered 
and torn that married the maiden all forlorn that 
milked the cow with crumpled horn that tossed 
the dog that worried the cat that killed the rat 
that ate the malt that lay in the house that Jeff 
built. 

" IX. Plunder. — This is the priest all shaven 
and shorn that mamed the man all tattered and 
torn to the maiden all forlorn that milked the cow 
with crumpled horn that tossed the dog that wor- 
ried the cat that killed the rat that ate the malt 
that lay in the house that Jeff built.'* 



EPIGKAIM. 

Whilst Butler plays his silly pranks, 
And closes up New Orleans' banks, 
Our Stonewall Jackson, with more cimning, 
Keeps Yankee Banks forever running. 



430 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



Feiends tx Scotland. — When the news of 
the fall of Vicksburg and General Lee's retreat 
reached the village of Bankfoot, inPerthshLre, the 
friends of the North got quite jubilant. A banner 
was hastily painted with the motto on one side, 
" Vicksburg is taken ; " on the reverse, " God 
speed the North." A floral device on a large 
scale was also extemporized, and at eight o'clock a 
procession set out through the village, accom- 
"^)anied by the music band. At the close of the 
procession the political lions of the place and the 
members of the band repaired to the inn, where 
President Lincoln and his successful Generals' 
healths were drunk with rounds of cheers, and 
then all went peaceably and gladly to their homes. 



AT PORT ROYAL. 

BY JOHN GK.EENLEAF 'WHITTIEB. 

The tent-lights glimmer on the land, 

The ship-lights on the sea ; 
The night- wind smooths with drifting sand 

Our track on lone Tybee. 

At last our grating keels outslide. 
Our good boats forward swing ; 

And while we ride the land-locked tide, 
Our negroes row and smg. 

For dear the bondman holds his gifts 

Of music and of song — 
The gold that kindly Nature sifts 

Among his sands of wrong ;" — 

The power to make his toiling days 
And poor home-comforts please ; 

The quaint relief of mirth that plaj'S 
With sorrow's minor keys. 

Another glow than sunset's fire 
Has micd the West with light, 

Where field and garner, barn and bjTe 
Are blazing through the night. 

The land is wild with fear and hate ; 

The rout runs mad and fast ; 
From hand to hand, from gate to gate, 

The flaming brand is passed. 

The lurid glow falls strong across 
Dark faces broad with smiles : 

Not theirs the terror, hate, and loss 
That fire yon blazing piles. 

With oar-strokcs timing to their song, 

They weave in simple lays 
The pathos of remembered wrong, 

The hope of better days ; — 

The triumph-note that Miriam sung, 

The joy of uncaged birds : 
Softening with Afric's mellow tongue 

Their broken Saxon words. 

SONG OF THE NEGRO BOATMEN. 
O, praise an' tanks ! De Lord he come 

To set de people free ; 
An' massa tink it day ob doom, 

An' we ob jubilee. 



De Lord, dat heap de Red Sea waves. 

He jus' as 'trong as den ; 
He say de word : we las' night slaves, 
To-day de Lord's free men ! 

De yam will grow, de cotton blow, 

We'll hab de rice and corn ; 
nebber you fear, if nebber you hear 
De driver blow his horn ! 

Ole massa on he trabbles gone ; 

He leaf de land behind : 
De Lord's brefi' blow him furder on. 

Like corn shuck in de wind. 
We own do hoe, we own de i)lough, 

We owm de hands dat hold ; 
We sell de pig, we sell de cow. 
But nebber chile be sold. 

De yam will grow, de cotton blovr, 

We'll hab de rice an' corn ; 
nebber you fear, if nebber you hear 
De driver blow his horn ! 

We pray de Lord ; he gib us signs 

Dat some day we be free ; 
De norf wind tell it to de pines, 

De wild- duck to de sea ; 
We tink it when de church-bell ring. 

We dream it in de dream ; 
De rice-bird mean it when he sing, 
De eagle when he scream. 

De yam will grow, de cotton blow. 

We'll hab de rice an' corn ; 
O nebber you fear, if nebber you hear 
De driver blow his horn ! 

We know de promise nebber fail. 

An' nebber lie de word ; 
So, like de 'postles in de jail, 

We waited for de Lord ; 
An' now he open ebery door, 

An' trow away de key ; 
He tink we lub him so before. 
We lub him better free. 

Do yam Avill grow, de cotton blow, 

He'll gib do rice an' corn ; 
O nebber you fear, if nebber you hear 
De driver blow his horn ! 

So sing our dusky gondoliers ; 

And with a secret pain, 
And smiles that seem akin to tears, 

AVe hear the wild refrain. 

We dare not share the negro's trust, 

Nor yet his hope deny ; 
We only know that Grod is just. 

And every wrong shall die. 

Rude seems the song ; each swarthy face. 

Flame-lighted, ruder still ; 
We start to think that hapless race 

Must shape our good or ill ; — 

That laws of changeless justice bind 

Oppressor with oppressed ; 
And close as sin and suff"ering joined, 

We march to fate abreast. 

Sing on, poor hearts ! your chant shall be 
Our sign of blight or bloom, — 

The Vala-song of Liberty, 
Or death- rune of our doom ! 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



431 



Incident of Lookout Valley. — "An un- 
recorded incident of the midnight fight between 
Hooker's and Longstreet's forces in Lookout 
Vallej-, ten days ago, has come to my knowledge, 
and deserves to have a place on the record," says 
a corresi^ondent. "A short time subsequent to 
this magnificent charge on the enemy in their 
breastworks by General Geary's brigade. General 
HoM'ard, taking with liim a small escort of cav- 
alry, started for that part of the field where Gen- 
eral Geary was supposed to be. He had not gone 
far when he came up with a body of infantry. 
' What cavalry is that ? ' was the hail. ' All right,' 
responded General Howard, at the same time 
calling out, ' What men are those ? ' ' Long- 
street's,' was the reply. ' All right ; come here,' 
said General Howard. The men approached. 
* Have we whipped those fellows ? ' asked General 
Howard, in a manner to keep up the deception. 
' No, d — n them ; they were too much for us, and 
drove us from our rifle pits like devils. We're 
whipped ourselves.' By this time the rebels had 
gathered nearer. 'Lay down your arms,' de- 
manded General Howard in a stern voice. The 
men surrendered. Taking his prisoners in charge, 
General HoAvard proceeded on his way. He had 
not gone far before another party of rebel infantry 
called out, ' What cavalry is that ? ' ' All right,' 
was the response again of General Howard, as 
he proceeded. On approaching the position oc- 
cupied by Geary, that officer had observed the 
advancing horsemen and infantry, as he supposed 
the prisoners to be, and supposing them to be 
rebels, he had ordered his guns to be loaded with 
canister, and in a moment more would have given 
the intrepid Howard and his little forces the ben- 
efit of it. But the General who had successfully 
deceived the enemy found a way to make himself 
known to friends, and so escaped a reception of 
that kind." 

A Raid. — A correspondent at Washington 
wrote : " Owing to Mosby's depredations, the 
word ' raid ' is worked into almost every expres- 
sion. I have in my employ a contraband, of 
double-dyed blackness, called John. I went out 
to my barn one morning, and, noticing that his 
face was wet with perspiration, remarked that he 
' looked pretty warm.' * Yes, massa,' Avas his re- 
ply, ' Ise had a pretty big raid on my muscle dis 
mornin', an' Ise mos' done gone.' " 



Feminine Wrath. — In the fall of 1863, after 
the great national successes at Vicksburg, Chat- 
tanooga, and Gettysburg, the President of the 
United States appointed a day of Thanksgiving 
to God for the victories that had crowned the 
national arms. 

The Bulletin, a Union paper published in Mem- 
phis, Tennessee, made a simple announcement of 
tlie fact, and remarked that there were many, no 
doubt, in that city who would heartily join in 
celebrating the day. This suggestion drew upon 
the editor's l^ead the following glowing and defiant 



philippic from the pen of one of the fair citizens 
of Memphis : 

" Editor Bulletin : You call attention to Lin- 
coln's appointment of a day of Thanksgiving for 
the successes which have blessed our cause, and 
you hope the day will be properly observed. By 
' our cause ' you mean the Union cause. I won- 
der how you think the people of Memphis can 
thank God for the successes of the Union Aboli- 
tion cause. _ You pretend to think that a great 
Union sentiment has sprung up in Memphis, be- 
cause you say that upwards of eleven thousand 
persons have taken the oath of allegiance. Let 
me tell you, if they have taken it, they did not 
do it of their own free will, and they don't feel 
bound by it ; they had to take it under a military 
despotism, and don't feel bound to regard any 
oath forced upon them in that way. Do you be- 
lieve that any preacher in Memphis will appoint 
services in his church at Lincoln's dictation ? Let 
one dare to try it, and see how his congregation 
will stand it. They know better. They know 
full well that the people of Memphis give thanks 
over Union disasters with sincere hearts, but don't 
rejoice at Union victories, as they call them. 
The women of Memphis will stick to the Confed- 
erate cause, like Ruth clung to her mother-in- 
law, and say to it, ' Where thou goest I will go, 
where thou livest I will live, where thou diest I 
will die, and there will I be buried.' But where 
are your great successes ? Your own papers say 
that Lee brought off a train of captured spoils 
twelve miles long, and that Morgan destroyed 
seven or eight millions of dollars' worth, before 
all Ohio and Indiana could stop him. Pretty 
dear success, this. Still I won't rejoice over it at 
Lincoln's dictation. But wait till President Da- 
vis' day comes round. Perhaps by that time 
Meade may get another whipping, and if you 
don't see rejoicing and thanksgiving then, you 
may well believe that you and your officious local 
fail to see half that exists in Memphis. Now 
you won't jjublish this, perhaps, because it don't 
suit you. You can say the reason is, because I 
don't put my real name to it. You can do as you 
please about it. I choose to sign it. 

Mary Lee Thorn e. 

Relentless Conscription. — The rebel con- 
script act, which was enforced on and after the 
20th April, 1862, brought dismay to thousands 
of Southern families. A large portion of the 
rebel army, at that time, was composed of men 
who had enlisted for twelve and three months, and 
whose time would ex])ire in I\Iay, when their re- 
turn Avas eagerly and anxiously anticipated by 
their families, for many of whom no pecuniary 
provision had been made after the exjiiration of 
the time enlisted for. One of the regiments un- 
der Bragg's command at this time was composed 
of men from East Tennessee, most of them poor, 
and leaving at home small provision for their 
Avives and children. Of this regiment, one com- 
pany, at the expiration of the twelve months of 
their enlistment, laid down their arms, and de- 



432 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



manded permission to return to their families. 
By threat and argument, most of them -were in- 
duced to return to duty ; but three or four held 
out, declaring that they would insist on their 
right to go home ; but all these, save one, Avere 
at last convinced that there was no alternative 
but death or obedience, and, at whatever sacrifice 
of feeling, concluded to shoulder arms again, and 
return to duty. One man, however, firmer than 
the rest, and who was continually haunted by the 
memory of his destitute family at home, steadily 
refused obedience to the new and terrible law. 
He said he had fought faithfully and willingly for 
his country, but his time had expired, and he de- 
manded, as a right, t]iat he should go home and 
make proper provision for the support of his family, 
when he promised to return and become a voluntary 
conscript. Argument, persuasion, threat, impris- 
onment Avere powerless to move him from this 
position. At last he was tried by court-martial 
for mutiny, and sentenced to be shot on the fol- 
lowing day. He received his sentence with per- 
fect coolness, declaring that he was right, and if 
they chose to shoot him, they might do so. His 
case elicited universal sympathy, and Bragg was 
persuaded, by the entreaties of some of his offi- 
cers, to extend the condemned man three days of 
grace. He was allowed the liberty of the camp, 
and every argument used to persuade him to get 
away, which he could easily do. " No," he replied 
to all such suggestions ; he had done nothing 
wrong, and he would not sneak away, as though 
he were guilty. He wished nothing unjust or 
wrong ; his family at home wei'e starving ; his 
first duty was to provide for them. The three 
days passed ; and the Crescent regiment, which 
was enlisted for three months, and which was, 
perhaps, as anxious to return home as any other 
in the field, was detailed to complete the tragedy. 
The army was drawn up, enclosing the Crescent 
regiment, for fear, it Avas said, they should refuse 
to obey orders. The doomed man was brought 
out, and marched, with a firm step, to his stand 
beside the coffin prepared to receive his dead 
body. At the appointed moment he bared his 
bi-east, gave the signal to fire, and fell, in the same 
moment, upon his coffin, a lifeless corpse. A 
squad of men were immediately detailed to bury 
him, and the army was marched back to camp. 
The unfortunate regiment, which was chosen as 
the instrument of this terrible despotism, was 
sickened by the sight, as though there had been 
administered to them the most powerful emetic ; 
and from that time on, upon the name of Braxton 
Bragg Avere heaped curses, both loud and deep ; 
but open mutiny was effectually suppressed. 



Recollections of John B. Floyd. — A 
" Soldier " of the South contributed the following 
story to a Confederate journal: 

Having recently read a notice of the death of 
General Floyd, my thoughts went back to the 
days of Fort Donelson, and the period imme- 
diately following that disaster to our arms. Hav- 
ing taken a humble part in those afiairs, and 



having been an eye-witness to the part acted in 
it by General Floyd, it has suggested itself that 
a few thoughts thereon would not be inappro- 
priate. I first saw General Floyd, at Nashville, 
in January, 1862. He was then on his May to 
join General A. S. Johnston, whose headquarters 
were at Bowling Green, on Green liiver, Ken- 
tucky. General Floyd had his command with 
him, the same that served with him in West Vir- 
ginia. It was then supposed that the great bat- 
tle of, the war would take place at or near Bow- 
ling ^^ Green, which would decide the question 
whether Kentucky was ours or belonged to the 
Federals. General Buell commanded the Fed- 
eral forces, which occupied the line of Green Riv- 
er, and his army was rapidly reenforced, until, on 
the 1st of February, 1862, it numbered one hun- 
dred thousand men. It was given out that Gen- 
eral Johnston's army was also one hundred thou- 
sand strong, and that the line of Green River 
would be held. A line of defence had been drawn 
from Bowling Green westward to Columbus, on 
the Mississippi, embracing Forts Henry, on the 
Tennessee River, and Donelson, on the Cumber- 
land. The latter place was selected by Governor 
Harris, of Tennessee, on account of the natural 
strength of the position, and because it was the 
key of Nashville. This point was strongly forti- 
fied. Most of the heavy guns were mounted un- 
der the supervision of General Buckner, who took 
command of the post in January, 1862. Thus, 
on the 1st of February, 1862, the people who 
were south of this military line felt perfectly se- 
cure from the horrors of invasion, fully confident 
that the tide of war would roll towards the Ohio, 
instead of south, on the Cumberland and Ten- 
nessee. "With the accomplished Sidney Johnston, 
commanding an army one hundred thousand 
strong, in Central Kentucky, and the people of 
that gallant State rising in arms, it was believed 
that the enemy would be beaten, and his flying 
cohorts driven out of the State. Such was the 
feeling of the people of Tennessee and Southern 
Kentucky on the 1st of February, 1862. Fatal 
security ! It lost us an empire, not yet recovered. 
Early in February General Gideon J. PilloAV 
assumed command of the forces at Fort Donelson. 
He was the universal choice of the people of 
Tennessee for that position. On arriving at the 
fort he commenced work with his usual energj'. 
It was under his direction that the rifle pits were 
dug, earthworks thrown up, timber and under- 
growth cut down, and guns mounted, to prepare 
for a land attack from the enemy. His presence 
seemed to inspire every man with confidence, 
and he infused new energy into every laggard. 
I think it was on the 12th of February that Gen- 
eral Floyd arrived at the fort, from Bowling 
Green, and assumed command of all the forces. 
He immediately examined the earthworks and 
defences, and pronounced everything that had 
been done ♦' good." For a day or two previous 
the gunboats of the enemy had been seen hover-" 
ing about the point below, and everything was in 
preparation to give them a warm reception. The 
scouts brought in word that the enejny was land- 




-og J t-pAH Ritchie. 



MaJ- GkxlH. 11 STIP: I^IDAN. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



433 



ing a large force below the point, and it then 
became appai'ent that the ditching and digging 
were not labor lost. Our entire force, all told, 
amounted to thirteen thousand men. The fight 
was commenced by the enemy's gunboats on 
Thursday, the I3th, and continued through three 
days. From prisoners, which were taken on Fri- 
day, we learned that the enemy's land force was 
thirty thousand strong, and that they were being 
daily reenforced Avith fresh troops. The history 
of the three days' fight is well known. I do not 
desire to enter into an account of each day's fight ; 
suffice it to say that the enemy was repulsed at all 
points with great slaughter, and that he gained 
no material advantage until Saturday evening, 
when, by the loss of a battery, our line was 
bent back, and we stood in great danger of being 
flanked. During the three days' fight" the gun- 
boats had made no impression on the fort, while 
the fort had disabled two of the gunboats, and 
injured, to some extent, a thu'd. No boat could 
stand a fire from heavy guns mounted on a bluff 
one hundred feet above the river. The terrible 
plunging fire of solid shot was certain destruction 
to all below. In Saturday's fight we were so over- 
whelmed by numbers that we were forced to give 
back. 

Our line of defence once lost, we were then at 
a great disadvantage. The weather was terrible. 
It had been sleeting and snowing for two days and 
nights, and was bitter cold. Several of the men 
had frozen to death in the trenches. The rifle pits 
were knee-deep in water and ice. Many of the 
men had not tasted food for two daj's. Some 
were physically exhausted from hunger, loss of 
sleep, and cold. More than three fourths of the 
whole command were raw troops, and had never 
faced an enemy before. Some murmuring was 
heard among the men, such as, " We can't fight 
forever ; if Johnston don't send us reenforcements 
we ought to leave here." In this state of affairs 
a council of war was held late on Saturday even- 
ing. It was admitted that the place could not 
be held without reenforcements. General Pillow 
believed that reenforcements would yet arrive, and 
he was in favor of commencing a vigorous attack 
on the enemy next morning (Sunday), to regain 
our former line, and hold that position at all 
hazards until help came. He said that he had 
promised Governor Harris that he would hold 
that place at all hazards and defend the capital, 
and he was in favor of holding it. General Floyd 
said that no more aid would come ; that he had 
brought the last available man that General 
Johnston could spare ; that he had but twenty- 
five thousand men left ; and that he thought it 
best to make a vigorous attack on the enemy 
next morning, and, under cover of the attack, to 
retire the whole command. To this General 
Buckner made some objection, but finally he as- 
sented to it. It was admitted by all that the 
place could not be longer held Avithout reenforce- 
ments, and after General Floyd's statement it 
was seen that it was impossible to be reenforced. 
The plan of General Floyd was assented to by 
Generals Buckner and Pillow, and it was deter- 
28 



mined to commence the attack on Sunday morn- 
ing at daylight. 

Some time later in the night another meeting 
of general officers was held, I understood at the 
request of General Buckner, at which he stated 
that the men were physically worn out and inca- 
pable of fighting any more, and that he Avas in 
favor of surrendering; that they were entirely 
surrounded by the enemy, and that even if they 
succeeded in cutting their way out, that there was 
not sufficient river transportation to convey the 
troops to Nashville ; that an attack next morning- 
would end only in a wanton destruction of life, and 
that he could not see any benefit that would result 
from it. General Pillow s^wke in favor of the 
attack next morning. He thought the men capa- 
ble of another efibrt, and he spoke eloquently 
against a surrender, which would dim all the 
glory that had been achieved. He eulogized the 
troops ; said they were not lacking in strength or 
spirit ; that they were capable of one more effort, 
and that effort should be made ; that he would 
never surrender to the enemy. General Floyd 
said he was opposed to surrendering; that he 
could not and would not surrender ; that he knew 
the men were worn out, yet he thought almost the 
entire command could be saved by a vigorous 
attack next morning. General Buckner replied 
that the men were exhausted, and could fight no 
more, and that he would stay with his men. 
General Floyd said, " I cannot surrender ; I pass 
the command over to you. General Pillow." 
General Pillow said, " Nor can I surrender ; I 
pass the command to General Buckner." General 
Buckner said, " I accept the command." On 
these facts becoming known to the men, all was 
commotion. Many prepared to leave at once. 
It was given out that all that wanted to could 
now leave, as the way to Nashville was open. 
Many crossed the river, and v\-ent on foot on to 
Nashville. Colonel Forrest, of the Tennessee cav- 
alry, now General Forrest, said that he would 
form a rear guard of his command, and protect all 
who would come out. Many availed themselves 
of this offer, and Colonel Forrest kept his word. 
General Floyd brought out almost his entire com- 
mand, which had come with him from Virginia. 
General Pillow was instrumental in bringing 
several of the men out. He made personal appeals 
to many of the officers commanding Tennessee 
troops not to remain, which was responded to. 
It is my opinion that the entire command could 
have been saved had General Floyd's plan been 
adopted. As it was, more than four thousand 
men left the fort and the trenches on that night, 
and arrived safe at Nashville. All left who chose 
to, and those who remained chose to remain. 
Indeed, many left the fort after it had been sur- 
rendered, on Sunday, and walked all the way to 
Nashville. Eleven members of a Texas regimen\ 
came into camp at Murfreesboro', thirteen dayi 
after the surrender, having left the fort on Mon 
day morning after the surrender. The report tha:. 
the fort was surrounded by the enemy was a mis- 
take. It was not even invested on Sunday even- 
ing, as our men were continually leaving iha 



434 



ANECDOTES, TOETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



fort from morning until night on that day. About 
six thousand men remained with General Buck- 
ner, and he surrendered these Avith the fort on 
Sunday, the 16th of February. Our loss in killed, 
wounded, and missing was not more than one 
thousand. The loss of the enemy was immense ; 
it could not have been less than six thousand in 
killed and wounded. The ground on the slope in 
front of the rifle pits was literally covered with 
his dead and dying. Never were troops handled 
better than ours were at Fort Donelson. Never 
did men fight with greater resolution. The force 
brought against them was immensely superior in 
men and munitions of war, and for three days they 
held out, fighting each day fresh troops, and re- 
pulsing them with terrible slaughter. That the 
victory was not ours is not the fault of those who 
fought on that ensanguined field. Had five 
thousand fresh troops arrived on Satm^day even- 
ing the victory M'ould have been ours. 

I now desire to state a few facts in relation to 
the surrender, not for the purpose of doing any 
injustice to the living, but to do justice to the 
dead. In stating these facts I do not wish to 
draw any invidious distinction between the troops 
from the difFei-ent States who fought at Fort 
Donelson. They all fought well, and they all de- 
serve well of their country. As long as success 
seemed ^wssible, the different State troops vied 
with each other in bravery and gallantry. When 
success seemed impossible, then murmurs were 
heard, and there was dissatisfaction expressed at 
the non-arrival of reenforcements. When the 
question was mooted, whether the garrison " fall 
back " or surrender, loud disclaimers were heard 
against the former. It was said, " Are we to leave 
our homes and families, and fall back fighting for 
other States ? No ; we have fought enough ; Me 
will surrender and go home." 

The troops that fought at Fort Donelson Avere 
volunteers, many of them " home guards," who 
had left their homes, as they thought, to fight at 
Fort Donelson, and then go home. They had no 
idea, if unsuccessful there, to " fall back " and 
fight indefinitely. These men fought bravely as 
long as there was a show of victory ; but when 
the dark hour came, and the question was surren- 
der or fall back, they preferred the former. There 
were many such at Fort Donelson. It was said 
that these men had some weight in influencing 
General Buckner to remain. If true, it is no ar- 
gument against his humanity, honor, or patriotism. 
On the contrary, he desferves credit for remaining 
with his men, to share their fortunes, good or 
evil. There was another class of men at Fort 
Donelson, who were not from any particular State, 
but from all the States there represented, who 
had determined never to surrender — who pre- 
ferred death to surrender. The head and front 
of this class was General Floyd. AVhen he said, 
" I cannot surrender," there Avas a deep meaning 
in it. He had been Secretary of War under the 
Buchanan administration. He had sent the arms 
belonging to the Government South, and the 
whole North howled like demons over it. He 
had been denounced by the whole abolition tribe, 



from Seward to Garrison. They all, from Lincoln 
to the lowest minion, hated, with a venomous ha- 
tred, John B. Floyd. Therefore he could not sur- 
render. To that noble old man it would have 
been too deep a humiliation. Had he surren- 
dered, the vile Northern rabble would have hooted 
and howled at his heels, from the Ohio to the St. 
Lawrence. He would have been hawked at by 
the Yankee owls in every city and village through 
which he passed. Therefore General Floyd 
" could not surrender." Did he do wrong, then, 
in leaving Fort Donelson, and saving all that he 
could of the garrison ? I think not. He did 
right in saving a part, if he could not save the 
Avhole. He was Avilling to make the eff"ort to 
save all, but in this he was opposed ; he then did 
the next best thing, — he saved all he could. It 
was said by one high in authority, that he could 
not understand how seven thousand men could 
surrender Avith arms in their hands. Hoav, then, 
could it be conceived that twelve thousand men 
could surrender with arms in their hands, Avhich 
Avould have been the case had General Floyd re- 
mained at Fort Donelson. 

When it Avas knoAvn on the march from Mur- 
freesboro' to Decatur that the President had sus- 
pended General Floyd for the part he took at 
Fort Donelson, a feeling of regret pervaded the 
army. ItAvas supposed that his suspension Avould 
be of short duration. Men of common sense 
could not see Avherein he had done Avrong. He 
had the sympathies of the Avhole army, and all 
hoped that he Avould soon be reinstated by the 
President. But he never was. He was too proud 

" To boAV the svipple hinges of the knee 
. That thrift might foUoAV fawning," 

and he Avent doAvn to the grave Avith the censure 
of the President upon him. What a pity it could 
not have been otherAvise ! General Buckner Avas 
promoted for the part he acted at Fort Donelson, 
and he deserved it. General Pillow Avas rein- 
stated in his command, but General Floyd Avas 
left to go doAvn to the grave Avith this foul censure 
clinging to him to the last. Why Avas this ? Did 
the good of the cause require that it should be 
so ? Let us suppose that, in refusing to surren- 
der at Fort Donelson, he committed a Avrong. 
Did the good of the country require that he 
should never be forgiven ? If General Floyd 
committed a Avrong, General PilloAV Avas guilty of 
a like off'ence. General PilloAv Avas reinstated in 
his command. Why AA'as not the same justice 
rendered tOAvards General Floyd ? The writer of 
this is a friend and ardent admirer of President 
Davis. He has full confidence in his patriotism, 
integrity, and ability ; but he is constrained to say 
that the old patriot, Avho has gone doAvn to his 
grave, was wronged at his hands. A more patri- 
otic man than John B. Floyd did not live in the 
limits of this Confederacy. He Avas brave and 
able, honest and sagacious, kind and courteous 
to those under him, and one of the truest men I 
ever kncAV. Those who served under him at Fort 
Donelson, who saw him sharing the dangers and 
perils of his men, his face and breast bared to the 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



435 



pitiless storm, with the icicles hanging to his gray 
beard; those who heard his words of cheer and 
comfort to the doubtful and desponding will 
never forget him. And again at Nashville^ after 
the fall of Donelson, restoring order out of 
chaos, quieting the fears of the timid, putting 
down the lawlessness of the rabble, and saving the 
propertj^ of the Government. Before the arrival 
of the Federals at Nashville he had removed to 
a place of safety more than a million dollars 
worth of Government stores, which would other- 
wise have been destroyed in the general panic. 
He also saved the State of Tennessee many hun- 
dreds of thousands of dollars by his timely ar- 
rival at the capital. 

Such was John B. Floyd. This imperfect, but 
impartial sketch is but a poor tribute to the man. 
The future historian will do him justice. He was 
a noble, chivalrous, patriotic Virginian ; but his 
heart was large enough to hold his whole coun- 
try. It can be said of him — 

" This was the noblest Roman of them all 1 

The elements 
So mixed in him that Nature might stand up 
And say to all the world, This was a. man." 



A Dinner Party broken up. — In April, 
1863, the 17th of the month, a party of some- 
what crestfallen but defiant rebel officers were 
dining at the plantation of a great slave-owner 
on the Mississippi River, about half way between 
Vicksburg and Port Hudson. There was a com- 
missary captain, a surgeon, the governor of rebel 
Louisiana, and others of greater or less rank in 
secession circles. 

The planter's wines had been long ago con- 
sumed, but he had a demijohn of Louisiana rum, 
to which his guests were welcome, and every- 
thing which the large and admirably cultivated 
plantation garden could supply graced the table. 

Strong opinions were expressed that no boat 
on the Mississippi could live ten minutes under 
the fii"e of the Vicksburg batteries — that yellow 
fever would soon appear in Grant's army at Mil- 
liken's Bend, that the South would hold that 
portion of the Mississippi Valley against all op- 
position ; and fearful accounts were related of 
Yankee cowai'dice, Yankee barbarism and atrocity, 
with strong determinations " never to submit or 
yield." 

In the midst of all this bravery one of the 
gentlemen was summoned to the door by a cou- 
rier, who had an important communication from 
the General commanding at Vicksburg, and also 
another from the commander at Port Hudson. 

One telegram read, " Five gunboats passed 
last night : notify all boats and river batteries." 
The other, from below, was, " Hartford and two 
others coming up : look out." He stepped back 
and read them to the company. 

If a ten-inch shell had exploded, the change 
would not have been greater. First there was a 
blank pause. Then one said, " It's all up with 
tis, gentlemen ; if five have passed, twenty wiU 



pas^i, and the Valley is gone." — " Colonel, will you 
order my horse ? " " Colonel, I will have mine 
at the same time." 

In ten minutes the party had broken up, and 
were scattering in every direction, some for 
Shreveport, others for Mobile ; and the boom 
of the guns on the Hartford as she came sweep- 
ing around_ the bend of the river was the knell 
of all their high-blown hopes and sanguine 
boasts. 

SHERIDAN'S EARLY ORDERS. 



Phil Sheridan down in the valley made 

A rule the " rebs " to soften : 
'Twas — " Out with the blade, 
Away with the spade ; 
Fight Early, and fight often ! " 



But " often " was not quite often enough 
To have things done up rarely ; 

So he wrote, and said, 

" Have this order read : " 
'TAvas, "Boys, fight late and Early." 



But *' late " and " often " give too many rests 

To clear the valley fairly ; 
" They are not bad tests," 
Thought Phil— " but the best's 

To whip the enemy. Early." 



So he says, " No matter for hour or date : 

To use the foe up squarely, 
Fight him early, late — 
When we thrash him straight, 

They'll admit we whipp'd him, Early." 



Anecdote of President Lincoln. — A 
gentleman called on the President, and solicited 
a pass for Richmond. " Well," said the Presi- 
dent, " I would be very happy to oblige you, if 
my passes were respected ; but the fact is, sir, I 
have, within the last two years, given passes to 
two hundred and fifty thousand men to go to 
Richmond, and not one has got there yet." 



General Rosser on the Border. — In the 
winter of 1863-4, the two opposing armies in 
Virginia lay on the upper branches of the Rap- 
idan, not far from Culpepper and Brandy Station, 
sixty miles south of the Potomac. As General 
Meade had all his supplies to bring in wagons 
from Alexandria, the possible plunder that might 
reward an enterprising raid in the country be- 
tween the Union army and the Potomac was a 
strong bait to Southern enterprise. There were, 
consequently, two or three of these expeditions 
during the Minter, of which the most successful 
in the way of plunder was that of the rebel Gen- 
eral Rosser, who, next to Stuart and Forrest, won 
the greatest rtame among the Confederates as a 



^■^ 



436 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



cavalry officer. The folIo-vvin» story of liis ex- 
ploit that whiter was prepared by a correspondent 
of a Richmond pa])er : 

" The foray made by Early, Fitz Lee, and Rosser, 
about the 1st of January, proving }-ather unsuc- 
cessful, it was ordered that General Early, with 
one brigade of infantry (General Thomas'), Ros- 
ser's brigade of cavalry, and McCallahan's battery, 
should make another effort towards relieving the 
border of its Yankees and cattle. Information 
had been received that a large supply train would 
start from New Creek to Petersburg on a certain 
day ; and, moreover, it Avas necessary that v/e 
should hold Petersburg in order to make our 
search for cattle successful. The plan of opera- 
tion having been decided upon, General Early, 
with Thomas' brigade of infantry, crossed by 
Orkney Springs, General Rosser's brigade, with 
McCallahan's battery, at Brook's Gap, forming a 
junction at Mathias' on the 31st, and entering 
Moorefield on the 1st of February. That night 
our picket on the Petersburg road, through neg- 
ligence, was captured by a scouting party of the 
enemy that advanced within half a mile of Gen- 
eral Eai'ly's headquarters without becoming aware 
of our presence. General Rosser, in order to pre- 
vent communication between Petersburg and the 
expected train, sent out Baylor's squadi'on of the 
Twelfth Virginia cavalry, with a guide, to inter- 
cept couriers passing from one point to another. 
The brigade moved off about ten A. M. on the 
road crossing the mountain, and intersecting the 
Petersburg and New Creek road about five miles 
above Williamsport. 

•' As we were approaching'the top of the moun- 
tiin, our advance guard was checked by an in- 
fantry picket of the enemy, about two hundred 
strong, which had been engaged in obstructing 
the road. They moved off rapidly and safely ; 
for pursuit was impracticable, in consequence of 
the thorough blockade the enemy had constructed 
by throwing heavy timber across the road for a 
distance of three miles, and digging away the 
road itself for some distance. These obstacles, 
l;y means of axes and picks in the hands of eager 
and determined men, were speedily removed, and 
in a few moments the Yankees were again in 
sight, in rapid rout for the Petersburg road. The 
Twelfth, moving down on them, speedily checked 
them up, but Avas unable to inflict any injury on 
account of the enemy's position, who had lost no 
time in ensconcing himself in the thick growth 
on the side of the mountain. At this crisis, how- 
ever, Baylor's squadron, misled, through the igno- 
rance of their guide, came up in the rear of the 
enemy, and speedily dislodged him. General 
llosser, following with his cavalry and battery, 
turned towards Williamsport, and came up within 
sight of the enemy about two miles below, just 
as the Yankee picket met their main column. 
i'he Yankees were eleven hundred strong, under 
Colonel Snyder. Confident of easy victory, they 
bad parked their train, and were prepared to re- 
ceive us. General Rosser, dismounting detach- 
ments from the Eleventh, Seventh, Twelfth, and 
White's battalion, in all about three hundred 



guns, placing his battery in position, and throw- 
ing forward the remaining squadron of the Seventh 
under Major Myers, to charge the enemy when 
an opportunity offered, sent Lieutenant-Colonel 
Massie, with the rest of the Twelfth Virginia, to 
make a demonstration in the enemy's rear, inter- 
cept communication, and blockade the road, and 
commenced tlie attack. Here was presented a 
sight novel and suggestive — dismounted cav- 
alry, with short-range guns, attacking more than 
three times their number of infantry, prepared 
both by time and position to receive them. Here 
the genius that has placed General Rosser, at 
twenty-five, in a position unsurpassed in our 
military annals, the genius that has won the 
admiration of his men, and is rapidly filling, in 
their hearts, the place left void by the death of 
Ashby, was fully manifested. Pressing rapidly 
upon the enemy, he drove them from one posi- 
tion to another, until, having fairly uncovered 
their train, the appearance of our cavalry in their 
rear excited an agitation in their ranks wliich the 
effective charge of Major Myers quickly fomented 
into a panic ; the enemy sought safety in the neigh- 
boring mountain. Meantime General Early was 
moving on Petersburg, and, in order to cooperate 
with him, the pursuit was abandoned, and atten- 
tion turned to the captured train — ninety-four 
wagons, four hundred and fifty mules, flour, 
bacon, salt, molasses, sugar, coffee, beans, rice, 
overcoats, and blankets, with three or four sut- 
lers' wagons, loaded with all manner of eatables 
and wearables. 

" ' Quod nunc describere longum est,' were the 
fruits of victory ! Moving back towards Peters- 
burg, we encamped for the night about ten miles 
from that place. Oysters, sardines, canned fruits, 
brandy peaches, cheese, crackers, &c., comprised 
our ' homely fare.' AVe learned next day, while 
on the march, that Colonel Thorburn, command- 
ing at Petersburg, had ' vamosed the ranche ' 
during the night, and was then on his way to- 
wards New Creek. On reaching Petersburg we 
found the camps deserted, but the huts and tents 
still standing, and apparently but few things had 
been burned. Everything bore marks of haste, 
confusion, and flight ; large quantities of clothing, 
blankets, overcoats, and provisions were secured, 
and two large sutlers' establishments unearthed 
and promptly despatched. In a short time Gen- 
eral Early, with Thomas' brigade, came up, chagrin 
and disappointed depicted in their visages, de- 
prived of their exi>ected glory by Y''ankee pru- 
dence, and of their anticipated plunder by cavalry 
promptness. As the only means of relieving their 
furore and assuaging their grief, they were gen- 
erously permitted to burn the Yankee quarters 
and dig down their earthworks. After a confer- 
ence with General Early, General Rosser moved 
again towards Burlington, and reached there next 
day by twelve M., driving in and bagging the 
Yankee picket. Halting here, we threatened, by 
our position, both New Creek and Cumberland ; 
and information received during the day showed 
that at the former place we were painfully ex- 
pected. We moved that night five miles below, 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS, 



437 



in the direction of Cumberland, and encamped for 
the night on the farm of the Hon. James Kars- 
caddan, senator, from that district, in the august 
council of ' West Virginia.' Passing through 
Frankfort next day, we struck the Baltimore and 
Ohio Railroad at Patterson's Creek Station. Lieu- 
lenant-Colonel White, ■\vith his memorable battal- 
ion, being in front, charged the cam]), riding over 
the infentry picket; he surprised the guard of 
forty men, killed and wounded several, and cap- 
tured the rest. Here we destroyed effectually two 
large railroad bridges, two canal locks and bridges, 
besides destroying the railroad houses and tele- 
graph wires, and relieving a large Yankee store- 
liouse of its contents. I neglected to mention 
that Colonel Marshall, with the Seventh, had been 
previously sent to hold the Mechanicsburg Gap, 
three miles from Romney, and that Colonel Mas- 
sie, with the Twelfth, had been left at Frankfort 
to collect cattle. It was important that he should 
return the same day. Leaving the raikoad, he 
reached Frankfort, and learned that Averill was 
in Romney, and had started to Springfield, and 
was, consequently, apprised of our whereabouts. 
At the same time we received information from 
Colonel Marshall that he had been compelled to 
abandon the Gap near Romney. Things certainly 
did wear a sombre hue. But General Rosser, 
with a sagacity amounting almost to intuition, 
divined their schemes, and prepared to thwart 
them. Pushing on with Ms command, cattle, and 
prisoners, he reached Sheetz's Mills about ten 
A. M., and took the road that intersects the 
north-western grade, between Burlington and 
Romney, the enemy holding both places. Mov- 
ing towards ]Moorefield, he encamped about twen- 
ty miles from there, reaching there next morning, 
the enemy occupying our camps shortly after we 
left. 

" Everything was ready for an early start home- 
ward next day. But lo! Averill, mystified by 
our movements, and tlu'own completely off the 
scent, appeared next morning before our camps, 
and threatened immolation. With the Christian 
fortitude that characterizes true martyrs, v/e 
awaited our fate — awaited long and patiently, 
but waited in vain. Yankee Generals rode to the 
front, flourished their flags, and retired ; Yankee 
reconnoitrers rode up on high hills, reconnoitred, 
and rode down again ; Yankee skirmishers ex- 
pended much private strategy in securing safe 
positions, and desperately held them. Wearied 
with -waiting, we moved off, and as we reached 
the summit of the mountain, looking back down 
the valley, we saw, with such emotions as Gul- 
liver experienced when the Lilliputian army 
marched between his legs, these valiant defend- 
ers of the Constitution drawn up in formidable 
lines, determined ' to do or fly.' We reached 
camp on the 6th, with twelve hundred cattle, and 
the captures already enumerated. Our casualties 
are, Lieutenant Howell, Seventh, lost an arm; 
Captain Richardson, Eleventh, shot through the 
leg; the gallant Lieutenant Baylor, slightly in 
the arm ; Mr. John H. Buck, of the brigade staff, 
iu the leg." 



THE PRESENT CRISIS. 

BY JAMES RUSSELL LOWELL. 

When a deed is done for Freedom, through the 

broad earth's aching breast 
Runs a thrill of joy prophetic, trembling on from 

east to west ; 
And the slave, where'er he cowers, feels the soul 

within him climb 
To the awful verge of manhood, as the energy sub- 
lime 
Of a century bursts full-blossomed on the thorny 

stem of Time. 

Through the walls of hut and palace shoots the in- 
stantaneous throe. 

When the travail of the Ages wrings earth's sys- 
tems to and fro ; 

At the birth of each new Era, with a recognizing 
start. 

Nation wildly looks on nation, standing with mute 
lips apart, 

And glad Truth's yet mightier man-child leaps be- 
neath the Future's heart. 

For mankind are one in spirit, and an instinct 

bears along. 
Round the earth's electric circle, the swift flash of 

right or wrong ; 
Whether conscious or unconscious, yet humanity's 

vast frame. 
Through its ocean- sundered fibres, feels the gush 

of joy or shame ; 
In the gain or loss of one race, all the rest have 

equal claim. 

Once, to every man and nation, comes the moment 

to decide, 
In the strife of Truth with Falsehood, for the good 

or evil side ; 
Some great cause, God's new Messiah, offering each 

the bloom or blight. 
Parts the goats tipon the left hand, and the sheep 

upon the right, 
And the choice goes by forever 'tvvixt that darkness 

and that light. 

Hast thou chosen, O my people, on whose party 

thou shalt stand, 
Ere the Doom from its worn sandals shakes the 

dust against our land ? 
Though the cause of Evil prosper, yet 'tis Truth 

alone is strong ; 
And albeit she wander outcast now, I see around 

her throng 
Troops of beautiful, tall angels, to enshield her 

from all wrong. 

We see dimly, in the Present, what is small and 

what is great ; 
Slow of faith, how weak an arm may turn the iron 

helm of Fate ; 
But the soul is still oracular — amid the market's 

■ din, 
List the ominous stern whisper from the Delphic 

cave within : 
" They enslave their children's children who make 

compromise with Sin ! " 



438 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



Slavery, the earth-born Cj-clops, fellest of the 

giant brood, 
Sons of brutish Force and Darkness, who have 

drenched the earth -vvith blood. 
Famished in his self-made desert, blinded by our 

purer day, 
Gropes in yet unblasted regions for his miserable 

prey : 
Shall %ve guide his gory fingers where our helpless 

children play r 

'Tis as easy to be heroes, as to sit the idle slaves 
Oi a legendary vu-tue carved upon our fathers' 

graves : 
Worshippers of light ancestral make the present light 

a crime. 
Was the Mayflower launched by cowards ? — 

steered by men behind their time ? 
Turn those tracks towards Past, or Future, that 

make Plymouth Rock sublime ? 

T/iey were men of present valor — stalwart old 
iconoclasts ; 

Unconvinced by axe or gibbet that all virtue was 
the Past's ; 

But we make their truth our falsehood, thinking 
that has made us free. 

Hoarding it in movildy parchments, while our ten- 
der spirits flee 

The rude grasp of that great Impulse which drove 
them across the sea. 

New occasions teach new duties ! Time makes an- 
cient good uncouth ; 

They must upward still, and onward, who would 
keep abreast of Truth ; 

Lo, before us gleam her camp fires ! we ourselves 
must Pilgrims be, 

Launch our Mayflower, and steer boldly through 
the desperate winter sea. 

Nor attempt the Future's portal with the Past's 
blood-rusted key. 



A Sight ox the Battle-Field. — A sol- 
dier who fought on the bloody field of Shiloh, 
ill describing the sights of that Golgotha, says 
that no spectacle was more appalling than one he 
witnessed just as the defeated array of Beaui-e- 
gard commenced its retreat upon Corinth. 

The enclosures of that country are all the old 
Virginia snake fence, in the angle of which a 
jerson may sit and be supported on each side. 
In such an angle, and with his feet braced against 
a little tree, sat a man apparently in middle life, 
bolt upright, and gazing at a locket in his hand. 

Approaching nearer he was shocked to find 
him stone dead and rigid ; his stiffened feet so 
braced against the tree that he could not fall for- 
ward, and the fence supporting each side of the 
corpse. 

The dead man's eyes were open, and fixed, with 
a liorrible stony stare, on the dagueri-eotype, 
M'hich was clinched in both hands. 

In a hasty glance over his shoulder the soldier 
saw the figures of a woman, and a child standing 
beside her ; the wife and daughter, no doubt, 
of the dead man, upon which the eyes of the 
husband and father had not, even in death, ceased 
to gaze. 



A Wau Picture. — Chickamauga was fought 
the 20th September, 1863, and Lookout Moun- 
tain a little more than a month after. Diu'ing 
that interval the two antagonist armies lay with- 
in cannon shot of each other — the Union force 
in Chattanooga, the rebel on Lookout Mountain 
and Missionary Ridge. 

The panorama presented from the top of Look- 
out Mountain, aside from its rare beauty as a 
landscape, combined more of the wild and roman- 
tic scenery of war than any other combination of 
picturesque elements made during the whole war. 

A correspondent of the Ptichmond Sentinel 
wrote the following admirable sketch of what he 
saw from the mountain top, and in the rebel camp 
and hospitals : 

" When setting out for the West from your 
city a few weeks ago, a friend said to me at part- 
ing, ' If you write from the West, be sure and 
give us the truth.' Having been accustomed to 
look upon 'News from the West' with the same 
suspicion, I promised to exercise due caution. 

" Judge of my chagrin when the first message I 
sent by telegraph, on getting to Atlanta, turned 
out to be false. Arriving a few days after the 
fight, a rumor that Chattanooga had been evacu- 
ated by the Yankees, was very current. I did 
not believe it. It happened, however, during the 
day, that I was introduced to a gentleman of high 
position among the railroad men of the town, 
and, on inquiry, I was informed that the report 
was true ; that General Bragg had telegraphed 
for a train to leave next morning for that point, 
via Cleveland, and that the train would certainly 
go. These data even my cautious friend in 
your city would have regarded as satisfactory. I 
have no doubt but that such a message was 
received, and the General, for the second time, 
at least, in his life, telegraphed too soon. 

" I have seen about fifteen hundred of our 
wounded, and have also been to the battle-field. 
The wounded I saw were among the worst cases. 
They had been sent down to the (then) terminus 
of tiie railroad, on Chickamauga River, — many 
of them after being operated upon, and many 
others where further attempts •would be made to 
save the limb. Some of these poor fellows were 
terribly hurt. Many were wounded in two and 
three places — sometimes by the same ball. 
Though suff'ering much for food and attention, 
they were in remarkably good spirits. It would 
sicken many of your readers were I to describe 
minutely the sufferings of these men — exposed, 
first, for four days upon the field, and in the field 
hospitals ; then hauled in heavy army wagons 
over a rocky road for twelve miles, and after- 
wards to lie upon straw ; some in the open air, 
and others under sheds, for two and three days 
more, with but one blanket to cover with, and 
none to lie upon. Nothing that I have seen since 
the war began has so deeply impressed me with 
the horrors of this strife as frequent visits to this 
hospital at Chickamauga. God forbid that such 
a spectacle may be witnessed again in this Con- 
federacy ! I did not visit the entire battle-field, 
but only that part of it where the strife was most 
i deadly. It being a week after the fight, I saw 



ANECDOTES, POETllY, AND INCIDENTS. 



439 



only about fifteen unburied Yankees and two 
Confederates, and about twenty dead horses — 
nine lying upon a space thirty feet square. They 
had belonged to one of our batteries Avhich at- 
tempted to go into action within one hundred and 
twenty yards of a Yankee battery — the latter 
being masked. The chief evidences of a severe 
engagement were the number of bullet marks on 
the trees. The ground on which this severe con- 
flict took place was a beautiful wood, with but 
little undergrowth. 

" I never saw a more beautiful place for skir- 
mishing, and I have understood from men in the 
fight that the Yankees favored this mode of war- 
fare greatly, the men taking to the trees. But 
our boys dashed upon them and drove them from 
this cover. I had heard that the battle-ground 
was like that of Seven Pines, but that part I 
visited had no such resemblance. It was open 
and gently undulating. Here and- there you 
would find a small, cleared field. Very little ar- 
tillery was used, though some correspondents say 
the ' roar was deafening.' It has been also said 
that the enemy were driven from behind ' strong 
breastworks ' on Sunday, The works I saw -were 
mean, consisting of old logs, badly thrown to- 
gether. I saw in one collection thirty-three pieces 
of captured artillery, and nineteen thousand mus- 
kets, in very good order. These latter will be of 
great service in arming the exchanged Vicksburg 
prisoners. But before closing I must tell you of a 
little aff'air in which Longstreet's artillery took a 
part. Chattanooga, as you kno-w, lies in a deep 
fold of the Tennessee River. In front of the 
town, and thi-ee miles east of it. Missionary Ridge 
runs from north to south, completely investing 
the town in this dii'ection. On the west of the 
town Lookout Mountain, with its immense rocky 
'lookout' peak, approaches within three miles, 
and rests upon the river, which winds beneath its 
base. The Yankee line (the right wdng of it) 
rests about three fourths of a mile from the base 
of the mountain. Our pickets occupy the base. 
The river makes a second fold just here, and in 
it is ' Moccason Ridge,' on the opposite side, 
where the Yankees have several casemated bat- 
teries, which guard their right flank. When on 
the mountain this ridge is just beneath you, say 
twelve hundred yards, but separated by the river. 
From this mountain you have one of the grandest 
view's, at present, I ever beheld. You see the 
river far beneath you in six separate and distinct 
places, like six lakes. You see the mountains of 
Alabama and Georgia and Tennessee in the dis- 
tance, and just at yoirr feet you see Chattanooga 
and the Yankee army, and in front of it you see 
the ' Star' fort, and also two formidable forts on 
the left wing, north of the town. You see then- 
whole line of rifle pits, from north to south. 
Along the base of Missionary Ridge the Confed- 
erate tents are seen forming a beautiful crescent ; 
and perched high upon the top of this ridge, 
overlooking this grand basin, you see four or five 
white tents, where General Bragg has his head- 
quarters. Our army is strongly fortified upon 
the rising ground along the base of the ridge. I 



have ridden three miles along these fortifications, 
and think they are the best of the kind I ever 
saw. Now for the little aff'air I spoke of. Colonel 
E. P. Alexander, General Longstreet's active and 
skilful Chief of Artillery, hoped he might be 
able to shell Chattanooga, or the enemy's camps, 
from this mountain, and three nights ago twenty 
long-ranged rifle pieces were brought up, after 
great difficulty. It was necessary to bring them 
up at night, because the mountain road is in 
many places commanded by the batteries on 
Moccason Ridge. We used mules in getting ou; 
heaviest pieces up. They pull with more steadi- 
ness than horses. Every gun was located behind 
some huge rock, so as to protect the cannoneers 
from the cross-fire of the ' Ridge.' The firing 
was begun by some guns upon the right in Gen- 
eral Polk's corps. Only one gun in that quarter 
(twenty-four pound rifle gun) could reach the 
enemy's lines. At one P. M., order was given to 
open the rifles from the mountain. Parker's bat- 
tery, being highest up the mountain, opened first, 
and then down among the rocky soils of the 
mountain. Jordan's, Woolfolk's, and other bat- 
teries spoke out in thunder tones. The reverber- 
ations were ti-uly grand. Old Moccason turned 
loose upon us with great fury ; but ' munitions 
of rocks ' secured us. All their guns being se- 
curely casemated, we could do them little or no 
injury ; so we paid little or no attention to them. 
Colonel Alexander, with his glass and signal flag, 
took position higher up in the mountain, and 
Avatched the shots. Most of our fuses (nine tenths 
of them, indeed) were of no account, and hence 
there was great difficulty to see where our shot 
struck, only a few exploding. The Yankees in 
their rifle pits made themselves remarkably small. 
They swarmed before the firing began, but soon 
disappeared fi-om sight. We fii'ed slowly, every 
cannoneer mounting the rocks and watching the 
shot. After sinking the trail of the guns, so as 
to give an elevation of twenty-one degrees, the 
shots continued to fall short of the camps and the 
principal works of the enemy, and the order was 
given to cease firing. It has been reported we 
killed and wounded a few men in the advanced 
works. Last night at nine, four shots, at regular 
intervals and for special reasons, were fired at the 
town, and it w'as amusing to see the fires in the 
camps go out. The pickets, poor fellows, were 
the first to extinguish their little lights, which, 
like a thread of bright beads, encircled the great 
breast of the army. We have spent two nights 
upon the mountain. It is hard to say which is 
the most beautiful — the scene by night, when 
thousands of camp fires show the diff"erent lines 
of both armies with a dark, broad band between 
them, called ' neutral ground,' and when the pick- 
et by his little fire looks suspiciously into this 
dark terra incognita the livelong night, or the 
view after sunrise before the fog risQs, when the 
valley northward and eastward as far as the eye 
can reach looks like one great ocean. The tops 
of the trees of Missionary Ridge, in the east, are 
seen above the great waste of waters, and here 
and there in the great distance some mountain 



440 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



peak rears its head. I have seen celebrated pic- 
tures of Noah's deluge, but nothing comparable 
to this. 

" The view by clear daylight is also very grand 
and beautiful. The Yankees and their lines are 
seen with great distinctness, and appear so near 
that you think you could almost throw a stone 
into their camps. You see every wagon that 
moves, and every horse carried to water. What 
will be done next I would not tell if I knew. 
Something decisive can and ought to be done, 
and done soon too. Bragg has a fine army, and 
is able to whip Rosecrans in a fair field. Long- 
street's men say these Western Yankees do not 
fight like the Eastern Yankees. There is no dif- 
ference of oiiinion on this subject, I find. May 
God give Avisdom, and soon crown our efforts 
with great and complete success." 



Anecdote of President Lincoln. — Mr. 
Lincoln's practical shrewdness is exemplified in 
the following anecdote, which is sufficiently char- 
acteristic : 

In the purlieus of the Capitol at Washington, 
the story goes that, after the death of Chief Jus- 
tice Taney, and before the appointment of Mr. 
Chase in his stead, a committee of citizens from 
the Philadelphia Union League, with a distin- 
guished journalist at their head as chairman, pro- 
ceeded to Washington, for the purpose of laying 
before the President the reason why, in their 
opinion, Mr. Chase should be appointed to the 
vacancy on the bench. They took with them a 
memorial addi-essed to the President, which was 
read to him by one of the committee. After lis- 
tening to the memorial, the President said to 
them, in a very deliberate manner : " Will you 
do me the favor to leave that paper with me ? I 
want it in order that, if I appoint Mr. Chase, I 
may show the friends of the other persons for 
v.hom the office is soHcited, by how powerful an 
influence, and by what strong personal recom- 
mendations, the claims of Mr. Chase were sup- 
ported." 

The committee listened with great satisfaction, 
and were about to depart, thinking that Mr. Chase 
was sure of the appointment, when they per- 
ceived that Mr. Lincoln had not finished what he 
intended to say. " And I Avant the paper, also," 
continued he, after a pause, " in order that, if I 
should appoint any other person, I may show his 
friends how powerful an influence, and what 
strong recommendations, I was obliged to disre- 
gard in appointing him." The committee de- 
parted as wise as they came. 



A Good PtUSE. — While the rebels were near 
Georgetown, Kentucky, in 1862, a resident of 
Lexington jjut on secesh clothes and rode to the 
house of Mrs. Johnston, widow of the late " Pro- 
visional Governor," and when at the gate met a 
little son of John C. Breckinridge, who said : 
\/| Yes, I a mjCham j) Fergusonj ,!l__ 
"Tou are~one oOiorean's men." 



" Well, let me call aunt (Mrs. Johnston) ; she 
will do anything she can for you." 

In a moment Mrs. Johnston appeared. 

" You are the celebrated Mr. Ferguson ; wel- 
come here." 

A dinner was prepared, of which the individual 
partook with great relish. When he was about 
to remount, Mrs. Johnston said : 

"Your horse is jaded; I'll give you a better 
one to drive the Yankee's from the State." 

A contraband was called, and one of the finest 
horses brought out, on which the pretended se- 
cesh returned to Lexington rejoicing. 



THE DOG OF THE REGIMENT. 

" If I were a poet, like you, my friend," 

Said a bronzed old Sergeant, speaking to me, 
" I would make a rhyme on this mastiff here ; 

For a right good Union dog is he, 
Although he was born on ' secesh ' soil, 

And his master fought in the rebel ranks. 
If you'll do it, I'll tell you his history, 

And give you in pay, why — a soldier's thanks. 

"Well, the way we came across him was this: 

We were on the march, and 'twas getting late 
When w^e reached a farm-house, deserted by all 

Save this mastiff here, who stood at the gate. 
Thin and gaunt as a wolf was he, 

And a piteous whine he gave 'twixt the bars; 
But, bless you ! if he didn't jump for joy 

^^'hen he saw our flag with the Stripes and Stars. 

"Next day, when we started again on the march. 

With us went Jack, M'ithout word or call, 
Stopping for rest at the order to ' halt,' 

And taking his rations along with us all. 
Never straggling, but keeping his place in line, 

Far to the right, and close beside me ; 
And I don't care where the other is found. 

There never was better drilled dog than he. 

"He always went with us into the fight. 

And the thicker the bullets fell around, 
And the louder the rattling musketry rolled, 

Louder and fiercer his bark would sound ; 
And once, when wounded, and left for dead, 

After a bloody and desperate fight, 
Poor Jack, as faithful as friend can be, 

Lay by my side on the field all night. 

"And so, when our regiment home returned, 

AVe brought him along with us, as you see ; 
And Jack and I being much attached. 

The boys seemed to think he belonged to me. 
And here he has lived with me ever since ; 

Plight pleased with his quarters, too, he seems. 
There are no more battles for brave old Jack, 

And no more marches except in dreams. 

"But the best of all times for the old dog is 

When the thunder mutters along the sky, 
Then he wakes the echoes around with his bark. 

Thinking the enemy surely is nigh. 
Now I've told you his history, write him a rhyme, 

Some day poor Jack in his grave must rest, — 
And of all the rhymes of this cruel war 

Which j'our brain has ma<.le, let his be the best." 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



Ul 



A Providential Deliverance. — It is well 
known that Major Anderson was an earnest sup- 
pliant for divine guidance in all the perplexities 
of his position in Charleston harbor. He recog- 
nizes many instances of direct answers to his 
prayers during the long and anxious weeks in 
which he upheld the honor of his country's flag. 
The following incident is narrated by a contributor 
to the Christian Intelligencer : 

" Permit me to give an unpublished fact in re- 
spect to the hero of Fort Sumter. It was nar- 
rated by the General himself, in the following 
words. Said he : 'A remarkable circumstance 
occm-red at the surrender of Fort Sumter, which 
I can only attribute to a kind Providence. On 
abandoning Fort Moultrie, we, of course, took 
what ammunition we could with us. Sumter was 
a ncAV and unfinished fort. It had two magazines, 
but neither was completed. A Lieutenant came 
to me for orders as to which he should put the 
ammunition into. Thinking there was no choice, 
or, perhaps, not having any special reason, I as- 
signed the one to be occupied. I afterwards 
discovered that the one so taken was the most 
exposed. In a word, it was a moral certainty, 
that if I had first examined the two, I should not 
have ordered the occupancy of the one I did. In 
the bombardment, hot shot was freely used. 
Judge of our feelings at the surrender, when it 
was found that a red-hot cannon ball was lying at 
the bottom of the unused magazine. So that, 
had I selected that one, the entire garrison must 
have been blown into eternity ! ' It would be well 
if our public men generally observed the precept : 
In all thy ways acknowledge Him." 



The Star Brigade at Chickamauga. — The 
Southern war-writers have said much of the cour- 
age and prowess displayed by their arms in the 
last great battle won by the Confederates, and, 
no doubt, the praises bestowed upon McNair's 
brigade, of Hood's division, were Avon by the 
most gallant and soldierly qualities on that hard- 
fought field. 

The war correspondent of one of the Mont- 
gomery papers has given a vivid description of 
the part they bore in the two days' battles. 

" The band of heroes," he writes, " composing this 
brigade, consists of the First, Second, and Fourth 
Arkansas dismounted cavalry, the Twenty-first 
and Thirty-first Arkansas infantry, the Fourth Ar- 
kansas battalion, and the Thirty-ninth North Caro- 
lina, under Colonel Coleman. In the command 
the North Carolinians were better known as the 
' Tar heels,' perhaps from their tenacity of purpose 
as well as their having been enlisted in the piny 
woods of the old North State. 

" On Saturday, the first day of the battle of 
Chickamauga, at noon, this brigade was ordered 
to support General Gregg's command, then sorely 
pressed, on the left of Hood's division. Gregg 
was holding his position with great difficulty 
against tremendous odds. When ordered to ad- 
vance, McNair's brigade rushed over Gregg's 



column, the Thirty-ninth North Carolina and the 
Twenty-fifth Arkansas being led by Colonel Cole- 
man. The Yankees gave way, but in good order, 
and were driven not less than three fourths of a 
mile. General Gregg pronounced this charge one 
of the most brilliant achievements of the day. 
A Yankee regiment, which encountered the Thir- 
ty-ninth North Carolina and Twenty-fifth Arkan- 
sas, was almost annihilated. These two skeleton 
regiments halted once to await support ; but not 
receiving it, they advanced through the woods 
into the open country, where their own Aveakness 
and the strength of the Federal lines became 
apparent. Coleman's command, having exhausted 
their ammunition, withdrew to Gregg's line of 
battle, and encamped for the night. 

" In the great battle of Sunday, INIcNair's bri- 
gade were on the left, next to Hood's division. 
At half past nine they were lying behind an im- 
perfect breastwork of fallen trees. A strong col- 
umn of the enemy advanced upon them. They 
were received with a desti'uctive fire, and falling 
back, were charged by McNair's brigade, and 
driven in confusion over two lines of breastworks 
into the open fields. On an eminence, two lines 
of Yankee batteries commanded the open space. 
Just before his men entered this broad field, Gen- 
eral McNair was wounded. The gallant Colonel 
Harper, of the First Arkansas, M'as killed, and 
the command of the brigade devolved upon Col- 
onel Coleman. The brigade now diverged to the 
right, and, under the leadership of the gallant 
North Carolinian, captured both the batteries. 
Eight of the pieces were at once taken to the 
rear, and two others were afterwards removed. 
General Bragg gave Colonel Coleman an order 
for three of these guns to attach to his command. 

" These batteries were supported by a very 
strong Federal force ; — but McNair's brigade 
charged so rapidly, loading and firing as they 
went, that the Yankees were surprised and 
routed. The assault was ferocious, and the vic- 
tory complete. 

" The Federal artillerists fought infinitely better 
than their infantry supports, actually throwing 
shell and shot with their hands into the faces of 
our men when they could no longer load their 
pieces. The two batteries captured were about 
one hundred yards apart, and when the guns 
were captured, our men were compelled to move 
off" with the utmost rapidity. 

" Colonel Coleman was the first to place his 
hand upon a Federal field piece, and the banner 
of the Thirty-ninth North Carolina was the first 
unfurled above them, cheer after cheer announcing 
the triumph of our gallant men ; and then came 
the hurried withdrawal of the guns from their 
place in the Federal lines. 

" Lieutenant-Colonel Reynolds and Adjutant 
J. D. Hardin were just behind Colonel Coleman 
when he reached the Federal guns. Hardin was 
shot through the neck in the afternoon. When the 
brigade again fell back to our lines, and had ob- 
tained supplies and ammunition, it was again or- 
dered forward to a height on the left, to support 
Robinson's battery on the Lookout Valley road. 



442 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



With Johnson's brigade and Hindman's division 
on the right, and Manigault's on the left, Colonel 
Coleman advanced to the closing fight of the day. 

" By successive charges the enemy were driven 
slowly, but steadily, from the chain of hills which 
formed his position, and the battle closed. Two 
hours more of daylight, and this portion of Rose- 
crans' army would have been annihilated. 

" Captain Culpepper, belonging to this brigade, 
displayed great skill and heroism. The loss of 
the brigade in killed and wounded was about forty 
per cent. The Thirty-ninth North Carolina en- 
tered the fight with two hundred and thirty-eight 
men, and lost over one hundred. Of the whole 
brigade there are left about eight hundred men. 
Colonel Coleman's coat was pierced by a ball, but 
he is unharmed. 

" The gallant Captain Moore was killed, and 
Colonel Huff'shedler, of the Twenty-fifth Arkansas, 
was pierced by five balls, yet not killed." 



Orders his own Execution. — During the 
siege at Yorktown, a correspondent, who was 
watching its progress, related the following inci- 
dent : " Last night an officer was shot by one of 
his own men. The officer, Captain A. R. Wood, 
had posted his last picket and left him with this 
order : ' Shoot the first man who approaches from 
the direction of the rebels, without waiting to ask 
for the countersign.' It was quite dark, and the 
officer left the picket and lost his way, wandering 
from our ' lines ' instead of to them. He soon 
discovered his mistake, and turned back. He 
approached the soldier to whom he had given the 
decisive order. In the shadow the faithful and 
quick-sighted private saw the dark figure stealing 
towards him : in an instant he raised his piece, 
and shot his own Captain through the side. The 
wound was mortal ; and thus it turned out that 
the officer had given the orders for his own exe- 
cution. Such are the chances of war. Picket 
service here is most perilous ; and, considering 
that the safety of the whole army depends on the 
faithfulness with which this duty is performed, 
one cannot wonder that those detailed for it are 
so ready to execute the commands of their supe- 
riors." 

Let us Love our Flag. — "As I sat by the 
bed of a sick soldier, I saw on his arm what ap- 
peared to me to be our national flag. 

" ' You have the American flag on your arm ? ' 
I said to him, inquiringly. 

" ' Yes, ma'am,' he replied, and began to pull 
up his shirt sleeve that I might see it more dis- 
tinctly. ' That was put in when I was nine years 
old ; I fainted several times while it was being 
done, but I would have it there.' 

" I looked at his arm. There was the Goddess 
of Liberty, bearing in her hand our Star-spangled 
Banner. The red stripes had been put on in ver- 
milion. 

" ' That is a mark the rebels would not like,' I 
remarked to him. 

" I always supposed if I should be taken pris- 



oner I should be murdered, because of this mark ; 
but I was determined to fight for the flag that 
protected me. It protected me when I came to 
this country, seven years old, and under it I have 
had mv living ever since. I want to die under its 
folds.' 

" ' You die for your country just as truly as if 
you died on the battle-field, and I thank you for 
what you have done for us,' I said to the poor fel- 
low, who was suffering from heart disease and 
dropsy, and who is liable every moment to be 
taken from this fighting world. 

" ' Do you ever regret that you volunteered ? ' 

" ' Never. I have done what I could, and am 
willing to die in this way.' 

" The young Irishman seemed to have a true 
attachment to the flag of his adopted country. 
He has given his life for it. How is it with our- 
selves ? Do we really love it, and prize it as we 
should ? Is it the symbol of progress, of political 
and religious freedom ? We should cherish it as 
we cherish God's best gifts to us, and we should 
be willing, if need be, to die for it. We must 
teach our children to love it, to consider its safety 
superior to their own, and to be willing to make 
any sacrifice which it requires. We must pray 
for it, and teach our children to pray for it. Let 
us not be too much tried by the self-denials and 
privations that war is bringing upon us. Let us 
bear it nobly and uncomplainingly, with hearts full 
of steadfast faith and trust in God, and let us 
grow strong in patriotism, as were our grand- 
mothers before us. They left us a precious legacy. 
Shall we leave one of less value to our children ? " 



The Charge at Springfield, Mo. — This 
brilliant exploit of Fremont's Body Guard, under 
the leadership of Major Zagonyi, and the 
" Prairie Scouts " of Major Frank Ward, forms 
one of the most interesting chapters in the history 
of the war. 

" The foe were advised of the intended attack. 
When Major Wright was brought into theii' camp, 
they were prepai-ing to defend their position. As 
appears from the confession of prisoners, they 
had twenty-two hundred men, of whom four 
hundred were cavalry, the rest being infantry, 
armed with shot guns, American rifles, and re- 
volvers. Twelve hundred of their foot were 
posted along the edge of the wood upon the crest 
of the hill. The cavalry was stationed upon the ex- 
treme left, on top of a spur of the hill, and in front 
of a patch of timber. Sharpshooters were concealed 
behind the trees close to the fence alongside the 
lane, and a small number in some underbrush 
near the foot of the hill. Another detachment 
guarded their train, holding possession cf tlie 
county fair ground, which was surrounded by a 
high board fence. 

" This position was unassailable by cavalry 
from the road, the only point of attack being 
down the lane on the right ; and the enemy were 
so disposed as to command this approach perfectly. 
The lane was a bhnd one, being closed, after 
passing the brook, by fences and ploughed land ; 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



443 



it was in fact a cul-de-sac. If the infantry should 
stand, nothing could save the rash assailants. 
There are horsemen sufficient to sweep the little 
band before them, as helplessly as the withered 
forest-leaves in the grasp of the autumn winds ; 
there are deadly marksmen lying behind the trees 
upon the heights, and lurking in the long grass 
upon the lowlands ; while a long line of foot 
stand upon the summit of the slope, who, only 
stepping a few paces back into the forest, may 
defy the boldest riders. Yet down this narrow 
lane, leading into the very jaws of death, came the 
three hundred. 

" On the prairie, at the edge of the woodland, 
in which he knew his wily foe lay hidden, Zagonyi 
halted his command. He spurred along the line. 
With eager glance he scanned each horse and 
rider. To his officers he gave the simple oi'der, 
' Follow me ! do as I do ! ' and then, drawing up 
in front of his men, with a voice tremulous and 
sluill with emotion, he spoke : 

" ' Fellow-soldiers, comrades, brothers ! This 
is your first battle. For our three hundred, the 
enemy are two thousand. If any of you are sick, 
or tired by the long march, or if any think the 
number is too great, now is the time to turn 
back.' He paused — no one was sick or tired. 
* We must not retreat. Our honor, the honor of 
our General and our country, tell us to go on. I 
will lead you. We have been called holiday 
soldiers for the pavements of St. Louis ; to-day 
we will show that we are soldiers for the battle. 
Your watchword shall be — ''The Union and 
Fremont ! " Draw sabre ! By the right tlank — 
quick trot — march ! ' 

" Bright swords flashed in the sunshine, a pas-' 
sionate shout burst from every lip, and v.'ith one 
accord, the trot passing into a gallop, the compact 
column swept on in its deadly purpose. Most of 
them were boys. A few weeks before, they had 
left their homes. Those who were cool enough 
to note it say that ruddy cheeks grew pale, and 
fiery eyes were dimmed with tears. Who shall 
tell what thoughts, what visions of peaceful cot- 
tages nestling among the groves of Kentucky, or 
shining upon the banks of the Ohio and the Illi- 
nois — what sad recollections of tearful farewells, 
of tender, loving faces, filled their minds during 
those fearful moments of suspense ? No word 
was spoken. With lips compressed, firmly 
clinching their sword-hilts, with quick tramp of 
hoofs and clang of steel, honor leading and glory 
awaiting them, the young soldiers flew forAvard, 
each brave rider and each straining steed mem- 
bers of one huge creature, enormous, terrible, 
irresistible. 

' 'Twere worth ten years of peaceful life, 
One glance at their array.' 

" They pass the fau* ground. They are at the 
corner of the lane Avhere the wood begins. It 
runs close to the fence on their left for a hundred 
yards, and beyond it they see white tents gleam- 
ing. They are half way past the forest, when, 
sharp and loud, a volley of musketry bursts upon 
the head of the column ; horses stagger, riders 



reel and fall, but the troop presses forward un- 
dismayed. The farther corner of the wood is 
reached, and Zagonyi beholds the terrible array. 
Amazed, he involuntarily checks his horse. The 
rebels are not surprised. There to his left they 
stand crowning the height, foot and horse ready 
to ingulf him, if he shall be rash enough to go 
on. The road he is following declines rapidly. 
There is but one thing to do — run the gantlet, 
gain the cover of the hill, and charge up the steep. 
These thoughts pass quicker than they can be told. 
He waves his sabre over his head, and shouting, 
' Forward ! follow me ! quick trot ! gallop ! ' he 
dashes headlong down the stony road. The fii'st 
company, and most of the second, follow. From 
the left a thousand muzzles belch forth a hissing 
flood of bullets ; the poor fellows clutch wildly at 
the air and fall from their saddles, and maddened 
horses throw themselves against the fences. Their 
speed is not for an instant checked ; farther down 
the hill they fly, like wasps driven by the leaden 
storm. Sharp volleys pour out of the underbrush 
at the left, clearing wide gaps through their ranks. 
They leap the brook, take down the fence, and 
di'aw up under shelter of the hill. Zagonyi looks 
around him, and to his horror sees that only a 
fourth of his men are with him. He cries, ' They 
do not come — we are lost ! ' and frantically 
waves his sabre. 

" He has not long to wait. The delay of the 
rest of the Guard was not from hesitation. When 
Captain Foley reached the lower corner of the 
wood, and saw the enemy's line, he thought a 
flank attack might be advantageously made. He 
ordered some men to dismount, and take down 
the fence. This was done under a severe fire. 
Several men fell, and he found the wood so dense 
that it could not be penetrated. Looking down 
the hill, he saw the flash of Zagonyi's sabre, and 
at once gave the order, ' Forward ! ' At the 
same time. Lieutenant Kennedy, a stalwart Ken- 
tuckian, shouted, ' Come on, boys ! remember 
Old Kentucky ! ' and the third company of the 
Guard, fire on every side of them — from behind 
trees, from under the fences — with thundering 
strides and loud cheers, poured down the slope, 
and rushed to the side of Zagonyi. They have 
lost seventy dead and wounded men, and the car- 
casses of horses are strewn along the lane. Ken- 
nedy is wounded in the arm, and lies upon the 
stones, his faithful charger standing motionless 
beside him. Lieutenant Goff received a wound 
in the thigh ; he kept his seat, and cried out, 
'The devils have hit me, but I will give it to 
them yet ! ' 

" The remnant of the Guard are now in the 
field under the hill, and from the shape of the 
ground the rebel fire sweeps with the roar of a 
whirlwind over their heads. Here we will leave 
them for a moment, and trace the fortunes of the 
Prairie Scouts. 

" When Foley brought his troop to a halt, Cap- 
tain Fairbanks, at the head of the first company 
of Scouts, was at the point where the first vol- 
ley of musketry had been received. The narrow 
lane was crowded by a dense mass of struggling 



444 



ANECDOTES, TOETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



horses, and -filled with the tumult of battle. Cap- 
tain Fairbanks says, — and he is corroborated by 
several of his men who were near, — that at this 
moment an officer of the Guard rode up to him, 
and said, ' They are flying ; take your men down 
that lane, and cut off their retreat ' — pointing to 
the lane at the left. Captain Fairbanks was not 
able to identify the person who gave this order. 
It certainly did not come from Zagonyi, who was 
several hundred yards farther on. Captain Fair- 
banks executed the order, followed by the second 
company of Prairie Scouts, under Captain Ke- 
hoe. When this movement was made. Captain 
Naughton, with the Third Irish dragoons, had 
not reached the corner of the lane. He came up 
at a gallop, and was about to follow Fairbanks, 
when he saw a Guardsman who pointed in the 
direction in which Zagonyi had gone. He took 
this for an order, and obeyed it. When he 
reached the gap in the fence, made by Foley, not 
seeing anything of the Guard, he supposed they 
had passed through at that place, and gallantly 
attempted to follow. Thirteen men fell in a few 
minutes. He was shot in the arm, and dis- 
mounted. Lieutenant Connolly spurred into the 
underbrush, and received two balls through the 
lungs, and one in the left shoulder. The dra- 
goons, at the outset not more than fifty strong, 
were broken, and, dispirited by the loss of their 
oflicers, retired. A Sergeant rallied a few, and 
brought them up to the gap again, and they 
were again driven back. Five of the boldest 
passed down the hill, joined Zagonyi, and were 
conspicuous for their valor during the rest of 
the day. Fairbanks and Kehoe, having gained 
the rear and left of the enemy's position, made 
two or three assaults upon detached parties of 
the foe, but did not join in the main attack. 

" I now return to the Guard. It is forming 
under the shelter of the hill. In front, with a 
gentle inclination, rises a grassy slope, broken by 
occasional tree-stumps. A line of fire upon the 
summit marks the position of the rebel infantry, 
and nearer, and on the top of a lower eminence 
to the right, stand their horse. Up to this time 
no Guardsman has struck a blow ; but blue-coats 
and bay horses lie thick along the bloody lane. 
Their time has come. Lieutenant Maythenyi, 
with thirty men, is ordered to attack the cavalry. 
With sabres flashing over their heads, the little 
band of heroes spring towards their tremendous 
foe. Plight upon the centre they charge. The 
dense mass o])ens, the blue-coats force their way 
in, and the Avhole rebel squadron scatter in dis- 
graceful ilight through the cornfields in the rear. 
I'he bays follow them, sabring the fugitives. 
Days after, the enemy's horses lay thick among 
the uncut corn. 

" Zagonyi holds his main body until May- 
thenyi disappears in the cloud of rebel cavalry; 
then his voice rises through the air : ' In open 
order — charge ! ' The line opens out to give 
play to their sword-arm. Steeds respond to the 
ardor of their riders, and quick as thought, with 
thrilling cheers, the noble hearts rush into the 
leaden torrent which pours down the incline. 



With unabated fire the gallant fellows press 
through. Their fierce onset is not even checked. 
The foe do not wait for them — they waver, 
break, and fly. The Guardsmen spur into the 
midst of the rout, and their fast-falling swords 
work a terrible revenge. Some of the boldest 
of the Southrons retreat into the woods, and 
continue a murderous fire from behind trees and 
thickets. Seven Guard horses fall upon a space 
not more than twenty feet square. As his steed 
sinks under him, one of the officers is caught 
around the shoulders by a grape-vine, and hangs 
dangling in the air until he is cut down by liis 
friends. 

" The rebel foot are flying in furious haste from 
the field. Some take refuge in the fair ground, 
some hurry into the cornfields, but the greater 
part run along the edge of the wood, swarm over 
the fence into the road, and hasten to the village. 
The Guardsmen folloAV. Zagonyi leads them. 
Over the loudest roar of battle rings his clarion 
voice — ' Come on. Old Kentuck ! I'm with you ! ' 
And the flash of his sword-blade tells his men 
where to go. As Ife approaches a barn, a man 
steps from behind the door and lowers his rifle ; 
but before it has reached a level, Zagonyi's sabre 
point descends upon his head, and his life-blood 
leaps to the very top of the huge barn-door. 

" The conflict now raged through the village — 
in the public square, and along the streets. Up 
and down the Guards ride in squads of three or 
four, and wherever they see a group of the ene- 
my, charge upon and scatter them. It is hand- 
to-hand. No one but has a share in the fray. 

" There was at least one soldier in the South- 
ern ranks. A young ofl[icer, superbly mounted, 
charges alone upon a large body of the Guard. 
He passes through the line unscathed, killing one 
man. He wheels, chai-ges back, and again breaks 
through, killing another man. A third time he 
rushes upon the Federal line ; a score of sabre- 
points confronts him; clouds of bullets fly around 
him ; but he pushes on until he reaches Zagonyi : 
he presses his pistol so close to the Major's side, 
that he feels it, and draws convulsively back ; the 
bullet passes through the front of Zagonyi's coat, 
who, at the instant, runs the daring rebel through 
the body ; he falls, and the men, thinking their 
commander hurt, kill him with a dozen wounds. 

" ' He was a brave man,' said Zagonyi after- 
wards, ' and I did wish to make him prisoner.' 

" Meanwhile it has grown dark. The foe have 
left the village, and the battle has ceased. The 
assembly is sounded, and the Guard gathers in 
the Plaza. Not more than eighty mounted men 
appear; the rest are killed, wounded, or un- 
horsed. At this time one of the. most character- 
istic incidents of the affair took place. 

" Just before the charge, Zagonyi directed one 
of his buglers, a Frenchman, to sound a signal. 
The bugler did not seem to ])ay any attention to 
the order, but darted off with Lieutenant Maythen- 
yi. A few moments afterwards he was observed 
in another part of the field vigorously pursuing 
the flying infantry. His active form was al- 
Avays seen in the thickest of the fight. When 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



445 



the line was formed in the Plaza, Zagonj'i no- 
ticed the bugler, and approaching him, said : ' In 
the midst of battle you disobeyed my order. 
You are unworthy to be a member of the Guard. 
I dismiss you.' The bugler showed his bugle to 
his indignant commander — the mouth-piece of 
the instrument was shot away. He said : ' The 
mouth was shoot off. I could not bugle viz mon 
bugle, and so I bugle viz mon pistol and sabre.' 
It is unnecessary to add, the brave Frenchman 
was not dismissed. 

" I must not forget to mention Sergeant Hun- 
ter, of the Kentucky company. His soldierly 
figure never failed to attract the eye in the ranks 
of the Guard. He had served in the regular 
cavalry, and the Body Guard had profited greatly 
from his skill as a jdrill-master. He lost three 
horses in the fight. As soon as one was killed, 
he caught another from the rebels ; the third 
horse taken by him in this way he rode into St. 
Louis. 

" The Sergeant slew five men. ' I won't speak 
of those I shot,' said he ; ' another may have hit 
them ; but those I touched with my sabre I am 
sure of, because I felt them.' 

" At the beginning of the charge, he came to 
the extreme right, and took position next to Za- 
gonyi, whom he followed closely through the bat- 
tle. The Major, seeing him, said : 

" ' Why are you here. Sergeant Hunter ? Your 
place is Avith your company on the left.' ' I kind 
o' wanted to be in the front,' was the answer. 

" ' What could I say to such a man ? ' exclaimed 
Zagonyi, speaking of the matter afterwards. 

" There was hardly a horse or rider among the 
survivors that did not bring away some mark of 
the fray. I saw one animal with no less than 
seven wounds, none of them serious. Scabbards 
were bent, clothes and caps pierced, pistols in- 
jured. I saw one pistol from which the sight had 
been cut as neatly as it could have been done by 
machinery. A piece of board a few inches long 
was cut from a fence on the field, in which there 
were thirty-one shot-holes. 

" It was now nine o'clock. The wounded had 
been carried to the hospital. The dismounted 
troopers were placed in charge of them — in the 
double capacity of nurses and guards. Zagonyi 
expected the foe to return every minute. It 
seemed like madness to try and hold the town 
with his small force, exhausted by the long march 
and desperate fight. He therefore left Spring- 
field, and retired before morning twenty-five miles 
on the Bolivar road. 

" Captain Fairbanks did not see his commander 
after leaving the column in the lane, at the com- 
mencement of the engagement. About dusk he 
repaired to the prairie, and remained there within 
a mile of the village until midnight, when he 
followed Zagonyi, rejoining him in the morning. 

" I will now return to Major White. During 
the conflict upon the hill, he was in the forest, 
near the front of the rebel line. Here his horse 
was shot under him. Captain Wroton kept care- 
ful watch over him. When the flight began he 
hurried White away, and, accompanied by a 



squad of eleven men, took him ten miles into the 
country. They stopped at a farm-house for the 
night. White discovered that their host was a 
Union man. His parole having expired, he took 
advantage of the momentary absence of his cap- 
tor to speak to the farmer, telling him who he 
was, and asking him to send for assistance. 

" The countryman mounted his son upon his 
swiftest horse, and sent him for succor. The 
party lay down by the fire, AVhite being placed in 
the midst. The rebels were soon asleep, but there 
was no sleep for the Major. He hstened anxiously 
for the footsteps of his rescuers. After long, 
weary hours, he heard the tramp of horses. He 
arose, and walking on tiptoe, cautiously stepping 
over his sleeping guard, he reached the door, and 
silently unfastened it. The Union men rushed 
into the room, and took the astonished Wroton 
and his followers prisoners. At daybreak White 
rode into Springfield, at the head of his captives 
and a motley band of Home Guard. He found 
the Federals still in possession of the place. As 
the officer of highest rank, he took command. 
His garrison consisted of twenty-four men. He 
stationed twenty-two of them as pickets in the 
outskirts of the village, and held the other two 
as a reserve. At noon the enemy sent a flag of 
truce, and asked permission to bury their dead. 
Major White received the flag with proper cere- 
mony, but said that General Siegel was in com- 
mand, and the request would have to be referred 
to him. Siegel was then forty miles away. In a 
short time, a written communication, purporting 
to come from General Siegel, saying that the reb- 
els might send a party, under certain restric- 
tions, to bury their dead. White drcAV in some 
of his pickets, stationed them about the field, and 
under their surveillance, the Southern dead were 
buried. 

" The loss of the enemy, as reported by some of 
their working party, was one hundred and sixteen 
killed. The number of wounded could not be 
ascertained. After the confiict had drifted away 
from the hill-side, some of the foe had returned to 
the field, taken away their wounded, and robbed 
our dead. The loss of the Guard was fifty-three, 
out of one hundred and forty-eight actually en- 
gaged, twelve men having been left by Zagonyi 
in charge of his train. The Prairie Scouts re- 
ported a loss of thirty-one out of one hundred 
and thirty : half of these belonged to the Irish 
Dragoons. In a neighboring field an Irishman 
was found stark and stiff, still clinging to the hilt 
of his sword, which was thrust through the body 
of a rebel who lay beside him. Within a few feet 
a second rebel lay, shot through the head. — Ma- 
jor Dorsheimer. 

Letters from Soldiers. — One of the agents 
of the Sanitary Commission in Washington said : 
"As an evidence of the literary capacity of our 
soldiers, I may mention that our boys are to-day 
stamping over ten thousand letters I brought up 
from the front, from soldiers wounded but slightly, 
or not at all, telling their friends of their condi- 
tion after the fights." 



446 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



THE DEAD CAVALIER — GENERAL J. E. 
B. STUART. 

BY J. MARSHALL HANNA. 

The drums came back muffled, that, beating aloud, 
Went out in the morning all thrill to the fight. 

For the hero lies dead in his battle-flag shroud. 
And his steed is led groomed without rider to- 
night. 

Then beat the drums muffled, and play the fife low, 
And march on the cortige to cadences slow. 

Who saw him that morning as gayly he rode 
At the front of his troopers, who filed proudly af- 
ter him. 
Thought to look on to-night the visage that showed 
The pale death relapse, and the eye sunk and 
dim ? 
Then toll the bell sadly, solemnly toll ; 
A hero is passing to glory's last goal. 

Come, stand by the corpse, look down on that face, 
Mark where the bullet burst its way through. 

See where the death-pang left its last trace 

As the lead messenger struck, unerring and true. 

Then, hushed, gather round ; let our tears be like 
rain ; 
A truer cavalier we shall ne'er see again. 

Ah ! the story he wrote with the point of his sword, 
How it thrilled through the cities, how it stirred 
up the land ! 
Who can forget how the hireling horde 

Ran blating for mercy when he did command ? 
At the North though they mock, and rejoice at his 
fall. 
With grief-laden flowers will we cover his pall, 

O, how like the besom of fate in their rear 

Came the wave of his plume and the flash of his 
blade, 
When, bursting from covert, to his troopers' wild 
cheer. 
The bugle it sounded the charge in the raid. 
Now his plume is at rest, his sword in its sheath, 
And the hand that should grasp it is nerveless 
in death. 

Make his grave where he fought, nigh the field 
where he fell, 
In blossoming Hollywood, under the hill, 
In sight of the hearth-stones he defended so well, 

That his spirit may be guardian sentinel still. 
And there let a finger of marble disclose 

The spot where he lies — point the skies where 
he rose. 



Experience on a Gunboat. — A pilot on the 
gunboat Louisiana, the most formidable and ef- 
fective of any which Farragut encountered in his 
battle at the forts below New Orleans, came 
stealthily creeping into the city two or three days 
after its occupation by Butler. 

He was covered with mud from head to foot. 
His clothes were hanging in tatters ; his face and 
hands swollen by the poison of mosquitoes and 
blistered by the fierce rays of an almost trojiical 
Bun, and he had eaten nothing for three days and 



nights but a few green benies, which he found in 

the swamps. 

Only a week before he had left New Orleans 
on that gunboat in perfect health, and hoping for 
a speedy and easy victory over the Federal fleet. 

He described his three days' experience on the 
vessel before she was blown up as the nearest ap- 
proach to a sojourn in the infernal regions of 
anj'thing he had ever experienced or thought pos- 
sible in this world. , 

Shut up in a stifling atmosphere of hot gun- 
powder smoke, with the incessant clatter and 
thunder and hiss of shells and round shot just 
over his head, pounding against the plating of 
railroad iron, with the tide of battle turning 
against them, and the chances for success, and 
finally for escape with life, growing less and less 
every hour, it is not strange that in referring to 
it he exclaimed, " I thought I was in hell." 

When all hope of victory was gone, and the 
Admiral had passed the forts, the commanding 
officer of the Louisiana determined to blow her 
up rather than to allow her to fall into the hands 
of the Federals. She was run ashore on the 
right bank, about fifty miles below the city. The 
officers and crew, escaping to the shore, betook 
themselves to the swamp for concealment. 

Here they waded, sometimes up to their necks 
in water, sometimes coming in Avhere the land 
was higher, and then striking out into deep swamp 
again. At Chalmette, Jackson's old battle-ground, 
they went far into the swamp in order to flank 
the fortifications there erected ; and finally most 
of them reached the city in the miserable plight 
above described. 

The pilot was among the earliest of those who 
professed themselves ready to take the oath. 



A Literal Translation, — As the Twenty- 
fourth Massachusetts regiment was about leaving 
Washington, N. C, in 1862, an incident occurred 
which reflected credit upon the acumen of one of 
its officers. A pretty mulatto slave girl, belong- 
ing to a citizen of the town, had been acting as 
house servant to Lieutenant Turner, and when 
marching orders were received, expressed great 
anxiety to go with the regiment to Newbern, and 
escape bondage. She took refuge on board one 
of the steamers on Avhich the Twenty-fourth had 
embarked ; but just before the time for starting, 
her owner appeared with an order, which read as 
follows : 

" John Doe has permission to search for his 
slave girl Henrietta, and will be protected in so 
doing." 

This he i)resented to Quartermaster William 
V. Hutchings, and demanded the girl. Mr. Hutch- 
ings, seeing the trepidation and anxiety mani- 
fested in the countenance of Henrietta, asked her, 
"Are you Avilling to return to your master?" 
" O, no, sir ! " she said ; please don't give me 
up to him ! " " Let me see that order, sir," said 
he to the Owner; and reading it aloud, he re- 
marked, " This gives you authority to search for 
your gh'l ; you have searched for her, and there 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



447 



she is. You are to be protected in making your 
search ; you have been protected. This gives you 
no authority to take her against her will. She 
does not wish to return to you, and you can't take 
her. And now, the sooner you get off this boat, 
the better it will be for your skin." As he said 
this with the determination of a man who was 
not to be trifled with, the discomfited owner beat 
a precipitate retreat, amid the jeers and shouts 
of the bystanders. 

The Pkesident's Choice. — During a conver- 
sation on the approaching election, in 1864, a 
gentleman remarked to President Lincoln that 
nothing could defeat him but Grant's capture of 
Richmond, to be followed by his nomination at 
Chicago and acceptance. " Well," said the Pres- 
ident, " I feel very much like the man who said he 
didn't want to die particularly, but if he hf^ got 
to die, that was precisely the disease he would 
like to die of." 

The Traitor's " Coat-of-Arms." — Joseph 
Schofield — an Englishman by birth, but an 
adopted citizen of the United States, residing in 
Iowa, who justly boasted of having two sons in 
the army, one of whom had reenlisted to fight for 
the fiag of his country — sent his annual subscrip- 
tion to the Scientific American, for another year, 
and closed his letter with the following pungent 
remarks : 

" The traitor's ' coat-of-arms ' consists of a flea, 
a fly, a magpie, and a side of bacon. Explana- 
tion : A flea will bite either the quick or the dead ; 
so will a traitor. A fly • blows,' corrupts, and con- 
taminates, all it comes in contact with ; so will a 
iraitor. A magpie is always chattering, talking, 
and lying; so is a traitor. A side of bacon is 
never ' cured ' till it is hung ; neither is a traitor." 



Whiskey in Camp. — When the war first 
broke out, Bragg was in command of about ten 
thousand troops, stationed at Pensacola. He re- 
mained there for more than a year, until Grant 
drew all eyes away from the Southern border by 
his vigorous and successful campaign in the upper 
Mississippi Valley. 

Bragg made the long semicircular shore bris- 
tle with sand batteries, that bore upon the defi- 
ant and loyal Fort Pickens, but his infantry had 
nothing to do. Month after month passed, and 
they neither attacked nor were attacked. The 
true point of strategy and of interest was else- 
where. Bragg soon found scope for his peculiar 
genius in keeping up the morals of his army. 

The war has not developed a more vigilant police 
oflicer than Braxton Bragg: yet his abilities in that 
line were taxed to their utmost to check the gross 
drunkenness that prevailed in his camp ; for " Sa- 
tan finds some mischief still for idle hands to do," 
and the soldiers employed their time and talents in 
circumventing his strict general order excluding 
intoxicating drinks from the camp, or any place 
within the distance of ten miles in every direction. 

About a mile back of his main force, in the 



woods, lay a long, narrow lake. It would take a 
soldier seven or eight hours to walk around to 
the other side, but a good swimmer could reach 
it in twenty minutes' time. 

During the hot months of that long, dull sum- 
mer the men discovered a commendable zeal for 
personal cleanliness. Every evening the lake 
was alive with swimmers, for in the South swim- 
ming and horsemanship are accomplishments 
equally necessary and universal. Yet Bragg's in- 
spectors found some mysterious and constant 
connection between swimming and intoxication. 
The best swimmers were often quarrelsome and 
noisy, and found their way into the guard-house 
for drunkenness. But with all his vigilance, the 
mystery was no nearer solution than at first — 
how the men got their whiskey. 

There was a puzzle, too, among the butchers. 
There arose an astonishing demand for bladders 
among the soldiers. Whenever a beef was killed, 
half a dozen eager fellows stood by and bid 
against each other for this part of the animal. 
Bragg heard of this, but he could see no con- 
nection between it and the solution of the whis- 
key question ; and he never learned the secret 
till the army had left Pensacola, and the disclo- 
sure could do no harm. 

A poor, inoff'ensive fisherman lived on the op- 
posite side of the lake. Some of the men swam 
across, made his acquaintance, and persuaded him 
to open an accoiuit with a liquor dealer in Mo- 
bile, saying he would lose nothing by the operation, 
and might make a great deal. He accordingly 
kept himself well supplied with the genuine arti- 
cle, and had the satisfaction every evening of see- 
ing platoons of naked customers come swimming 
across the lake, with bladders around their necks, 
which they filled from his barrel, and paid for in 
hard money, wliich they brought over in their 
mouths. 

Emboldened by their success in smuggling by 
the bladder full, they managed at length to get a 
barrel of the coveted liquor across the lake. But 
they were like the man who bought the elejjhant. 
They did not know what to do with it. At length 
a genius brighter than the rest hit upon a happy 
expedient. The spring where most of their drink- 
ing water was obtained, rose from a sandy soil, in 
which a pit could be easily excavated. In the 
darkness of a rainy night this was done, and the 
barrel buried close to the spring. Of course, 
nothing could be more natural than that soldiers 
in the month of August, and in that latitude, 
should go often to the spring. But the water 
seemed to have a strange effect upon them. 
After leaning over to quaff" from the cooling foun- 
tain, they grew chatty, then boisterous, noisy, and 
quarrelsome, and ended the day in the guard- 
house. 

There was no solving the myster_v, till, at last, 
just as they all left Pensacola, they told Bragg's 
orderly how the whiskey barrel was buried close 
by the spring, and they kept a straw convenient, 
so that when they seemed to be drinking from 
the spring, they were, in fact, sucking from the 
whiskey barrel. 



U8 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



THE ANCIENT ]\IARINER. 

It was an ancient mariner, 

And thus he spake to me : 
"Twice twenty year or more I've sailed 

Upon the salt, salt sea." 

More stronger of salt the sea must be 

Than XX all of malt, 
When such an ancient sailor-man 

Must call it doubly salt. 

"Twice twenty year I've sailed," he said, 

"Upon the salt, salt sea. 
And many strange and fearful things 

Have happened unto me." 

" Avast, thou ancient mariner ! 

Thou smellest much of tar ; 
Besides, I've got a telegram, 

With good news from the war." 

"Twice twenty year I've sailed," he said, 

" Upon the salt, salt sea ; 
The knowledge I have gained, my boy. 

Were worth a mint to thee." 

" Hands off, thou ancient mariner ! 

And let my flipper drop ; 
We've glorious news from Grant to-day. 

And stocks are rushing up. 

" The hour is now, the Board has met, 

And I am ' in the ring ; ' 
Erie is flying like a kite. 

And I may hold the string. 

" I must be off, thou ancient man, 

To call on Jones & Tuttle ; " 
" I knew Jack Bunsby well," quoth he, 

"And sailed with Cap'n Cuttle." 

He placed his chair beside my own, 

That ancient marinere ; 
And then he called for brandy neat, 

And I for lager beer. 

He gave to me for my repast 

Salt-horse and pine-wood cracker ; 

And rammed into his starboard cheek 
Some stuff he called terbacker. 

Then thrice he winked his larboard eye 

Right solemnly at me. 
And thus commenced his wondrous tale : 

"There was a man," quoth he — 

"Twice twenty year, or more, I've sailed, 

Upon the salt, salt sea ; 
But never have I chanced to meet 

With such a man as he. 

" He's older than the hills, they say. 

This old, old marinere ; 
Or just about the age of Airth — 

Say seven thousand year. 

"He's older than Methusalcr, 

Or any man before ; 
They say he piloted the craft 

That carried Father Noar. 



" Our great Rail-splitter dug him up — 

He split the solid stone, 
And there he found this ancient man 

A sittink all alone. 

" Our Uncle Abe is fond, you know, 

Of jolly jokes and sells, 
But never cracked a harder joke. 

Than this same Gidyun Welles. 

" Quoth Abraham, ' From rebel ram 
Here's just the man to save ye.' 

And so he made old Daddy Welles 
The ruler of our navy. 

" From Richmond town the ram came down, 

To Hampton Roads it crept. 
And still old Daddy Gidyun 

He slept, and slept, and slept. 

"It stove our splendid frigates' sides, 

^nd slew our gallant tars. 
While Welles was dreamink ancient di'eams 
Of masts, and ropes, and spars. 

" Old England sent a steamer out — 

A clipper-ship, and new, sir ; 
A pirate ship some called the craft, 

And some a rebel cruiser. 

" She burned and sank our merchant-ships 

All o'er the ocean wide. 
And Daddy Welles's *♦ creeping things ' 

Owdaciously defied. 

" That boat had such a jolly time, 
That England scoffed and laughed, 

And sent upon the briny deep 
Some more swift-sailing craft. 

" Our flag was driven from the sea, 
Our commerce, sir, was floored, 

And still old Daddy Welles he slept, 
And snored, and snored, and snored." 

" Avast, thou sailor-man ! " I said, 

" For all athirst am I ; 
So salty is this throat of mine. 

That I shall surely die." 

" Come hither, then, thou waiter-boy," 

The mariner he said. 
" Bring us some beer and brandy neat, 

Before I punch thy head." 

The cups were set, our lips were wet. 

And then again began 
To tell his mournful, bitter tale. 

That ancient sailor-man. 

" In vain the people raved and swore, 

In vain the merchants wailed : 
Old Welles sent out his ♦ creeping things,' 

But still the pirates sailed. 

" The ' creeping things ' beset the coast 

Of all the rebel land ; 
But nightly still the boats slipped in. 

With goods called contraband. 

" Another man this ancient man 

Employed to do his talks ; 
A sly, and slippery, cunning chap — 

I think, they called him Fox, 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



449 



•• So, while this ancient man slept well, 

His head upon a hawser ; 
This sly and slippery cunning chap 

Was mate, all hands, and boss, sir. 

'•And while our ships were burned and sunk, 

And commerce went to pot, 
He squandered millions of our cash — 

I want to know for what. 

" Thou knowest, broker of the stocks, 

How great has been the cost ; 
Thou knowest well what wondrous wealth 

Beneath the sea is lost. 

*' At times the thunder of our guns 

Awakes this ancient bore ; 
He claims the credit of the work, 

And falls asleep once more." 

" I know, thou antique sailor-man," 

I said, " of Welles and Fox ; 
But what has that to do with me, 

Or.with the price of stocks ?" 

«• That Old Man of the Sea," he said, 

" About our necks has himg. 
And though we sought to shake him off, 

Has clung, and clung, and clung. 

" Must we be bothered four more years 

By dozes and by dreams ? 
And can't we swop such horses off, 

Even in crossing streams ? " 

" O, think, thou broker of the stocks. 

What fate must yet be ours, 
K we must still be swayed and spoiled 

By dull and drowsy powers I " 

I left that ancient mariner, 

Swift to the Board I ran ; 
But stocks were down, and I was then 

A wiser, poorer man. 

Anthracite Hill (of the Board of Brokers). 



Incident of Corinth. — A correspondent 
who visited Corinth after the evacuation in 1862 
writes as follows : 

" Among the few inhabitants found in Corinth 
was an elderly female, decidedly rebellious in 
her disposition, having all the prominent facial 
symptoms of the most abhorrent freak of nature 
— an ill-tempered woman. An Illinois soldier 
advanced towards her as she stood on the 
doorstep of her residence, and addressed her 
thus: 

" ' Well, misses, them ere fellers got away, eh ? 
Wish we'd caught 'em. We'd gin 'em the wust 
whippin' they ever got. Which way did the d — d 
hounds go, anyhow ? ' 

"Lady (indignant) — 'I reckon you don't 
know who you're talking to. I've got a son in 
the Southern army, and he ain't no d — d hound. 
He's a gentleman, sir.' 

" Soldier — ' Well, I've heard a good deal about 
secesh gentlemen, but I never saw one. Gen- 
29 



tlemen don't steal, as a general thing ; but these 
fellers live by stealin'. ' 

" Lady (whose nose takes an upward tendency) 
— ' They never stole nothin' from you, I guess. 
What did you ever lose by them, I'd like to 
know ? ' 

" Soldier — ' Lose ! why the cussed thieves 
stole three undershirts and two pair of drawers 
from me at Pittsburg. They stole all our sutler's 
goods, and all the officers' clothes in our regi- 
ment. I'll know my shirts, and if I catch 'em 
on any butternut, I'll finish him, sure. But you 
see, misses, I don't want to talk saucy to a wo- 
man. I just called to ask you if you had any 
fresh bread to sell.' 

" Lady — ' No, hain't. I ain't no baker, and 
don't keep no bake shop, neither. I guess you'll 
have to go North for fresh bread.' 

" Soldier — ' Well, it's no use gittin' mad about it. 
I've got money to pay for what I buy. I intend to 
go North, after a while, when we whip these run- 
away fellers, but not before. If they hadn't run 
off, secesh would have been played out in a week. 
I guess it's played out anyhow, eh ? ' 

" Exit lady unceremoniously, slamming the 
door, through which she disappears." 



Rough Sketch of President Lincoln. — 
Senator Sherman of Ohio, in a speech at San- 
dusky in the fall of 1864, drew this rough but 
accurate outline of the lamented President's 
character : 

" I know Old Abe ; and I tell you there is not, 
at this hour, a more patriotic, or a truer man 
living than that man, Abraham Lincoln. Some 
say he is an imbecile ; but he not only held his own 
in his debates with Douglas, Avhose power is ad- 
mitted, and whom I considered the ablest intel- 
lect in the United States Senate, but got a little 
the better of him. He has been deliberate and 
slow, but when he puts his foot down, it is with 
the determination and certainty with which our 
generals take their steps ; and, like them, when 
he takes a city he never gives it up. This firm 
old man is noble and kind-hearted. He is a 
child of the people. Go to him with a story of 
woe, and he will weep like a child. This man, 
so condemned, works more hours than any other 
President that ever occupied the chair. His 
solicitude for the public welfare is never-ceasing. 
I differed from him at first myself, but at last 
felt and beheved that he was right, and shall vote 
for this brave, true, patriotic, kind-hearted man. 
All his faults and mistakes you have seen. All 
his virtues you never can know. His patience in 
labor is wonderful. He works far harder than 
any man in Erie County. At the head of this 
great nation — look at it ! He has all the bills 
to sign passed by Congress. No one can be ap- 
pointed to any office without his approval. No 
one can be punished without the judgment re- 
ceives his signature, and no one pardoned with- 
out his hand. This man — always right, always 
just — we propose to reelect now to the Presi- 
dency.'* 



450 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



Letter of General Sedgwick. — The fol- 
lowin.2: letter from Major-General John Sedgwick 
to Adjutant-General E. D. Townsend, is charac- 
teristic of the brave and honorable soldier who 
wrote it. It was written in December, 1863, at 
the time it was proposed to change and consoli- 
date the army of the Potomac. 

•' My Dear Townsend : There is a change 
proposed in the organization of this army — re- 
ducing the number of corps to three. Whether I 
am to be retained as one of the commanders, I 
do not know ; but I write this to ask you, when 
the matter is brought up in Washington, to retain 
the number of this corps — the Sixth. It is en- 
tirely harmonious, and a great deal of esprit du 
corps is in it. I do not believe there is a regi- 
ment in it that would leave Avillingly. Another 
reason is — since its organization there has never 
been a regiment added or detached. This is not 
the case with the other corps. The Third has 
been made up of the odds and ends from several 
armies, and this is partly true of the First ; and 
every corps (the Sixth excepted) has had several 
regiments assigned to it, from time to time. 

" I am afraid the First, Second, and Third will 
be retained, when I should like to see the Second, 
Third, and Sixth. 

" I am sure you will assist me in this matter, 
if in your power ; at all events, I rely upon you 
in letting me know when the subject comes up." 



THE WOOD OF CHANCELLORSVILLE. 

BY DELIA R. GERMAN. 

The ripe red berries of the wintergreen 
Lure me to pause a while 

In this deep, tangled wood. I stop and lean 
Down where these wild flowers smile, 
And rest me in this shade ; for many a mile, 

Through lane and dusty street, 

I've M-alkcd Avith w-eary, weary feet ; 

And now I tarry 'mid this woodland scene, 

'Mong ferns and mosses sweet. 

Here all around me blows 

The pale primrose. 

I wonder if the gentle blossom knows 

The feeling at my heart — the solemn grief 

So -whelming and so deep 
That it disdains relief, 

And will not let mo weep. 
I wonder that the woodbine thrives and grows, 
And is indifferent to the nation's woes. 
For while these mornings shine, these blossoms 

bloom, 
Impious rebellion wraps the land in gloom. 

Nature, thou art unkind, 

Unsympathizing, blind ! 

Yon lichen, clinging to th' o'erhanging rock, 

Is happy, and each blade of grass. 

O'er which unconsciously I pass. 
Smiles in my face, and seems to mock 

Me with its joy. Alas ! I cannot find 

One charm in bounteous nature, while the wind 
That blows upon my cheek bears on each gust 
The groans of my poor country, bleeding in the 
dust. 



The air is musical with notes 

That gush from winged warblers' throats. 

And in the leafy trees 

I hear the drowsy himi of bees. 

Prone from the blinding sky 

Dance rainbow-tinted sunbeams, thick with 
motes. 

Daisies are shining, and the butterfly 
Wavers from flower to flower ; yet in this wood 
The ruthless foeman stood, 
And every turf is drenched with human blood. 

O heartless flowers ! 

O trees, clad in j'our robes of glistering sheen, 
Put off this canopy of gorgeous green I 

These are the hours 

For mournmg, not for gladness. While this smart 

Of treason dire gashes the Nation's heart. 

Let birds refuse to sing, 

And flowers to bloom upon the lap of spring. 

Let Nature's face itself with tears o'erflow, 

In deepest anguish for a people's woe. 

While rank rebellion stands 

With blood of martyrs on his impious hands ; 

While slavery, and chains. 

And cruelty, and direst hate. 

Uplift their heads within th' afflicted state, 
And freeze the blood in every patriot's yeins, — 
Let the-e old woodlands fair 

Grow black with gloom, and from its thunder-lair 
Let lightning leap, and scorch th' accursed air, 
Until the suffering earth. 
Of treason sick, shall spew the monster forth. 
And each regenerate sod 
Be consecrate anew to Freedom and to God ! 



Forrest on Fort Pillow. — A letter written 
by Bryan McAllister at Meridian, Mississippi, on 
the 13th of May, 1865, contains the following: 

" Before the large chimney-place of a small 
cabin-room, surrounded by a group of Confed- 
erate officers and men, the room dimly lighted 
by a small tallow candle, I first saw Lieutenant- 
General N. B. Forrest, commanding a corps of 
cavalry in the rebel army. Forrest is a man of 
fine appearance, about six feet in height, having 
dark, piercing hazel eyes, carefully trimmed 
mustache, and chin-whiskers dark as night, fine- 
ly cut-features, and iron-gray hair. His form is 
lithe, plainly indicating great physical ])owcr and 
activity. He was neatly dressed in citizen's 
clothes of some gray mixture — the only indica- 
tion of military service being the usual number 
of small stafi'-buttons on his vest. I should have 
marked him as a prominent man had I seen him 
on Broadway ; and when I was told that he was 
the ' Forrest of Fort Pillow,' I devoted my whole 
attention to him, and give you the result of our 
conversation. ]\Iy first impression of the man 
was rather favorable than otherwise. Except a 
guard of some hundred Federal soldiers, more 
than half a mile away, I was, with the exception 
of another person, the only Yankee in the room, 
and, being dressed in citizen's clothes, was never 
suspected, except by the landlord. 

♦' ' General,' said I, ' I little expected to be 
seated by this fire with you.' 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



451 



" ' Why so ? ' 

" * Well, because your name has been in the 
mouth of nearly every person for a long time.' 

" ' Yes,' said he, displaying the finest set of 
teeth that I think I have ever seen ; ' I have 
waked up the Yankees eveiywhere, lately.' 

" ' Now that you have time, General, do you 
think you will ever put upon paper the true ac- 
count of the Fort Pillow affair? ' 

" ' Well,' said he, * the Yankees ought to know. 
They sent down their best men to investigate the 
affair.' 

" * But are we to believe their report. General? ' 

" ' Yes, if we are to believe anything a nigger 
says. AVhen I went into the war, I meant to 
fight. Fighting means killing. I have lost twen- 
ty-nine horses in the war, and have killed a man 
each time. The other day I was a horse ahead ; 
but at Selma they surrounded me, and I killed 
two, jumped my horse over a one-horse wagon, 
and got away.' 

" I began to think I had some idea of the man 
at last. He continued : 

" * My Provost-Marshal's book Avill show that 
I have taken thirtj'-one thousand piisoners during 
the Avar. At Fort Pillow I sent in a flag of truce, 
and demanded an unconditional surrender, or I 
would not answer for my men. This they refused. 
I sent them another note, giving them one hour 
to determine. This they refused. I could see, 
on the river, bpats loaded with troops. They 
sent back, asking for an hour more. I gave them 
twenty minutes. I sat on my horse during- the 
whole time. . 

" ' The fort was filled with niggers and deserters 
from our army — men who lived side by side with 
my men. I waited five minutes after the time, and 
then blew my bugle for the charge. In twenty 
minutes my men were over the works, and the fir- 
ing had ceased. The citizens and Yankees had bro- 
ken in the heads of whiskey and lager-beer barrels, 
and were all drunk. They kept up firing all the 
time, as they went down the hill. Hundreds of 
them rushed to the riverf and tried to swim to the 
gunboats, and my men' shot theni doM'n. The 
Mississippi River Avas red with their blood for 
three hundred yards. During all this, their flag 
was still flying, and I rushed over the works and 
cut the halyards, and let it dov/n, and stopped 
the fight. Many of the Yankees were in tents 
in front, and they were in their Avay, as they con- 
cealed my men, and some of them set them on 
fire. If any Avere burned to death, it Avas in those 
tents. 

" * They have a living witness in Captain Young, 
their Quartermaster, who is still alive ; and I Avill 
leave it to any prisoner I have ever taken if I have 
not treated them aa'cU.' ' You have made some 
rapid marches. General,' said I. ' Yes,' said he, 
' I haA'e five thousand men that can Avhip any ten 
thousand in the Avorld. Sturgis came out to Avhip 
me once, and Avas ten thousand strong. I marched 
off as if I was going to Georgia, and fell upon the 
head of his column Avhen he least expected me, 
and,Avith two thousand three hundred men, killed 
over three thousand, captui'ed as many more, with 



all the trains and mules, and drove him back. I 
meant to kill every man in Federal uniform, un- 
less he gave up.' He spoke of capturing a fort 
from Colonel Crawford, in Athens, Alabama, gar- 
risoned by one thousand five hundred men. Said 
he : 'I took him out and shoAved him my forces, — 
some brigades tAvo or three times, — and one bat- 
tery I kept marching around all the time. My 
men dismounted, leaving every fourth man to hold 
the horses, and formed the rest in front as infan- 
try ; and the darn fool gave up Avithout firing a 
shot.' 

" Speaking of Streight's capture, he said it Avas 
almost a shame. ' My men rode among them and 
shot them down Hke cattle. They Avere mounted 
on sharp-edged saddles, and were Avorn out, and 
I killed several of them myself. Didn't hardly 
knoAV what to do with them.' But the heart sick- 
ens at the infamous conduct of this butcher. He 
is one of the fcAv men that are general ' blowers,' 
and yet will fight. Forrest is a thorough bravo — 
a desperate man in every respect. He Avas a ne- 
gro-trader before the war, and in ' personal affairs,' 
as he calls them, had killed several men. 

" He had a body guard of one hundred and 
fifty picked men. These he placed in the rear, 
Avith orders to shoot any one that turned back. I 
have spoken to numbers of Confederate officers, 
and they speak of him Avith disgust, though all 
admit his bravery and fitness for the cavalry ser- 
vice. He has two brothers living, one of whom 
is spoken of as being a greater butcher than the 
Lieutenant-General. He is a man Avithout edu- 
cation or refinement, married, I belieA^e, to a very 
pretty Avife. Any one would call him handsome. 

"Any one hearing him talk Avould call him a 
braggadocio. As for myself, I Avould believe one 
half he said, and only dispute Avith him with my 
finger upon the trigger of my pistol. When I 
told him I Avas a Yankee, and late upon a promi- 
nent General's staff, he looked about him, and 
among his staff, for corroborative proof. Volleys 
of this, ready prepared, poured forth upon his 
order. My not being a short-hand TVTiter neces- 
sai'ily dejn-ived me of the pleasure of a further 
contribution to this true story. 

" Two young Iventuckians Avere Avalking along 
the road, Avhen Forrest came up ; he called them 
deserters, and deliberately shot them. It appears 
that these young men Avere upon legitimate duty, 
and one of them under military age. The fathers 
of these youths are upon Forrest's track, sworn 
to kill him. Poetic justice requires that he should 
meet Avith a violent death. Probably one hun- 
dred men have fallen by his hand. He says ' the 
war is played out ; ' that, Avhere he lives, there are 
plenty of fish ; and that he is going to take a tent 
along, and don't Avant to see any one for twelve 
months." 

A Romantic Incident. — Governor Curtin, 
of Pennsylvania, Avhile sojourning in Philadelphia, 
Avas called upon by a young Avoman, Avho, Avhen 
she Avas introduced, expressed her great joy at 
seeing the Governor, at the same time imprint- 
ing a kiss upon his forehead. 



452 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



" Madam," said he, " to -whom am I indebted 
for this unexpected salutation ? " 

" Sir, do you not know me ? " 

" Take a chair," said the Governor, at the same 
time extending one of the handsomest in the par- 
lor. 

" Shortly after the battle of Antietam, you 
were upon that bloody field," said she to the Gov- 
ernor. 

" I was," replied the Governor. 

" You administered to the wants of the 
Mounded and the dying." 

" It was my duty as a feeling man." 

" You did your duty well. Heaven alone 
will reward you, sir, for in this life there is no 
reward adequately expressive of your deserts. 
You, sir, imparted consolation and revived the 
hopes of a dying soldier of the Twenty-eighth 
Ohio. He was badly wounded in the arm ; you 
lifted him into an ambulance, and the blood 
dripping from him stained your hands and your 
clothing. That soldier was as dear to me as life 
itself. 

" A husband ? " said the Governor. " No, sir." 

« A brother perhaps ? " " No, sir." 

"A father?" " No, sir." 

" A son ? " " No, sir." 

"A lover?" "No, sir." 

" If not a husband, father, brother, son, or 
lover, who, then, could it be ? " said the Gov- 
ernor, at length breaking the silence : ' this is an 
enigma to me. Please explain more about the 
gallant soldier of Ohio." 

"Well, sir, that soldier gave you a ring. C. 
E. D. were the letters engraved on the interior. 
That is the ring now upon your little finger. He 
told you to wear it, and carefully have you done 
so." 

The Governor pulled the ring off, and sure 
enough the letters were there. 

" The finger that used to wear that ring will 
never wear it any more. The hand is dead, but 
the soldier still lives." 

The Governor was now more interested than 
ever. 

" Well, madam," said he, " tell me all about 
it. Is this ring yours ? Was it given to you by 
a soldier whom you loved ? " 

" I loved him as I loved my life ; but he never 
returned that love. He had more love for his 
country than for me ; I honor him for it. That 
soldier who placed that little ring upon your fin- 
ger stands before you." So saying the strange 
lady arose from her chair, and stood before the 
Governor. 

The scene that now ensued we leave to the 
imagination of the reader. A happy hour passed. 
The girl who had thus introduced herself was 
Catharine E. Davidson, of Sheffield, Ohio. She 
was engaged to be married, but her future hus- 
band responded to the call of the President, and 
she followed him by joining another regiment. 
He was killed in the same battle where she fell 
wounded. She is alone in the world, her father 
and mother having departed this life years ago. 
She was the soldier of the Twenty-eighth Ohio 



who had placed the ring upon the finger of Gov- 
ernor Curtin, for the kind attention given her 
upon the bloody field of Antietam. 



Incidents of Leesburg. — A Southern let- 
ter writer gives the following incidents of the 
battle of Ball's Bluff, called by the Confederates 
the battle of Leesburg : 

" One personal encounter is worthy of record. 
As Captain Jones, of company B, Seventeenth 
Mississippi, was passing tlirough the woods at 
the head of his men, he met another party headed 
by an officer. The two halting instantly upon 
discovering their close proximity, Jones ex- 
claimed, " For God Almighty's sake, tell me 
quick — friends or enemies — who are you ? ' 
The other reph'ed, ' We are friends,' and at the 
same time advanced. A little boy named Joseph 
Ware, who was behind the Mississippian, in- 
stantly cried out, ' Captain, they are not friends ; 
don't you see they have not guns like ours. 
They are Yankees : let me shoot.' Again Jones 
exclaimed, ' Who are you ? Speak quick, for I 
can't keep my men from firing.' ' I'll let you 

know who we are, you d d rebel,' said the 

Yankee officer, — for such he was, — and suiting 
the action to the word, he sprang upon and seized 
Captain Jones by the collar. For a second or 
two a scuffle ensued between the officers, when 
the latter broke loose. At the same instant one 
of the Mississippians dashed out the Yankee's 
brains with the butt of his musket.' 

" Frequently the ladies are in the habit of vis- 
iting the prisoners, but oftener from curiosity 
than sympathy. Another incident is told of 
an encounter between several of them and an 
Irishman. 

" It had become a matter of habit with the 
fair ones to open conversation with the very nat- 
ural inquiry, ' Where are you wounded ? ' and 
accordingly, when a party of three or four, the 
other day, approached our cell, they launched out 
in the usual way. Paddy made believe that he 
didn't hear distinctly, and replied, ' Pretty well, 
I thank yez.' ' Where were you wounded ? ' 
again fired away one of the ladies. ' Faith, I'm 
not badly hurt, at all. I'll be thravelling to Kich- 
mond jn a wake,' replied Pat, with a peculiarly 
distressing look, as if he was in a tight place. 
Thinking that he was deaf, one of the old ladies 
in the background put her mouth down to his 
ear, and shouted again, ' We want to know wliere 
you are hurt.' 

"Pat, evidently finding that if the bombard- 
ment continued much longer he would have to 
strike his flag anyhow, concluded to do so at 
once, and accordingly, with a face as rosy as a 
boiled lobster, and with an angry kind of energy, 
he replied : ' Sure, leddies, it's not dafe that I am ; 
but, since you are determined to know where I 
have been wound6d, it's on my sate. The bullet 
entered behind ov me breeches. Plase to excuse 
me feelings and ax me no more questions.' 

" I leave it to you to imagine the blushing con- 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



45a 



sternation of the inquisitors and sudden locomo- 
tion of the crinoline out of the front door." 



Anecdote of President Lincoln. — The 
following transpired at the Executive Mansion in 
Washington. Its moral will he appreciated by 
all thoughtful men. Some gentlemen were present 
from the West, excited and troubled about the 
commissions or omissions of the Administration. 
The President heard them patiently, and then re- 
plied : " Gentlemen, suppose all the property you 
were worth was in gold, and you had put it in 
the hands of Blondin to carry across the Niagara 
River on a rope ; would you shake the cable, or 
keep shouting out to him — Blondin, stand up a 
little straighter — Blondin, stoop a little more — 
go a little faster — lean a little more to the north 
— lean a little more to the south ? No, you would 
hold your breath as well as your tongue, and 
keep your hands off until he was safe over. The 
Government are canying an immense weight. 
Untold treasures are in their hands. They are 
doing the very best they can. Don't badger 
them. Keep silence, and we'll get you safe 
across." This simple illustration answered the 
complaints of half an hour, and not only silenced 
but channed the audience. 



An Incident. — As the fleet of transports of 
the great expedition for the reduction of the forts 
at Hilton Head was passing down the Chesapeake 
Bay on that beautiful day in October, 1861, a 
Vlarge bald eagle came sweeping out from the 
sHpre of Maryland, and, soaring high in air over 
th^eet, finally ahghted on the masthead of the 
Atlaktic, the headquarters of the army. In an 
instant all eyes *?ere on him, and conjecture was 
busy as to whether he were a loyal bird come to 
give his blessing at parting, or a secession rooster, 
intent on spying out the nation's strength. " We 
gave the bu-d the benefit of the doubt," said one 
present ; " an officer peremptorily stayed the 
hand of a soldier who would have shot him, and 
we accepted the omen as auguring the full suc- 
cess of our enterprise." 



The Fight at Brandy Station. — " We were 
lying at Warrenton Junction, making ourselves 
as comfortable as possible after the raid, when, 
on the morning of the 8th of June, 1863, the 
whole division was ordered out in the very lightest 
marching order. That night we lay close to Kel- 
ly's Ford in column of battaUons, the men hold- 
ing their horses as they slept, and no fires being 
lighted. 

" At four o'clock on the morning of the 9th we 
were again in motion, and got across the ford 
without interruption or discovery. Yorke, with 
the third squadron, was in advance, and as we 
moved he managed so well that he bagged every 
picket on the road. Thus we had got almost 
upon the rebel camp before we w'ere discovered. 
>We rode right into Jones' brigade, the First New 



Jersey and First Pennsylvania charging together ; 
and before they had recovered from the alarm we 
had a hundred and fifty prisoners. The rebels 
were then forming upon the hill-side by the sta- 
tion, and they had a battery playing upon us like 
fun, Martin's New York battery, on our side, 
galloped into position, and began to answer them. 
Then Wyndham formed his whole brigade for a 
charge, except a squadi-on of the First Maryland, 
left to support the battery. Our boys went in 
splendidly, keeping well together, and making 
straight for the rebel battery on the hill behind 
the station. Wyndham himself rode on the 
right, and Broderick charged more towards the 
left, and with a yell we were on them. We were 
only two hundred and eighty strong, and in fi'ont 
of us was White's battalion of five hundred. No 
matter for that. Wyndham and Broderick were 
leading, and they were not accustomed to count 
odds. As we dashed fiercely into them, sabre in 
hand, they broke like a wave on the bows of a 
ship, and over and through them we rode, sabring 
as we went. We could not stop to take prison- 
ers, for there in front of us was the Twelfth Vir- 
ginia, six hundred men, riding down to support 
White. By Jove, sir, that was a charge ! 

" They came up splendidly, looking steadier than 
we did ourselves after the shock of the fu'st 
charge. I do not know whether Wyndham was 
still with us, or if he had gone to another regi- 
ment ; but there Avas Broderick, looking full of 
fight, his blue eyes in a blaze, and his sabre 
clinched, riding well in front. At them we went 
again, and some of them this time met us fairly. 
I saw Broderick's sabre go through a man, and 
the rebel gave a convulsive leap out of his sad- 
dle, falling senseless to the ground. It seemed 
but an instant before the rebels were scattered in 
every direction, trying now and then to rally in 
small parties, but never daring to await our ap- 
proach. Now there were the guns plain before 
us, the drivers yelling at their horses, and trying 
to limber up. We caught one gun before they 
could move it, and were dashing after the others, 
when I heard Broderick shouting in a stormy 
voice. I teU you, it was a startling sight. The 
fragments of White's battalion had gathered to- 
gether towards the left of the field, and were 
charging in our rear. The First Maryland was 
there, and Broderick was shouting at them, in 
what their Colonel considered a 'very ungen- 
tlemanly manner,' to move forward to the charge. 
At the same time two fresh regiments, the Elev- 
enth Virginia and another, were coming down on 
our front. Instead of dashing at White's men, 
the First Maryland wavered and broke, and then 
we were charged at the same time front and rear. 
We had to let the guns go, and gather together 
as well as possible to cut om-selves out. Gallantly 
our fellows met the attack. We were broken, of 
course, by the mere weight of the attacking force ; 
but, breaking them up too, the whole field was 
covered with small squads of fighting men. I 
saw Broderick ride in with a cheer and open a 
way for the men. His horse went down in the 
melee; but little Wood, the bugler of company 



454 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



G, sprang down and gave him his animal, setting 
off himself to catch another. 

" A rebel rode at the bugler, and succeeded in 
getting a^vay his arms before help came. As 
Wood still went after a horse another fellow rode 
at him. The boy happened at that moment to see 
a carbine where it had been dropped after firing. 
He picked up the empty weapon, aimed it at the 
horseman, made him dismount, give up his arms, 
and start for the rear. Then he went in again. 
Lucas, Hobensack, Brooks, and Beekman charged 
with twelve men into White's battalion. Fight- 
ing hand to hand, they cut their way through, but 
left nine of the men on the ground behind them. 
Hughes was left almost alone in a crowd, but 
brought himself and the men with Irim safe 
through. Major Shelmire was last seen lying 
across the dead body of a rebel cavalryman. 
None of us thought anything of two to one odds, 
as long as we had a chance to ride at them. It 
was only when we got so entangled that we had to 
fight hand to hand that their numbers told heav- 
ily. It was in such a place that I lost sight of 
Broderick. The troop of horse that he was rid- 
ing was not strong enough to ride through a knot 
cf men, so that he had to fight them. He struck 
one so heavily that he was stunned by the blow, 
but his horse was still in the way ; swerving to 
one side, he escaped a blow from another, and, 
warding off the thrust of a third, managed to 
take him with his point across the forehead. Just 
as he did so, however, his sabre, getting tangled 
with the rebel's, was jerked from his hand. Draw- 
ing his pistol, he fired into the crowd, and put 
spurs to his horse. The bullet hit a horse in front 
cf him, which fell. His own charger rode at it, 
but stumbled, and as it did Broderick himself fell, 
from a shot fired Avithin arm's length of liim and 
a sabre stroke upon his side. 

" I saw all this as a man sees things at such 
times, and am not positive even that it all oc- 
curred as I thought I saw it ; for I was in the 
midst of confusion, and only caught tilings 
around by passing glimpses. You see I was my- 
self having as much as I could do. The crowd 
»vith whom Broderick was engaged was a little 
distance from me ; and I had just wheeled to ride 
up to his help when two fellows put at me. The 
first one fired at me and missed. Before he could 
again cock, his revolver I succeeded in closing with 
him. My sabre took him just in the neck, and 
must have cut the jugular. The blood gushed 
cut in a black-looking stream ; he gave a horri- 
ble yell and fell over the side of his horse, which 
galloped away. Then I gathered up my reins, 
spurred my horse, and went at the other one. I 
was riding that old black horse that used to be- 
long to the signal sergeant, and it was in fine con- 
dition. As I drove in the spurs it gave a leap 
high in the air. That plunge saved my life. The 
rebel had a steady aim at me ; but the ball went 
through the black horse's brain. His feet never 
touched ground again. With a terrible convul- 
sive contraction of all his muscles, the black 
turned over in the air, and fell on his head and 
side stone dead, pitching me twenty feet. I 



alighted on my pistol, the butt forcing itself far 
into my side ; my sabre sprung out of my hand, 
and I lay with arms and legs all abroad, stretched 
out like a dead man. Everybody had something 
else to do than to attend to me, and there I lay 
where I had fallen. 

" It seemed to me to have been an age before 
I began painfully to come to myself; but it could 
not have been many minutes. Every nerve was 
shaking ; there Avas a terrible pain in my head, 
and a numbness in my side, Avhich was even Avorse. 
Fightmg Avas still going on around me, and my 
first impulse Avas to get hold of my SAVord. I 
craAvled to it, and sank doAvn as I grasped it once 
more. That Avas only for a moment, for a rebel 
soldier, seeing me move, rode at me. The pres-' 
ence of danger roused me, and I managed to get 
to my horse, behind Avhich I sank, resting my pis- 
tol on the saddle, and so contriving to get an aim. 
As soon as the man saAV that, he turned off Avith- 
out attacking me. I Avas uoav able to stand and 
walk ; so, holding my pistol in one hand and my 
sabre in the other, I made my Avay across the 
fields to Avhere our battery Avas posted, scaring 
some Avith my pistol and shooting others. Xo- 
body managed to hit me through the Avhole fight. 
When I got up to the battery I found Wood 
there. He sang out to me to Avait and he Avould 
get me a horse, n 

" One of the men, who had just taken one, 
was going past ; so Wood stopped him and got it 
for me. Just at that moment White's battalion 
and some other troops came charging at the bat- 
tery. The squadron of the First Maryland, Avho 
Avere supporting it, met the charge Avell as far as 
their numbers Avent, but Avere,"of course, flanked 
on both sides by the heavy odds. All of our men 
Avho Avere free came SAvarming up the hill, and the 
cavalry Avere fighting over and around the guns. 
In spite of the confusion, and even Avhile their 
comrades at the same piece Avere being sabred, 
the men at that battery kept to their duty. They 
did not even look up or around, but kept up 
their fire Avith uuAvavering steadiness. There 
was one rebel, on a splendid horse, who sabred 
three gunners Avhile I Avas chasing him. He 
Avhecled in and out — Avould dart aAvay and then 
come SAveeping back and cut doAvn another man 
in a manner that seemed almost supernatural. We 
at last succeeded in driving him away, but we 
could not catch or shoot him, and he got off Avith- 
out a scratch. 

" In the^mean time the fight Avas going on else- 
Avhere. Kilpatrick's brigade charged on our 
right. The Second Ncav York, did not behave as 
Avell as it has sometimes done since, and the loss 
of it Aveakened us a great deal. The Tenth Xcav 
York, though, Avent in well, and the First Maine 
did splendidly, -as it always does. In spite of 
their superior numbers (Stuart had a day or tAvo 
before reviewed thirty thousand cavalry at Cul- 
pepper, according to the accounts of rebel offi- 
cers) Ave beat them heavily, and avouUI have routed 
them completely if Duifie's brigade had come 
up. He, hoAvever, Avas engaged Avith two or 
three hundred men on the left; the aid-de-camp 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



455 



sent to him with orders was wounded and ta- 
ken prisoner, and he is not the sort of man to 
find out the critical. point in a fight of his own 
accord. 

" So now, they bringing up still more reserves, 
and a whole division of theirs coming on the 
field, we began to fall back. "We had used them 
up so severely that they could not press us very 
close, except in the neighborhood of where the 
Second New York charged. There some of our 
men had as much as they could do to get out, and 
the battery had to leave three of its guns. We 
formed in the woods between a quarter and half 
a mile of the field ; another moved back to cover 
the left of Buford, who Avas in retreat towards 
Beverly Ford. Hart andWynkoop tried hard to 
cover the guns that were lost ; but they had too 
few men, and so had to leave them. The rebels 
were tei-ribly punished. By their own confession 
they lost three times as many as we did. In our 
regiment almost every soldier must have settled 
his man. Sergeant Craig, of company K, I be- 
lieve, killed three. Slate, of the above com- 
panj% also went above the average. But Ave lost 
terribly. Sixty enlisted men of the First New 
Jersey were killed, wounded, or missing. Col- 
onel Wyndham was Avouuded, but kept his sad- 
dle ; Lieutenant-Colonel Broderick and Major 
Shelmire Avere killed ; Lieutenant Brooks was 
wounded ; Captain SaAvyer and Lieutenant Crocker 
were taken j^risoners ; and I, as you see, have had 
to come in at last and refit." 



THE C.WALRY CHAHGE. 

liY EDMUND C. STEDMAN. 

Oim good steeds snuiF the evening air, 
Our pulses Avith their purpose tingle ; 
The foeman's fires are tAvinkling there ; 
He leaps to hear our sabres jingle ! 

Halt! 
Each carbine sent its Avhizzing ball : 
NoAv, cling ! clang ! Forward, all, 
Into the fight ! 

Dash on beneath the smoking dome : 

Through level lightnings gallop nearer ! 
One look to Heaven ! No thovights of home 
The guidons that Ave bear are dearer. 

Charge ! 
Cling ! clang ! Forward, all ! 
Heaven help those Avhosc horses fall — 
Cut left and right ! 

They flee before our fierce attack ! 

They fall ! they spread in broken surges. 
NoAV, comrades, bear our Avounded back, 
And leave the foeman to his dirges. 

AVhcel ! 
The bugles sound the swift recall : 
Cling ! clang ! EackAvard, all ! 
Home, and good-night ! 



Fkeedoji of Speecu. — An editor of a West- 
ern journal narrates the following: " At D 

dwells a rabid secessionist, Ave are sorry to say, 



for the honor of the town. This man, it seems, is 
a person of substance, having considerable means 
invested in Southern State stocks. He has a 
dog ' Shep,' as intelligent and obedient as his 
master is bigoted and dunder-headed. 'Tis some- 
times said the master is only tolerated on the 
dog's account, as the quadruped is much the 
more respected of the tAvo. 

" One day Mr. Secesh Avas holding forth on the 
right of speech, the freedom of the press, and all 
that kind of thing, averring that every man had a 
right to say Avhat he pleased, where he pleased, 
and Avhen he pleased, and no one had a right to 
molest him or make him afraid. Just then a big 
bull dog walked past the door. He Avas a tre- 
mendously savage dog, the terror of all the 
canines in toAvn, and able to clean out and chaw 
up fourteen dozen such dogs as ' Shep.' A 
young fellow, Avho had listened to the nian's stuff 
long enough, determined to give him a practical 
illustration of his oaa'u doctrine : so he sprang 
toAvards the door, and pointing towards the big 
dog, said, ' Lick him, Shep ! Seize him, Shep ! 
Pitch into him, and lick him. Seize him, Shep ! ' 
Obedient to the lightest command, the faithful 
dog started as he Avas bidden, and but for his 
master's interference Avould have been badly 
torn. 

" Full of wrath, he turned to the young man Avho 
had incited his dog to fight the bull dog, and said, 
' What did you do that for, you rascal ? Set 
Shep on to a dog that Avould tear him to pieces ? ' 

" ' O, I was only exercising your freedom of 
speech. It's nobody's business Avhat I say to any 
dog.' The Avay the thing Avas done created an 
immense laugh, and effectually dried up the rebel 
gentleman. He hadn't a Avord to say." 



CONSERVATIVE CHORUS. 

Abraham, spare the South, 

Touch not a single slave ; 
Nor e'en by A\-ord of mouth 

Disturb the thing, Ave craA^e. 
'TAvas our forefathers' hand 

That Slavery begot ; 
There, Abraham, let it stand; 

Thine acts shall harm it not. 



Incidents of Belmont. — Major Bledsoe 
Harmon, of the Confederate army, relates the fol- 
loAving incidents of the battle at Belmont : 

" During the battle many incidents occurred, 
many acts of heroism Avere performed, that Avill he 
told only Avhen the Avar shall have ended, and 
AA-hen the patriot has returned to his home to en- 
joy the fruits of the independence his valor has 
helped to win. Then, beside the hearth-stone, 
tales of chivalry and daring Avill be told, and 
handed doAvn from father to son to the remotest 
generations. 

" Among the many acts of heroism told of those 
engaged, is that of a mere youth, a little boy who 
was attached to Tappan's Arkansas regiment, 
and carried two mimic flags, one in each hand. 



456 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



The regiment was driven to the water's edge, and 
the enemy poured in a terrific volley, killing 
many of them, who fell into the river, and such as 
were not instantly killed met a watery grave. 
Among those struck was the little boy who bore 
the flags. Giving one last hurrah, which was 
cut short by the ebbing flood of his young life, he 
waved the flags over his head, tottered into the 
river, and was seen no more. The incident was 
witnessed by a whole regiment that was crossing 
the river at the time, and not one member of it 
but shed a tear at the sight. 

"When General Pillow's brigade first discovered 
the enemy. Colonel Pickett's regiment was ordered 
to charge. They commenced it at double-quick, 
when they were met by a withering volley, which 
prostrated about forty of the men. Of those 
wounded was Lieutenant Jesse Tate, who was 
struck in the knee, and fell. Colonel Pickett's 
horse was shot in three different places, and 
killed under him. Major J. C. Cole's horse was 
shot dead. Lieutenant Hiram Tilman, although 
a prominent mark and in the thickest of the 
fight, encouraging on his men, escaped unhurt. 
Colonel Pickett acted like a veteran. Cool and 
undismayed, he saw his men fall beside him ; but 
the carnage seemed to inspire him to greater 
deeds. In fact, the utmost gallantry was dis- 
played by all the field and commissioned oflacers 
and men in the regiment. 

" Perhaps the most unflinching determination 
and courage upon the part of the men in Colonel 
Pickett's regiment was displayed by Captain J. 
D. Layton, of the Liberty Guards. Li the first 
charge, M'hile standing in front of his men, who 
were loading and firing as fast as possible, he re- 
ceived a severe wound just beneath his left arm, 
the ball lodging in his body. His sword fell from 
his grasp, but he quickly recovered it, and, not- 
withstanding the severity of his hurt, fought the 
battle tlu'ough ; nor did he leave his men until he 
saw that his wounded were properly cared for at 
night. Such acts entitle a man to the name of 
hero. 

" The gallant conduct of Captain Frazier, also of 
Pickett's regiment, is highly spoken of. We 
must not omit Captain Dashiell, whose praises are 
sounded by all. James B. Hatcher, a not very 
old nor remarkably large young gentleman, who 
was in the battle as an amateur fighter, succeeded 
in 'surrounding' a Lincolnite twice- his size, and 
disarmed him of his gun and knife, besides one 
of the Roman sabres he had captured from one 
of our men in Watson's battery. The last-named 
weapon he carried home with him, but was not 
permitted to take away the rest. 

" Captain J. Welby Armstrong was struck full 
in the breast by two six-pounder canister shots, 
and of course death was instantaneous. 

*' From Columbus the fight could be witnessed 
with ease. As our men retked to the river for 
ammunition, gallantly contesting every inch of 
ground, the Federals in pursuit could be seen 
bayoneting the wounded left upon the field. 
Not only this, they set fire to the tents used as 
hospitals, and many of the poor fellows confined 



in them were consumed by the flames. These 
acts of barbarity did not lessen the already 
awakened vengeance of our men, and we hear it 
stated that the most ample retaliation was 
made." 

A Belligerent Woman. — At Branchville, 
S. C, in the days when the Confederate rule was 
strictest, a lady presented herself at the platform 
of a passenger car going to Charleston, where a 
guard with fixed bayonet was standing, and de- 
sired to enter. 

The guard told her it was contrary to orders, 
and raised his piece in a position that indicated 
clearly that he meant to obey instructions. She 
ordered him to lower his musket. He refused. 

She then drew a revolver, and pointing it at 
him, threatened to shoot if he did not let her 
pass. With some surprise he demanded : " Are 
you a man in woman's clothes ? " " No," was the 
reply, " I am a woman." " Then come in," said 
the sentinel, " for hang me if I fight a woman, or 
be killed by one. You can't be classed Avith non- 
combatants, and they are the only persons I am 
ordered to keep out of this car." So she was 
classed as a " beUigerent power," and allowed to 
pass. 

The March to Nashville. — A soldier- 
writer, on the march to Nashville, in the autumn 
of 1862, narrates the following : " I engaged in a 
pleasant two hours' chat with General Rousseau, 
and found him 'an agreeable and entertaining 
conversationist. There is no compromise in him, 
except in the Union. He holds that a rebel has 
no rights under our Constitution. Eight or ten 
of the gentry called on him near Mitchellville, 
and commenced using treasonable language. The 
General peremptorily ordered them to cease, as 
he had heard all he wanted of such talk. 

" * Well, but. General, I understand you are a 
Kentuckian ; you don't go in for any abolition 
document like Lincoln has just issued, do you ? ' 

" ' No matter, sir, what I like ; you have no 
right to complain.' 

" ' Why, you don't approve of their stealing 
our negroes, do you ? ' 

" ' I approve, sir, of anything my Government 
does to put down the rebellion ; and anything 
you love I hate.' 

" ' Well, why don't you take our houses and 
lands ? ' 

" ' Wei], sir, if we wanted them, I go in for 
that, too ; take everything you have, and drive 
you to the dominions of Jeff" Davis, whom you 
love so much ; and, so far as lies in my power, I 
will di-ive every one of you beyond our lines, ac- 
cording to- all rules of war, where you cannot do 
us injury as spies. Yes, sir, I would send you all 
to Jeff" Davis, or hell.' 

" Soon after the above, a tattered specimen of 
gawky ignorance entered the General's tent. 

" ' Well, su-,' said the General, 'what will you 
have ? ' 

" ' I kern over here for pertection.' 

" ' Are you a Union man ? However,' contin- 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



457 



ued he, * you are all Union men now ; it is 
scarcely worth asking the question.' 

" * Well, General,' said the Tennesseean, ' I'm 
not an aberlitionist ; I don't go in for — ' 

" ' O, go to my Adjutant, Captain Pohi'man. 
I'm tired of such evasions. If you deserve pro- 
tection, you shall have it ; if not, you must ac- 
cept the consequences of the calamity you have 
aided in bringing upon your own head.' 

" I heard a good story told of a joke played 
off by a secession wag, a short time since, upon 
General Negley. A whiskey-drinking, facetious 
joker, residing in the town of Gooletsville, a 
strong secesh hole, in which there never was but 
one Union man, and he died. Well, this wag 
wagered a gallon of whiskey that he could go 
into Nashville, and go all over the city, notwith- 
standing the strictness of General Negley's or- 
ders ; further, that he would see Negley person- 
ally, and talk with him. The bet was taken, and 
this fellow, whose name is Paul, well known 
in Nashville as a violent secessionist, the next 
day took a flag of truce, rode into the city, saw 
crowds of his friends, rode up to the headquar- 
ters of General Negley, and demanded the sur- 
render of the city, stating that he was Assistant 
Adjutant Paul, and that there was an immense 
quantity of troops ready to enforce the demand. 
General Negley refused to entertain the thought 
of a surrender, and Paul returned to Goolets- 
ville, having icon Jiis bet. 

" General Negley found it out when too late. 
It wouldn't do to try that game again in Nash- 
ville." 

Anecdote of President Lincoln. — Some 
one was smoking in the presence of the President, 
and complimented him on having no vices, neither 
drinking nor smoking. " That is a doubtful com- 
pliment," answered the President. " I recollect 
once being outside a stage in Illinois, and a man 
sitting by me offered me a cigar. I told him I 
had no vices. He said nothing, smoked for some 
time, and then grunted out, " It's my experience 
that folks who have no vices have plaguy few 
virtues." 

A Soldier's Last Letter. — John Moseley, 
a youth who fell at Gettysburg on the Southern 
side, wrote the following touching but manly let- 
ter, from his death-bed, to his parents in Ala- 
bama: 

"Battle-Field, GETTYSBuno, July 4, 1803. 

" Dear Mother : I am here a prisoner of 
war, and mortally wounded. I can live but 
a few hours, at farthest. I was shot fifty yards 
from the enemy's line. They have been exceed- 
ingly kind to me. I have no doubt as to the final 
result of this battle, and I hope I may live long 
enough to hear the shouts of victory before I 
die. I am very weak. Do not mourn my loss. 
I had hoped to have been spared ; but a righteous 
God has ordered it otherwise, and I feel prepared 
to trust my case in his hands. Farewell to you 
all! Pray that God may receive my soul. 

" Your unfortunate son, John." 



An Incident of Antietam. — One of the cor- 
respondents who was with the division of Gen- 
eral Sturgis at the battle of Antietam gives the 
following account of the part taken by that di- 
vision in the contest : 

" Our division, under General Sturgis, were on 
the extreme left, and were not placed in line until 
about five o'clock P. M., when a double-quick 
movement took place, and the whole division 
started like Bengal tigers let loose for prey. 
They ran through a galling fire of shot and shell 
until they were within reach of the enemy's 
musketry, when a heavy fire opened on us, which 
General Nagle (commanding our brigade) saw at 
once would decimate the brigade, and so the 
order came to charge bayonets. Promptly the 
glistening steel was placed in position ; and here 
one of the most brilliant bayonet charges took 
place that has been seen during the war. The 
brigade had to charge up hill, over stone walls 
and other obstructions, and met the enemy at 
great disadvantage. The Massachusetts Thirty- 
fifth regiment was put in order of battle, and did 
great execution at the fii'st onset. In General 
Nagle's brigade and Sturgis' division was also 
the Ninth regiment New Hampshire volunteers, 
Colonel Fellows, one of the most experienced 
Colonels in the army. It was a handsome sight 
to see him put his regiment into action. When 
the clear, sonorous order came from Colonel Fel- 
lows, * Charge bayonets ! ' every eye gleamed in 
the * Bloody Ninth,' as the brigade now call the 
regiment. Every man threw away his knapsack, 
blanket, and haversack, and leaped over a stone 
wall six feet high with a yell that fairly sent terror 
through the rebel ranks opposite. With eyes 
gleaming with joy and determination, and every 
bayonet fixed, they charged up the hill and 
through the cornfield at double-quick M'ith a yell 
of perfect triumph. Colonel Fellows and Lieu- 
tenant-Colonel Titus astonished the old veterans 
in the service by the manner in which they 
brought the Ninth New Hampshire volunteers 
into the action. It was a grand and magnificent 
sight, and one seldom seen in battle. The rebels 
fled before them, and every rebel regiment broke 
and ran. General Keno fell beside the Ninth 
New Hampshire volunteers and the Thirty-fifth 
Massachusetts about dark, just in the moment 
of victory." 



An Impressive Scene. — A most interesting 
and eloquent episode occurred at Trinity Church, 
Wasliington, in May, 1861. The rector, Rev. Dr. 
Butler, began his sermon with the remark that 
the discourse he was about to deliver was preached 
by himself here twelve years ago, and he should 
repeat it verbatim. It was a lucid and efi"ective ar- 
gument to prove that the popular idea of govern- 
ment among us is held in a too loose and secular 
estimation ; while the fact is, that, however care- 
lessly we may regard it, as merely a contract with 
ministerial agents, and however inadequate our 
respect for law and constituted authorities, it is a 
divine institution. 

The peroration was powerful. Said the rever- 



458 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



end gentleman : " Twelve years ago, after I had 
finished this course, I met the lamented Daniel 
Webster just outside the church. He said to me, 
' Sir, you are right ; it is the true doctrine.' In 
this view, my brethren, I see in the awakened 
strength of the Government the glittering sword 
of almighty vengeance susjjended over its ene- 
mies. In this view alone do I descry the only 
hope for my glorious, my beloved country ; " and, 
at these words, the tears streaming down the 
preacher's face, in a voice choked with inexpres- 
sible emotion, he raised his eyes towards Heaven, 
and, hesitating to receive utterance, he concluded, 
in faltering, though articulate, tones, " Esto per- 
petua." The efl'cct was electrical ; all eyes were 
suffused with tears, and the quiet of the sanctuary 
was broken dnly by sobs and weeping. 



Incidents of Beaufoet. — A soldier, who was 
present at the capture of Beaufort, South Caro- 
lina, relates the following : 

" A black fellow was reported to our Colonel, 
and taken to general headquarters. He was very 
communicative. ' Massa,' he inquired, ' is Abe 
Lincoln here ? ' He seemed at fault when in- 
formed he had not come. It seems he was pres- 
ent during the bombardment, and nearer than he 
liked to be. ' What did it look like ? ' asked Col- 
onel L. ' It looked as if de fire and brimstone 
was comin' down, and de yearth was agwine up.' 
The sand that fiew as every discharge came down 
filled the description ])erfectly. 

" One of these negroes reports that when Major 
Lee, the Confederate commander, finished the 
fort, he said, profanely, ' The devil couldn't take 
it — God Almighty himself couldn't take it.' On 
the day of the battle, when his black body servant 
got out his horse for him, and saw him mounted, 
and they both ran together for their lives to get 
out of range of the merciless storm of shot and 
shell falHng around them, the negro said, ' O mas- 
sa, God Almighty come, and de Yankees come 
wid him,' — seeming to imply that such a union 
of forces had not been contemplated when his 
master had concluded upon the impregnability of 
his fortifications." 

A Brave Woman. — INIrs. John F. Phelps is 
the wife of the Colonel of a loyal Missouri regi- 
ment, and resided at a point about one mile and 
a half from Springfield. On the afternoon after 
the battle of Wilson's Creek, it was noised that 
the rebels had determined to cut out the heart of 
General Lyon, and preserve it as a trophy over 
the United States army. Mrs. Phelps, learning 
of this outrage on the slain General, armed her- 
self, as she was accustomed to do for some time, 
in order to preserve licr life and the lives of her 
family from the murderous assaults of the se- 
cessionists. Thus armed, she drove to Price's 
camp by nightfall, and there, all alone, guarded 
the body of General Lyon. When ordered by 
the rebels to give up the body, she positively re- 
fused, and declared they must cut out her heart 



before they could get the heart of the General. 
There, all alone, she stood guard during the whole 
night, with her arms in readiness to defend her 
charge, regardless of her own life, — thus fear- 
lessly passing the dreary night amidst the associ- 
ations of the dead, the wounded, and the blood- 
thirsty men who were awaiting an opportunity to 
obtain the coveted heart of the noble Lyon. 

After daylight, having made arrangements in 
reference to her precious charge, she repaired to 
her home, and sent a colored servant with a wagon 
and two horses to bring the remains of General 
Lyon to her residence, in order to burial in her 
garden or on her farm, with all the respect in 
her power towards the commander of the Icyal 
army. But as the wagon had not returned in due 
time, she drove again to Price's camp, found 
her wagon had been seized for the use of the 
rebel army, and her servant confined in it and 
gagged. As the horses had been unhitched from 
the wagon, with her own hands she again hitched 
them. When resistance was again offered to her 
course she fearlessly declared she would deal 
death with her revolver to any one who molested 
her. About the time she had released the ser- 
vant, and got her precious treasure in the wagon, 
resistance was again threatened. She then pressed 
her way to the presence of General Price, who, 
at her pressing instance, ordered her to have the 
body of the slain General, without further inter- 
ruption. 

Having thus obtained her cherished object, 
more dear to her than life, she accompanied it to 
her residence, and there interred it in the best 
manner she could. And all this v;as done in the 
absence of her loyal husband, who, in consequence 
of his duties as Colonel, could not be present to 
accompany his noble wife in performing this work 
of loyalty and humanity. 



A Contraband's Description. — A letter 
from a soldier at Newport News relates the fol- 
lowing incident, giving a slave woraan'3 account 
of the capture of the rebel batteries on General 
McCleilan's advance upon Yorktown : '• The at- 
tack on the batteries cannot be better described 
than in the words of an old contraband whom I 
fell in with, Avhile on a scout to Young's IMills, 
the day after its capture. She was secesh, and 
took us to belong to the same race. On asking 
her if there was much fighting at tlie battery, she 
replied : ' Why, lordy, you won't blebe me, massa, 
but de Yankee he fu-e jes one round, den com- 
mence hollering like de debbel, and frew rite ober 
de breastworks ; but dey couldn't lietch our folks 
(secesh), dey run so fast.' The nii^ger explained 
in thirty-seven words what a * special correspond- 
ent' would have found impossible, probably, in 
half a column." 

Secession Catechised. — Colonel Tom Ford, 
of the Thirty-second Ohio regiment, while at New 
Creek, Virginia, in June, 1862, cj.gaged in conver- 
sation with an old resident, who had taken a seat 
on the bench beside him. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



459 



" Have you lived long about here ? " iuquired 
the Colonel. 

" Yes," said the old man, " I have lived in this 
(Hampshire) county all my life." 

" I suppose, then," said the Colonel, " you know 
all about how secession commenced here, .who 
commenced it, and how it has been carried on." 

" Yes," again said the old man, " and I will tell 
you how I tried to expose it at the start to the 
people. My opinion did not pass for much 
at the time, as I owned no big farm nor any 
niggers, but I think it would pass for something 
now." 

" Well, how was it? " inquired the Colonel. 

" Colonel Parsons Avas one of the main getters 
up of it. He advertised to make a speech over 
in Romney, after the ordinance jsassed, and I and 
several of my neighbors went over to hear him 
speak. Just as he was about to commence, I took 
the liberty, as I was an old acquaintance of the 
Colonel's, to ask him a question. So I said : ' Col- 
onel Parsons, we have come over here to-night to 
hear you make your speech in favor of secession ; 
and before you begin, I want you to tell me and 
my friends here one thing.' ' What is it ? ' said 
the Colonel. ' Why, I want you to make a speech 
to-night, without ever mentioning the nigger once. 
Me and my friends, who own no niggers, want to 
know why we should be secessionists. Will you 
please tell us. Colonel, why men who own no nig- 
gers should be secessionists ? ' 

" Well, what did Colonel Parsons say?" asked 
Colonel Ford of the old man. 

"Why, he came the nearest to saying noth- 
ing that ever I saw," said the old man. " At 
last he said that he wouldn't speak on such 
terms ; that he was going to speak on the whole 
subject." 

" Well, what did you say then ? " asked Colonel 
Ford. 

" I said," continued the old man, " ' Now, Col- 
onel Parsons, you know that aside from the nig- 
ger there is nothing in this secession; and you 
ought to know that all the slaves that now live in 
the country, live in the slave States, and that you 
will not increase their number a single one by se- 
cession, but on the contrary that you will bring 
about the escape of hundreds of them, before 
you get through with the job you are under- 
taking ! ' " 

" Well, how did Colonel Parsons take your 
talk ? " asked Colonel Ford. 

" Why," said he, " he got mad, like all the se- 
cessionists did in those days, when Union men 
opposed them — told me 1 was an aboHtionist, 
and that the South was going to have her rights. 
And now, hasn't it come out as I told Colonel 
Parsons ? '" asked the old man. " Hasn't the South 
lost more niggers since this war commenced than 
she ever lest in the whole time before ? and isn't 
she in a fair way to lose them all ? And here," 
said he, " we jieople who have always lived by our 
own work have had to bear the ruin that these 
pride-swelled nigger aristocrats have brought upon 
us. I have had to bear it, and my Union friends 
M'ho were with me that nisht have had to bear it. 



And all for what ? AVhy, because these nigger- 
owners wanted to break up a government in which 
people like me, who owned no niggers, and had to 
work for a living, were on an equality with them. 
I tell you," continued the old man, " I owe 
them nothing but curses and war, and they are 
getting plenty of the first now, from hundreds of 
their miserable dupes around here, and plenty of 
the other from the Federal Government." 

Colonel Ford, getting up and taking the old 
man by the hand, said that he had to acknowledge 
that much as he had heard against secession, he 
had never heard it as completely and strongly ex- 
pressed in so few words before. 



Picket Conveksation. — In the summer of 
1862, the national pickets at the Mechanicsville 
Bridge, Virginia, had a conversation with the rebel 
pickets, and under a newspaper flag of truce, ex- 
changed the Baltimore Clipper for the Richmond 
Examiner. The colloquy was substantially as fol- 
lows : 

Eebel. (Waving his hat.) Three cheers for 
General Jackson ! 

Union Soldier. (Also waving his hat.) Tln-ee 
cheers for Burnside ! 

[It had been ascertained that the rebels were 
North Carolinians.] 

Behel. Have you any Baltimore Clippers? 

Union. Ye-as ; do you wish to swap ? 

Rebel. How'll yer trade fur the Examiner ? 

Union. Even, and you do the toting. 

Eebel. Come over yer, all on yer ! 

Union. I'll come half way. 

[Meanwhile both parties had dropped their 
guns, and with papers waving, passed down to 
the bridge.] 

Union. How do you like soldiering? 

Rebel. We've enHsted for life. 

Union. Then you don't expect to live long ? 

Rebel. You whipped us at Hanover, but yer 
wouldn't if O'Brien Branch wasn't drunk. We 
give you just the best flogging yer ever had tha' 
at Fair Oaks. Tuk one hundred yer guns, all yer 
amnition, and everything, and two thousand pris- 
oners. 

Union. And we drove you back to Paclnnond, 
and had to bury your dead. We whipped you 
awfully. 

Rebel. And General McClellan v.as wounded, 
and two of yer Generals killed. Yer all going 
back to Yorktown, ain't yer ? We are coming 
over your side to-morrow. 

Union. How many troops you got over there ? 

Rebel. Fifty thousand right yerabouts ! 

Union. How many had you at Fair Oaks ? 

Rebel. Yer had near two hundred thousand, 
and we but sixty thousand, but M'c whipped yer. 

The Unionist was less communicative than iir- 
qmsitive, but thinking it hardly proper to con- 
tinue the conversation, bade the rebel good day, 
and retraced his steps. But the rebel still kept his 
place, notwithstanding he M'as requested to face 
back, until a bullet and a flash, and quick report, 
suddenly hastened his steps. 



460 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



BROTHER JONATHAN'S LAMENT FOR 
SISTER CAROLINE.* 

BY OLIVER WENDELL HOLMES. 

She has gone, — she has left us in passion and 

pride, — 
Our stormy-browed sister, so long at our side ! 
She has torn her own star from our firmament's 

glow. 
And turned on her brother the face of a foe ! 

O Caroline, Caroline, child of the sun, 

We can never forget that our hearts have been 

one, — 
Our foreheads both sprinkled in Liberty's name, 
From the foimtain of blood with the finger of flame ! 

You were always too ready to fire at a touch ; 

But we said, " She is hasty, — she does not mean 
much." 

We have scowled when you uttered some turbulent 
threat ; 

But Friendship still whispered, "Forgive and for- 
get ! " 

Has our love all died out ? Have its altars grown 
cold? 

Has the curse come at last which the fathers fore- 
told? 

Then Nature must teach us the strength of the chain 

That her petulant children would sever in vain. 

They may fight till the buzzards are gorged with 

their spoil, 
Till the harvest grows black as it rots in the soil, 
Till the wolves and the catamounts troop from their 

caves, 
And the shark tracks the pirate, the lord of the 

waves. 

In vain is the strife ! When its fury is past, 
Their fortimes must flow in one channel at last, 
As the torrents that rush from the mountains of 

snow 
Roll mingled in peace through the valleys below. 

Our Union is river, lake, ocean, and sky : 

Man breaks not the medal when God cuts the die ! 

Though darkened with sulphur, though cloven with 

steel. 
The blue arch will brighten, the waters will heal ! 

O Caroline, Caroline, child of the sun, 
There are battles with Fate that can never be won ! 
The star-flowering banner must never be furled, 
For its blossoms of light are the hope of the world ! 

Go, then, our rash sister ! afar and aloof, — 
Run wild in the sunshine, away fi-om our roof; 
But when j'our heart aches and your feet have 

grown sore, 
Remember the pathway that leads to our door ! 



Hekoism of a Boy. — The following very in- 
teresting incident is related in connection with 
the attack by the United States gunboat Galena 

* Written upon the announcement of the passage 
of the " Ordinance of Secession," on the 20th of De- 
cember, 18G0, by the Convention of South Carolina, 
the first State which attempted to secede. 



upon Fort Darling : A youth, about thirteen j-ears 
old, who was in the service of Lieutenant Nau- 
man, as a messenger boy, seeing one of the pow- 
der boys wounded, immediately volunteered to 
take his place. The services of the young vol- 
unteer were accepted, and he set to work with a 
spirit to fill his new position, rendering great as- 
sistance to the officers and crew. The poor little 
fellow's career of glory was destined to be short- 
lived. Only a few hours later, while engaged in 
carrying a quantity of powder, a shell came tear- 
ing along, burst right over the boy, and killei 
him in an instant. The poor little fellow's suffer- 
ings were soon over ; but the sight was too much 
for many of the rough Jack Tars, down whose 
bronzed cheeks the big tears rolled in abundance. 
The boy's name was James Weber. 



Colonel Riker, of the Anderson Zouaves, 
was killed at the battle of Fair Oaks. He was 
shot in the right side, while turning around to 
cheer on his men, the ball coming out in front. 
Riker rode upon a white horse, and was a prom- 
inent figure for the enemy's marksmen. He had, 
previous to going into action, a presentiment that 
he was to meet his death. He gave to Lieutenant 
Bradley, his aid, some tokens of love for the 
friends at home, and went bravely into the fight. 
When the fatal shot was fired, he had just turned 
around to the Zouaves, who were hemmed in, and 
cried out, " Boys, we are sun-ounded — give them 
cold steel now." Suddenly dropping from his 
horse, the gallant spirit had fled foi-ever. 



An Incident op Mobile. — A letter writer re- 
lates the following recollections of the wounded at 
Mobile : " They all bore their* sufl'erings with the 
most unexampled heroism. One, a Captain from 
Wisconsin, shot through the back so that he could 
not be turned, and scarcely taken up on his bed, 
breathed only as he could catch a breath, while 
an attendant fanned him. I awoke during the 
night, and found the attendant, Aveary, had fallen 
asleep. I took the fan and sat by him. ' Thank 
you, you are kind ; it is so hot ; ' and he looked 
up, so heroic in his agony, and not one word of 
complaint. Arrived at New Orleans, where he 
could and would have been carefully and kindly 
cared for, he died, and his last words were : ' Tell 
the boys not to shrink, not to flinch. Fight on 
— it will soon be over.' Poor fellow ; young and 
brave, it is too soon over with thee ! 

" Another. Passing along through the cabin, 
the wounded stretched on each side of me, on mat- 
tresses ranged in rows on the floor, I saw — will 
you believe it ? — one man who had had his leg 
amputated but three days before, braced up 
with pillows and playing a violin, while a com- 
rade, with one of his arms shot off, was playing 
the castanets with the other. There's pluck for 
you." 

A Catholic Priest's War Speech. — The 
Sunday after President Lincoln's proclamation 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



461 



calling for seventy-five thousand troops, Father 
Creedon, the priest of the Catholic Church at 
Auburn, New York, preached a war sermon, as 
did other clergymen in Auburn. The other ser- 
mons were said to be up to the times, but Father 
Creedon's was conceded to be the most pertinent. 
He said, substantially : 

" I wish every man who can leave his family to 
enlist. This is the first country the Irishman ever 
had that he could call his own country. The flag 
of the Stars and Stripes is the only flag he can 
fight under and defend as his own flag. Now, 
in the time of the nation's peril, let every Irish- 
man show that he is worthy to be part of this 
great and glorious nation. Now, when the Amer- 
ican flag is bombarded and struck down by trai- 
tors, let every Irishman show that he is true to 
the flag which always protects him. I wish every 
Irishman Avho hears me to enlist if he can. There 
are two classes whom I most despise — cowards 
and traitors ; and those who can enlist, and do 
not, are either one or the other." 



The Charge at Antietam Bridge. — There 
have been many deeds of heroism recounted of 
the troops engaged in the battle of Antietam ; 
but those of the Second Maryland infantry have 
been overlooked, though equal to any achieved 
by theu' fathers in the Revolution. 

The Second Maryland was the heroic regi- 
ment of that bloody field, so prolific in heroes. 
It belonged to the corps of the gallant Burnside, 
had been with them at Newbern, and now the 
duty of storming the Ute du pont, at Antietam 
Creek, had devolved upon it ; and never did vet- 
erans move forward with steadier step to a more 
perilous enterprise, or one in which the chances of 
surviving it were so fearfully few. All the bluster, 
bravado, and recklessness, supposed to be the 
distinguishing characteristics of Venfant ]yerdu 
of Baltimore had given place to a sober and sol- 
emn gravity, in keei)ing with the awful struggle 
that was impending. There was no noise, no 
cheering in the ranks ; but, on the other hand, 
there was no wavering or faltering, as they moved 
sternly and silently forward into the conflict. The 
measured and heavy tread of the battalion, fall- 
ing in dull cadence on the ear, was the only 
sound audible as it entered the head of the bridge. 
Suddenly the enemy's cannon opened at short 
range, pouring upon it a tempest of round shot 
and shell, sweeping away whole files, and plough- 
ing bloody furrows through the ranks. But it 
faltered not. At the sharp, short order of the 
officers, " Close up, boys," the bloody gaps were 
filled, and the heroic battalion pressed on. Stan- 
dard-bearer after standard-bearer went down be- 
fore the iron hurricane ; hut scarcely was he down 
when the standard, wrenched from his dying grasp, 
was borne aloft by his nearest comrade in the 
strife. 

The way over the bridge was filled with 
corpses. Most of the officers had fallen. Cap- 
tain Wilson, of a family that had sent five broth- 
ers to the war, for the moment commanding the 



regiment, had gone down, pierced through the 
middle of his forehead by a minie ball. Captain 
Martin, succeeding him, fell mortally wounded ; 
but there was no check, no faltering or sign of 
confusion or hesitation. With their heads bent, 
their shoulders a little forward, at the charge 
step, they moved steadily on, until the bridge 
was cleared, and the way opened to the regiments 
in the rear. It was only when the bridge was 
won, and room obtained to deploy the column, 
that the old, lusty Maryland cheer which more 
than eighty years before had been heard at Bran- 
dywine, at Guilford and Eutaw, rang out on the 
sulphureous air of that dread September day, 
attesting that those who sent it were the legiti- 
mate sons of sires who had fought for freedom, 
and won immortal fame under Howard and Wil- 
liams. They are no more forever the despised 
" Plug Uglies " of Baltimore, but a *' new Mary- 
land line," indomitable as the " old," baptized 
anew in fire and blood, which has washed away 
all former transgressions. 

A great thing had been done by these daring 
men — a second bridge of Lodi had been carried ; 
but no Napoleon was there to take advantage of 
the brave and glorious deed. It will, neverthe- 
less, live in history as a deed of pride and glory, 
achieved by the soldiers of noble old Maryland, 
in a war to put down treason, in which every art 
had been used by the traitors to induce her to 
take a part. 

War Spirit of a Soldier. — It was imme- 
diately after the battle of the Hatchie. The dead 
in that terrible conflict had been laid beneath the 
mould, while the wounded had been brought to the 
church-building, or placed in the spacious apart- 
ments of wealthy disloyalists of Bolivar. Among 
the number of unfortunates was William C. Now- 
lon, a Sergeant in company G, of the Third Iowa 
infantry. His leg has been so badly shattered 
and torn by a musket shot as to render an ampu- 
tation unavoidable. He was informed of such a 
necessity ; but not a murmur or word of com- 
plaint escaped his lips ; nor did the intelligence 
seem to cast over his face the least perceptible 
shade of seriousness. The table was prepared — 
the instruments were placed conveniently, and 
everything was put in readiness for the opera- 
tion. He was brought out upon the veranda, 
and placed upon the table — his poor, shattered, 
torn, and half fleshless leg dangling around as if 
only an extraneous and senseless appendage. 
There was no sighing, no flinching, no drawing 
back or holding in. There was not a simple feel- 
ing of dumb resignation, nor yet of brute indif- 
ference, but a soldierly submission — an heroic 
submission, without a question or a si^h. He in- 
dulged freely in conversation respecting the op- 
eration, until the chloroform was applied. From 
the waking and rational state he glided into the 
anaesthetic without the convulsive motion of a 
single muscle, and without the utterance of a 
single incoherent sentence, but glided into it as 
the innocent and weary child glides into the sweet 
embrace of a healthful and restoring sleep. The 



462 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



operation was perfoi-med ; the arteries all liga- 
tured, the stump cleansed, and the last suture 
just in that instant applied. During the entire 
operation he had scarcely moved a muscle. 
Just at this time the large body of prisoners taken 
in the engagement were marched up the street, 
and were neariug the house where the maimed 
and bleeding soldier lay. The streets were all 
thronged by soldiery, and hundreds of them 
rushed to get a near sight of the vanquished, 
while they i-ent the heavens with their loud huz- 
zas. A full regiment preceded the column of 
prisoners ; and when just opposite, the band 
struck up in force the inspiring air of " Hail Co- 
lumbia." In a moment, u])on the very instant, 
the color mounted to his face ! He opened his 
eyes half wonderingly, and raised his head from 
, the pillow with the steadiness and dignity of a 
god! The scenes of the conflict came back to 
him, and he thought that his noble regiment Avas 
again breasting towards the enemy through a 
shower of shot and shell. His brave comrades, 
he deemed. Mere falling one by one around him, 
just as tliey had done in that dreadful hour of 
fratricide and carnage. The spirit of the time 
came over him, and his features assumed an air 
of bold, fierce, fiery, and unyielding determina- 
tion, and he broke forth into exclamations the 
most terrible and appalling I had ever listened to 
in all my life. 

" Louder with the music ! louder ! louder ! 
louder ! Burst the heavens with your strains ! 
Sweeter ! softer ! sweeter ! Charm the blessed 
angels from the very courts of heaven ! Victory ! 
victory ! Onward ! onward ! No flagging ! no 
flinching ! No faltermg ! Fill up ! fill up ! Step 
forward! press forward! Your comrades' graves! 
The fresh graves of your slain ! Remember the 
graves of your comrades ! Blue Mills ! Blue 
Mills! Shelbina! Shelbina! Hager Wood! 
Sliiloh ! Shiloh ! For God's sake, onward ! On- 
ward, in heaven's name ! onward ! onward ! on- 
ward ! See the devils waver! See them run! 
See ! see ! see them fly ! fly ! fly ! " 

During the outburst of passion, his countenance 
kindled and grew purple, till his look seemed 
that of diabolism ! Such a furj' marked his linea- 
ments that I instinctively drew back. But there 
was " method In his madness." He only erred 
in mistaking time, and in misplacing himself, and 
in misplacing his position ; facts which the martial 
music and the •' pomp and circumstance of war," 
in the public streets, would have a natural ten- 
dency towards producing. In the very middle 
of his fury he seemed suddenly to comprehend 
his mistake. He ceased abruptly, his whole 
frame in a tremor of emotion. He looked around 
upon the faces i)rescnt, and without a word, qui- 
etly laid dov/n his head. He grew meditative as 
he seemed to realize a full sense of his imhappy 
situation. At length his eyes gradually filled with 
tears, and hi.s lips grew slightly tremulous. He 
quietly remarked, " Well, boys, good ])y, good by ; 
I should do but sorry fighting on a wooden leg." 
He again relapsed into silence, and was shortly 
afterwards carried away to his room. 



Heroism of the Maine Seventh. — At the 
battle of Antietam, Captain J. AV. Walcott, of the 
First Maryland regiment, was stationed on a 
ridge near the bridge over the river. In front of 
him some hundred yards rose another ridge, 
along which ran a stone wall parallel with his po- 
sition. His pieces were trained obliquely, firing 
at objects ofl" one side from the last-named ridge. 
Meantime the enemy's sharpshooters crept up to 
the stone wall and opened fire on his gunners ; 
in a very few minutes one of his pieces was be- 
reft of all his men, and the regularity of the ser- 
vice of the others much impeded. Still he held 
his ground with the obstinacy that characterized 
all our troops on that eventful day. 

Just then, when he Avas thinking on the neces- 
sity for changing his line of fire, he saAV a battal- 
ion of some two hundred men, bearing regimental 
colors and the Stars and Stripes, moving laterally 
along the hollow intervening between him and 
the foe. 

They deployed rapidly, and went up the oppo- 
site hill, towards the stone wall, at a charge, with 
wild hurrahs. Suddenly the stone wall became 
alive with rebels ; it seemed as if a thousand trai- 
tors sprang from behind the cover of the wall, antl 
poured a devouring, deadly discharge full into 
the bosoms of the charging Union battalion. 
Half of the battalion fell on the spot, and the 
rest hurriedly retired before the pursuing rebels. 

Meantime Captain Walcott had turned his 
whole battery in that direction, and the single 
gun that had lost its men he manned with team- 
sters and others, and liimself took charge of it, 
aiming and firing. From all his pieces he now 
poured grape, canister, and shell Into the rebel 
column, while the enemy's sharpshooters from 
the stone wall still sent their messengers of death 
at his battery ; but under the fire from his pieces 
the enemy's column wavered ; it halted, it broke 
and fled. The shattered Union battalion in the 
valley had formed again, and now, with scarcely 
a hundred men, swept up the hill once more, 
drove the lingering foe from the stone wall, and 
sent volley after volley after the rebels, while the 
shells from Walcott's guns swept far beyond the 
ridge into the groves among which the traitors 
were retreating. 

The little Union battalion that thus so daringly 
mounted the hill a second time under cover of 
Walcott's fire, was the remnant of Colonel Mason's 
Seventh Maine regiment. 



The First Massachusetts Man in the 
War. — Colonel Edward W. Hinks, in a letter 
to the Editor of the Boston Journal, Novem- 
ber 17, 1865, malies the following statement : 
" The ])articulars given in the article headed ' The 
first Massachusetts man in the war,' which was 
copied from the Newburyport Herald into the 
Journal of this morning, are not strictly in ac- 
cordance with the focts ; and with your indulgence 
I will attempt — without detracting from the no- 
ble record of Captain Bartlett, who for a time 
served with credit under my command, and who 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



463 



gallantly yielded up his young life upon the 
bloody field of Antietam — to vindicate the truth 
of history. 

" On Monday, April 15, 1861, at quarter past 
two o'clock, in reply to an offer of my services 
made in the morning of that day, I received 
from Governor Andrew a verbal command to 
summon the companies of the Eighth regiment, 
by his authority, to rendezvous at Faneuil Hall 
at the earliest possible hour. Leaving Boston on 
the half past two o'clock train, I proceeded to Lynn, 
and personally notified the commanding officers of 
the two companies in that city, and from thence 
telegraphed to Captain Bartlett, at Newburyport, 
and Captain Centre, of Gloucester, and then 
drove to Beverly, and supimoned the company 
there, and from thence hastened to Marblehead, 
where I personally notified the commanding offi- 
cers of the three Marblehead companies. I found 
Captain Martin in his slaughter-house with the 
carcass of a hog just killed and in readiness for 
the ' scald.' On communicating to the Captain 
my orders, I advised him to immediately cause 
the bells of the town to be rung, and to get all 
the recruits he could. Taking his coat from a 
peg, he seemed for a moment to hesitate about 
leaving his business unfinished, and then turning 
to me, and exclaiming, ' Dom the hog,' put the 
garment on, with his arms yet stained with blood 
and his shirt sleeves but half rolled down, and 
with me left the premises to rally his company. 

" On Tuesday, April 16, I was directed to re- 
main on duty at Faneuil Hall, and during the 
forenoon the following named companies arrived 
there, and reported for duty, to wit : 

" 1. Companies C, Eighth regiment, forty 
muskets, Captain Knott V. Martin, and H, 
Eighth regiment, twenty-six guns. Captain 
Francis Boardman, both of Marblehead, which 
place they left at half past seven o'clock A. M., 
and arrived in Boston at about nine o'clock. 

" 2. Company D, Fourth regiment, thirty-two 
muskets. Sergeant H. F. Wales, of Randolph, 
left home at nine o'clock, and arrived at about 
ten A. M. 

" 3. Company B, Eighth regiment, forty mus- 
kets, Captain Richard Phillips, of Marblehead, left 
home at nine o'clock, and arrived in Faneuil Hall 
about eleven A. M. 

"4. Companies D, Eighth regiment, sixty-five 
muskets. Captain George F. NeM'hall, and F, 
Eighth regiment, seventy muskets. Captain James 
Hudson, both of Lynn, left home at quarter ])ast 
nine o'clock, and reached Faneuil Hall a little 
after eleven o'clock, accompanied by Lieutenant- 
Colonel Timothy Monroe, subsequently Colonel 
of the Eighth regiment. 

" At about twelve o'clock several companies, 
belonging to different regiments, arrived, at Fan-, 
euil Hall ; and among them was Company A, 
Eighth regiment, nineteen muskets. Captain A. 
W. Bartlett, of Newburyport, which company, as 
I then understood, and have since been informed, 
left Newburyport at about nine o'clock A. M., 
and I think that Company E, Eighth regiment. 
Captain Porter, of Beverly, arrived at about the 



same time, and tliat Company G, Captain Centre, 
of Gloucester, also arrived early in the afternoon 
of the same day. 

" The several companies of the Eighth regi- 
ment were recruited during Tuesday and "Wednes- 
day, April 16 and 17, to an average of about eighty 
men. 

" The above is substantially a true record, as 
will appear by reference to the files of the Jour- 
nal of that date, and is prompted only by a de- 
sire to do justice to Captain Martin and the 
patriotic men of Marblehead, who, on the out- 
break of the rebellion. Mere the first to leave 
home, the first to arrive in Boston, and subse- 
quently, under my command, the first to leave 
the yard of the Naval Academy of Annapolis, to 
seize the depot and railroad, and to repair and 
relay the track in the march through Maryland 
to reheve the beleaguered capital of the nation." 



The Hero of Corinth. — Private Orrin B. 
Gould, of company G, Twenty-seventh Ohio, was 
the hero of the battle of Corinth. The following 
letter to Governor Tod, from Colonel John W. 
Fuller, commanding the Oliio Brigade, embodies 
a history of young Gould's resplendent conduct. 



llE.VDQUARTERS, FlUST BllIGADK, SECOND 

Divisiox, Army ok the Missi.ssi 
Near Eipi.ey, Miss., Oct 



?ii'Pi, S 
. 9, lb6.?. > 



To the Governor of Ohio : 

Sir : I have the honor of forwarding to your 
Excellency the "Battle-Flag" of the Ninth Texas 
regiment, which was captured by a private of the 
Twenty- Seventh Ohio infantry, at the battle of 
Corinth, Oct. 4, 1862. 

The rebels, in four close columns, were press- 
ing with gallantry, amounting to recklessness, 
upon the Ohio brigade, with the evident intention 
of breaking our lines, M'hen the terrible and in- 
cessant fire of our men drove them back in the 
utmost confusion. 

The Sixth Texas bore down upon the left cen- 
tre of the 27th Ohio, with this flag at the head 
of their column, and advanced to within six or 
eight yards of our lines, when Orrin B. Gould, a 
private of company G, shot down the color- 
bearer, and rushed forward for the rebel flag. A 
rebel officer shouted to his men to " save the col- 
ors," and at the same moment put a bullet into 
the breast of Gould ; but the young hero was not 
to be intimidated. With the flagstaff in his 
hand and the bullet in his breast, he returned to 
his regiment, waving the former defiantly in the 
faces of the enemj^ 

After the battle, when visiting the hospitals, I 
found young Gould stretched upon a cot, evident- 
ly in great pain. Upon seeing me, his pale face 
was instantly radiant with smiles, and pointmg 
to his Avound, he said, " Colonel, 1 don't care for 
this, since I got their flag." 

I have the honor to be, your Excellency's obe- 
dient servant, John W. Fuller. 

Colonel Twenty-seventh Ohio, commanding 
First Brigade, Second Division. 

Hon. David Tod, Governor of Ohio. 



464 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



Ambiguity. — As the Seventeenth regiment 
of Massachusetts was marching through Acco- 
mac County, Va., with the Stars and Stripes float- 
ing above them, a wayside looker-on was heard to 
say — " I hope it will rain everywhere it goes." 
There was an instantaneous wish to immolate the 
author of so inclement an aspiration. They im- 
mediately took him to account for it, calling him 
a " secesh." "Thunder! no, I ain't," said he. 
" Didn't you say you hoped it might rain wher- 
ever it went ? " he was asked. " Yes, and so I 
do ; I want it to rule everywhere." They imme- 
diately let him go, as the fault was in the diction- 
ary, that made two words to sound alike. 



Anecdote of a Contraband. — A Captain in 
one of the jNIaine regiments at Port Royal had a 
colored servant named Tally, who talked very 
bravely when spoken to about joining the colored 
brigade. To test his courage, the Captain told 
him that he was about to visit the main land, and 
asked Tally if he would go with him and help 
fight the rebels. Tally, after scratching his head 
and rubbing his shins u few moments, replied, 
" Dun knovv^ 'bout dat, boss ; I'se ober on de main 
a short spell ago, an' trus' de Lord ter get me 
ober here, an' he dun it ; but I dun dare risk him 
again, boss." 

Brownlow passed a high eulogy on General 
Zollicoffer. Brownlow, who knew him intimately 
for twenty-five years, says : " He was a man who 
never wronged an individual out of a cent in his 
life ; never told a lie in his life ; as brave a man 
personally as Andrew Jackson ever was ; and the 
only mean thing I ever knew him to do was to 
join the Southern Confederacy." 



Worthy of Record. — A letter from an offi- 
cer who was with Burnside's expedition at the 
battle of Camden, North Carolina, says : 

" I met Colonel Robie, of Binghamton, dur- 
ing the battle, with his cap stuck on the back part 
of his head, looking the happiest man I ever saw. 
I remember meeting him as he was leading the 
centre of the regiment over a heavy ditch, with 
sword drawn, and hearing him speak to and en- 
courage the boys on. Just then a tremendous 
volley was poui'ed into the rebel nest. ' That's 
it ! — a good one ! ' he cried. They returned a 
perfect shower of grape and canister, tearing 
through and over us. Colonel Robie's counte- 
nance was beaming, and turning to the men, he 
called out, * Come on, my children, I'll die Avith 
you ! Press on, my boys ! Now is the time to 
show yourselves ! ' And as a rifled shell goes 
singing by his head, he cries, in his joy, * Ye 
gods ! isn't this a handsome fight ? ' " 



The Dying Patriot. — A correspondent men- 
tions the following incident of the bombardment 
of Fort Henry : 

" Of course the Essex was thenceforth unman- 



ageable, and slowly drifted down the main chan- 
nel, and was soon after met by a steamer, which 
towed her down to the place occupied by the 
boats before starting. The last ball took effect 
in the Essex about fifteen minutes before the rebel 
flag came down, and, consequently, she failed to 
be in at the death. One of the scalded men, 
being told by the physician, as they were drifting 
down, that he could not live, asked how the fight 
went on. ' They have surrendered,' was the re- 
ply. ' Glory to God ! ' said he, in a feeble voice, 
and at the same time trying to wave his hand. 
' Glory to God ! ' he rejieated ; * I can die now, 
and don't care ! ' In a few moments he was dead." 



An Incident of Kirksville. — When Col- 
onel McNeil's forces approached within cannon 
shot of the place, it was apparently deserted. 
Not a soul could be seen in the streets or about 
the place. This fact, together with the previous 
information received, that Porter had drawn up 
his men west of the town, convinced Colonel Mc- 
Neil that a trap had been set for him. He in- 
quired of Lieutenant-Colonel Shafl'er, of Merrill's 
itorse, if he would furnish a squad of ten volun- 
teers from his detachment to reconnoitre the 
town. The number at once came forward, and 
under command of a Lieutenant they approached 
the place, — at first at a moderate pace ; then, in- 
creasing in speed, they dashed boldly and directly 
into the town. No sooner had they come into 
musket range, than from every door and window, 
and from behind every fence, chimney, and build- 
ing upon the route, poured a fearful tornado of 
bullets. The leaden messengers of death whizzed 
around the heroic ten like falling hail. But on 
they went. Death had no ten-ors for them. In 
breathless anxiety the whole army gazed after 
them as they rapidly receded from sight, accom- 
panied by an incessant roar of guns. On they 
dashed through the principal streets of the town, 
straight through, coming out on the open ground 
on the west side ! 

Here they were beyond the range of the rebel 
rifles ; they were now, however, between the reb- 
els in the town and the rebels on the west. To 
return in safety, they must execute a wide circuit 
to the north or south. But did they choose this 
method? Nay. But turning southward one 
street, they plunged once more into the deadly 
storm — this time in a new street, where the rifles 
had not been unloaded during their first passage. 
Forward they went, following their brave leader, 
fearless and undaunted, straight through the 
street, back to the army. 

One killed, one wounded, and one horse killed, 
were the only injuries sustained. Nothing short 
of an almost direct interposition of Providence 
prevented the death of every rider and horse. A 
feat of more brilliant, heroic, and sublime daring 
has not marked the history of the war. 



Good for the Ague. — A Southern paper gave 
the following novel treatment for curing chills : 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



4C5 



" It is stated that a soldier of a Mississippi regi- 
ment at Pensacola went to his tent and blankets, 
the other day, to fight through an ague. A bottle 
of hot water to his feet not being convenient, 
some of his comrades went out and picked up one 
of the numerous shells Colonel Brown sent over 
during the bombardment, heated it at the fire, 
and put it to bed with the sick man's feet. Un- 
happily, the shell had lost its cap, but had not 
exploded. The heat of the camp fire accomplished 
Avhat Lincoln pyrotechny had failed in, to wit, 
an explosion. The tent was blown to pieces, and 
some of the men a little hurt and greatly 
astonished." 

Discipline. — A captain, in one of the 

regiments, who had been drinking quite freely, 
met a private of his company in the same condi- 
tion. The captain ordered him to " halt," and 
endeavoring in vain to assume a firm position on 
his feet, and to talk with dignified severity, ex- 
claimed, " Private Smith, I'll give you t'l (hie) 
four o'clock to gissober in." " Cap'n," replied 
the soldier, " as you're (hie) — sight drunkerniam, 
I'll give you t'l five o'clock, to gissober in." 



A Beautiful Ixcident. — There are bright 
spots in the darkness of war. Deeds of mercy 
by an enemy shed lustre on our common hu- 
manity. They have been commemorated in the 
heroic song of Homer, and have been eagerly 
caught and honored in every age by the human 
heart. 

The following was wTitten by a lady of Stock- 
bridge, Massachusetts, and commemorates an 
incident very touching and beautiful, which rests 
upon the best authority, and which ought to be 
known : 

" Colonel Mulligan refused his parole at Lex- 
ington, and his wife resolved to share his captivity. 
Accordingly she left her infant, fourteen months 
old, in the care of one of the strongest secession- 
ist women in the town. That woman assumed 
the charge of the little child, and dressed it in the 
captured American flag." 



Beauregard's Bells. — At East Boston, 
Massachusetts, on the 29th of July, 1862, four 
hundred and eighteen bells, sent to that place 
by Major-General Butler, were sold at public auc- 
tion. These bells were sent in to New Orleans 
by Southerners, in response to Beauregard's call 
for brass with which to fabricate cannon for use 
against Union men. When Butler captured New 
Orleans, these fell into his hands, and Boston be- 
came the recipient of the trophies. 

There were bells from church spires that had 
called the lords of the manor to Sabbath prayers; 
bells from plantation sheds that once summoned 
the sable bondmen to unrequited labor ; school 
bells, and steamboat bells, and factory bells, large 
and small ; many of them in the best order and 
of the finest tones. 

These four hundred bells bore upon them a 
30 



Southern tribute to Northern labor. There were 
no ancient bells, no bells of historic Avorth, no old 
Spanish or French relics — those the Southerners 
had kept, and contributed instead the products of 
Northern skill. With only a dozen exceptions, 
the bells had upon their rims or tops the names 
of Northern makers — of the Buckeye Works of 
Cincinnati, the Allaire Works of New York, of 
Fulton Foundery, Pittsburg, and of the founders 
of Troy, of Louisville, and other places. How 
suggestive is all this, and what an added interest 
it gives to the ])oet's words ! 

(), swing them merrily to and fro ; 
They'll not boom with a traitorous blow. 

Shaped into cannon, not one — they lie 
Eloquent tokens of victory. 

Sing out, O bells, on the summer wind ; 
Farragut's name with thy music twined. 

The Crescent slips from the serpent's hold, 
Though bound in many an angry fold. 

Oft ye have pealed for the bridal morn. 
Tolled for souls into mystery born, 

Roused, on plantation, master and slave ; 
Yet, ye were doomed, till won by \he Brave. 

O, ring ere long for the shout of peace ; 
Jubilant ring when this strife shall cease. 

Ring out Rebellion, dark as a pall ; 

Ring for Stars and Stripes floating o'er all. 

Laugh out on the Northern winds, I pray ; 
Peal out, for this is your marriage day. 

Wedded to Freedom, 'mid hills and dells, 
* Ye are no longer Beauregard's bells. 

Previous to the sale, i\Ir. N. A. Thompson, the 
auctioneer, made a most eloquent and patriotic 
speech, which was warmly applauded, showing 
how deeply in earnest the South were in this war, 
as was instanced in the bells before us, and calling 
for an equal earnestness on our part, if we would 
hope to preserve our country in its integrity. 



Christmas with the Slaves. — A letter 
writer at Port Royal, South Carolina, gives the 
following account of the M'ay in which the slaves 
kept the first Christmas after the Proclamation 
of Emancipation : 

" Christmas Eve was celebrated by the colored 
people at General Drayton's plantation. About 
half past eleven o'clock a bell was rung, and pre- 
cisely at twelve a pine fire was kindled in front 
of the cabin where the meeting was to be held. 
They called the festival a serenade to Jesus. One 
of the leaders, of which there were three, was 
dressed in a red coat with brass buttons, wearing 
white gloves. The females Avore tuAans made- of 
cotton handkerchiefs. All ages wei'e represented, 
from the child of one year to the old man of 
ninety. 

" The first exercise consisted in singing hymns 



466 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



and spii-itual songs, among which were those be- 
ginning, ' Salvation ! O, the joyful sound ; ' ' The 
voice of free grace ; ' ' Come, humble sinner, in 
whose breast ; ' ' O, poor sinner, can't stand de 
fire, can't stand de fire in dat great day ; ' and a 
Christmas song containing a medley of everything 
the fruitful mind of the leader could suggest, with 
the refrain, ' We'll wait till Jesus comes.' One of 
the leaders lined the hymns, and though none of 
them could read, it Avas remarkable with what 
correctness they gave the words. Their Scripture 
quotations were also correct and apjn'opriate, not 
only having the exact words, but naming the chap- 
ter and verse where they could be found. 

" After singing for some time, a prayer-meeting 
was held. The prayers were fervent and power- 
ful, and when an allusion would be made to the 
soldiers who had come from their distant homes, 
in the North country, to ' help and save de poor 
slave, and, like Jesus, bring dem good tidings of 
great joy,' a shout went up that sent its notes on 
the still night air to the distant pickets in the sur- 
rounding pines. When asked, as they could not 
read, how they could quote the Scriptures, they 
replied : * We have ears, massa, and when de 
preacher give out his texts, den we remembers 
and says dem over and over till we never forgets 
dem ; dat's de way, massa, we poor people learns 
de Word of God.' 

" The next exercise consisted of speaking and 
singing, at intervals. While one was speaking, 
another would take a blazing pine torch from the 
fire, and hold it up, so that all might see the 
speaker. At two o'clock, a recess was had, and 
all were invited to partake of coffee, which luxury 
they can now purchase Avithout any difficulty, as 
they have plenty of money, obtained of the sol- 
diers for vegetables and poultry. 

" After this came what they called the shout- 
ing exercise. It was introduced by the beating of 
time by three or four, with the feet. Soon the whole 
company formed into a circle, and commenced 
jumping and singing to the time and tune of 

' Say, brothers, will you meet me. 

Say, brothers, will you meet me. 

Say, brothers, will you meet me, 

On Canaan's happy shore ? ' 

This was continued until the most fertile imagi- 
nation was exhausted, embracing an invitation to 
sisters, soldiers, preachers, &c., to meet them on 
Canaan's happy shore. 

" Never did these poor slaves celebrate a Christ- 
mas Eve under such circumstances before. What- 
ever may be their future, they are now, ' to all 
intents, purposes, and constructions whatever,' 
free ; that they may ' choose it rather ' is beyond 
question more certain." 



Fighting Ministers. — The editor of a re- 
ligious newspaper says that a Louisiana clergy- 
man, writing over his own name, remarks : 

" 1 am one of five ministers, of three diff"erent 
denominations, in a single company, armed for the 
defence of our rights and liberties, three of whom 



are between fifty and sixty years old. And I tell 
you in candor, and in the fear of God, that if you 
or any of the brethren who have urged on this 
diabolical war, come on with the invading army, 
I would slay you with as hearty a good-will, and 
Avith as clear a conscience, as I would the mid- 
night assassin. 

" In the name of God, I conjure you, let us 
alone. I speak the spontaneous sentiment of 
every Southern heart — man, woman, and child. 
We will never submit. We will shed the last drop 
of blood in defence of our rights. You are my 
enemy, and I am yours." 



Incidents of Fort Donelson. — "On the 
two battle-grounds the scenes were fearful. The 
snow was so thoroughly saturated with blood, 
that it seemed like red mud as you walked around 
in it. Men writhing in agony, with their feet, 
arms, or legs torn off, many begging to be killed, 
and one poor fellow was delirious, who laughed 
hideously as he pointed to a mutilated stump, 
which an hour ago had been his arm. One old 
man, dressed in homespun, with hair white as 
snow, Avas sitting, moaning feebly, against a wall. 
A fragment of shell had struck him upon the 
head, bruising off his scalp as if detached from 
the skull by a knife, and causing it to hang sus- 
pended from the forehead over his face. In- 
stances of suffering were on every hand, and added 
to the revolting horrors of the two fields. A 
young Southern officer, Avho gave his name as 
Charles C. Seymour, of Memphis, Avas found on 
the side of a ravine. A ball had passed through 
his breast, and he had a finger upon the Avound, 
vainly endeavoring to stop the life which Avas 
issuing out. He gaA'e to one of us a little square 
block of dark Avood, set in a frame of gold, and 
requested it to be sent to his mother in Memphis. 
Some event long past, a hidden history perhaps, 
was connected Avith the strange memento." 



A Union Man. — During the combined expe- 
dition of General Sherman and Admiral Porter, 
up the SunfloAver River, Steele's Bayou, and the 
Black Bayou, Avhich failed in its purpose, Admiral 
Porter's guide was a negro, the same Avho caiTied 
the despatch to General Sherman thi-ough the 
rebel lines. When the national forces arrived in 
the midst of the rebel lines, a scouting party 
came suddenly upon a house Avhich belonged to 
the sheriff of the county from Avhom the negro 
had escaped. He ordered his old servant to get 
his horse, as the Yankees Avere coming. " Couldn't 
tink of it — Avouldn't do it for a tousand dollars. 
Ise a Union man, noAv, massa." The horse Avas 
not got, but the sheriff' was. 



The Missiles at Antietam. — Broken rail- 
road iron and blacksmiths' tools, hammers, chis- 
els, &c., Avere fired from rebel cannon. Some of 
these missiles made a peculiar noise, resembling 
"Avhich away, which away," by Avhich the na- 



■ \ 



ANECDOTES, TOETllY, AND INCIDENTS. 



467 



tional troops came to distinguish them from the 
regular shot and shell, and as they heard them 
approaching, would cry, " Turkey ! turkey com- 
ing ! " and fall flat to avoid them. An artille- 
rist, a German, when he saw the tools falling 
around him, exclaimed, " My Got ! we shall have 
the blacksmith's shop to come next ! " 



DIRGE 



FOE, ONE WHO FELL IN BATTLE. 

Room for a soldier ! lay him in the clover ; 

He loved the fields, and they shall be his cover ; 

Make his mound with hers who called him once her 
lover ; 
Where the rain may rain upon it, 
Where the sun may shine upon it, 
Where the lamb hath lain upon it, 
And the bee will dine upon it. 

Bear him to no dismal tomb under city churches ; 
Take him to the fragrant fields, by the silver 

birches, 
^Vhere the whip-poor-will will mourn, where the 
oriole perches ; 
Make his mound with sunshine on it, 
Where the bee will dine upon it. 
Where the lamb hath lain upon it, 
And the rain will rain upon it. 

Busy as the busy bee, his rest should be the clover ; 
Gentle as the lamb was he, and the fern should be 

his cover ; 
Fern and rosemary shall grow my soldier's pillow 
over ; 
Where the rain may rain upon it, 
Where the sun may shine upon it, 
Where the lamb hath lain upon it. 
And the bee will dine upon it. 

Sunshine in his heart, the rain would come full 

often 
Out of those tender eyes which ever more did 

soften ; 
He never could look cold till we saw him in his 
cofiin. 
Make his mound with sunshine on it, 
Where the wind may sigh upon it, 
Where the moon may stream upon it, 
And memory shall dream upon it. 

" Captain," or <' Colonel," — whatever invocation 
Suit our hymn the best, no matter for thy station, — 
On thy grave the rain shall fall from the eyes of a 
mightjr nation ! 
Long as the sun doth shine upon it 
Shall grow the goodly pine upon it, 
Long as the stars do gleam upon it 
Shall memory come to dream upon it. 



Incident of Deanesyille. — During a skir- 
mish near Dranesville, Virginia, Colonel Jackson, 
of the Ninth Pennsylvania regiment, left his negro 
servant in charge of his horse, while he advanced 
towards the enemy. Seeing two rebels, Avho had 
discharged thtir mtcsiiets, approaching him, the 



Ijoy drew his carbine and threatened to shoot them 
if they did not surrender at once. This they did, 
and marched before him to the camp. 



A Contraband Incident. — A correspond- 
ent, writing from Munfordville, Kentucky, gives 
the following : 

" While on the other side of the river my at- 
tention was attracted to a quiet group coming 
up the hill. First were two intelligent-looking 
contrabands, next a little ' go-cart,' drawn by a 
mule, in which was a female slave and about a 
dozen_ little negroes, carefully wrapped in sundry 
and divers coats. An Uncle Tom sort of a chap, 
with a Miss Dinah, brought up the rear. As 
they came by I addressed Tom : 

" ' Well, Uncle, where did your party come 
from ? ' 

" ' We's from de town, dar, sah.' 

" ' And where are you going ? ' 

" ' Gwine home, sah.' 

" ' Then you do not live in the village ? ' 

'" No ; we lib right ober yonder, 'bout a mile ; 
de secesh druv us from home.' 

" ' Ah ! well, now stop a minute, and tell me 
all about it.' 

" ' Dat I do, sure, massa. Jim [to the leader 
of the mule cart], you go on wid de wagon, an' 
I kotch you fore you gits home. Now, I tells you, 
massa, all about 'um. My massa am Union, an' 
so is all de niggers. Yesterday, massa wor 
away in de town, an' de firs' 'ting we know, 'long 
come two or free hundred ob dem seceshers, on 
horses, an' lookin' like cutfroats. Golly, but de 
gals wor scared. Jus' right back ob us wor de 
Union soldiers — God bless [reverentially], for 
dey keep de secesh from killin' nigger. De gals 
know dat, an' when dey see de secesh comin' dey 
pitch de little nigger in de go-cart, an' den we all 
broke for de Union soldiers.' 

" ' So you are not afraid of the Union sol- 
diers ? ' 

" ' God bless you, massa, nebber. Nigger gets 
ahind dem Union soldiers, secesh nebber gets 
'um. Secesh steal nigger — Union man nebber 
steal 'um. Dat's a fac', massa.' 

"And, with a smile on his face, the clever old 
darky bade me good morning, and trotted on af- 
ter the go-cart." 

BoKDEE, Scouts. — Among the most active 
and daring of the Union scouts in the South- 
west were tour young men, known as the Nor- 
rises and Breedins. Acquainted with every cross- 
road and by-way, they scoured the country for a 
radius of seventy-nliles south and east of Fort 
Scott. Their very names were a terror to se- 
cession, and every plan that ingenuity could de- 
vise was resorted to to effect their destruction. 
At one time the younger Norris was wounded in 
a skii'mish, near Shanghai, in which six, out of a 
party of twelve, under Lieutentant Lewis, met 
with a similar fete while contending against tre- 
ble their number of the enemy. He was soon in 



468 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



the saddle again, however, and ready for the 
field. These men formerly lived in Golden 
Grove, Missouri, fifteen miles beyond Lamar, in 
the direction of Greenfield. The elder Breedin 
had a •wife and family living there ; and being 
anxious to visit them, he took with him a party 
of six well-armed and determined men, and went 
down. Their arrival in the settlement became 
known to some of his secession neighbors, and 
a plan was instantly set on foot to " take them 
in." On the third night, being apprehensive of 
an attack, they assembled at a house in the set- 
tlement, where, after making all necessary prepa- 
rations, they betook themselves to sleep. About 
two o'clock they were awakened by the approach 
cf the enemy, and quietly took their places be- 
hind the fence surrounding the house, ready to 
give the foe a warm reception. The secession 
force approached to within thirty yards, halted, 
and most of them dismounted for the attack. 
'• Now," said the Captain, " creep up cautiously, 
and when I fire the signal gun, make a rush for 
the house and surround it." Breedin and his 
comrades lay quietly in their corners until the 
enemy were within a few yards of them, when 
they delivered their fire with terrible effect, just 
as the secesh Captain was about to fire his " sig- 
nal gun." A prisoner, whom the attacking party 
had with them, shouted as he heard the discharge, 
" Gentlemen, there's a good many signal guns 
there." For a few minutes the skirmish was a 
hot one, when four of the men, having emptied 
all their rifles and pistols, and fearing that they 
might be surrounded, retired past the house into 
the timber, and made their way to Fort Scott, on 
foot, leaving Breedin, Carpenter, and Jones still 
at the fence fighting. Jones had nothing but a 
musket, but he made every shot tell. Carpen- 
ter, a boy of eighteen or nineteen years, had left 
his revolver in the house. After firing his 
Sharpe's rifle, he threw it down, ran into the 
house, got his revolver, and coolly closing the 
door after him, returned to his post at the fence. 
Astonished at the telling and rapid fii-e from the 
fence, the enemy became panic-stricken, and 
rushing to their horses with loud cries of " We're 
whipped," " We can't stand the minies," &c., fled 
in utter confusion on the Greenfield road, leaving 
two dead and six Avounded — two of whom after- 
wards died on the field. They continued their 
tiight about three miles, when the Captain suc- 
ceeded in stopping a few of them ; but the bark- 
ing of some dogs started them again, and no 
more halts were made until they reached Green- 
field. A messenger was immediately sent to 
Price for a regiment of troops to come and 
drive Breedin out of the country. 

Eight horses were left by the enemy in their 
flight ; these Avere captured by Breedin and his 
companions, and after scouring the country two 
iliiys longer, they returned to Fort Scott, bring- 
ing two prisoners, the eight secession horses, and 
the horses left by their own party. The distance 
is about seventy miles. The secession party, by 
their own account, numbered not less than one 
hundred and thirty men. 



WHAT ARE TRUMPS? 

BY JAMES R. UANDALl.* 

Not Diamonds ! treason breaks bedight 
Beyond their leprosy of light, 
And all that's chivalric and fair 
Is gorgoned by their stony glare. 
Not Diamonds ! for the glut of gain 
Is but the Diamond's frosty brain. 
Bespread in golden beads of rain. 
Kentucky feels the golden g-ust enow ; 
It galleth her bewildered brow. 
!My Maryland ! ah, where art thou ? 
No ! Freedom is not won with them. 
Dow7i, Diamond ! down, perfidious gem ! 

Not Hearts ! — let's keep our Hearts at home ; 

They'll wreck us 'mid the battle-foam. 

We want no Hearts to marshal forth 

Against the Vikings of the North. 

No ! we will make reA'erberate 

The death- dirge of the fools of Fate. 

Hearts, ye have ever thugged and swirled 

The hurly-burlies of the world ! 

If Sherman comes to cut our throats, 

AVhat then ? Whj', send his horses oats ! 

Pooh, pooh ! he did not couch the blow 

Which laid poor Beaufort sacked below. 

The darkies did it all ; just so ! 

If Grant swoops down o'er Belmont plain, 

And cumbers bluff and wood with slain, — 

Good fellow ! Swill him with champagne ! 

Hearts, ye would gild the robber's bier I 

Down ! down ! ye are betrayers here ! 

Not Spades ! we are but too expert 

In technicalities of dirt. 

Scarp, redan, bastion, and lunette 

But make our native valor fret. 

If Courage imps an eyrie pitch, 

Dear Courage, you must dig a ditch. 

With bloody signs the welkin's big — 

Portentous symbols ! we must dig ! 

Sangrado, M. D., famed in Seville, 

Dosed generations to the Devil. 

He killed, like any Pottowatomie, 

With tepid water and phlebotomy. 

He knew his shocking thaumaturgy 

Was death to laj'men and to clergy. 

But then the Doctor wrote, with travail, 

A tome, to prove, above all cavil, 

That his curriculum — his plan — 

Was Gilead's balm to damaged man ; 

And not by any hook or crook 

Would old Sangrado snub his book. 

O, " burn the books," and down mud-lumps ! 

We scoop our graves when Spades are trumps ! 

* Mr. Randall's poetry is too curiously phrased to 
please the lover of plain, pure English ; but his tribute 
to the King of Trumps — nay, the very Ace of all the 
Face Cards in the Pack of War — is so well-timed, and 
so full of sensible suggestions to the dirt-diggers, 
dillj'-dalliers, delayers, defensive policists, and do- 
nothing-ites of the West Point school, that we are glad 
to insert it in our Table. Price may be snubbed by 
tlie powers that be ; but the poets will immortalize him. 
He may be defeated ; but the people will love him, ex- 
alt him, honor him, and wear him forever in their 
heart of hearts, because he dared to do. — Southern 
paper. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



469 



Yes, Clubs ! One's inspiration jumps, 
And cuts a caper ! Clubs and trumps ! 
Di'monds will not appease the dead 
That shake beneath the brigand's tread, 
Under the sands of Hilton Head. 
Lo ! Carolina is ablaze ! 
Bold beauty ! loveliest of our days ! 
Her fruitful fields one scorching pyre — 
She's shrined the very Queen of Fire ! 
Hearts ! would ye give invaders tears ? 
Clubs are the Hearts for buccaneers. 
Spades ! would j'e nest them in the earth. 
Rotting the spring's emblossomed birth ? 
No ! let the buzzard kiss his kind, 
As they bloat in the nostrils of the wind ; 
Each corpse "a black flag," mightier far 
Than the rags that token the hell of war ! 

Lo ! for a trump to beat them all — 
A trump beyond a system's thrall. 
Advance, thou worthiest and best — 
Our grim old Scipio of the West ! 
Thou wast not suckled in the schools ; 
But thou canst conquer in spite of rules. 
'Gainst thee Red-Tape is all aglow ; 
But mark his legions ! how thej' go, 
Hounding the haunches of the foe ! 
With havoc still the clouds are dun 
That crouched o'er fallen Lexington ; 
Yet cleaves his ever-sheathless blade 
'Y"ond Osage and the Gasconade, 
Soon will the thunder of his bands 
Boom through the lusty prairie lands, 
Thick with the lightning of their brands. 
On, hero ! for the Southern heart 
Knows thee and loves thee as thou art ! 
Thou Trump of Trumps ! anointed thrice ! 
Our Sword and Buckler — Sterling Price! 



THE STORY OF ANTIETAM. 

By George W. Smalley. 

Battle-Field of Antietam, \ 
■Wednesday Evening, Sept. 17, 18(52. i 

Fierce and desperate battle between two hun- 
dred thousand men has raged since daylight, yet 
night closes on an uncertain field. It is the 
greatest fight since Waterloo, all over the field 
contested with an obstinacy equal even to W.jter- 
loo. If not wholly a victory to-night, I believe 
it is the prelude to a victory to-morrow. But 
what can be foretold of the future of a fight in 
which from five in the morning till seven at night 
tlie best troops of the continent have fought with- 
out decisive result.'* 

After the brilliant victory near Middletown, 
General McClellan pushed forward his army rap- 
idly, and reached Keedysville with three corps on 
Monday night. That march has already been de- 
scribed. On the day following the two armies 
faced each other idly until night. Artillery was 
busy at intervals, once in the morning opening 
with spirit, and continuing for half an hour with 
vigor, till the rebel battery, as usual, was si- 
lenced. 

McClellan was on the hill where Benjamin's 
battery was stationed, and found himself sudden- 
ly under a rather heavy fire. It was still uncer- 



tain whether the rebels were retreating or reen- 
forcing. Their batteries would remain in posi- 
tion in either case ; and as they had withdrawn 
nearly all their troops from view, there was only 
the doubtful indication of columns of dust to the 
rear. •* 

On the evening of Tuesday, Hooker was or- 
dered to cross the Antietam Creek with his corps, 
and, feeling the left of the enemy, to be ready to 
attack next morning. During the day of api)ar- 
ent inactivity, McClellan, it may be supposed, 
had been maturing his plan of battle, of which 
Hooker's movement was one development. 

The position on either side was peculiar. 
When Richardson advanced on Monday, he found 
the enemy deployed and displayed in force on a 
crescent-shaped ridge, the outline of which fol- 
lowed more or less exactly the course of Antie- 
tam Creek. Their lines Avere then forming, and 
the revelation of force in front of the ground 
which they really intended to hold, was probably 
meant to delay our attack until their arrange- 
ments to receive it were complete. 

During that day they kept their troops exposed, 
and did not move them even to avoid the artil- 
lery-fire, which must have been occasionally annoy- 
ing. Next morning the lines and columns which 
had darkened cornfields and hill-crests had been 
withdrawn. Broken and Avooded ground behind 
the sheltering hills concealed the rebel masses. 
What from our front looked like only a narrow 
summit fringed with Avoods was a broad table- 
land of forest and ravine ; cover for troops every- 
Avhere, noAvhere easy access for an enemy. The 
smoothly sloping surface in front and the sweep- 
ing crescent of sloAvly mingling lines Avas all a 
delusion. It Avas all a rebel stronghold beyond. 

Under the base of these hills runs the deep 
stream called Antietam Creek, fordable only at 
distant points. Three bridges cross it ; one on 
the HagerstoAvn road, one on the Sharpsburg 
pike, one to the left in a deep recess of steeply- 
falling hills. Hooker passed the first to reach 
the ford by Avhich he crossed, and it w"as held by 
Pleasanton Avith a reserve of cavalry during the 
battle. The second was close under the rebel 
centre, and no Avay important to yesterday's fight. 
At the third Burnside attacked, and finally crossed. 
Between the first and thii'd lay most of the battle- 
lines. They stretched four miles from right to 
left. 

Unaided attack in front was impossible. Mc- 
Clellan's forces lay behind low, disconnected 
ridges in front of the rebel summits, all, or nearly 
all, unwooded. They gave some cover for artil- 
leiy, and guns Avere therefore massed on the cen- 
tre. The enemy had the ShepherdstOAvn road, and 
the HagerstoAvn and Williampsort road, both 
open to him in rear for retreat. Along one or 
the other, if beaten, he must fly. This, among 
other reasons, determined, perhaps, the plan of 
battle Avhich McClellan finally resolved upon. 

The plan Avas generally as follows : Hooker 
Avas to cross on the right, establish himself on the 
enemy's left if possible, flanking his position, and 
to open the fight. Sumner, Franklin, and Mans- 



470 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



field were to send their forces also to the right, co- 
operating witli and sustaining Hooker's attack, 
■while advancing also nearer tlie centre. The 
heavy work in the centre was left mostly to the 
batteries, Porter massing his infantry supports in 
the hdllows. On the left, Burnside vras to carry 
the bridge already referred to, advancing then by 
a road which enters the pike at Sharpsburg, turn- 
ing at once the rebel Hank, and destroying his 
line of retreat. Porter and Sykes were held in 
reserve. It is obvious that the complete success 
of a plan contemplating widely divergent move- 
ments of separate corps, must largely depend on 
accurate timing — that the attacks should be sim- 
vdtaneous, and not successive. 

Hooker moved Tuesday afternoon at four, cross- 
ing the creek at a ford above the bridge and well 
to the right, without opposition. Fronting south- 
west, his hne advanced not quite on the rebel 
flank, but overlapping and threatening it. Turn- 
ing off from the road after passing the stream, he 
sent forward cavalry skirmishers straight into the 
woods and over the fields beyond. Rebel pick- 
ets withdrew slowly before them, firing scattering 
and harmless shots. Turning again to the left, 
the cavah-y went down on the rebel flank, coming 
suddenly close to a battery which met them Avith 
unexpected grape and canister. It being the na- 
ture of cavalry to retire before batteries, this com- 
pany loyally followed the law of its being, and 
came swiftly back, without pursuit. 

Artillery was sent to the front, infantry was 
rapidly deployed, and skirmishers went out in 
front and on either flank. The corps moved for- 
ward compactly. Hooker, as usual, reconnoitring 
in person. They came at last to an open grass- 
sown field enclosed on two sides Avith woods, pro- 
tected on the right by a hill, and entered through 
a cornfield in the rear. Skirmishers penetrating 
these woods were instantly met by rebel shots, 
but held their ground, and, as soon as supported, 
advanced and cleared the timber. Beyond, on 
the left and in front, volleys of musketry opened 
heavily, and a battle seemed to have begun a 
little sooner than it was expected. 

General Hooker formed his hues Avith precision 
and without hesitation. Rickett's division went 
into the woods on the left in force. Meade, with 
the Pennsylvania reserves, formed in the centre. 
Doubleday was sent out on the right, planting 
his guns on the hill, and opening at once on a 
rebel battery that began to enfilade the central 
line. It was already dark, and the rebel position 
could only be discovered by the flashes of their 
guns. They pushed forward boldly on the right, 
after losing ground on the other flank, but made 
no attempt to regain their hold on the woods. 
The fight flashed, and glimmered, and faded, and 
finally went out in the dark. 

Hooker had found out what he wanted to know. 
Vv'hen the firing ceased, the hostile lines lay close 
to each other — their pickets so near that six 
rebels were captured during the night. It was 
inevitable that the fight should recommence at 
daylight. Neither side had suffered considerable 
loss ; it was a skirmish, not a battle. " We are 



through for to-night, gentlemen," remarked the 
General ; " but to-morrow we fight the battle that 
will decide the fate of the republic." 

Not long after the firing ceased, it sprang up 
again on the left. General Hooker, who had 
taken his headquarters in a barn, which had 
been nearly the focus of the rebel artillery, was 
out at once. First came rapid and unusually 
frequent picket-shots, then several heavy volleys. 
The General listened a moment, and smiled grim- 
ly. " We have no troops there. The rebels are 
shooting each other. It is Fair Oaks over again.'' 
So everybody lay down again, but all the night 
through there were frequent alarms. 

McClellan had been informed of the night's 
work, and of the certainties awaiting the dawn. 
Sumner Avas ordered to move his corps at once, 
and Avas expected to be on the ground at daylight. 
From the extent of the rebel lines developed in 
the evening, it was plain that they had gathered 
their Avhole army behind the heights, and were 
waiting for the shock. 

The battle began Avith the dawn. Morning 
found both armies just as they had slept, almost 
close enough to look into each other's eyes. The 
left of Meade's reserves and the right of Ricketts' 
line became engaged at nearly the same moment, 
one Avith artillery, the other Avith infantry. A 
battery AA-as almost immediately pushed forAvard 
beyond the central Avoods, over a ploughed field, 
near the top of the slope where the cornfield be- 
gan. On this open field, in the corn beyond, and 
in the Avoods, which stretched forA\'ard into the 
broad fields, like a promontory into the ocean, 
v.cre the hardest and deadliest struggles of the 
day. 

For half an hour after the battle had groA\'n to 
its full strength, the line of fire SAvayed neither 
Avay. Hooker's men Avere fully up to their Avork. 
They saAV their General everyAvhere in front, never 
aAvay from the fire ; and all the troops believed in 
their commander, and fought with a Avill. Tavo 
thirds of them Avere the same men who, under 
McDoAvell, had broken at Manassas. 

The half hour passed ; the rebels began to give 
way a little — only a little ; but at the first indi- 
cation of a receding fire. Forward, was the Avord, 
and on Avent the line Avith a cheer and a rush. 
Back across the cornfield, leaving dead and 
Avounded behind them, over the fence, and across 
the road, and then back again into the dark woods, 
Avhich closed around them, went the retreating 
rebels. 

Meade and his Pennsylvanians folIoAved hard 
and fast — folloAved till they came Avithin easy 
range of the Avoods, among Avhich they saw their 
beaten enemy disappearing — foUoAved still, Avith 
another cheer, and flung themselves against the 
cover. 

But out of those gloomy woods came suddenly 
and heavily terrible volleys — volleys which smote, 
and bent, and broke in a moment that eager front, 
and hurled them SAviftly back for half the distance 
they had Avon. Not SAviftly, nor in panic, any far- 
ther. Closing up their shattered lines, they came 
slowly aAvay ; a regiment Avhere a brigade had 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



471 



been ; hardly a brigade where a whole division 
had been victorious. They had met at the woods 
the first volleys of musketry from fresh troops — 
had met them and returned them till their line 
had yielded and gone down before the weight of 
fire, and till their ammunition was exhausted. 

In ten minutes the fortune of the day seemed 
to have changed ; it was the rebels now who were 
advancing, pouring out of the woods in endless 
lines, sweeping thi'ough the cornfield from which 
their comrades had just fled. Hooker sent in his 
nearest brigade to meet them, but it could not do 
the work. He called for another. There was 
nothing close enough, unless he took it from his 
right. His right might be in danger if it Mas 
weakened ; but his centre was already threatened 
with annihilation. Not hesitating one moment, 
he sent to Doubleday, " Give me your best bri- 
gade instantly." 

The best brigade came down the hill to the 
right on the run, Avent llu'ough the timber in 
front, through a storm of shot and bursting shell, 
and crashing limbs, over the open field beyond, 
and straight into the cornfield, passing, as they 
went, the fragments of three brigades shattered by 
the rebel fire, and streaming to the rear. They 
passed by Hooker, whose eyes lighted as he saw 
these veteran troops, led by a soldier whom he 
knew he could trust. " I think they Avill hold 
it," he said. 

General Hartsufi" took his troops very steadily, 
but, now that they were under fire, not hurriedly, 
up the hill from which the cornfield begins to de- 
scend, and formed them on the crest. Not a man 
who was not in full view — not one who bent be- 
fore the storm. Firing at first in volleys, they 
fired then at will with wonderful rapidity and 
effect. The whole line crowned the hill, and 
stood out darkly against the sky, but lighted and 
shrouded ever in flame and smoke. They were 
the Twelfth and Thirteenth Massachusetts, and 
another regiment which I cannot remember — old 
troops all of them. 

There for half an hour they held the ridge, 
unyielding in purpose, exhaustless in courage. 
There were gaps in the line, but it nowhere bent. 
Their General was severely wounded early in the 
fight, but they fought on. Their supports did not 
come — they determined to win without them. 
They began to go down the hill and into the corn ; 
they did not stop to think that their ammunition 
was nearly gone ; they were there to win that 
field, and they won it. The rebel line for the 
second time fled through the corn and into the 
woods. I cannot tell how few of Hartsufi" 's bri- 
gade were left when the work was done ; but it 
was done. There was no more gallant, deter- 
mined, heroic fighting in all this desperate day. 
General Hartsuff is very severely wounded ; but 
I do not believe he counts his success too dearly 
purchased. 

The crisis of the fight at this point had arrived. 
Ricketts' division, vainly endeavoring to advance, 
and exhausted by the eflbrt, had fallen back. 
Part of Mansfield's corps was ordered in to their 
relief; but Mansfield's troops came back again 



and their General was mortally wounded. The 
left nevertheless was too extended to be turned, 
and too strong to be broken. Ricketts sent word 
he could not advance, but could hold his ground. 
Doul)leday had kept his guns at work on the 
right, and had finally silenced a rebel battery 
that for half an hour had poured in a galling en- 
filading fire along Hooker's central line. There 
were woods in front of Doubleday's hill which 
the rebels held, but so long as those guns pointed 
towards them they did not care to attack. 

With his left, then, able to take care of itself, 
with his right impregnable, with two brigades of 
Mansfield still fresh and coming rapidly up, and 
with his centre a second time victorious. General 
Hooker determined to advance. Orders were 
sent to Crawford and Gordon — the two ^Nlans- 
field brigades — to move forward at once, the bat- 
teries in the centre were ordered to advance ; the 
whole line was called on, and the General himself 
went forward. 

To the right of the cornfield and beyond it 
was a point of woods. Once carried aijd firmly 
held, it was the key of the position. Hooker de- 
termined to take it. He rode out in front of his 
farthest troops on a hill to examine the ground 
for a battery. At the top he dismounted and 
went forward on foot, completed his reconnois- 
sance, returned, and remounted. The musketry 
fire from the point of woods was all the while 
extremely hot. As he put his foot in the stirrup 
a fresh volley of rifle bullets came whizzing by. 
The tall, soldierly figure of the General, the white 
horse Avhich he rode, the elevated place where he 
was, all made him a most dangerously conspic- 
uous mark. So he had been all day, riding often 
withoiifc^ staff officer or an orderly near him, — 
all sent off on urgent duty, — visible everywhere on 
the field. The rebel bullets had followed him all 
day, but they had not hit him, and he w^ould not 
regard them. 

Remounting on this hill, he had not ridden 
five steps when he was struck in the foot by a 
ball. Three men were shot down at the same 
moment by his side. The air was alive with 
bullets. He kept on his horse a few minutes, 
though the wound was severe and excessively 
painful, and would not dismount till he had given 
his last order to advance. He was himself in the 
very front. Swaying unsteadily on his horse, he 
turned in his seat to look about him. " There is 
a regiment to the right. Order it forward ! Craw- 
ford and Gordon are coming up. Tell them to 
carry those woods and hold them — and it is our 
fight ! " 

It was found that the bullet had passed com- 
pletely through his foot. The surgeon, who ex- 
amined it on the spot, could give no opinion 
whether bones were broken ; but it was afterwards 
ascertained that though grazed they were not 
fractured. Of course the severity of the wound 
made it impossible for him to keep the field, 
which he believed already Avon, so far as it be- 
longed to him to Avin it. It Avas nine o'clock. 
The fight had been furious since five. A large 
part of his command was broken, but with his 



472 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



righi still untouched, and with Crawford's and 
Gordon's brigades just up, above all, with the 
advance of the whole central line, which the men 
had heard ordered with cheers, and with a regi- 
ment already on the edge of the woods he wanted, 
he might well leave the field, thinking the battle 
was won — that 7iis battle was won, for I am 
writing only about the attack on the rebel left. 

I see no reason why I should disguise my ad- 
miration of General Hooker's bravery and sol- 
dierly ability. Remaining nearly all the morning 
on the right, I could not help seeing the sagacity 
and promptness of his movements, how com- 
pletely his troops were kept in hand, how devot- 
edly they trusted him, how keen was his insight 
into the battle, how every opportunity was seized, 
and every reverse was checked and turned into 
another success. I say this the more unreservedly, 
because I have no personal relation whatever with 
him, never saw liim till the day before the fight, 
and don't like his politics or opinions in general. 
But what are politics in such a battle ? 

Sumner arrived just as Hooker was leaving, 
and assumed command. Crawford and Gordon 
had gone into the woods, and were holding them 
stoutly against heavy odds. As I rode over 
towards the left I met Sumner at the head of his 
column, advancing rapidly through the timber, 
opposite where Crawford was fighting. The vet- 
eran General was riding alone in the forest, far 
ahead of his leading brigade, his hat ofl', his gray 
hair, and beard, and mustache strangely con- 
trasting with the fire in his eyes and his mar- 
tial air, as he hurried on to where the bullets were 
thickest. 

Sedgwick's division was in advance, moving 
forward to support Crawford and Gordon.- Rebel 
reenforcements were approaching also, and the 
struggle for the roads was again to be renewed. 
Sumner sent forward two divisions — Richardson 
and French — on the left. Sedgwick, moving in 
column of divisions through the woods in reai', 
deployed and advanced in line over the cornfield. 
There was a broad interval between him and the 
nearest division, and he saw that if the rebel line 
were complete, his own division was in immediate 
danger of being flanked. But his orders were to 
advance, and those are the orders which a soldier 
— and Sedgwick is every inch a soldier — loves 
best to hear. 

To extend his own front as far as possible, he 
ordered the Thirty-fourth New York to move by 
the left flank. The manreuvre was attempted un- 
der a fire of the greatest intensity, and the regi- 
ment broke. At the same moment, the enemy, 
])orceiving their advantage, came round on that 
flank. Crawford was obliged to give way on the 
right, and iiis troops, pouring in confusion through 
the ranks of Sedgwick's advance brigade, threw 
it into disorder, and back on the second and third 
lines. The enemy advanced, their fire increasing. 

General Sedgwick was three times wounded, in 
the shoulder, leg, and wrist, but he persisted in 
remaining on the field so long as there was a 
chance of saving it. His yVdjutant-General, Major 
Sedgwick, bravely rallying and trying to re-form 



the troops, was shot through the body, the bullet 
lodging in the spine, and fell from his horse. Se- 
vere as the wound is, it is probably not mortal. 
Lieutenant Howe, of General Sedgwick's staff, 
endeavored vainly to rally the Thirty-fourth New 
York. They were badly cut up, and would not 
stand. Half their officers were killed or wounded, 
their colors shot to pieces, the color-sergeant killed, 
every one of the color-guard wounded. . Only 
thirty-two were afterwards got together. 

The Fifteenth Massachusetts went into action 
v\'ith seventeen officers and nearly six hundred 
men. Nine officers were killed or wounded, and 
some of the latter are prisoners. Captain Simons, 
Ca])tain Saunders of the sharpshooters. Lieuten- 
ant Derby, and Lieutenant Berry are killed. 
Captain Bartlett and Captain Jocelyn, Lieuten- 
ant Spurr, Lieutenant Gale, and Lieutenant Brad- 
ley are wounded. One hundred and thirty-four 
men were the only remains that could be collected 
of this splendid regiment. 

General Dana was wounded. General How- 
ard, who took command of the division after 
General Sedgwick was disabled, exerted himself 
to restore order ; but it could not be done there. 
General Sumner ordered the line to be re-formed. 
The test was too severe for volunteer troops under 
such a fire. Sumner himself attempted to arrest 
the disorder, but to little purpose. Lieutenant- 
Colonel Revere and Captain Audenried, of his 
staff', were wounded severely, but not dangerously. 
It was impossible to hold the position. General 
Sumner withdrew the divisiou to the rear, and 
once more the cornfield was abandoned to the 
enemy. 

French sent word he could hold his ground. 
Richardson, while gallantly leading a regiment 
under a heavy fire, was severely wounded in the 
shoulder. General Meagher was wounded at the 
head of his brigade. The loss in general officers 
was becoming frightful. 

At one o'clock affairs on the right had a gloomy 
look. Hooker's troops were greatly exhausted, 
and their General away from the field. Mans- 
field's were no better. Sumner's command had 
lost heavily, but two of his divisions were still 
comparatively fresh. Artillery was yet plaj-ing 
vigorously in front, though the ammunition of 
many of the batteries was entirely exhausted, 
and they had been compelled to retire. 

Doubleday held the right inflexibly. Sumner's 
headquarters Avere now in the narrow field where, 
the night before. Hooker had begun the fight. 
All that had been gained in front had been lost. 
The enemy's batteries, which, if advanced and 
served vigorously, might have made sad work 
M'ith the closely-massed troops, were fortunately 
either partially disabled or short of ammunition. 
Sumner was confident that he could hold his 
own, but another advance was out of the ques- 
tion. Tiie enemy, on the other hand, seemed to 
be too much exhausted to attack. 

At this crisis Franklin came up with fresh troops 
and formed on the left. Slocum, commanding one 
division of the corps, was sent forward along the 
slopes lying under the first ranges of the rebel 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS, 



473 



hills, while Smith, with the other division, Avas or- 
dered to retake the cornfields and woods which 
all day had heen so hotly contested. It was done 
in the handsomest styk. His Maine and Vermont 
regiments, and the rest, went forward on the run, 
and cheering as they went, swept like an ava- 
lanche through the cornfields, fell upon the woods, 
cleared them in ten minutes, and held them. 
They were not again retaken. 

The field and its ghastly harvest which the 
Reaper had gathered in those fatal hours re- 
mained finally with us. Four times it had been 
lost and won. The dead are strewn so thickly 
that as you ride over it you cannot guide your 
horse's steps too carefully. Pale and bloody faces 
are everywhere upturned. They are sad and ter- 
rible ; but there is nothing which makes one's 
heart beat so quickly as the imploring look of 
sorely wounded men, who beckon wearily for help 
which you cannot stay to give. 

General Smith's attack was so sudden that his 
success Avas accomplished with no great loss. He 
had gained a point, however, Avhich compelled 
him to expect every moment an attack, and to 
hold Avhich, if the enemy again brought up re- 
serves, Avould task his best energies and best 
troops. But the long strife, the heavy losses, in- 
cessant fighting over the same ground repeatedly 
lost and Avon inch by inch, and more than all, per- 
haps, the fear of Burnside on the left and Porter 
in front, held the enemy in check. For two or 
three hours there was a lull even in the cannon- 
ade on the right, which hitherto had been inces- 
sant. McClellan had been over on the field after 
Sumner's repulse, but had speedily returned to 
his headquarters. Sumner again sent word that 
he was able to hold his position, but could not 
advance Avith his oAvn corps. 

Meantime where Avas Burnside, and Avhat Avas 
he doing ? On the right, Avhere I had spent the 
day until two o'clock, little Avas knoAvn of the 
general fortunes of the field. We had heai-d Por- 
ter's guns in the centre, but nothing from Burn- 
side on the left. The distance Avas, perhaps, too 
great to distinguish the sound of his artillery 
from Porter's. There was no immediate prospect 
of more fighting on the right, and I left the field 
which all day long had seen the most obstinate 
contest of the Avar, and rode over to McClellan's 
headquarters. The different battle-fields Avere 
shut out from each other's vicAV, but all partially 
visible from the central hill, Avhich General Mc- 
Clellan had occupied during the day. But I Avas 
more than ever impressed, on returning, Avith the 
completely deceitful appearance of the ground 
the rebels had chosen, Avhen viewed from the 
front. 

Hooker's and Sumner's struggle had been car- 
ried on over an uneven and Avooded surface, 
their own line of battle extending in a semicir- 
cle not less than a mile and a half. Perhaps a 
better notion of their p.osition can be got by con- 
sidering their right, centre, and left as forming 
three sides of a square. So long, therefore, as 
either Aving Avas driven back, the centre became 
exposed to a very dangerous enfilading fire, and 



the farther the centre Avas advanced the worse 
off it Avas, unless the lines on its side and rear 
were firmly held. This formation resulted origi- 
nally from the efiPorts of the enemy to turn both 
flanks. Hooker at the very outset thrcAV his 
column so far into the heart of the rebel Hues 
that they were compelled to threaten him on the 
flank to secure their OAvn centre. 

_ Nothing of all this Avas perceptible from the 
hills in front. Some directions of the rebel Hues 
had been disclosed by the smoke of their guns, 
but the whole interior formation of the country 
beyond the hills Avas completely concealed. 
When McClellan arranged his order of battle, it 
must have been upon information, or have been 
left to his corps and division commanders to dis- 
cover for themselves. 

Up to three o'clock Burnside had made little 
progress. His attack on the bridge had been 
successful, but the delay had been so great that 
to the observer it appeared as if McClellan's plans 
must have been seriously disarranged. It is im- 
possible not to suppose that the attacks on right 
and left were meant in a measure to correspond, 
for otherAvise the enemy had only to repel Hooker 
on the one hand, then transfer his troops, and 
push them against Burnside. 

Here was the difference betAveen Smith and 
Burnside. The former did his Avork at once, and 
lost all his men at once — that is, all whom he 
lost at all ; Burnside seems to have attacked cau- 
tiously in order to save his men, and sending 
successively insufficient forces against a position 
of strength, distributed his loss over a great- 
er period of time, but yet lost none the less in 
the end. 

Finally, at four o'clock, McClellan sent simul- 
taneous orders to Burnside and Franklin — to 
the former to advance and carry the batteries in 
his front at all hazards and at any cost ; to the 
latter to carry the woods next in front of him to 
the left, Avhich the rebels still held. The order 
to Franklin, however, was practically counter- 
manded, in consequence of a message from Gen- 
eral Sumner that, if FrankUn went on and Avas 
repulsed, his own corps Avas not yet sufficiently 
reorganized to be depended on as a reserve. 
Franklin, thereupon, Avas directed to run no risk 
of losing his present position, and, instead of 
sending his infantry into the A\'Oods, contented 
himself Avith advancing his batteries over the 
breadth of the fields in front, supporting them 
Avith heavy columns of infantry, and attacking 
with energy the rebel batteries immediately op- 
posed to him. His movement Avas a success, so 
far as it Avent, the batteries maintaining their new 
ground, and sensibly affecting the steadiness of 
the rebel fire. That being once accomplished, 
and all hazard of the right being again forced 
back having been dispelled, the movement of 
Burnside became at once the turning-point of 
success, and the fate of the day depended on 
him. 

HoAv extraordinary the situation Avas may be 
judged from a moment's consideration of the 
facts. It is understood that from the outset 



474 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



Burnside's attack was expected to be decisive, as 
it certainly must have been if things Avent well 
elsewhere, and if he succeeded in establishing 
himself on the Sharpsburg road in the rebel rear. 
Yet Hooker and Sumner and Franklin and Mans- 
field were all sent to the right three miles awaj', 
while Porter seems to have done double duty 
with his single corps in front, both supporting the 
batteries and holding himself in reserve. With 
all this immense force on the right, but sixteen 
thousand men were given to Burnside for the 
decisive movement of the day. 

Still more unfortunate in its results was the 
total failure of these separate attacks on the right 
and left to sustain, or in any manner cooperate 
with, each other. Burnside hesitated for hours 
in front of the bridge, which should have been 
carried at once by a conp de main. Meantime 
Hooker had been fighting for four hours, with 
various fortune, but final success. Sumner had 
come up too late to join in the decisive attack 
which his earlier arrival would probably have 
converted into a complete success ; and Franklin 
reached the scene only when Sumner had been 
repulsed. Probably before his arrival the rebels 
had transferred a considerable number of troops 
to their right to meet the attack of Burnside, the 
direction of which was then suspected or devel- 
oped. 

Attacking first with one regiment, then with 
two, and delaying both for artillery, Burnside was 
not over the bridge before two o'clock — perhaps 
not till three. He advanced slowly up the slopes 
in his front, his batteries in rear covering, to 
some extent, the movements of the infantry. A 
desperate fight was going on in a deep ravine on 
his right ; the rebel batteries were in full play, 
and apparently very annoying and destructive, 
while heavy columns of rebel troops were plainly 
visible, advancing, as if careless of concealment, 
along the road and over the hills in the du-ection 
of Burnside's forces. It was at this point of 
time that McClellan sent him the order above 
given. 

Burnside obeyed it most gallantly. Getting 
his troops well in hand, and sending a portion of 
his artillery to the front, he advanced with rapid- 
ity and the most determined vigor straight up the 
hill in front, on top of which the rebels had main- 
tained their most dangerous battery. The move- 
ment was in plain view of McClellan's position ; 
and as Franklin, on the other side, sent his bat- 
teries into the field about the same time, the bat- 
tle seemed to open in all directions with greater 
activity than ever. 

The fight in the ravine Avas in full progress, the 
batteries in the centre were firing with new vigor, 
Franklin Avas blazing aAvay on the right, and 
every hill-top, ridge, and Avoods along the Avhole 
line Avas crested and veiled Avith white clouds of 
smoke. All day had been clear and bright since 
the early cloudy morning ; and noAV this Avhole 
magnificent, unequalled scene shone Avith the 
splendor of an afternoon September sun. Four 
miles of battle, its glory all visible, its horrors 
all hidden, the fate of the republic hanging on 



the hour — could any one be insensible of its 
grandeur ? 

There are tAvo hills on the left of the road, the 
farthest the lowest. The rebels have batteries on 
both. Burnside is ordered to carry the nearest 
to him, which is the farthest from the road. His 
guns, opening first from this new position in front, 
soon entirely controlled and silenced the enemy's 
artillery. The infantry came on at once, advan- 
cing rapidly and steadily, their long, dark lines 
and broad masses plainly visible Avithout a glass 
as they moved over the green hill-side. 

The next moment the road in which the rebel 
battery Avas planted Avas canopied Avith clouds of 
dust SAviftly descending into the valley. Under- 
neath Avas a tumult of Avagons, guns, horses, and 
men, flying at speed down the road. Blue flashes 
of smoke burst now and then among them ; a 
horse or a man, or half a dozen, Avent doAvn, and 
then the Avhirlwind SAvept on. 

The hill was carried ; but could it be held ? The 
rebel columns, before seen moving to the left, in- 
crease their pace. The guns on the hill above 
send an angry tempest of shell doAvn among 
Burnside's guns and men. He has formed his 
columns apparently in the near angles of two 
fields bordering the road — high ground about 
them evervAvhere except in rear. 

In another moment a rebel battle-line appears 
on the broAV of the ridge above them, moves 
SAviftly down in the most perfect order, and 
though met by incessant discharges of musketry, 
of Avhich Ave plainly see the flashes, does not fire 
a gun. White spaces show Avhere men are fall- 
ing, but they close up instantly, and still the line 
advances. The brigades of Burnside are in 
heaA'y column ; they Avill not give Avay before a 
bayonet charge in line, and the rebels think twice 
before they dash into those hostile masses. 

There is a halt ; the rebel left gives way, and 
scatters over the field ; the rest stand fast and fire. 
More infantry comes up ; Burnside is outnum- 
bered, flanked, compelled to yield the hill he took 
so bravely. His position is no longer one of at- 
tack ; he defends himself Avith unfaltering firm- 
ness, but he sends to McClellan for help. 

McClellan's glass for the last half hour has sel- 
dom been turned aAvay from the left. He sees 
clearly enough that Burnside is pressed — needs 
no messenger to tell him that. His face groAvs 
darker with anxious thought. Looking down 
into the valley Avhere fifteen thousand troops are 
lying, he turns a half-questioning look on Fitz- 
John Porter, Avho stands by his side, gravely 
scanning the field. They are Porter's troops be- 
loAv, are fresh, and only impatient to share in this 
fight. But Porter sloAvly shakes his head, and 
one may believe that the same thought is passing 
through the minds of both generals. " They are 
the only reserves of the army ; they cannot be 
spared." 

McClellan remounts his horse, and with Porter 
and a dozen officers of his staff rides away to the 
left in Burnside's direction. Sykes meets them 
on the road — a good soldier, Avhose opinion is 
Avorth taking. The three Generals talk briefly 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



475 



together. It is easy to see that the moment has 
come when everything may turn on one order 
given or withheld, when the history of the battle 
is only to be written in thoughts and purposes 
and words of the General. 

Burnside's messenger rides up. Jlis message 
is : "I want troops and guns. If you do not 
send them, I cannot hold my position half an 
hour." McClellan's only answer for the moment 
is a glance at the western sky. Then he turns 
and speaks very slowly : " Tell General Burnside 
this is the battle of the war. He must hold his 
gi-ound till dark at any cost, I will send him 
Miller's battery. I can do nothing more. I have 
no infantry." Then, as the messenger was riding 
away, he called him back. " Tell him if he can- 
not hold his ground, then the bridge, to the last 
man ! — always the bridge ! If the bridge is lost, 
all is lost." 

The sun is abeady down ; not half an hour of 
daylight is left. Till Burnside's message came it 
had seemed plain to every one that the battle 
could not be finished to-day. None suspected 
how near was the peril of defeat, of sudden attack 
on exhausted forces — how vital to the safety of 
the army and the nation Avere those fifteen thou- 
sand waiting troops of Fitz-John Porter in the 
hollow. But the rebels halted instead of push- 
ing on ; their vindictive cannonade died away as 
the light faded. Before it was quite dark the 
battle was over. Only a solitary gun of Burn- 
side's thundered against the enemy, and presently 
this also ceased, and the field was still. 

The peril came very near ; but it has passed, 
and in spite of the peril, at the close the day 
v,"as partly a success ; not a victory, but an ad- 
vantage, had been gained. Hooker, Sumner, and 
Franklin held all the ground they had gained, 
and Burnside still held the bridge and his posi- 
tion beyond. Everything was favorable for a re- 
newal of the fight in the morning. 



The Bible in War, — At the meeting of the 
Christian Commission in Philadelphia, January 
28, 1864, the following occurred in the address 
of the Rev, Dr. Taylor : 

" Nothing has more touched my soul than when 
I heard of that poor rebel dying, stretched out 
upon one of the battle-fields of the Peninsula, 
with the Bible open beneath his hand, and his 
skeleton fingers pi-essed upon the words, ' Yea, 
though I walk through the valley of the shadow 
of death, I will fear no evil, for Thou art with me ; 
Thy rod and Thy staff, they comfort me.' Often- 
times, sir, this Bible has been the only grave- 
stone that has marked the resting-place of many 
an unknown soldier. Many could be known in 
no other way than by their Testaments in their 
pockets, saturated with their patriot blood ; and 
sometimes the story of domestic grief has been 
uttered first in the solemn, silent sentences of 
that precious Word. I coukl tell you of an offi- 
cer's wife from New England receiving a box 
from her husband in the army South, and when 
she came to open it, there was nothing there to 



tell why it was sent. There were the clothes, 
and the sword, and many Httle relics he had car- 
ried in his bosom. There was no letter there to 
tell the story ; but there was the Bible ! When 
it was opened, there were found, heavily under- 
scored, simply these words : ' Woman, why weep- 
est thou ? ' and, ' Why should it be thought an 
incredible thing with you that God should raise 
the dead ? ' That was all ; but it was enough. It 
was the story of death ! — it was the note of 
resurrection ! " 

«»E PLURIBUS UNUM," 

BY JOHN PIERPONT. 
I. 

The harp of the minstrel with melody rmgs 

When the Muses have taught him to touch and 
to tune it ; 
But though it may have a full octave of strings, 
To both maker and minstrel the harp is a unit. 
So the power that creates 
Our republic of States, 
Into harmony brings them at different dates ; 
And the thirteen or thirty, the Union once done. 
Are " E Pluribus Unum" — of many made one. 



The science that weighs in her balance the spheres, 
And has watched them since first the Chaldean 
began it. 
Now and then, as she counts them and measures 
their years. 
Brings into our system and names a new planet. 
Yet the old and new stars — 
Venus, Neptune, and Mars, 
As they drive round the sun their invisible cars, 
Whether faster or slower their races they run — 
Are " E Pluribus TJnum " — of many made one. 



Of that system of spheres should but one fly the 
track. 
Or with others conspire for a general dispersion, 
By the great central orb they would all be brought 

back, 
And held each in her place by a wholesome co- 
ercion. 

Should one daughter of light 
Be indulged in her flight, 
They would all be ingulfed by old Chaos and 
Night : 
So must none of our sisters be suffered to run, 
For, " E Pluribus Unum," we all go if one. 



Let the demon of discord our melody mar, 

Or treason's red hand rend our Union lasunder, 
Break one string from our harp, or extinguish one 
star. 
The whole system's ablaze with its lightning and 
thunder. 

Let the discord be hushed ! 
Let the traitors be crushed, 
Though "Legion" their name, all with victory 
flushed ! 
For aye must our motto stand, fronting the sun : 
" E Pluribus Unum " — though many were one. 



476 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



Adventures of an Iowa Boy. — Among the 
most remarkable adventures perpetrated during 
the war, is that related of Charles H. Smith, a 
private of the Fourth Iowa cavalry, which is as 
follows : 

He started with his regiment on Colonel Wins- 
low's expedition to prenada, and was captured 
by the rebels at that place. He remained their 
prisoner for four days, walking in that time a dis- 
tance of eighty miles in a state of semi-starvation. 
One evening they halted about sundown, and put 
up for the night in an old school-house, situated 
ten miles west of West Point, on the road lead- 
ing from West Point to Grenada. The school- 
house had a door on each side, a chimney in one 
end, and a window without frame or shutter in 
the other. They barricaded the window with a 
desk convenient, barred the eastern door, and 
stationed a guard in the other. 

When it had come sleeping time the Yankees 
— six in all — were allotted that portion next the 
chimney, Avhile the Butternuts — twenty in num- 
ber — occupied the other end ; a line was desig- 
nated across which no one must pass. Charlie 
lay down without removing any of his clothes, in- 
tending to lie awake and watch for an oppor- 
tunity to escape, but weariness of body overcame 
the resolution, and he fell asleep. But he awa- 
kened between one and two o'clock, and saw the 
guard sitting in the door smoking his pipe and 
conversing with the corporal of the guard, who 
was sitting by the fire outside. Slipping off his 
boots, and gathering his hat, haversack, and can- 
teen, he crept over the sleeping " chivalry " up on 
to the desk, and let himself quietly down and out 
at the window, reaching terra Jirma in safety. 
A splendid horse was tied to a tree at the end of 
the house, six or seven feet from where his 
doughty master and several companions were 
sleeping. A saddle and bridle were found on the 
window after considerable fcehng around, which 
a few moments sufficed to put in their place, 
a moment more to lead the horse thirty yards and 
mount him. Six days sufficed to place him in- 
side the Yankee lines at Lagrange, Tennessee, 
nearly two hundred miles being travelled in that 
time. In passing through the Confederacy he 
avoided all towns and stations at which troops 
were quartered, though with all his precaution he 
Bt;veral times came near runnuig into their camps, 
only escaping by the greatest good fortune. He 
met small squads of shot-gun gentlemen nearly 
every day. To these and to the citizens he 
passed himself off for a paroled prisoner belong- 
ing to McCuUoch's command (Second Missouri), 
and going home to see his old mother for the first 
time since the war broke out. Charlie considered 
the capture of the horse a capital joke. Its pro- 
prietor belonged to the Fifteenth Mississippi regi- 
ment, and was home on a furlough. 



Burn SIDE at the Bridge. — An eye-witness 
gives the following account of the fight at An- 
tietam Bridge : 

"The bridge across Antietam Creek, which 



General Burnside was ordered to take, and which 
was so stubbornly held by the rebels, is situ- 
ated in a deep ravine. The face of the hill on the 
opposite side of the bridge is too steep to be 
ascended by a horse, and must be literally climbed 
to be surmounted by man. The roadway from 
the bridge turns abruptly to the right and left, 
and rises the hill along its side very gradually. 
The rebel infantry at first occupied the bridge 
itself, and the bank of the creek on our side, and 
a rebel battery was posted on the opposite hill 
directly above the bridge, so as to play upon our 
infantry as it approached the bridge, either from 
directly before it or from our right of the bridge. 
Some trees intervened on our left of the bridge 
immediately down upon the creek, but the ap- 
proach down the hill on our side was bare in all 
directions, and exposed to the view of the enemy's 
gunners. The bridge is a stone arched and stone 
parapeted structure, a strong, rough, country 
bridge. 

" The rebel prisoners state the number sta- 
tioned to hold the bridge against us at from one 
hundred and fifty to three hundred infantry. It 
is hardly credible that a point to which any im- 
portance was attached on either side should be 
intrusted to so small a force ; and the incredi- 
bility is heightened by the havoc that was made 
among at least four of our regiments ; yet I am 
inclined to believe that a not much higher figure 
than the last would cover the actual number. I 
think there was not more than one regiment as- 
signed to that duty ; and as regiments go in ar- 
mies that have been over a year in service, it did 
not probably number more than five hundred 
men ; the chance is less. I notice that both our 
officers and men engaged in that contest are to- 
tally wanting in their usual claim of superior 
numbers against them — a claim commonly 
enough true whenever they have found much 
difficulty in making head against the foe, and, in 
fact, seem to concur in repeating what the rebels 
state, and there significantly letting the matter 
drop. On our part, Burnside had a couple of 
batteries on a hill on our left of the bridge at 
something less than a right angle with it, and a 
very little to our right of the bridge was another 
battery on another point of the same range of 
hills, just opposite to the enemy's battery. The 
parapets formed excellent breastworks against our 
batteries on either hand, and were protection 
against our small arms from the same direction. 
The creek was fordable hereabout — it has rained 
since — in several places ; some of them, how- 
ever, necessitating waist-deep wading. It was at- 
tempted to cross in this manner, as well as by the 
bridge. The Second Indiana, who was first or- 
dered to the attack, did not get down to the 
water. That regiment and the Sixth New Hamp- 
shire were repulsed, but not until they had made 
some impression on the rebel defence, and left it 
weaker against succeeding regiments. The Fifty- 
first Pennsylvania was the first to cross. The 
Fifty-first New York supported its Pennsylvani' 
namesake, or numbersake, and was close with it, 
but a little less forward. The bridge itself was 



<l 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



477 



not the only part of the creek defended against 
our attempt to cross. Our left was resisted all 
along its banks for many rods above and below. 
The enemy selected this as the front of this part 
of his line for its strong natural defences, and also 
having reference to the line of woods a mOe or so 
in his rear for a hiding-place and an intrenchment, 
in case he was driven back in spite of his best 
bona fide efforts to stand firm ; or having refer- 
ence to the woods as his real battle-line, into 
which he hoped to decoy us in pursuit of what- 
ever success we might obtain, either in spite of 
him or in pursuance of his strategy. The bridge 
is no more noticeable than any other portion of 
the ci'eek on our left wing, excepting that its stone 
parapets added so much artificial defence to the 
natural defence of the abrupt and rough line of 
hm and wood along the stream. The movement 
for the capture of this line of position was com- 
menced between ten and eleven in the morning, 
and it was not crowned with success, throughout, 
until between three and four in the afternoon ; but 
the wonder is that it was taken at all. It was 
while crossing this creek, up to his waist in water, 
that Captain Griswold received his death-wound. 
His regiment (Connecticut Eleventh) was one of 
the regiments under General liodman that at- 
tempted to, and finally succeeded after several 
hours' fighting, in crossing, half a mile or so be- 
low the bridge. Our cannonading on our left so 
far exceeded the anticipations of our Generals in 
rapidity and duration (it will do now to say), that 
General Burnside exhausted all his ammunition 
for some of his guns before the day was fairly 
done. As for the rebels, they probably could not 
have fought a general battle at all, and would not 
have made a stand, but for their immense acquisi- 
tions at Harper's Ferry. Whatever of mourning 
this battle has caused in the hundreds and thou- 
sands of families in the land for those who may 
never return to them ; whatever of discomfort 
they may sufi'er from the death or disabled condi- 
tion often thousand husbands and fathers; what- 
ever of these, and a train of evils, may flow from 
this greatest and bloodiest of the battles of this 
unparalleled, preposterous revolution, it is all im- 
mediately chargeable to the surrender of Harper's 
Ferry. _ 

" It is strange what a difference there is in the 
composition of human bodies, with reference to 
the rapidity that change goes on after death. 
Several bodies of rebels strewed the ground on 
the bank, in the vicinity of the bridge. They 
fought behind trees, and fence-rail and stone-heap 
barricades, as many a bullet mark in all these de- 
fences amply attested ; but all that availed not to 
avert death from these poor creatures. They had 
been dead at least forty-eight hours when I 
looked at them. Almost all of them had become 
discolored in the face and much swollen ; but 
there was one young man M"ith his face so life- 
like, and even his eye so bright, it seemed almost 
impossible that he could be dead. It was the 
loveliest looking corpse I ever beheld. He was a 
young man, not twenty-five, the soft, unshaved, 
brown beard hardly asserting yet the fulness of 



its owner's manhood. The features were too 
small, and the character of the face of too small 
and delicate an order, to answer the requirements 
of masculine beauty. In death his eye Avas the 
clearest blue, and would not part with its sur- 
passingly gentle, amiable, good, and charming 
expression. The face was like a piece of wax, only 
that it surpassed any piece of wax-work. 

"One other young man, beardless, yet but of a 
brawnier type, furnished another example of slow 
decomposition. His face was not quite as iife- 
lilce ; still one could easily fancy him alive to see 
him anywhere else than on the field of carnage ; 
and strange, his face wore an expression of mirth, 
as if he had just witnessed something amusing. 
A painful sight especially was the body of a rebel 
who had evidently died of his wounds, after lin- 
gering long enough at least to apply a handker- 
chief to his thigh himself, as a tourniquet to stop 
the bleeding. His comrades were obliged to 
leave him, and our surgeons and men had so 
much else to do that they could not attend to him 
in time. Perhaps nothing would have saved him ; 
but perhaps, again, a little surgical aid was all 
he needed. How long he dragged out his lessen- 
ing pulse in pain no one can tell. 

" Subsequently, I visited the ground interven- 
ing between our pickets and the pickets of the 
enemy, after the fight was done. It was the 
ground over which our troops had driven the 
enemy, but which they failed to hold ; and it had 
since been jealously watched by both parties, 
each prohibiting the other from entering upon it 
even to care for his wounded or to bury his dead, 
if the skirmishing sharpshooters of either could 
prevent it. Numerous shots were exchanged 
yesterday between them in this spirit ; but to-day 
the rebel skirmishers had left ours sole occupants 
of the field, and we civilians even felt free and 
safe to wander over the entire battle-ground 
without restriction. Our men have been engaged 
to-day in looking up their dead comrades, and 
possibly here and there a surviving wounded one, 
over this inhibited district, and this afternoon 
your correspondent visited it himself. Had I 
seen it before jotting down my observations just 
concluded, it is questionable whether I should 
have had the spirit of charity enough to mention 
the rebels, living or dead, for anything but male- 
diction. 

" One field especially was thickly strewn with 
our dead, in which the Hawkins Zouaves (Ninth 
New York volunteers) were largely represented. 
Several members of the One Hundred and Third 
New York lay there also. Away across the 
fields, for a mile within the enemy's battle-line, 
our gallant soldiers had charged and chased the 
chivalry, but afterward had been obliged to retire 
before the enemy's batteries, leaving their fallen 
comrades on the ground. Every dead man's feet 
I saw Avere robbed of their shoes, and there were 
instances of our heroic boys being stripped of 
their pantaloons. Their arms and accoutrements 
were invariably taken, of course. On the other 
hand — I record it with a sense of relief from 
disgust at my kind — the enemy's dead within 



478 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



our reach lay just as they fell, untouched, except- 
ing as their "names might be sought after on their 
clothes, or the buttons might be cut off by the 
soldiers for trophies or remembrancers of the 
field. God only knows what some of our poor 
men have suffered before they died. It is to be 
hoped that none, or few, at worst, died lingering 
deaths. 

" Some of the rebel missiles are military curiosi- 
ties. One of the Hawkins Zouaves showed me a 
great big striped white marble that had hit him 
after it was spent from a cannon. Another sol- 
dier, a cultivated young man, known to literary 
friends of mine, told me of a comrade picking up 
the sheet-iron plate of a door-lock, all rolled up, 
ke)"hole perfect in it, no mistake, which had fallen 
near him from a rebel cannon. The key had 
probably been sent in another direction. 

" A nervous, big-headed, little-bodied, amiable- 
faced rebel lay in the same barn with Dr. Bowen 
and the others named. He told me his name, but 
I reserve it. He said he was worn out and sick, 
and when his army moved to retire across the 
Potomac he fell out, on a natural pretext enough, 
and lay down to rest. His own regiment passed 
on and left him. He then moved farther out of 
sight, and lay down in some straw, and finally 
went into that barn, when our troops had ad- 
vanced far enough to protect him. He hoped 
he should not be exchanged. He wanted to be 
paroled, so that he could not fight any more. He 
said he would not continue with the army another 
four months for ten thousand dollars. He joined 
it by conscription in North Carolina, where he 
resides." 

Compensations of War. — In the address of 
the Rev. Dr. Eddy, at the meeting of the Chris- 
tian Commission, in January, 18G4, the following 
passages occur : 

" This hour has its compensations. It has origi- 
nated some of the noblest, grandest charities. It 
has inspired the purest patriotism that earth has 
ever seen ; and it has developed piety in many 
places, resplendent as the noonday sun. I re- 
member hearing of the interview you [addressing 
Mr. George H. Stuart, the president] had with a 
patriotic woman of the city of Philadelphia, on 
whom you called to make known the work of the 
Christian Commission. Her grandson, wrapped 
in the Stars and Stripes as his shroud, had just 
been brought to her, and as the clergyman en- 
deavored to offer to her the consolations of reli- 
gion, did she mourn in bitterness the loss of that 
child ? did she mourn because he had done and 
suffered so much for his country ? O, no ! 'I 
have given,' she says, ' two sons. Commodore EUet, 
of the Navy, and Brigadier-General EUet, of the 
Marine Brigade, and four grandsons, to the coun- 
try.' And was this all ? No ; but, ' If I had twenty 
sons, I'd give them all for my country and theirs, 
for it must be preserved ; (applause) and if I was 
twenty years younger, I would go myself, woman 
though I am ! ' (Protracted applause.) 

"Out of this war comes piety as well as patri- 
otism. We have not been accustomed to look to 



the camp and the battle-field for religion ; but, 
strange as it may seem, we are to-day turning 
from our cities to the camps and battle-fields for 
revivals of religion, and for the noblest forms of 
gospel evangelization. Never, since the Star of 
Bethlehem went marching up the skies, has a 
nobler, grander, holier sight been seen than that 
at Shiloh, so often quoted. When that terrible 
day was done, and the sun had gone to rest, and 
the two armies had rolled back to prepare for 
another bloody struggle, all was still and silent, 
save the moans of the wounded and the groans 
of the dying. By and by there peered through 
a rift in the clouds a single, solitary star, and it 
caught the eye of a dying soldier. It awakened 
the holiest memories of his heart, and he began 
to sing, — 

' When, marshalled on the nightly plain. 
The glittering hosts bestud the sky, 
One star alone, of all the train, 
Can fix a dying soldier's eye,' — 

and ere he had reached the end of the fii'st verse, 
another voice had taken up the strain, and another, 
and another, and another, until that gory field re- 
sounded with salvation's holiest notes, and that 
solitary star that had shone alone, was joined by 
all the glittering sisterhood of heaven, and the 
countless constellations of the skies sent back 
the melody of that bleeding soldier's song ! " 



Unacquainted with the Ropes. — Western 
officers were proverbial for shocking bad uni- 
forms, and, in a majority of instances, it was 
rather difficult to distinguish them from the pri- 
vates. Among this class was a brigadier-general 
named James Morgan, who looked more like a 
wagon-master than a soldier. On a certain occa- 
sion, a new recruit had just arrived in camp, lost 
a few articles, and was inquiring around among 
the " Vets " in hopes of finding them. An old 
soldier, fond of his sport, told the recruit the only 
thief in the brigade was in Jim INIorgan's tent. 
The recruit immediately started for " Jim's " quar- 
ters, and poking his head in, asked : 

" Does Jim Morgan live here ? " 

" Yes," was the replj', " my name is James 
Morgan." 

" Then I want you to hand over those books 
you stole from me ! " 

" I have none of your books, my man." 

" It's an infernal Ue," indignantly exclaimed 
the recruit. " The boys say you are the only 
thief in the camp ; turn out them books, or I'll 
grind your carcass into apple sass." 

The General relished the joke much, but ob- 
serving the sinewy recruit peeling off his coat, in- 
formed him of his relations to the brigade, and 
the recruit walked off, merely remarking : " Wall, 
blast me if I'd take you for a Brigadier. Excuse 
me. General, I don't know the ropes yet." 



Generosity. — A sick soldier on his way to 
his home in Georgia, while passing through the 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



479 



streets of Selma, Alabama, weary with his long 
march, seated himself beside the pavement to rest. 
His pale face and emaciated frame elicited much 
sympathy from the passers by, and a proposition 
was started to raise a purse for his benefit. But 
before there was time to carry it into efiiect, a 
gentleman stepped up to the poor sick soldier, and 
with the remark, " I will give him something to 
help him along," handed him a one hundred dol- 
lar note. Such acts are as certainly applauded 
by men as they are approved of Heaven. — 
Southern paper. 

JEFF DAVIS ON HIS ELECTION AS PRES- 
IDENT FOR SIX YEARS.* 

BY LUCIUS MANLIUS SAKGENT. 

Satan was chained a thousand years. 

We learn from Revelation, 
That he might not, as it appears, 

Longer " deceive the nation." 
'Tis hard to say, between the two, 

Which is the greater evil. 
Six years of liberty for you — 

A thousand for the devil ! 
'Tis passing strange if you've no fears 
Of being hanged within six years ! 

A hundred thousand rebels' ears 

Would not one half repay 
The widows' and the orphans' tears 

Shed for the slain to-day : 
The blood of all those gallant braves. 

Whom Southern traitors slew, 
Cries sternly, from their loyal graves. 

For vengeance upon you ; 
And if you're not prepared to die 
The death of TIaraan, fly, Jeff, fly ! 

Fly, traitor, to some lonely niche, 

Far, far beyond the billow ; 
Thy grave an ill-constructed ditch, 

Thy sexton General Pillow. 
There may you turn to rottenness, 

By mortal unannoyed, 
Your ashes undisturbed, unless 

Your grave is known by Floyd. 
He'll surely trouble your repose, 
And come to steal your burial-clothes. 

EPITAPH. 

Pause for an instant, loyal reader. 
Here lies Jeff, the great seceder. 
Above, he always lied, you know. 
And now the traitor lies below. 
His bow was furnished with two strings : 
He flattered crowds, and fawned on kings ; 
Repaid his country's care with evil. 
And prayed to God, and served the devil. 
The South could whip the Yankee nation. 
So he proposed humiliation ! 
Their blessings were so everlasting, 
'Twas just the time for prayer and fasting ! 
The record may be searched in vain, 
From West Point Benedict to Cain, 
To find a more atrocious knave. 
Unless in Crcsar Borgia's grave. 

* November 9, 1861. 



The Story of Ulric Dahlgren. — The 
month of March, 1864, is memorable in Rich- 
mond for one of the grandest Union raids that, 
up to that time, had menaced the Confederate cap- 
ital — a raid which was the immediate precursor 
of General Grant's famous campaign from the 
Wilderness to James River. 

The history of this raid is too famihar to the 
minds of all our readers to make necessary any 
recapitulation of it, even if it comported with 
our space. It is known that Colonel Dahlgren, 
after the attack on Richmond on Tuesday, the 1st 
of March, did not succeed in forming a junc- 
tion with General Kilpatrick, and while pushing 
through King and Queen County, towards Glou- 
cester Point, was killed on the night of Wednes- 
day, March 2, near Walkerton. It is also known 
that his body Avas brought to Richmond ; but 
what disposition was made of it by the Confed- 
erate authorities was kept a mystery at the time, 
and the facts, even to this day, have never been 
published. We purpose to give them to the pub- 
lic for the first time, vouching for their entire 
authenticity.* 

When intelligence was received in Richmond 
of the death of Colonel Dahlgren, messengers 
were despatched to bring the remains to the city 
for identification. They reached the city on Mon- 
day, March 7, by the York River Railroad, and 
lay, during that day at the depot, where they 
were examined by large numbers of persons. 
His death had been caused by a gun-shot wound 
in the head. The little finger of one hand had 
been cut off on the field where he fell by some 
one anxious to secure, with the least trouble, a 
valuable diamond ring. That night the body 
was carried to General Elzy's office, in Belvin's 
block ; and the next day, having been placed in 
a common pine coffin, of the kind then used for 
the burial of soldiers, — which, in turn, was placed 
in a box, — was transferred to Oakwood Ceme- 
tery, a mile east of the city. The hearse used on 
this occasion was a four-mule street wagon, and 
the attendants consisted of a Confederate officer 
of inferior rank and two soldiers. Arriving at 
Oakwood, which was the burial-place of all sol- 
diers who died at Chimborazo, Howard's Grove, 
and other hospitals in the eastern portion of the 
city and suburbs, the negro grave-diggers and 
other attendants about the cemetery Mere driven 
off and ordered to absent themselves until noti- 
fied that they might return. One of the negroes, 
now living in the city, having his curiosity excited, 
secreted himself in the woods near by, determined 
to see what was to be done. The two soldiers 
dug a grave, placed the box in it, and covered it 
up. They then shouted to recall the attendants 
of the cemetery, and, getting into the wagon, 
returned to the city. 

The only circumstance in the proceedings that 
struck the negro as unusual, was the mystery 
observed, and the circumstance of the box, — no 
corpse ever having been brought there before, 
except in a pine coffin ; but, there having been a 
great deal of talk as to what was to be done 

* See page 291, ante. 



480 



ANECDOTES, POE'TRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



with the body of Colonel Dahlgren, he at once 
decided that this could be no other than the 
corpse of that officer. He, however, kept his 
opinion to himself at the time. 

The question. What has been done with the 
body of Dahlgren ? was the subject of inquiry and 
conversation for many days in Richmond, to be 
revived from time to time up to the day of 
the evacuation. And there were many stories 
on the subject — that it had been burnt, sunk 
in the river, &c. A city paper of that day 
announced, with a solemn and knowing air, that 
it would never be found until the trump of doom 
should sound. A number of Union men of the 
city, believing it possible that it might be recov- 
ered, were anxious to secure and preserve it for 
the family of the deceased. Prominent among 
them was Mr. F. W. E. Lohman, a grocer, doing 
business near the New Market. Mr. Lohman at 
at once began his inquiries and investigations, — 
which, in the then state of popular feeling, it was 
necessary to conduct with great caution, — and 
determined, at whatever cost and risk, to ascer- 
tain its fate. After nearly a month's patient and 
untiring inquiry, he, with the assistance of Mr. 
Martin Meredith Lipscomb, whose business it Avas 
to attend the interment of all the Union prison- 
ers who died at this post, made the acquaint- 
ance of the negro grave-digger, whom we have 
mentioned as being the sole spectator of the 
burial of Colonel Dahlgren. • They found him at 
Oakwood, pursuing his regular business. When 
first approached on the subject, the negro was 
very much alarmed, and protested he would have 
nothing to do with the matter. But after re- 
peated assurance by Mr. Lipscomb, whom he 
knew well, that he might rely upon Mr. Lohman, 
and that no harm should befall him, he consented, 
on Mr. Lohman's giving him a hundred dollar 
note, to point out the grave. This he did by walk- 
ing near and casting a stone upon it, while Loh- 
man and Lipscomb stood at a distance. He was 
afraid to employ any other method, lest he might 
excite the suspicion of the superintendent of the 
cemetery, or some of the attendants. The grave 
lay among thousands of those of Confederate sol- 
diers. Subsequently, after a great deal of per- 
suasion, and the promise of a liberal reward, the 
negro agreed to meet Mr. Lohman at the ceme- 
tery on the night of the 6th April, at ten o'clock, 
and exhume the body. 

The appointed night having arrived, Mr. Loh- 
man, his brother, John A. Lohman, and Mr. 
Lipscomb, started for the cemetery "in a cart 
drawn by a mule. The night was dark and 
stoimy, and well suited to conceal their move- 
ments. The party left the city at nine o'clock, 
and reached their destination about ten, and there 
found waiting for them the grave-digger and two 
assistants. The negroes, being assured that all 
was right, began their work of exhumation, the 
three white men remaining with the cart outside 
the enclosure of tlie cemetery. The heavens were 
hung with their deepest black ; no object ten feet 
distant could be distinguished, and no sounds 
broke upon the loneliness of the place, save the 



howling of the winds and the chopping of the 
resurrectionist's spade. Once the mule, snuffing 
the tainted air of the city of the dead, attempted 
to break away, but was quickly quieted by a firm 
hand. 

In twenty minutes from the time the negroes 
began their work they approached the cart, bear- 
ing between them the coffin, which, being badly 
made, fell to pieces as they rested it on the 
ground. It was then discovered that the body 
had not decomposed in any perceptible degree. 
Mr. Lohman satisfied himself of the identity of 
the corpse by passing his hand over it. The little 
finger, torn ofi' to secure the jewel it bore, and the 
leg, lost in battle, were missing. He paid the negro 
with whom he had contracted fifteen hundred dol- 
lars, and placing the body in the .cart, the party 
started on their return. The mule, alarmed as 
animals frequently are when drawing a dead body 
for the first time, became difficult of manage- 
ment, and, with the darkness of the night, made 
the first part of the expedition one of no little 
peril. More than one hour was spent in reach- 
ing the gas lights of the city on Church HiU. It 
was part of the plan to convey the body to the 
house of William S. Rowlett, a Union man, liv- 
ing on Chelsea Hill, a half mile north-east of the 
city, there to remain until a metallic case could be 
procured for it. From Church Hill, Mr. Lohman 
drove down Broad Street to Seventeenth Street, 
thence up Seventeenth Street to its northern ter- 
minus, and thence up the hill to Mr. Hewlett's, 
reaching the last place at two o'clock on the 
morning of the 7th of April. Here the body was 
wrapped in a blanket, and Mr. Lohman came to 
the city in search of a coffin, which he obtained 
by the aid of Mr. Lipscomb. On his Avay into 
the city from Rowlett's, Lohman notified a num- 
ber of persons of Union sentiments, among whom 
were several ladies, where the body had been 
placed, and they hurried out to see it. Several 
of these persons had seen Colonel Dahlgren while 
he was exposed at the York River Railroad depot, 
and immediately recognized the body as his. The 
metallic coffin having been procured, and the body 
placed in it, the two Lohmans, at noon on the 
7th, set out with it, concealed in a wagon loaded 
with young fruit trees, for the farm of Robert 
Orricks, s. Union man, living in Henrico, two 
miles from Hungary Station. 

At four o'clock that evening they reached Or- 
ricks', and buried the body under an apple tree, 
in a field, avoiding the graveyard for fear of ex- 
citing inquiry, which might lead to discovery. 

The rest of this story may be told in a few 
words. Orricks, some months after the second 
burial of Colonel Dahlgren, succeeded in getting 
through the Confederate lines, and, seeking an 
interview with Commodore Dahlgren, informed 
him of what had been done to secure the body 
of his son. The corpse of the soldier lay in this 
its second grave until the evacuation of Rich- 
mond, when, an order having been sent for it by 
the War Department, it was again disinterred by 
the two Lohmans, and sent to Washington. 

It has been our object to lift the veil of mys- 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



481 



tery from an obscure and interesting event. In 
doing so, M-e have confined ourselves to facts 
strictly relative to the secret fate of Colonel Dahl- 
gren's body from the time of its arrival in Rich- 
mond, which, until after the capture of the city, 
remained, to all except the few individuals named 
by us in the course of our narrative, one of the 
most impenetrable mysteries of the war. Many 
Confederate officials knew that the body had been 
deposited at Oakwood, but they were ignorant to 
the last that it had ever been removed. It has at 
length found its last earthly resting-place. — Rich- 
mond Republic. 

An Even Chance. — " Travelling in the County 
of Sevier, Arkansas," says an editor, " the stage 
was stopped on some trifling business at a house 
where lived one of the merriest and prettiest of 
the beautiful damsels of that highly favored coun- 
try. She came out to the stage looking as fresh 
as Hebe, and we, having known her before, and 
presuming on the privileges of a paterfamilias, 
asked her if it were possible she had not married 
yet? 

" ' No, sir,' she answered ; ' and Avhat's more 
than that, I don't intend to, until the very last 
one of the volunteers gets back. I mean to wait, 
and let them have an even chance.' " 



PRICE'S APPEAL TO ISUSSOURI. 

BY M. JEFF. THOMPSON. 

Missouni ! Missouri ! Awake from thy shmibers : 
Canst thou not hear the hammer that rivets thy 
chains ? 
Can't the death-shriek of fathers, the wail of thy 
mothers, 
The tears of thy daughters, arouse thee again ? 
Come ! rise in thy might, shake the dewdrops of 
morning 
From thy limbs, and walk forth as a lion to war, 
For fanatics are forging bonds stronger than iron, 
To bind thee forever to a conqueror's car. 

Can thy slumbering senses be so callous and dead 
That even in dreams thou canst hear not nor see 
That the chains they are striking from Afric's black 
sons 
Are being welded again to be placed upon thee ? 
Canst thou not see through the world the finger of 
scorn 
Is pointed at those who submissively stand 
Beneath the foul yoke, Avhile their brothers are 
striking 
For the freedom and glory of our dearly loved 
land ? 

O, rise in thy might ; drive the " Huns" from thy 
borders. 
And stand by thy Southern sons in the fight ; 
Pour forth all thy men to help them to battle 

For Freedom, for Glory, for Justice, for Eight ! 
Let thy watch-fires glow, and thy bugles blast high 
O'er thy mountains and valleys, o'er woodland 
and lea. 
Then the glad shout shall ring o'er thy prairies and 
streams, 
«• Hail ! brothers, hail ! Missouri is free ! " 
31 



A Negro from Williamsburg, who went into 
Fortress Monroe in compan^y with one of the 
Union chaplains, says that, before the national 
troops left Williamsburg, the slaves in that vicin- 
ity were told to beware of the " horrible Yankees, 
Avho had very small bodies, but great large heads, 
with front teeth like horses, and were known to 
eat human flesh." Upon being asked whether the 
slaves believed this, he replied : " Dun'no ; reckon 
not, massa. Dem Yankees has got no horns, but 
fights like de debble ! " 



Major Winthrop, killed at Great Bethel, was 
shot by a negro. The writer says : " I have it 
from a member of the Wythe Rifles, of Hampton, 
Virginia, who was present at the fight, and saw 
Winthrop fall, that he was shot by a negro at the 
suggestion and command of the Captain of the 
Rities, who said to him substantially : ' These 
Yankees will take you to Cuba, and sell you. If 
j'Ou wish to stay with your wife and children, 
drive them out of Virginia.' The negro fired, 
and, unconsciously to him, there fell one of the 
earliest and best friends of the race to which he 
belonged." 

The Escape of J. P. Benjamin. — A corre- 
spondent at Havana relates the following story of 
the escape of the Confederate Secretary of State, 
Judah P. Benjamin : 

Early in May he separated from the President 
(Davis) near Washington, Georgia, for the pur- 
pose of making his way to Nassau and Havana 
from some point on the Florida coast. He was 
to attend to some public business at these ports, 
and then to rejoin the President in the trans- 
Mississippi via Matamoras and Texas. He trav- 
elled directly south, through Georgia and Florida, 
on horseback, disguised as a farmer in search of 
lands on which to settle, and passed through the 
country without exciting suspicion or attracting 
attention, until he reached the lower side of the 
Peninsula of Florida. He was informed that no 
boats were to be found on the eastern coast, and 
went thence to the Gulf shore, vhere after a 
month's delay he succeeded in getting a ship's 
yawl-boat and two men who were willing to risk 
their lives upon the sea in it. The open boat was 
about fifteen feet in length, in which they coasted 
the Peninsula until they reached one of the keys 
of the Florida Reef, where they succeeded in pro- 
curing a boat somewhat larger, but still an open 
boat, in which they put to sea to cross the Gulf 
Stream, and fortunately reached the Bimines upon 
the Banks, after a passage of sixty hours. On 
Monday, the 10th of July, after an unsuccessful 
attempt to reach Nassau, in which he was bafiied 
by head winds and heavy weather, he put back to 
the Bimines. On the 13th he took passage from 
the Bimines for Nassau in a small sloop of nine 
tons burden, loaded Avith sponges, and on Friday, 
the 14th, this sloop foundered at sea, when thirty 
miles distant from the nearest land. The vessel 
went down so rapidly that he, with the colored 
men who formed the crew, had barely time to 



482 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



jump into a skiff in tow of the sloop before she 
sank. In this boat, with a light mast, sails, and 
compass, and their only provisions a pot of boiled 
rice, which the negroes had cooked for their 
breakfast, — in this leaky and overloaded boat, 
and having but one oar, they made for land, and, 
as the weather was calm and a vessel in sight, by 
dint of energetic sculling, they reached the light- 
house vessel at five P. M., and were cordially re- 
ceived, by Captain Stewart, on board the Georgia, 
Her Eritannic Majesty's light-house yacht, and 
were warmly and most cordially entertained. 
This vessel was on an official tour of light -house 
inspection upon the banks, and at the request of 
Mr. Benjamin, returned him once more to the 
Bimines. There Mr. Benjamin chartered another 
vessel on the 25th of July, and arrived at Nassau, 
Friday, the 21st. On Saturday, the 22d, he sailed 
on board the good schooner Britannia, and ar- 
rived at Havana on the 25th, safe and sound. 

His whole trip occupied the best part of three 
months, out of wliich thirty days were passed at 
sea in miserable open boats ; at least, twenty-two 
days in the smallest crafts that float. 



An Incident at Chattanooga. — Stepping 
to my door one evening, to take a view of the 
varied life of Market Street, I saw a refreshing 
spectacle. Coming down the centre of that broad 
thoroughfare, with musket at right shoulder shift, 
head bent slightly forward, and the step and air 
of a veteran, was a negro boy of about twenty 
years, wearing the army blue. Following behind, 
crowding close up around^ and in a Hne extending 
far behind him, were about two hundred officers 
and soldiers of the so-called Confederate States 
army. On passed the colored Sergeant — such 
was his rank — and onward crowded a!id fol- 
lowed the late Southern warriors. Not another 
guard about them, not another menacing bayo- 
net in sight. The gleam of the negro's bayonet 
told them of rations and quarters ahead, and of 
danger behind. I saw him pass on with his 
charge, never looking behind him, yet losing 
none, until he handed them over to the authori- 
ties at the military prison, from which they were 
next day paroled. — Letter from a Soldier. 



General Logan and the Ieishman. — Just 
lieforc the capture of Savannah, General Logan, 
with two or three of his staff, entered the depot 
at Chicago one fine morning, to take the cars east, 
on his way to rejoin his command. The General, 
being a short distance in advance of the others, 
stepped upon the platform of a car, and was about 
to enter it, but was stopped by an Irishman with : 

" Ye'U not be goin' in there." 

" Why not, sir ? " asked the General. 

" Because them's a Icddies' caer, and no gentle- 
man'Il be goin' in there without a leddy. There's 
wan sate m tnat caer o\er there, cf yees want it," 
at the same time pointing to it. 

" Yes," replied the General, " I see there is one 
seat, but what shall I do with my staff? " 



" O, bother yer staff ! " was the petulant re- 
ply. " Go you and take the sate, and stick yer 
staff out of the windy." 



Taking the Oath. — At Richmond, Virginia, 
a modest young country girl, on applying for ra- 
tions to one of the relief agents, was asked if she 
had ever taken the oath. " No, indeed, sir," was 
her terrified reply ; " I never swore in all my 
life." " But you must take the oath, my good 
girl," said the agent, " or I cannot give you the ra- 
tions." " No, indeed, I can't, sir," said the girl ; 
" mother always taught me never to swear." The 
agent mildly persisted, and the maiden as perti- 
naciously refused all attempts at persuasion, until, 
overcome at last by the dreadful conflict between 
necessity and her liigh sense of moral duty, she 
stammered out with downcast lids, " Well, sir, if 
you will make me do such a horrid, wicked thing, 
then d — n the Yankees ! " 



PiEMIN^SCENCES OF PRESIDENT LINCOLN. — 

" It was not our good fortune to know much, 
personally, of the late President," says the editor 
of the Lowell Citizen. " In fact, the only time 
we ever saw him was on the occasion of a busi- 
ness visit to Washington, in the last days of 
March, just before the fall of Richmond. Our 
special errand related to an unfinished matter al- 
ready in his hands, and, a moment's attention to 
it being all that was required, we made our way 
to the White House, fully resolved not to be in- 
trusive, nor to worry him with impertinent mat- 
ters, of which he had already more than enough. 
Our card was passed in, and we awaited our 
chances in the anteroom, with a dozen comers, 
perhaps, among whom were recognized senators 
and members of the ' popular branch.' One of 
the latter, coming from the President's own State, 
gave us a hint that this waiting for ' an audience ' 
was a decided uncertainty, often resulting in hope 
deferred. Our friend added that he had been him- 
self Avaiting and watching for his chance nearly 
three weeks. His case was simply that of a wid- 
ow's son, who had deserted, and who was there- 
fore liable to be shot. 

" The mother was half distracted with grief, and 
her petition for pardon was to be urged. Pres- 
ently walked in, with nimble step, a middle-sized, 
well-built, stern-visaged man, with his budget of 
papers, and who, as if at home, Mas immediately 
ushered into the President's room. That was Sec- 
retary Stanton. The waiting gentlemen, who rec- 
ognized the Secretary of War, here gave know- 
ing winks of discouragement, as much as to say, 
' It's an all-night business ; Stanton has impor- 
tant despatches from the front.' But a half hour 
sufficed, and, when the Secretary passed out, the 
gray -haired messenger, whose open, pleasant Irish 
countenance has been familiar to callers at the 
White House since it was occupied by President 
Jackson, notified the gentlemen in waiting — the 
Illinois member was now, unluckily, not among 
them — that the President would now see them 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



483 



all at once ; and all were ushered in. This was 
our first and only view of Abraham Lincoln face 
to face. His countenance bore that open, benig- 
nant outline we had expected; but what struck 
us especially was its cheerful, wide-awake ex- 
pressiveness, which we had never met with in the 
pictures of our beloved chief. The secret of this 
may have been that he had just been hearing 
good news from Grant — for such was the fact. 

" But our chief purpose in this sketch is to 
describe, in brief, the bearing of the President in 
this short interview. After saluting his little 
circle of callers, they were seated, and attended 
to in turn. First in order was a citizen of Wash- 
ington, praying for pardon in the case of a de- 
serting soldier. 

" ' AVell,' said the President, after carefully read- 
ing the paper, ' it is only natural for one to want 
pardon ; but I must in such a case have a respon- 
sible name that I knoto. I don't know you. Do 
you live in the city ? ' * Yes.' ' Do you know 
the Mayor ? ' ' Yes.' ' Well, bring me his name, 
and I'll let the boy off.' The soldier was pardoned. 

" Next came a well-developed man of French 
accent, from New Orleans. He was evidently a 
diffident person, not knowing precisely how to 
state his case ; but the burden of it was, that he 
was a real-estate holder in New Orleans, and since 
the advent of military rulers there, he could not 
collect his rents, which were his living. * Your 
case, my friend,' said the President, ' may be a 
hard one, but it might have been worse. If, with 
your musket, you had taken your chance with 
our boys before Richmond, you might have found 
your bed before now. But the point is, what would 
you have me do for you ? I have much to do, 
and the courts have been opened to relieve me in 
this regard.' The applicant, still embarrassed, 
said, ' I am not in the habit of appearing before 
big men.' ' And for that matter,' it was quickly 
responded, ' you have no need to change your 
habit, for you are not before very big men now ; ' 
playfully adding, ' I can't go into the collection 
business.' The New Orleans man was finally sat- 
isfied that a President cannot do everything that 
ought to be done to redress individual grievances. 
These instances, though not specially remarkable 
in themselves, serve to set off in a strong light 
those traits of character which shed such a radi- 
ance over the life of Mr. Lincoln. He studied 
intently the grievances of the humblest. There 
was no appearance of affected dignity on account 
of the high post which he filled. He had a fel- 
low-feeling for his countrymen — a love for jus- 
tice — above all, a true fear of God — a sacred 
regard for the rights of all. These were our first- 
sight impressions of Abraham Lincoln. They are 
likely to be lasting." 

A Verse of Welcome. — A clergyman in Il- 
linois wrote an ode of welcome for a returning 
regiment. The first verse ran thus : 

"And O, come home, thou wondrous man, 

Who never said. ' I can't ' — 
We wait, we look, we long for you : 
Come back, Ulysses Grant 1 " 



THE SOUTHEEN CROSS. 

BY ST. GEORGE TUCKER. 

O, SAY, can you see, through the gloom and the 
storm, 
More bright for the darkness, that pure constel- 
lation ? 

Like the symbol of love and redemption its form, 
As it points to the haven of hope for the nation. 

How radiant each star ! as they beacon afar, 

Giving promise of peace, or assurance in war ; 

'Tis the Cross of the South, which shall ever re- 
main 

To light us to Freedom and Glory again. 

How peaceful and blest was America's soil, 

Till betrayed by the guile of the Puritan demon, 
Which lurks under Virtue, and springs from its 
coil. 
To fasten its fangs in the life-blood of freemen ! 
Then loudly appeal to each heart that can feel, 
And crush the foul viper 'neath Liberty's heel ; 
And the Cross of the South shall forever remain 
To light us to Freedom and Glory again. 

'Tis the emblem of peace, 'tis the day-star of hope, 
Like the sacred Labarum, which guided the Ro- 
man : 
From the shores of the Gulf to the Delaware's 
slope, 
'Tis the trust of the free, and the terror of foemen. 
Fling its folds to the air, while we boldly declare 
The rights we demand, or the deeds that we dare ; 
And the Cross of the South shall forever remain 
To light us to Freedom and Glory again. 

But, if peace should be hopeless, and justice de- 
nied, 
And war's bloody vulture should flap his black 
pinions, 

Then gladly to arms ! while we hurl, in our pride, 
Defiance to tyrants, and death to their minions, 

With our front to the field, swearing never to yield. 

Or return like the Spartan in death on our shield ; 

And the Cross of the South shall triumphantly 
wave 

As the flag of the free, or the pall of the brave. 



A Patriotic Family. — John Fon Rodd is a 
German, and a son of William Henry Fon Rodd, 
Esq., of Butztown, Pa. The father is eighty-nine 
years of age, and has lost nine sons in the war for 
the Union. Eight of these were killed in battle, 
and the other died of starvation in the rebel pens 
at Salisbury. While a prisoner, the son last re- 
ferred to actually ate his right hand, so great was 
his hunger. John, from whom we have obtained 
our information, is the tenth and youngest of the 
brothers, and he bears the scars of eight icounds 
received in battle. He, too, was for a time a 
prisoner at Salisbury, and was only released at 
the close of the war. His recital of the treat- 
ment of the starving prisoners fully confirms all 
the accounts that have heretofore been published 
of the Southern barbarism under which our men 
sufi"ered. Upon inquiry, we learn from other 
sources, that Henry William Fon Rodd, the 
father of the ten heroes, has for many years been 



484 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



one of the most highly respected citizens of Butz- 
town. Is there another man in the world who 
has sacrificed more sons upon the altar of our 
country than this aged German ? — Hamshurg 
Telegnvpli. 

Faithful unto Death. — In the year 1861, 
when the first call for troops was made, James 
Hendrick, a young man of eighteen, resolved to 
leave his father's roof, in Wisconsin, and go forth 
to battle for the flag. At the time mentioned he 
was attached to a young girl of nearly the same 
age as himself, whose parents were rated among 
the " rich ones " in that section of the country. 
Her name was Ellen Goodridge. Previous to 
leaving for the seat of war he informed her of 
his intentions, promising to return in a few 
months. After the first battle of Bull Run his 
regiment was ordered to "Washington, and receiv- 
ing a Lieutenant's commission, Hendrick resolved 
to enter the service for three years, and wrote to 
his parents and sweetheart to that effect. The 
news was received by the girl with foreboding, 
and she resolved to accompany him. She imme- 
diately acquainted her parents with her resolve, 
who, in reply, turned her from the house, and 
bade her never come back. 

She Avent, and finding out her lover's regiment, 
obtained permission to do the cooking at the Col- 
onel's headquarters. She followed the regiment 
through the battles of Gettysburg, Antietam, 
Fredericksburg, the Wilderness, Cold Harbor, 
Petersburg, and Richmond, and in the interven- 
ing time went out with young Hendrick in many 
skirmishes and raids, in one of which she was 
wounded in the arm, the ball making a very bad 
flesh wound. After Lee surrendered, the object 
of her choice was taken deathly sick, and was 
forwarded in an ambulance to Washington, where 
he was placed in the hospital. Here, again, her 
noble heart showed itself. She watched over 
him, bathed his fevered brow, read to him, wrote 
home letters for him, and finally, Avith a broken 
heart, closed his eyes in death. The day before 
his death an Episcopal minister joined the two 
in marriage — he dying with a painful disease, 
and she nearly crazed with the thought that, after 
four long years of suff"ering, he for whom she had 
given up home, friends, e\ erything dear on earth, 
and for whom she had braved every danger, was 
going to another world. 



GovEBNOR Andrew as a Wag and a Pa- 
triot. — Military necessity prevented two young 
lovers from joining hands in marriage. The sol- 
dier was four times prevented from getting his 
leave of absence. The War Department did not 
find it consistent with its duty to ]iermit the lady 
and her brother to go to the distant front to have 
the rite duly solemnized, so that the wife might 
share the lot of the husband. 

At last an appeal was made to the heart of 
His Excellency the Governor of Massachusetts, 
and with the success that attends such an appeal 
when oflicial obligation allows the indulgence of 



his kindly sensibilities and gentle sympathies. 
The letter of his fair correspondent moved the 
Executive and the man, and he at once forwarded 
it to Washmgton with the following indorsement, 
which succeeded in smoothing the course of true 
love, and melting INIars to tenderness. This was 
not the first or only instance in which the Gov- 
ernor brought about other unions, in the midst 
of his endeavors to preserve the Union of the 
States. 

" To the Hon. E. M. Stanton, Secretary of 
War : 

" This case appeals to all our sympathies as 
patriots and as gentlemen, and I appeal to the 
chivalry of the Department of War, which pre- 
sides over more heroes than Homer ever dreamed 
of, and better and braver than his Muse ever 
sung — I pray you to grant this request of my 
fair correspondent, and generations will rise up 
and call us blessed. J. A. A." 



Uncle Sam Everyavhere. — A soldier of a 
Pennsylvania regiment, who was wounded at the 
battle of Chancellorsville, and left on the field, 
afterwards related his adventures to the Colonel. 
When the tide of battle had swept past the spot 
where he la)^ a rebel soldier came to him, and 
took away his canteen, haversack, musket, and 
accoutrements, and finally demanded his coat and 
shoes. At this the Pennsylvanian at first de- 
murred, but was forced to submit. Thereupon 
ensued a conversation : 

" Where do you belong ? " asked the rebel. 

" To Pennsylvania," was the reply. 

" And what are you doing down here in Vir- 
ginia ? " 

" Veil, I comes down here to fight," said the 
unlucky Buck County man. 

" To fight, eh ? " said the Virginian ; " why 
don't you fight in your own State, if you want 
to fight : what business have you here in Vir- 
ginia ? " 

The question might have been a poser for 
some, but the brave Dutchman replied : 

" Vel, I fights mit Uncle Sam, and Uncle Sam 
he goes efryvere." 



General Grant's War Horse. — The Gen • 
eral was peculiarly proud of his stud, but partic- 
ularly so of his war charger. To the few friends 
to whom he unbjends he took great delight in ex- 
hibiting his horses. A friend was with Grant one 
day, and the conversation turned upon horses. 
" Perhaps," said the General, " you Avould like to 
see the horse I have ridden during all the cam- 
paigns that I have commanded." The General 
ordered his horse to be brought out. To the sur- 
prise of the gentleman, the animal seemed no 
more than a lady's palfrey. Small, slender, with 
agile limbs, black as a coal, an eye like a hawk, 
intelligent, but mild, with the unmistakable "lick" 
on each side of the mane, not unlike the " cow- 
lick " on a boy's head, looking, for all the world, 
like a family pet for women and children. The 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



485 



visitor uttered his astonishment by saying: 
" Beautiful, but no endurance." " Endurance !" 
said General Grant ; " this animal exceeds any 
horse Hesh I ever saAv for endurance. 1 have 
taken this horse out at daylight, and kept 
in the saddle till dark, and he came in as fresh 
when I returned as when I saddled him in the 
morning. Gold could not buy him. He was im- 
ported from a rare breed by Jeff Davis himself. 
He was taken from Jeff Davis' plantation." This 
conversation was held just before Davis was 
caught. " I suppose," said the visitor, " you 
would exchange this horse for Jeff Davis?" 
" You have said it," said the General. " I would 
exchange it for the rebel chief, but for nothing 
else under heaven." 



The President and an Ohio Boy. — A cor- 
respondent, describing the throng of visitors 
who crowded President Johnson's office, said : 

" Among those favored with an interview was 
high private G. Van Zant, of the Seventy-ninth 
Ohio, thirteen years old, a clean-faced and bright- 
eyed youth, who has made the entire campaign 
from Atlanta with the regiment, acting part of 
the time as drummer-boy, and part as Orderly 
to General Ward. ' Well, my son,' said the 
President, ' what do you want ? A Brevet, I 
suppose. Brevet Corporal ? how will that do ?' 
' No, sir, I don't care for rank. I have a pony 
brought all the way through, and they are going 
to take him from me, and I want to take him 
home and keep him.' ' You shall have him ' — 
and writing an order for transportation, directed 
the officers to let him have the pony. ' Now I 
am all right again ; ' and with a ' Thank you,' he 
left the President." 



Wanderers. — A large number of Ex-Con- 
federate officers and soldiers were wandering 
about the Northern cities in a disconsolate sort of 
way, their " occupation gone." 

A gentleman met one of them in the street. 
They had known each other in the old days, and 
the following conversation ensued : 

Confederate Colonel — "Halloa, Jones! how 
are you ? " 

Union Gentleman — "Is that you, Harry? 
What are you doing here ? You've no business 
here ; I'll have you arrested." 

Confederate — (throwing his arms wildly in 
the air) — " Great heavens ! where am I to go ? 
There's no North, no South, no East, no West, 
for me ; where am I to go ? I'm subjugated, 
whipped, conquered — anything you please. I'm 
a deuced sight better Union man than you. I'm 
for Andy Johnson, Lloyd Garrison, Wendell Phil- 
lips ; am jn favor of the abolition of slavery, and 
that sort of thing." 

Union — " Well ! I'll have you an-ested, any- 
how. You're a rebel ! " 

Confederate — " Arrested ! Look a here — 
(pulling out a package of papers) — there's 
twenty oaths I've taken, besides being paroled. 



Why, I've sworn myself into another Tophet to 
get out of that infernal Confederacy. Here's my 
brother, who has always been a Union man, and 
now furnishes me with the funds for speculation 
South. I am going down to Savannah to see if 
I can't buy my farm back again. Good by ! " 



Incidents of Antietam. — My confrere and 
myself were within a few yards of Hooker. It 
Avas a very hot place. AVe could not distinguish 
the " ping " of the individual bullets, but their 
combined and mingled hum was like the din of a 
great Lowell factory. Solid shot and shell came 
shrieking through the aii', but over our heads, as 
we were on the extreme front. 

Hooker — commonplace before — the moment 
he heard the guns, loomed up into gigantic stat- 
ure. His eye gleamed with the grand anger of 
battle. He seemed to know exactly what to do, 
to feel that he was master of the situation, and 
to impress every one else with the fact. Turning 
to one of his staff, and pointing to a spot near 
us, he said : 

" Go, and tell Captain to bring his bat- 
tery and plant it there at once ! " 

The Lieutenant rode away. After giving one 
or two further orders with great clearness, rapid- 
ity, and precision, Hooker's eye turned again to 
that mass of rebel infantry in the woods, and he 
said to another officer, with great emphasis : 

" Go, and tell Captain to bring his bat- 
tery here instantly ! " 

Sending more messages to the various divisions 
and batteries, only a single member of the staff 
remained. Once more scanning the woods with 
his eager eye. Hooker dkected the aid : 

" Go, and tell Captain to bring that bat- 
tery here without one second's delay. Whj', my 
God, how he can pour it into their infantry ! " 

By this time several of the body-guard had 
fallen from their saddles. Our horses plunged 
wildly. A shell ploughed the ground under my 
rearing steed, and another exploded near Mr. 
Smalley, throwing great clouds of dust over both 
of us. Hooker leaped his white horse over a 
low fence into an adjacent orchard, whither we 
gladly followed. Though we did not move more 
than thirty yards, it took us comparatively out 
of range. 

The desired battery, stimulated by three suc- 
cessive messages, came up, with smoking horses, 
at a full run, was unlimbered in the twinkling of 
an eye, and began to pour shots into the enemy, 
who were also suffering severely from our infan- 
try discharges. It was not many seconds before 
they began to waver. Through the rifting smoke, 
we could see their line sway to and fro ; then it 
broke like a thaw in a great river. Hooker rose 
up in his saddle, and, in a voice of suppressed 
thunder, exclaimed : 

» There they go, . . . Forward ! " 

Our whole line moved on. It was now nearly 
dark. Having shared the experience of " Fight- 
ing Joe Hooker" quite long enough, I tm-ned 
towards the rear. Fresh troops were pressing 



486 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



forward, and stragglers Avere ranged in long lines 
behind rocks and trees. 

Riding slowly along a grassy slope, as I sup- 
posed quite out of range, my meditations were 
disturbed by a cannon ball, Avhose rush of air 
fanned my face, and made my horse shrink and 
rear almost upright. The next moment came 
another behind me, and by the great blaze of a 
fii-e of rails, which the soldiers had built, I saw it 
ricochei down the slope, like a foot-ball, and pass 
right tl rough a column of our troops in blue, who 
were marching steadily forward. The gap which 
it made was immediately closed up. 

Men with litters were groping through the dark- 
ness, bearing the wounded back to the ambu- 
lances. 

At nine o'clock I wandered to a farm-house 
occupied by some of our pickets. We dared not 
light candles, as it was within range of the enemy. 
The family had left. I tied my horse to an apple 
tree, and lay down upon the parlor floor, with my 
saddle for a pillow. At intervals during the 
night, we heard the popping of musketry, and at 
the first glimpse of dawn the picket officer shook 
me by the arm. 

" My friend," said he, " you had better go away 
as soon as you can ; this place is getting rather 
hot for civilians." 

I rode around through the field, for shot and 
shell were already screaming up the nai'row lane. 

Thus commenced the long, hotly-contested bat- 
tle of Antietam. Our line was three miles in 
length, with Hooker on the right, Burnside on 
the left, and a great gap in the middle, occupied 
only by artillery ; while Fitz-John Porter, with 
his fine corps, was held in reserve. From dawn 
until nearly dark, the two great armies wrestled 
like athletes, straining every muscle, losing here, 
gaining there, and at many points fighting the 
same ground over and over again. It was a fierce, 
sturdy, indecisive conflict. 

Five thousand spectators viewed the struggle 
from a hill comparatively out of range. Not more 
than three persons were struck there during the 
day. McClellau and his stafi" occupied another 
ridge half a mile in the rear. 

" By Heaven ! it was a goodly sight to see, 
For one who had no friend or brother there." 

No one who looked upon that wonderful pan- 
orama can describe or forget it. Every hill and 
valley, every cornfield, grove, and cluster of trees, 
was fiercely fought for. 

The artillery was unceasing ; we could often 
count more than sixty guns to the minute. It 
was like thunder ; and the musketry sounded 
like the patter of rain-drops in an April shower. 
On the great field were riderless horses and scat- 
tering men, clouds of dirt from solid shot and 
exploding shells, long, dark lines of infantry swaj-- 
ing to and fro, with columns of smoke rising from 
their muskets, red flashes and white puff's from 
the batteries — with the sun shining brightly on 
ad this scene of tumult, and beyond it, upon the 
dark, rich woods, and the clear blue mountains 
south of the Potomac. — A. D. Blcliardson. 



A Spunky Prisoner. — A Captain of one of 
the New York companies said he was exceed- 
ingly anxious to be exchanged and return home ; 
but if he thought such exchange would enure to 
the benefit of the Confederate States, and lead to 
their recognition by foreign powers, he would re- 
fuse it. He preferred rather that both sides 
should shoot or hang all the prisoners that should 
be taken, and he would willingly stand his chance 
with the rest. — Southern paper. 



At the Front. — On the day of President 
Lincoln's funeral, a bronzed and weather-beaten 
soldier, anxious to obtain a better view of the 
procession, happened to step before a party of 
ladies and gentlemen. One of the gentlemen 
nudged him on the elbow, at the same time ob- 
serving, " Excuse me, sir, but you are right in 
front of us." Bowing handsomely in return, the 
soldier replied, " That is nothing remarkable for 
me, sir; I have been in front of you for three 
years." So these iron men, marching with the 
nonchalance of veterans, are the men who have 
stood in " front of us for three years." 



Noble Southern Women. — Much has been 
written about Spartan women of old, — much 
about the noble Roman matron, — much about 
our excellent " foremothers of the Revolution ; " 
but it has been reserved for the women of our 
Sunny South to blend the virtues of these hero- 
ines all in one, and present to the world the 
brightest example of fii-mness, courage, and pa- 
triotism. Look at the hundreds of Avomen all 
over our land — delicate ones, who have been 
reared in the lap of luxury ; who have heretofore 
been shielded from every rough blast ; women 
who, a year ago, were lingering over the ivory 
keys of theu* pianos, or discussing with their 
dressmakers the shade of silk which became their 
complexion best ; and see how they have risen, 
Avithout a dissenting voice, to meet the exigencies 
of the times. "What shall I wear? "is now a 
question seldom asked. The only attention that 
dress demands is the consideration, " Will it be 
a piece of economy to purchase this or that ? " 
and daily we hear the remark, " I want homespun 
dresses, — they are the best for us now." In- 
stead of finding our women at the piano, or on 
the fashionable promenade, we find them busy at 
their looms, busy at their wheels, busy making 
soldiers' unifonns, busy making bandages, busy 
in hospitals, busy girding up their sops, their hus- 
bands, and their fathers for the battle-field. Tell 
me, are thej' not a noble race ? Luxury has not 
enervated them ; adversity has not depressed 
them. There was once a French queen, who, sur- 
rounding herself by her maids of honor,^wi'ought, 
day after day, on delicate tapestry, with which the 
churches in her realm were afterwards hung. It 
was thought to be an act of great virtue in her. 
The fact was registered upon the page of history ; 
and she has been held up to her sex as a " shin- 
ing example." But she did not, as the wife of 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



48: 



our Governor has clone, set herself down to sew 
on heavy woollen goods for soldiers ; she did not 
throw aside the silken robe and the golden chain, 
and apply herself, day after day, with unwearied 
assiduity, over stiff fabrics, which make the shoul- 
ders and the fingers alike ache. Nearly all the 
bandages that were used on the bloody field of 
Manassas, between the 21st and 23d of July, 1861, 
were made and forwarded by two Georgia women, 
Mrs. Robert Hardaway and her sister, who reside 
near Columbus. Southern matrons are indeed 
the jewels of our land. — Southern Field and 
Fireside. 

UNITED STATES NATIONAL ANTHEM. 

BY AVILLIAM BOSS ■WALLACE. 

God of the Free ! upon Thy breath 
Our Flag is for the Right unrolled 

As broad and brave as when its Stars 
First lit the hallowed time of old. 

For Duty still its folds shall fly, 
For Honor still its glories burn, 

Where Truth, Religion, Valor, guard 
The patriot's sword and martyr's urn. 

No tyrant's impious step is ours; 

No lust of power on nations rolled : 
Our Flag — for friends, a starry sky ; 

For traitors, storm in every fold. 

O, thus we'll keep our Nation's life, 
Nor fear the bolt by despots hurled ; 

The blood of all the world is here, 

And they who strike us strike the world ! 

God of the Free ! our Nation bless 
In its strong manhood as its birth, 

And make its life a Star of Hope 
For all the struggling of the earth. 

Then shout beside thine Oak, O North ! 

O South, wave answer with thy Palm ! 
And in our Union's heritage 

Together sing the Nation's Psalm ! 



The Colored School at Danville. — A 
coi-respondent relates the following in a letter 
from Danville, North Carolina : A negro school 
had been established here in one of the hospital 
buildings for the benefit of the junior portionof 
the colored population. This morning I paid it a 
visit, and found that it numbered some two hun- 
dred and fifty scholars, and that there has been, 
until recently, a night school, with an attendance 
of about two hundred and sixty. The present 
teacher is a member of the Eighth Pennsylvania 
cavalry, who has been detailed for the duty. I 
could not help feeling amused at his _ style of 
teaching. An orthography class, consisting of 
two mcnnbcrs, was reciting as I entered. The 
teacher was seated behind a square pme table. 
The pupils were in front of it, reclining on it with 
their elbows, and leaning half way across. One 
of them was a tall, listless-looking girl of about 
thirteen ; her wool was gathered into sections and 
twisted into " pig tails," two of which were tied 



under the chin, while the seams that marked the 
several partings looked like rivers winding 
through a cane-brake. In her hand she held a 
peach-tree switch, one end of which she chewed 
with commendable assiduity. "Goat," shouted 
the teacher. " Dat's not de word," said the girl ; 
" I jest done spelled dat." " AVell, boat, tlien ; 
spell that. Say, you boys on those back benches, 
are you going to keep quiet there, hey ? Look 
at your hoolcs, now, and don't stare at me. Sit 
up there, you ! ' Moat, mo-o-a-t, moat.' Say, 
you, there, better raise yourselves up on them 
seats, else you'll r/it raised purty soon. Stop 
that noise, there, you boys, or I'll give you a dose 
of hickory oil." 

The next recitation M'as by a class of small 
children, spelling on cards. " Where's that pint- 
er of mine ? " demands the teacher. " It's done 
broke, sah," shouted half a dozen piccaninnies. 
"Who broke it?" (in a stentorian voice.) Si- 
lence is the only response. " Can none on you 
tell me who broke it ? It'll be a dear break for 
them, if I find 'em out ; I'll try how this hickory 
will break over their backs." 

These illustrations are sufiicient to show that 
the colored school at Danville is conducted in a 
style now nearly obsolete in more favored locali- 
ties. 

Lucky and Unlucky. — A young man from 
Worcester, Massachusetts, a private in the Fifty- 
seventh regiment, in the battle of Cold Harbor, 
was hit by a ball in the chin, which badly frac- 
tured the bone, and tore out several teeth. An- 
other ball hit the right shoulder, fractured the 
shoulder-blade, and remains undiscovered. The 
third ball passed through his abdomen, and 
brought him to the ground. His companions 
d"ragged him to a hole, where his bodyand head 
could not be seen by the enemy ; but his legs be- 
ing exposed, one ball passed through the calf of 
his leg, another cut a deep groove through his 
shin, another cut through the top of the 
instep, and another carried away the next to the 
o-reat toe. He lay in the hole all day, and was 
then taken prisoner, and starved for several 
months ; yet this young man returned to Worces- 
ter erect and in good health, and not perceptibly 
lame. His name is E. P. Rockwood. 



Incidents of the South. — "A Southerner" 
relates the following amusing affairs : 

" A certain General of brigade, who was mor- 
tally wounded at Gettysburg, and who died 
within our Hues, was rather fond of the good 
whiskey for which the Old Dominion is tlimous 
He rarely appeared on parade without being well 
fortified with a fair jiotion of it. As soon as the 
business of the parade was ended, it was his cus- 
tom to dismount, and proceed to the front of the 
line, and dare any officer or man who thought he 
could whip him, to come out and fight him, ac- 
companying his challenge with a volley of drunk- 
en abuse of the whole command. After keeping 
up this display for some time, without finding 



488 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



any one willing to accept his invitation, he would 
dismiss the parade, and return to his quarters 
very well pleased with the proceeding. 

" With a favorite General the men took many 
liberties, and this very popularity seemed to de- 
stroy the deference usually paid to such high offi- 
cers. A laughable occurrence of this kind took 
place during the retreat of the Confederates from 
Yorktown, in 1862. 

" Just after the battle of Williamsburg, General 
Magruder and his staff stopped at the house of a 
widow lady on the road, and engaged dinner. 
Soon after their arrival a Louisiana soldier came 
up, and accosted the landlady with : 

" ' INIadam, can I get dinner ? ' 

" ' Yes, sir,' Avas the reply ; ' but as I am pre- 
paring dinner for General Magruder and staff, 
and have not room at my table for more, you will 
have to wait for a second table.' 

" ' Very well, ma'am. Thank you,' said the 
soldier, taking his seat in a position to command 
a view of the dining-room. AVatching the move- 
ments of the servants, he waited until the feast 
was on the table, and while his hostess proceeded 
to the parlor to announce dinner to her distin- 
guished guests, he entered the dining-room, and, 
seating himself at the table, awaited further de- 
velopments, trusting to his impudence to get him 
out of the scrape. 

" Upon the entrance of the party of officers, 
there was found to be seats for all but one, and 
one politely returned to the parlor to wait. The 
General took a seat next to the soldier, and, after 
the fo'st course was finished, turned to him, and 
asked : 

" ' Sir, have you any idea with whom you are 
dining ? ' 

" * No,' coolly replied the soldier ; ' I used to be 
very particular on that score ; but since I turned 
soldier, I don't care whom I eat with, so that the 
victuals are clean.' 

" The joke was so good that Magruder laughed 
heartily at it, and even paid for the soldier's din- 
ner, and sent him on his way." 



Amoxg the Rebels. — Camp Dennison, about 
twenty miles from Cincinnati, Ohio, says a corre- 
spondent writing in the summer of 1862, was the 
first in that State, and very soon after the begin- 
ning of the war assumed the proportions of a 
military city. Of late it has been used only for 
the sick and wounded, a few regiments being un- 
der instructions there. Since, however, the new 
call for troops, it has been again full of activity 
and interest. 

Among those who have been devoting much 
labor to both the physical and spiritual wants of 
the sufferers there, the Reverend Mr. Clayton, an 
earnest Methodist, formerly of the Bethel in this 
city, has been prominent. All the sufferers there 
have learned to look for his visits with anxiety. 
In the language of the Dutch doctor there, the 
general opinion is, " If preacher Clayton ain't 
a Christian, then t'ain't vort a tam to be a 
Christian." 



Few things are more interesting than the re- 
sults of his visits through the various wards, but 
I shall confine myself to some notes I have of con- 
versations of his with wounded rebels, of whom 
we have thirty-four there. They are all from 
somewhere in the south-west, and have all applied 
to the Government for permission to take the oath, 
and be released thereon. 

One of the most interesting cases was a youth, 
whose heart was evidently busy doing poetic jus- 
tice to the Yankees he had been taught to hate, 
though he still was anxious about Southern rights. 
Mr. Clayton talked to him for some time concern- 
ing religious matters, and the young man at last 
broke in by saying, " We've talked about religion 
long enough ; now let's talk politics." There was 
a peculiar Southernism about his look and tone 
that excited a smile all around. " Well," repHed 
Mr. Clayton, " I'm not much on poHtics ; I'd 
rather not talk about them ; tell me how you felt 
when you were wounded." " Thought it would 
be a sharp pain, sir, but it wasn't ; I was wounded 
in the legs, and it was just like being knocked 
off my pins by a strong blow from a log of wood. 
Fell flat on my belly, and my knees drew them- 
selves up under my chin. Made sure I was dead, 
but thought it didn't make much difference, for I 
saw our men retreating, and knew the Yankees 
would get ine and kill me sure ; always told, sir, 
the Yankees had horns. Well, there I lay ; and 
up came a Colonel leading his men — he was in 
front, sir ; he jumped down from his horse, and 
ran to me, drawing something from his belt ; so I 
gave up ; but it wasn't a pistol, sir " — and here 
the boy's eyes moistened — " it was a canteen ! 
He put it to my lips. I drank. He jumped on his 
horse again, and said, ' Charge, boys ; they're flee- 
ing ! ' Then some soldiers on foot came towards 
me, and I thought they were not all like that offi- 
cer, and I gave up again. But, sir, they said, ' Com- 
rade, get up.' They lifted me up, and said, ' Put 
your arms around our necks, and we'll lead you 
away from these bullets; ' and these were the 
' damned Yankees ! ' I tell you, sir, no man ever 
hugged his sweetheart more friendly than I 
hugged these Yankees' necks." 

After a few more remarks the youth showed a 
determination to " talk politics," and asked Mr. 
Clayton, " What are you fighting for ? " Mr. Clay- 
ton calmly, and in good humor, gave him his ideas 
of the issue, and in ending asked him what they 
were fighting for. " To hold property, sir," re- 
plied the youth — " our slave property." " How 
many slaves did you have ? " " None." "And 
you ? " to the next. " None." He then went 
around to all the thirty-four rebels, and but one 
was found who had owned a slave. " Now," said 
Mr. Clayton, " where are the men Avho have these 
slaves which they are so afraid of losing ? " Here 
a man named McClellan, who has since died, 
rose up on his cot, and stretching out his thin 
hand, said, in a sepulchral voice, " They are at 
home enjoying themselves, and have sent us to 
die for them and theu-s." And to this the echoes 
around the room were, " That's so ; that's God's 
truth." 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



489 



Lying near this one is an Irishman. " Well, 
sir," says the genial Mr. Clayton, " what's the 
matter with you ? " " Wounded, sir ; slight wound 
in the groin — worse one in the heel." " Where 
were you wounded ? " " Pittsburg Landing, sir." 
" What part of the battle ? " " Second fire of the 
last round, sir." " What, Monday ? Why, it 
was rather hard, wasn't it, to fight two days and 
then get hurt at the very last?" "Devil a two 
days did I fight at all, sir." " Why, how was 
that ? " " "^Vhy, you see, sir, I didn't know what 
I was fighting for, and I didn't want to blow a fel- 
low-creature's brains out without knowing what I 
was blowing 'em out for — d'j'e see ? No more did 
I want a fellow-creature to blow my brains out 
without knowing what they was blown out for ; 
so, sir, I just snaked away, sir*. But on Monday 
they found me, sir, and drummed me in." He 
was from Texas. 

The only man among these who has held slaves 
is a man named, if I remember, Staten ; he is not 
only very anxious to take the oath, but prays fer- 
vently that our Government will bring peace by 
taking away the negroes from the Southerners. 
" I'm willing never to see mine again," said he, 
" and rely on it, it is the only way to bring peace, 
the only way." 



WHAT SHALL WE DO FOR JEFF DAVIS? 

Weave him a mantle of burning shame ! 
Stamp on his forehead that dreadful name 
Which deeds like his inscribe in blood — 
A Traitor to man ! a Traitor to God ! 

Plait him a crown of the flower that comes 
In the ashes that lie o'er buried homes ! 
Let his sceptre be the smoking brand 
Which his fiat sent throughout the land ! 

Let his pajans be the bitter cries 
From millions of anguished hearts that rise, 
Both day and night, to that listening ear 
Which ever stoops their plaints to hear. 

'Mid the ruin dire his hands have wrought, 
Let hira find the Throne he long has sought, 
While starving crowds, in hoarse notes ring, 
Not Cotton, but grim old Death is king ! 



Qualities of President Lincoln. — The 
most marked characteristic of Mr. Lincoln's 
manner was his sim|;licity and artlessness. This 
immediately impressed itself upon the observa- 
tion of those who met him for the first time, and 
each successive interview deepened the impres- 
sion. People seemed delighted to find in the 
ruler of the nation freedom from pomposity and 
afiiectation, mingled with a certain simple dignity 
that never forsook him. Though pressed with 
the weight of resjionsiibility resting upon him as 
President of the United States, he shrank from 
assuming any of the honors, or even titles, of the 
position. After years of intimate acquaintance 
with IMr. Lincoln, the writer cannot now recall a 
single instance in -which he spoke of himself as 



President, or used that title of himself, except 
when acting in an official capacity. He always 
spoke of his position and office vaguely, as " this 
place," " here," or other modest phrases. Once, 
speaking of the room in tlie Capitol used by the 
Presidents of the United States during the close 
of a session of Congress, he said, " That room, 
you know, that they call " — dropping his voice 
and hesitating — " the President's room." To an 
intimate friend who addressed him always by his 
own proper title, he said, " Now call meLincoln, 
and I'll promise not to tell of the breach of eti- 
quette — if you won't — and I shall have a rest- 
ing spell from Mister Lincoln." 

With all his simplicity and unacquaintance with 
courtly manners, his native dignity never forsook 
him in the presence of critical or polished stran- 
gers ; but mixed with his angularities and bon- 
homie was something which spoke the fine fibre 
of the man ; and, while his sovereign disregard of 
courtly conventionalities was somewhat ludicrous, 
his native sweetness and straightforwardness of 
manner served to disarm criticism, and impress 
the visitor that he was before a man pure, self- 
poised, collected, and strong in unconscious 
strength. Of him an accomjjlished foreigner, 
whose knowledge of the courts was more perfect 
than that of the English language, said, " He 
seems to me one grand gmtilhonime in disguise." 



Three Weeks at Gettysburg. — This elo- 
quent and earnest sketch was written by an 
accomplished lady of New York, to whom the 
entire loyal people of the country are personally 
indebted for her devotion in her labors for the 
Sanitary Commission during the war : 

"What we did at Gettysburg, for the thi-ee 
weeks we were there, you will want to know. 

' We ' are Mrs. and myself, who, hap])ening 

to be on hand at the riglit moment, gladly fell 
in with the proposition to do what we could at 
the Sanitary Commission Lodge after the battle. 
There were, of course, the agents of the Commis- 
sion, already on the field, distributing supplies to 
the hospitals, and working night and day among 
the wounded. I cannot preter.d to tell you what 
was done by all the big wheels of the concern, 
but only how two of the smallest ones Avent 
round, and what turned uj) in the going. 

" Twenty-four hours we were in making the 
journey between Baltimore and Gettysburg, places 
only four hours apart in ordinary running time ; 
and this will give you some idea of the difficulty 
there was of bringing up supplies when the fight- 
ing was over, and the delays in transporting 
Avounded. Coming towards the town at this 
crawling rate, we passed some fields where the 
fences were down, and the ground slightly tossed 
up. ' That's where Kilpatrick's cavalrymen fought 
the rebels,' some one saitl ; ' and close by that ^ 
barn a rebel soldier was found day before yester- 
day, sitting dead ; ' no one to help, poor soul, 
' near the whole city full.' The raih-oad bridge, 
broken up by the enemy. Government had not 
rebuilt as yet, and we stopped two miles from the 



490 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



town, to find that, as usual, just where the Gov- 
ernment had left off, the Commission had come in. 
There stood their temporary lodge and kitchen, 
and here, hobbling out of their tents, came the 
wounded men who had made their way down 
from the corps hospital, expecting to leave at 
once in the return cars, 

" This is the way the thing was managed at 
first : The surgeons, left in care of the wounded 
three or four miles out from the town, went up 
and down among the men in the morning, and 
said, ' Any of you boys who can make your way 
to the cars, can go to Baltimore.' So off start all 
who think they feel well enough, anything being 
better than the ' hospitals,' so called, for the first 
few days after a battle. Once the men have the 
surgeon's permission to go, they are off; and 
there may be an interval of a day, or two days, 
should any of them be too weak to reach the 
train in time, during which these poor fellows 
belong to no one, the hospital at one end, the 
railroad at the other, v/ith far more than chance 
of falling through between the two. The Sani- 
tary Commission knew this would be so of ne- 
cessity, and, coming in, made a connecting link 
between these tv.o ends. 

" For the first few days the worst cases only 
came down in ambulances from the hospitals ; 
hundreds of fellows hobbled along as best they 
could, in heat and dust, for hours, slowly toiling, 
and many hired farmers' wagons, as hard as the 
farmers' fists themselves, and were jolted down 
to the railroad, at three or four dollars the man. 
Think of the disappointment of a soldier, sick, 
body and heart, to find, at the end of this miser- 
able journey, that his eft'ort to get away, into 
which he had put all his remaining stock of 
strength, was useless ; that ' the cars had gone,' 
or ' the cars were full ; ' that while he was com- 
ing others had stepj)ed down before him, and that 
he must turn all the weary way back again, or 
sleep on the roadside till the next train ' to-mor- 
row.' Tliink what this would have been, and 
you are ready to appreciate the relief and comfort 
that was. No men were turned back. You fed 
and you sheltered them just when no one else 
could have done so ; and out of the boxes and 
barrels of good and nourishing things, which you, 
people at home, had supplied, we took all that 
was needed. Some of you sent a stove (that is, 
the money to get it), some of you the beef stock, 
some of you the milk and fresh bread ; and all 
of you would have been thankful that you had 
done so, could you have seen the refreshment 
and comfort received through these things. 

" As soon as the men hobbled up to the tents, 
good hot soup was given all round ; and that over, 
their wounds Mere dressed, — for the gentlemen 
of the Commission are cooks, or surgeons as oc- 
casion demands, — and, finally, with their blan- 
kets spread over the straw, the men stretched 
themselves out, and M-ere happy and contented till 
morning, and the next train. 

" On the day tliat the raiboad bridge was re- 
paired we moved up to the depot, close by the 
town, and had things in perfect order ; a first- 
rate camping ground, in a large field directly by 



the track, Avith unlimited supply of delicious, cool 
water. Here Ave set up two stoves, with four 
large boilers, always kept full of soup and coffee, 
watched by four or five black men, Avho did the 
cooking under our direction, and sang (not under 
our direction) at the tops of their voices all day, 

' O darkies, hab you seen my massa.' 

' When this cruel war is over.' 

Then we had three large hospital tents, holding 
about thirty-five each, a large camp-meeting sup- 
ply tent, Avhere ban-els of goods were stored, and 
our own smaller tent fitted up vv'ith tables, where 
jelly-pots and bottles of all kinds of good sirups, 
blackberry and black currant, stood in rows. 
Barrels were ranged round the tent walls ; shirts, 
drawers, di"essing-gowns, socks, and slippers (1 
wish Ave had had more of the latter), rags and 
bandages, each in its OAvn place on one side ; on 
the other, boxes of tea, cofi'eo, soft crackers, tama- 
rinds, cherry brandy, &c. Ovei- the kitchen, and 
OA-er this small supply tent, Ave Avomen rather 
reigned, and filled up our Avants by requisitions 
on the Commission's depot. By this time there 
had arrived a ' delegation' of just the right kind 
from Canandaigua, New York, Avith surgeon, 
dressers, and attendants, bringing a first-rate sup- 
ply of necessaries and comforts for the v,'ounded, 
which they handed over to the Commission. 

"Twice a day the trains left for Baltimore or Har- 
risburg, and tAvice a day Ave fed all the Avounded Avho 
arrived for them. Things Avere systematized noAV, 
and the men came down in long ambulance trains 
to the cars ; baggage cars they Avere, fitted Avith 
straAvfor the Avounded to lie on, and broken open 
at either end to let in the air. A Government 
surgeon Avas ahvays present to attend to the care- 
ful lifting of the soldiers from ambulance to car. 
]Many of the men could get along very nicely, 
holding one foot up, and taking great jumps o'n 
their crutches. The latter Avere a great comfort ; 
Ave had a nice supply at the Lodge, and they trav- 
elled up and doAvn from the tents to the cars 
daily. Only occasionally did we dare let a pair 
go on with some very lame soldier, Avho begged 
for them ; we needed them to help the new ar- 
rivals each day, and trusted to the men being 
supphed at the hospitals at the journey's end. 
Pads and crutches are a standing AA-ant — pads 
particularly. We manufactured them out of the 
rags Ave had, stuffed AA-ith sawdust from brandy 
boxes ; and Avith half a sheet, and some soft straAV, 

Mrs. made a poor dying boy as easy as his 

sufferings Avould permit. Poor young felloAV ! he 
Avas so grateful to her for washing, and feeding, 
and comforting him ! He was too ill to bear the 
journey, and Avent from our tent to the church 
hospital, and from the church to his grave, Avhich 
would have been coffinless but for the care of 

, for the Quartermaster's Department Avaa 

overtaxed, and for many days our dead were sim- 
ply Avrapped in their blankets and put into the 
earth. It is a soldierly way, after all, of lying 
Avrapped in the old Avai'-Avorn blanket, — the little 
dust returned to dust. 

" When the surgeons had the AVOunded all 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



491 



placed, with as much comfort as seemed possi- 
ble under the circumstances, on board the train, 
our detail of men would go from car to car, with 
soup made of beef-stock or fresh meat, full of 
potatoes, turnips, cabbage, and rice, with fresh 
bread and coffee, and, when stimulants were 
needed, with ale, milk punch, or brandy. Water 
pails were in great demand for use in the cars on 
the journey, and also empty bottles, to take the 
place of canteens. All our whiskey and brandy 
bottles were washed and filled up at the spring, 
and the boys went off, carefully hugging their 
extemporized canteens, from which they would 
■wet their wounds, or refresh themselves, till the 
journey ended. I do not think that a man of 
the sixteen thousand, who were transported dur- 
ing our stay, went from Gettysburg without a 
good meal — rebels and Unionists together, they 
all had it — and were pleased and satisfied. 
' Have you friends in the army, madam ? ' a rebel 
soldier, lying on the floor of the car, said to me, 
as I gave him some milk. 'Yes; my brother 

is on 's staff'.' ' I thought so, ma'am. You 

can always tell ; when people are good to soldiers 
they are sure to have friends in the army.' ' We 
are rebels, you know, ma'am,' another said ; ' do 
you treat rebels so ? ' It was strange to see the 
Igood brotherly feeling come over the soldiers — 
our own and the rebels, when side by side they 
lay in our tents. ' Hallo, boys ! this is the pleas- 
antest way to meet, — isn't it ? We are better 
friends when we are as close as this, than a little 
farther off'.' And then they would go over the 
battles together — ' We were here,' and ' You 
were there,' in the friendliest way. 

" After each train of cars, daily, for the three 
weeks we were in Gettysburg, trains of ambu- 
lances arrived too late — men who must spend the 
day with us until the five P. M. cars Avent, and 
men too late for the five P. M. train, who must 
spend the night till the ten A. M. cars went. All 
the men who came in this way, under our own 
immediate and particular attention, were given 
the best we had of care and food. The surgeon 
in charge of our camp, Avith liis most faithful 
dresser and attendants, looked after all their 
wounds, which were often in a most shocking 
state, particularly among the rebels. Every even- 
ing and morning they were dressed. Often the 
men would say, ' That feels good. I haven't had 
my Avound so well dressed since I was hurt.' 
Something cool to drink is the first thing asked 
for, after the long, dusty drive, and pailfuls of tam- 
arinds and water — ' a beautiful drink,' the men 
used to say — disappeared rapidly among them. 

"After the men's Avounds Avere attended to, 
we went round giving them clean clothes ; had 
basins and soap and towels ; and folloAved these 
with socks, slippers, shirts, drawers, and those 
coveted dressing-goAvns. Such pride as they felt 
in them — comparing colors, and smiling all over 
as they lay in clean and comfortable rows ready 
for supper, ' on dress parade,' they used to say. 
And then the milk, particularly if it Avere boiled 
and had a little Avhiskey and sugar, and the bread, 
with butter on it, and jelly on the butter — hoAv 



good it all Avas, and how lucky we felt ourselves 
in having the immense satisfaction of distributing 
these things, Avhich all of you, hard at work in 
villages and cities, Avere getting ready and send- 
ing oft', in faith. 

" Canandaigua sent cologne Avith its other sup- 
plies, Avhich Avent right to the noses and hearts of 
the men. ' That is good, noAv ; ' ' I'll take some 
of that;' 'Avorth a penny a sniff;' 'that kinder 
gives one life ; ' and so on, all round the tents, as 
Ave tipped the bottles up on the clean iiandker- 
chiefs some one had sent, and Avhen they Avere 
gone, over squares of cotton, on Avhich the per- 
fume took the place of hem, — ' just as good, 
ma'am.' We varied our dinners Avith custard and 
baked rice puddings, scrambled eggs, codfish 
hash, corn starch, and ahvays as much soft bread, 
tea, coff'ee, or milk as they Avanted. Tavo Massa- 
chusetts boys I especially remember, for the sat- 
isfaction Avith Avhich they ate their pudding. I 
carried a second plateful up to the cars, after they 
had been put in, and fed one of them till he Avas 
sure he had had enough. Young felloAvs they 
Avere, lying side by side, one Avith a right and one 
Avith a left arm gone. 

" The Gettysburg Avomen Avere kind and faithful 
to the Avounded and their friends, and the toAvn 
Avas full to overfloAving of both. The first day, 
when Mrs. and I reached the place, Ave lit- 
erally begged our bread from door to door ; but 
the kind Avoman Avho at last gave us dinner Avould 
take no pay for it. ' No, ma'am, I shouldn't Avish 
to have that sin on my soul when the Avar is over.' 
She, as Avell as others, had fed the strangers 
flocking into town daily ; sometimes over fifty of 
them for each meal, and all for love, and nothing 
for rcAvard ; and one night Ave forced a reluctant 
confession from our hostess that she Avas meaning 
to sleep on the floor that we might have a bed — 
her whole house being full. Of course we couldn't 
alloAV this self-sacrifice, and hunted up some other 
place to stay in. We did her no good, however, 
for we afterAvards found that the bed Avas given 
up that night to some other stranger Avho arrived 
late and tired : ' An old lady, you know, and I 
couldn't let an old lady sleep on the floor.' Such 
acts of kindness and self-denial were almost en- 
tirely confined to the women. 

" FeAV good things can be said of the Gettysburg 
farmers, and I only use Scripture language in 
calling them 'evil beasts.' One of this kind 
came creeping into our camp three weeks after 
the battle. He lived five miles only from the 
toAA-n, and had ' never seen a rebel.' He heard 
we had some of them, and came doAvn to see 
them. 'Boys,' Ave said, marching him into the 
tent, Avhich" happened to be full of rebels that 
day Avaiting for the train, ' boys, here's a man 
Avho .never saAv a rebel in his life, and Avants to 
look at you ; ' and there he stood Avith his mouth 
Avide open, and there they lay in roAvs, laugh- 
ing at him, stupid old Dutchman. 'And why 

haven't you seen a rebel ? ' Mrs. said ; ' Avhy 

didn't you take your gun and help to drive them 
out of your town ? ' 'A feller might'er got hit ' 
— which reply was quite too much for the rebels; 



492 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



they roared -with laughter at him, up and doM'n 
the tent. One woman we saw, who was by no 
means Dutch, and whose pluck helped to redeem 
the other sex. She lived in alittle house close up 
by the field where the hardest fighting was done, 
a red-cheeked, strong, country girl. ' Were you 
frightened when the shells began flying ? ' ' Well, 
no ; you see we was all a baking bread round here 
for the soldiers, and had our dough* a rising. 
The neighbors they ran into their cellars, but I 
couldn't leave my bread. When the first shell 
came in at the window, and crashed through the 
room, an officer came and said, " You had better 
get out of this," but I told him I could not leave 
my bread, and I stood working it till the third 
shell came through, and then I went down cellar, 
but (triumphantly) I left my bread in the oven.' 
' And why didn't you go before ? ' '0, you 
see, if I had, the rebels would have come in and 
daubed the dough all over the place.' And here 
she had stood, at the risk of unwelcome plums 
in her loaves, while great holes, which we saw, 
were made by shot and shell through and through 
the room in which she was working. 

" The streets of Gettysburg were filled with the 
battle. People thought and talked of nothing 
else ; even the children showed their little spites 
by calling to each other, ' Here, you rebel ! ' and 
mere scraps of boys amused themselves with per- 
cussion caps and hammers. Hundreds of old 
muskets were piled on the pavements, the men 
who shouldered them a week before lying under 
ground now, or helping to fill the long trains of 
ambulances on their way from the field. The pri- 
vate houses of the town were, many of them, 
hospitals ; the little red flags hung from the up- 
per windows. 

"Besides our own men at the Lodge, we all had 
soldiers scattered about whom we could help 
from our supplies ; and nice little puddings and 
jellies, or an occasional chicken, were a great 
treat to men condemned by their Avounds to stay 
in Gettysburg, and obliged to live on what the 
empty town could provide. There was a Colonel 
in a shoe shop, a Captain just up the street, and 
a private round the corner (whose young sister 
had possessed herself of him, overcoming the 
military rules in some way, and carrying him off 
to a little room, all by himself, Avhere I found her 
doing her best with very little). She came after- 
wards to our tent, and got for him clean clothes 
and good food, and all he wanted, and was per- 
fectly happy in being his cook, washerwoman, 
medical cadet, and nurse. Besides such as these, 
we occasionally carried from our supplies some- 
thing to the churches, which were filled with sick 
and wounded, and where men were dying, — men 
whose strong patience it was very hard to bear, — 
dying with thoughts of the old home far away, 
saying, as last words for the woman watching 
there, and waiting with a patience equal in its 
strengtli, ' Tell her I love her ! ' 

" Late one afternoon — too late for the cars — a 
train of ambulances arrived at our lodge with 
over one hundred wounded rebels to be cared for 
through the night. Only one among them seemed 



too weak and faint to take anything. He was 
badly hurt and failing. I went to him after his 
wound was dressed, and found him lying on his 
blanket, stretched over the straw — a fair-haired, 
blue-eyed young Lieutenant — a face innocent 
enough for one of our own New England boys. I 
could not think of him as a rebel. He was too 
near heaven for that. He wanted nothing — had 
not been willing to eat for days, his comrades 
said — but I coaxed him to try a little milk gruel, 
flavored nicely with lemon and brandy ;• and one 
of the satisfactions of our three weeks is the 
remembrance of the empty cup I took away 
afterwards, and his perfect enjoyment of that 
supper. ' It was so good — the best thing he 
had had since he was wounded ; ' and he thanked 
me so much, and talked about his ' good supper' 
for hours. Poor creature ! he had had no care, 
and it was a surprise and pleasure to find himself 
thought of; so, in a pleased, child-like way, he 
talked about it till midnight, the attendant told 
me, — as long as he spoke of anything ; for at 
midnight the change came, and from that time he 
only thought of the old days before he was a sol- 
dier, when he sang hymns in his father's church. 
He sang them now again, in a clear, sweet voice : 
' Lord, have mercy upon me ; ' and then songs 
without words — a sort of low intoning. His 
father was a Lutheran clergyman in South Caro- 
lina, one of the rebels told us in the morning, 
when we Avent into the tent to find him sliding 
out of our care. All day long we watched him — 
sometimes fighting his battles over — oftener 
singing his Lutheran chants — till in at the tent 
door, close to which he lay, looked a rebel soldier, 
just arrived with other prisoners. He started 
when he saw the Lieutenant, and, quickly kneel- 
ing down by him, called, ' Henry ! Henry ! ' — 
but Henry was looking at some one a great way 
off", and could not hear him. 

'* ' Do you know this soldier? ' we said. 

" ' O, yes, ma'am ! and his brother is wounded, 
and a prisoner, too, in the cars now.' 

" Two or thi-ee men started after him, found him, 
and half carried him from the cars to our tent. 
' Henry' did not know him, though, and he 
threw himself down by his side on the straw, and 
for the rest of the day lay in a sort of apathy, 
without speaking, except to assure himseli' that 
he could stay with his brother without the risk 
of being separated from his fellow-prisoners. 

" And there the brothers lay, and there we, 
strangers, sat watching, and listening to the 
strong, clear voice, singing, ' Lord, have mercy 
upon me.' The Lord had mercy, and at sunset I 
put my hand on the Lieutenant's heart to find it 
still ! 

" All night the brother lay close against the 
coffin, and in the morning he went away with his 
comrades, leaving us to bury Henry, having ' con- 
fidence,' but first thanking us for what we had 
done, and giving us all that he had to show his 
gratitude — the palmetto ornament from his 
brother's cap, and a button from his coat. 

" Dr. W. read the burial service that morning at 
the grave, and wrote his name on the little 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



493 



head-board : ' Lieutenant Ranch, Fourteenth Re- 
giment South Carolina Volunteers.' 

" In the field where we buried him, a number of 
colored freedmen, working for Government, on 
the railroad, had their camp, and every night 
they took their recreation, after the heavy work 
of the day was over, in prayer meetings. Such 
an ' inferior race,' you know ! We went over 
one night and listened for an hour, while they 
sang, collected under the fly of a tent, a table in 
the middle, where the leader sat, and benches 
all round the sides for the congregation, — men 
only, — all very black and very earnest. They 
prayed with all their souls, as only Hlack men and 
slaves can, for themselves and for the dear white 
people, who had come over to the meeting, and 
for ' Massa Lincoln,' for whom they seemed to 
have a reverential affection, some of them a sort 
of worship, which confused Father Abraham and 
Massa Abraham in one general call for blessings. 
Whatever else they asked for, they must have 
strength and comfort and blessing for ' Massa 
Lincoln.' Very little care was taken of these 
poor men. Those who were ill, during our stay, 
were looked after by one of the officers of the 
Commission. They were grateful for every little 

thing. Mrs. went into the town and hunted 

up several dozen bright handkerchiefs, hemmed 
them, and sent them over to be distributed the 
next night after meeting. They were put on the 
table in the tent, and one by one the men came 
up to get them. Purple, and blue, and yellow, 
the handkerchiefs were, and the desire of every 
man's heart fastened itself on a yellow one ; 
they politely made way for each other, one 
man standing back to let another pass up first, 
although he ran the risk of seeing the particular 
pumpkin color that riveted his eyes taken from 
before them. When the distribution was over, 
each man tied his head up in his handkerchief 
and sang one more hymn, keeping time all round, 
with blue and purple and yellow nods, and thank- 
ing and blessing the white people, in * their bas- 
ket and in their store,' as much as if the cotton 
handkerchiefs had all been gold leaf. One man 
came over to our tent next day to say : ' Missus, 
was it you who sent me that present ? I never 
had anythng so beautiful in all my life before ; ' 
and he only had a blue one, too. 

" Among our wounded soldiers, one night, came 
an elderly man, sick, wounded, and crazy, singing 
and talking about home. We did what Ave could 
for him, and pleased him greatly with a present 
of a red flannel shirt, drawers, and red calico 
dressing-gown, all of which he needed, and in 
which he dressed himself up, and then wrote a 
letter to his wife, made it into a little book with 
gingham covers, and gave it to one of the gentle- 
men to mail for him. The next morning he was 
sent on with the company from the Lodge, and 
that evening two tired women came into our 
camp — his wife and sister, who hurried on from 
their home to meet him, arriving just too late. 
Fortunately we had the queer little gingham book 
to identify him by, and when some one said, ' It 
is the man, you know, who screamed so,' the poor 



wife was certain about him. He had been crazy 
before the war, but not for two years, now, she 
said. He had been fretting for home since he 
was hurt, and when the doctor told him there was 
no chance of being sent there, he lost heart, ancli 
wrote to his wife to come and carry him away. 
It seemed almost hopeless for two lone women, 
who had never been out of their own little town, 
to succeed in finding a soldier among so many, 
sent in so many difl'erent directions ; but Me helped 
them as we could, and started them on their jour- 
ney the next morning, back on their track, to use 
their common sense and Yankee privilege of 
questioning. 

" A week after, Mrs. had a letter, full of 

gratitude, and saying that the husband was found 
and secured for home. That same night we had 
in our tents two fathers, with their wounded sons, 
and a nice old German mother with her boy. She 
had come in from Wisconsin, and brought with 
her a ])atch-work bed-quilt for her son, thinking 
he might have lost his blanket ; and there he lay, 
all covered up in his quilt, looking so home-like, 
and feeling so too, no doubt, with his good old 
mother close at his side. She seemed bright and 
happy — had three sons in the army, one had 
been killed, this one wounded — yet she was so 
pleased with the tents, and the care she saw taken 
there of the soldiers, that while taking her tea 
from a barrel-head as table, she said, ' Indeed, 
if she was a man, she'd be a soldier too, 
right off".' 

" For this temporary sheltering and feeding of 
all these wounded men. Government could make 
no provision. There was nothing for them, if 
too late for the cars, except the open field and 
hunger, in preparation for their ^tiguing journey. 
It is expected, when the cars are ready, that the 
men will be promptly sent to meet them ; and 
Government cannot provide for mistakes and de- 
lays ; so that, but for the Sanitary Commission's 
Lodge and comfortable supplies, for which the 
wounded are indebted to the hard workers at 
home, men badly hurt must have suffered night 
and day while waiting for the • next train.' We 
had, on an average, sixty of such men each night, 
for three weeks, under our care ; sometimes one 
hundred, sometimes only thirty; and with the 
'delegation,' and the help of other gentlemen 
volunteers, who all worked devotedly for the men, 
the whole thing was a great success ; and you, and 
all of us, can't help being thankful that we had a 
share, however small, in making it so. Sixteen 
thousand good meals were given ; hundreds of men 
kept through the day, and twelve hundred shel- 
tered at night, their wounds dressed, their supper 
and breakfast secured, rebels and all. You will 
not, I am sure, regret that these most wretched 
men, these 'enemies,' 'sick, and in prison,' 
were helped and cared for, through your supplies, 
though certainly they were not in your minds 
when you packed your barrels and boxes. The 
clothing we reserved for our own men, excejjt, 
now and then, when a shivering rebel needed it ; 
but in feeding them, we could make no distinc- 
tion. It was curious to see, among our workers 



t94 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



at the Lodge, the disgust and horror felt for reb- 
els giving place to the kindest feeling for wounded 
men. 

" Our three weeks were coming to an end ; the 
work of transporting the wounded was nearly 
over ; tM'ice daily we had filled and emptied our 
tents, and twice fed the trains before the long 
journey. The men came in slowly at the last, a 
Lieutenant, all the way from Oregon, being among 
the very latest. He came down from the corps 
hospitals (now greatly improved), having lost one 
foot, poor fellow, dressed in a full suit of the 
Commission's cotton clothes, just as bright and 
as cheerful as the first man, and all the men that 
we received, had been. We never heard a com- 
plaint. ' Would he like a little nice soup ? ' 
' Well, no, thank you, ma'am ; ' hesitating and 
polite. 'You have a long ride before you, and 
had better take a little ; I'll just bring it, and 
you can try.' So the good thick soup came. He 
took a very little in the spoon to please me, and 
afterwards the whole cupful to ])lease himself. 
He ' did not think it was this kind of soup I 
meant. He had some in camp, and did not think 
he cared for any more ; his " cook " was a very 
small boy, though, who just put some meat in a 
little water, and stirred it round.' ' Would you 
like a handkerchief ? ' and I produced our last one, 
with a hem and cologne too. ' O, yes ; that is 
what I need ; I have lost mine, and was just bor- 
rowing this gentleman's.' So the Lieutenant, the 
last man, was made comfortable, thanks to all of 
you, though he had but one foot to carry him on 
his long journey home. 

" Four thousand soldiers, too badly hurt to be 
moved, were still left in Gettysburg, cared for 
kindly and well at the large new Government hos- 
pital, with a Sanitary Commission attachment. 
Our work was over, our tents were struck, and 
we came away after a flourish of trumpets from 
two military bands, who filed down to our door, 
and gave us a farewell — ' lied, white, and blue.' " 



FAREWELL TO BROTHER JONATHAN.* 

BY CAllOLIKE. 

Fakewei.l ! we must part ; we have turned from 

the land 
Of our cold-hearted brother with tyrannous hand, 
Who assumed all our rights as a favor to grant, 
And whose smile ever covered the sting of a taunt ; 

Who breathed on the fixme he was bound to de- 
fend, — 

Still the craftiest foe, 'neath the guise of a friend, — 

Who believed that our bosoms Avould bleed at a 
touch, 

Yet could never believe he could goad them too 
much ; 

Whoso conscience affects to be seared with our sin, 
Y'ct is plastic to take all its benefits in ; 
The mote in our eye so enormous has grown, 
That he never perceives there's a beam in his own, 

* A reply to "Brother Jonathan's Farewell to Sis- 
ter Caroline." See ante. 



0, Jonathan, Jonathan ! vassal of pelf. 
Self-righteous, self-glorious, yes, every inch self, 
Your loyalty nov/ is all bluster and boast, 
But was dumb when the foemen invaded our coast. 

In vain did your country appeal to you then ; 
You coldly refused her your money and men ; 
Y''our trade interrupted, you slunk from her Avars, 
And preferred British gold to the Stripes and the 
Stars ! 

Then our generous blood was as water poured 

forth. 
And the sons of the South v.-ere the shields of the 

North ; 
Nor oiir patriot ardor one moment gave o'er, 
Till the foe you had fed we had driven from the 

shore ! 

Long years we have suffered opprobrium and 

wrong. 
But we clung to your side with affection so strong, 
That at last, in mere wanton aggression, you broke 
All the ties of our hearts with one murderous 

stroke. 

We are tired of contest for what is our own ; 
We are sick of a strife that could never be done ; 
Thus our love has died out, and its altars are dark, 
Not Prometheus' self could rekindle the spark. 

0, Jonathan, Jonathan ! deadly the sin 
Of your tigerish thirst for the blood of your kin ; 
And shameful the spirit that gloats over wives 
And maidens despoiled of their honor and lives ! 

Your palaces rise from the fruits of our toil ; 
Y^our millions are fed from the wealth of our soil ; 
The balm of our air brings the health to your 

cheek, 
And our hearts are aglow with the welcome we 

speak. 

O brother ! beware how you seek us again, 

Lest you brand on your forehead the signet of 

Cain ; 
That blood and that crime on your conscience must 

sit: 
We may fall — we may perish — but never submit ! 

The pathway that leads to the Pharisee's door 
We remember, indeed, but we tread it no more ; 
Preferring to turn, with the Publican's faith. 
To the path through the valley and shadow of 
death ! 



A Sanitary Incident. — A member of one of 
the Hospital Aid Societies called upon an elderly 
widow lady, and, stating the object of her mission, 
was responded to in the following words : " It is 
but little I can do for you, but I have an old 
sheet that has been used but very little, although 
it was woven with my own hands more than sixty 
years ago, which, if torn up properly, will make 
excellent bandages. The amount of the gift is 
not much, but it is my desire that this relic of 
my earlier days shall be used for that purpose." 
Although the day of the spinning-wheel and 
hand-loom has vanished, yet how clearly on 3 is 
reminded of old revolutionary times, when our 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



495 



mothers part with some trivial article which they 
have so loni," treasured, that it may bind up the 
bleeding wounds of our brave comrades in battle. 



The Chkistian Soldier. — After the battle 
of Gettysburg, a soldier lay in a house by the 
roadside, dying. A Major-General drove up to 
the door. His orderly took his horse. He got 
off, went in, and sat down by the dying man's 
side. Taking out a little book, he read from it, 
" Let not your heart be troubled : ye believe in 
God, believe also in me : in my Father's house are 
many mansions." He then knelt down and 
offered up a prayer to God for that dying soldier. 
Arising from his knees, he bent over and kissed 
him, and said, with loving accents, " Captain G — , 
•we shall meet in heaven." He then rode off. 
That General was Major-General Howard, of 
Maine ! 

A Letter from Florida. — The following 
letter from a gentleman of high standing, and de- 
cidedly the most able lawyer in Florida, humor- 
ous and unguarded as it is, casts much light on 
the state of feeling and condition of things in the 
South in the latter part of the year 1861 : 

"Jacksonville, Fla., Oct. 10, 18G1. 

" Most High, Most Mighty, and Most Puis- 
sant Antipods : Sometimes a vessel manages 
to run over from Savannah or elsewhere to Nas- 
sau, New Providence, and Avith the expectation 
that one will be going from thence in a few days, 
I think proper to try and report myself. If there- 
fore this should ever reach you, be pleased to 
understand that I and all my household are well. 
Notwithstanding the whole South seems to be 
turned into a military camp, I have been of late, 
and still am, ranch occupied in professional mat- 
ters, and I write this under the influence of whip 
.and spur, for I am to be off to-morrow morning 
to St. Augustine to attend the Confederate court, 
where divers cases and questions of prize, seques- 
tration, &c., must be discussed and disposed of; 
and as there is now not a solitary lawyer re- 
maining there, no, not even , there is no libra- 
ry, and I must select my books and authorities, 
and lug them along, for in these days of distrust 
and conceit, no court is going to believe the law 
is so and so, merely because I say so. It must 
be read from a book, printed paper, bound in 
sheep or calf, manufactured by asses ; becomes an 
oracle, and reason, principle, and common sense 
are silenced and laughed out of countenance. 
Well, I am in a hurry, but I write you a line to 

say God bless you. I hope you and Mrs. 

are well, and I want to propose to you, if this d — d 
war continues, to go out to Nassau this winter to 
avoid the cold ; and if you will, I will promise 
positively to go over from hei-e and visit you. 
Now do it. The British steamers, you know, be- 
tween Havana and New York, stop at Nassau 
twice a month ; and I need not tell you how much 
more comfortable they are in every way than an 



American steamer. Pray take my advice for 
once ; and do another thing ; write me when you 
get this, and as often as you may find time, and 

enclose your letter for me to Mrs. , Nassau, 

New Providence. She, Mrs. , with all her 

family, removed there last winter ; and she will 
always know when any vessel is leaving there for 
any part of the Southern coast, especially Florida, 
and will forward any letters to me. 

" The last I heard from you was yours of the 
16th July, enclosed to Mr. Reed, How many 
times, and lolien, I wrote you I have no recollec- 
tion, and whether any of them got through no- 
body knows. Your kind solicitude for me moved 
me greatly j but it should not, for it was only the 
expression of a warm and generous friendship 
which I knew you entertained for me as well be- 
fore as then. Alas ! I have nothing to offer you. 
All that I could, at any time, was, indifferent ac- 
commodations, with a better climate than you 
had at home. Fate, Providence, or the devil, in- 
terfered last year, and retained you in arctic 
quarters. Now take my advice : take the reins 

into your own hands, or let Mrs. have them, 

which is, perhaps, still better, and pack up early, 
and go out to Nassau. I don't know much about 
the place ; but I do know the climate is warm 
there ; and, moreover, it is English, and accord- 
ing to my experience it is more safe, comfortable, 
respectable, and quiet among the English, lolier- 
ever they govern, than with any other people on 
the earth. And, although that is a matter of 
little consequence, I presume living in Nassau is 
cheap. I should like to live there a while, how- 
ever, just for economy's sake. Pray, have you 
any idea of our prices here ? Pork fifty dollars 
per barrel ; butter fifty cents per pound ; lard forty 
cents. I have paid these prices this day. Soap 
also thirty-five cents per pound ; and, in short, 
pretty much everything else in the same ratio, 
except, perhaps, flour. But we don't seem to 
mind it — except that it seems to me it makes 
us hungry, for I can swear we eat more than we 
ever did in peaceable times. We have raised 
this season abundant crops of all kinds of pro- 
visions in the South. This is attributed to 
Providence ; but I understand He Lis done the 
same thing for our enemies. His position, there- 
fore, is not very well defined. Although I am 
well satisfied, if the real truth could be got at. 
He is on our side, still I am inclined to think 
that the making of our crop for this year He left 
pretty much to our niggers. I mean to say, that 
if it hadn't been for the niggers, I don't think 
much of a crop would have been made. 

" Well, I cannot tell you how much I wash that 
you and Mrs. could come and pass the win- 
ter with us. We could go boating (when there 
was no wind). We could go down to the bar, or 
to Indian River, or to Cedar Keys, and eat oys- 
ters, and do, in fact, whatever we pleased. As 
it is, I don't believe this war can last till spring ; 
now mark my Avord. It can't last, and there is 
no reason on earth why it should. No matter — 
you and I cannot now discuss it ; but the fact is, 
it cannot in my judgment last." 



496 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



BARBARA FRITCHIE.* 

BY JOUN G. "WHITTIER. 

Up from the meadows rich with corn, 
Clear in the cool September morn, 

The clustered spires of Frederick stand 
Green-walled by the hills of Maryland. 

Round about them orchards sweep, 
Apple and peach tree fruited deep. 

Fair as the garden of the Lord, 

To the eyes of the famished rebel horde. 

On that pleasant morn of the early fall 
When Lee marched over the mountain wall. 

Over the mountains winding down, 
Horse and foot, into Frederick town. 

Forty flags with their silver stars. 
Forty flags with their crimson bars. 

Flapped in the morning wind : the sun 
Of noon looked down and saw not one. 

Up rose Barbara Fritchie then, 

Bowed with her fourscore years and ten ; 

Bravest of all in Frederick town, 

She took up the flag the men hauled down ; 

In her attic-window the staff' she set. 
To show that one heart was loyal yet. 

Up the street came the rebel tread, 
Stonewall Jackson riding ahead. 

Under his slouched hat left and right 
He glanced : the old flag met his sight. 

" Halt ! " — the dust-brown ranks stood fast. 
"Fire ! '* — out blazed the rifle-blast. 

It shivered the window, pane, and sash ; 
It rent the banner with scam and gash. 

Quick, as it fell, from the broken staff 
Dame Barbara snatched the silken scarf; 

She leaned far out on the window sill, 
And shook it forth with a royal will. 

" Shoot, if you must, this old gray head, 
But spare your country's flag," she said. 

A shade of sadness, a blush of shame, 
Over the face of the leader came ; 

The nobler nature within him stirred 
To life at that woman's deed and word : 

" Who touches a hair of yon gray head 
Dies like a dog ! March on ! " he said.. 

All day long through Frederick street 
Sounded the tread of marching feet. 

All daj' long that free flag tost 
Over the heads of the rebel host. 

* The incident upon which this ballad is founded 
took place literally as it is told by the poet upon the 
occupation of Frederick, in Maryland, on the second 
march northward of the insurgent forces. 



Ever its torn folds rose and fell 

On the loyal winds that loved it well ; 

And through the hill-gaps sunset light 
Shone over it with a warm good night. 

Barbara Fritchie's work is o'er. 

And the rebel rides on his raids no more. 

Honor to her ! and let a tear 

Fall for her sake on Stonewall's bier. 

Over Barbara Fritchie's grave. 
Flag of Freedom and Union, wave ! 

Peace and order and beauty draw 
Round thy symbol of light and law ; 

And ever the stars above look down 
On thy stars below in Frederick town ! 



Incident of Sherman's March. — General 
Howard, in a speech at the celebration of the 
Christian Commission, related the following little 
occurrence after the battle of Chattanooga. " My 
corps, with Sherman's," said he, " had been in 
pursuit of the enemy three days. We had 
marched nearly one hundred and twenty miles, 
and then marched back again. The result of it 
was, that our clothes and our shoes were worn 
out ; the men had scarcely any blankets to cover 
them, or pants to wear. They were toiling along 
on their journey home. Just as we had passed 
through the mountain ridge, the division com- 
mander, thinking that the men had marched far 
enough for one day, put them comfortably into 
camp, told them to make their coffee, and then 
sent word to me to know if they had permission 
to remain there during the night. It was raining 
hard, very hard. It was a severe storm. But I 
knew the position was an improper one. It was 
not the fulfilment of my orders. I sent back 
word, ' No ; march forward to Tungston's Sta- 
tion. March ! ' It was dark — it was cold — it 
was stormy. The poor men had to be turned out 
once more, to march. Notwithstanding their 
labor, notwithstanding their toil and fatigue, they 
marched. ' What did they do ? how did they 
take it ? ' do you ask ? They took it as I hope 
you will take my speech. They went singing, 
singing, singing along the route — noble, patient 
fellows ! — without a complaining word." 



Put it in Gold Letters. — A few days af- 
ter the fight at Skerry, near Charleston, Kanaw- 
ha, Virginia, two or three Yankee officers visited 
the house of a Mr. Fry, who had been driven 
from his home by the enemy. A daughter of 
Mr. Fry saw them approaching through the gate, 
and confronted them in the porch, with a demand 
to know their business. They stated they were 
looking for secession flags, and heard there were 
some there. 

" Brave men," said she in scorn, " take flags 
on the field of battle — cowards only hunt them 
at the houses of defenceless women. Mine is in 
the hands of our brave volunteers ; go and take 
it from them." — Southern paper. 



I 




'^X * ;;v .V H.l\iic^i't«- 



.'Vl)MlliAl_, 1)_ ( ;. I ■ARR_A(;iJT 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



49^ 



A TRUE EXPERIENCE. 

BY FRANK CAHILL. 

I HAD thoroughly made up my mind to enlist. 
The bounty may have temjjted me ; my young 
affections may have been blighted ; or, which is 
ths most likely case, a friend of mine, then a 
Lieutenant-Colonel, commanding a regiment, may 
have written me to come out, as promotion was 
speedy and sure. 

I knew if I told any of my friends of my de- 
termination to enlist, they would endeavor to 
persuade me from it ; so I kept it a profound 
secret from all — at least all save two ; and 
how I came to tell them will be explained in 
due time. 

I had a just appreciation of glory, and knew 
exactly what it meant, viz., hard fare, much dis- 
comfort, and the chances of being shot. So I 
shivered on the brink of Uncle Sam's servitude, 
hesitating to take the final plunge. 

Visiting one of my friends at his place of busi- 
ness, I told him in the most mysterious manner 
that I wanted to talk to him on a most important 
matter. 

" Hold on a few minutes," said he. "I shall 
be through directly." 

I thought those few minutes were the longest 
I had ever experienced, so anxious was I to make 
known my intention of enlisting. At last I heard 
the sharp click of the clasps of his ledger, which 
he placed in the safe, turned the key, put that in 
his pocket, changed his coat, — his hat was al- 
ready on, — and said he was ready. 

I mentally determined to defer telling him till 
later in the evening. 

Talking of almost everything but soldiering, 
we walked about the streets for hours, occasion- 
ally stopping at a wayside inn to refresh. 

At last Smith — for that was my friend's name 
— said : " What do you want to see me about ? I 
must be going ; my wife is expecting me." 

" O, nothing," I replied ; " I just wanted to 
see you, and have a little talk ; that was all." 

But Smith knew better. He could tell by my 
face that this was not all ; so we continued our 
perambulations, and occasional halts for refresh- 
ments. 

Ten o'clock came, and I was no nearer telling 
him my intention. I was so sure he would dis- 
suade me from it. Smith said he must really go ; 
it was getting so late. He shook me by the 
liand, at the corner of his block, and left me. 

" Smith," I cried, calling after him ; " one mo- 
ment. I may not see you again. I'm — I'm 
going to enlist." 

" Are you ? " was all he said, not at all startled 
by my announcement. " I should have done the 
same thing myself long ago, if I were not mar- 
ried." 

" My county bounty," I continued, " I will send 
to you." 

" All right ; I'll take care of it." 

" And if anything happens to me — " here my 
voice became somewhat emotional — " give it to 
32 



your little girl, and tell her to sometimes think 
of me." 

" There'll be no occasion to tell her that. 
You'll come back safe enough. Write often, and 
let me know how you are getting along." 

" I will do so. Good by ; " and I held out my 
hand. 

" Good by," he responded, shaking it. " I 
wish I was single, so I could accompany you." 

" Don't tell anybody where I have gone." 

" Of course not, if you wish me not to ; " and 
he was away. 

The next morning I proceeded to the recruit- 
ing office in the City Hall Park, New York, for 
the express purpose of enlisting. But somehow 
or other the bustle and confusion in Mr. Orison 
Blunt's recruiting ofiice unnerved me, and I 
thought a little walk would do me good. 

My little walk meant a tramp to Central I*ark 
and back, and occupied some three or four hours. 
When I returned it was past three : much to my 
regret, the oflSce was closed, and I had to wait 
till the following morning. 

This annoyed me exceedingly ; when I found 
it was impossible to be enlisted that day, I was 
the more anxious to become a ■wearer of the army 
blue, and left highly irate at the policy that closed 
a recruiting station at such an early hour in the 
day, thus preventing any number of Ijrave de- 
fenders rushing to the protection of their country. 

" It is an outrage upon the nation," I said, 
" and I will write to the papers about the mat- 
ter." 

But I didn't. 

Having left my boarding-house a day or two 
before, that night I slept at Tammany Hall, and 
had serious thoughts of lying on the floor, in- 
stead of on the bed, so as to accustom myself 
to the hard.ships of the tented field. After try- 
ing the floor for a few minutes I concluded that 
the bed was the more comfortable ; so into it I 
turned. 

At the time I enlisted, fifteen dollars hand 
money was given to all who brought a recruit. 
Laboring under the impression I should prefer 
a friend receiving the money, rather than a 
stranger, I hunted one up, and told him I wished 
to put fifteen dollars in his pocket. 

" You're just the man I wanted to see," said 
he; "but how?" 

" I am going to enlist." 

" You don't tell me ! My gracious ! " exclaimed 
Jim, opening his eyes with astonishment. " Let 
us have a drink." 

« What I want you to do, is to take me over to 
the recruiting office and receive fifteen dollars 
hand money." 

" I can't do that, old fellow." 

• " Why not ? " 

" Well, you may get killed," asserted Jim, in 
the most matter-of-fact way. 

" That's true," I somewhat ruefully agreed. 
" If you were to, and I had taken any money for 
your enlistment, I should never forgive myself. 
It would be like receiving compensation for yom- 
death." 



498 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



" But some one Avill have to get it." 
" That some one will not he me. So it's no 
use talking any more about it." 

I tried to reason him into it ; but it was of no 
use. Jim was determined. So, after enjoining 
him to secrecy, we shook hands and parted, he 
much the sadder man of the two. 

Immediately on leaving Jim, I went to the re- 
ci-uiting office, and made known my desire to en- 
list. "But," said I, "I have no one to receive 
the hand money. As I have brought mj-self, I 
suppose it will be paid to me." 

"No. You can't enhst yourself; you'll have 
to get somebody to bring you here." 

" But I haven't any one to bring me." 

" We can't help that ; vou can't be enlisted, 
then." 

" That appears to me to be a strange proceed- 
ing. The Government Avants soldiers ; I offer 
myself, and you won't accept me." 

The officer beckoned to a policeman, who at 
once advanced, and requested me to move on. I 
did so. 

As I was leaving the building, a clean-shaven, 
mild-sjwken, gentlemanly-looking man approached 
me, and asked if I wanted to enlist. 

I answered in the affinnative. 

" Then I'll make out your papers, and put you 
through in no time." 

He was as good as his word. In a few min- 
utes he had recorded my age, height, occujmtion, 
and personal description, handing me over to tlie 
examining Surgeon when he had done so. 

This last-named personage told me to strip my- 
self, which I speedily did. He then put me 
through my paces, as though I were a horse he 
wished to purchase. First, he went to the farther 
end of the room, and taking up a pack of playing 
cards, selected one. Holding it up, he asked, — 

" AVhat card is this ? " 

" The nine of clubs." 

" And this ? " 

" The ten of hearts." 

" llight. Now come here." 

I went to him, and he pounded me on the chest 
and bade me cough; he made me run, walk, 
stretch my legs as far apart as I possibly could, 
put roy hands as high above my head as they 
could reach, and strike out in the most approved 
shoulder-hitting fashion. 

Just as he was about to pass me, he espied a 
small varicose vein in my left leg ; so he hesitated. 

" That's nothing," said the clean-shaven, mild- 
spoken gentleman, who was interested in me to 
the extent of fifteen dollars. 

" I don't know about that. Wait a moment ; 
and he left the room, but quickly returned, fol- 
lowed by another Surgeon, who pronounced my 
varicose vein as nothing ; so I passed. 

He then led the way to the muster-in officer, 
who told me to place my left hand on a Bible that 
lay upon the table, and lioid up my right hand. 
He then recited something, which was just as in- 
telligible to me as, 

" INIumble, mumble, mumble, mumble. So help 
you God." 



I nodded. That nod made me a soldier for 
three years or during the war. 

. Having been paid my county bounty of three hun- 
dred dollars, I was placed on a sort of revolving 
niche and turned into another room, where some 
twenty-five or thirty other recruits, who had pre- 
ceded me, were in waiting. Many of them were 
engaged playing cards, already gambling away the 
bounty they had just received. 

I was taken in charge by a couple of men, who 
furnished me with a uniform, a knapsack, a hav- 
ersack, a tin plate and cup, and knife, fork, and 
spoon. Bringing me in debtor to the United 
States Government to the amount of twenty-seven 
dollars and twenty-six cents. 

About four o'clock a detachment of men be- 
longing to the Invalid corps came to escort us to 
the Provost Marshal's office, situated on Broad- 
way, between Thirty-sixth and Thirty-seventh 
Streets. 

Arriving there, — forty-two of us in all, — we 
were placed in a filthily bare room on the third 
floor, measuring about seventeen feet long and 
fourteen feet wide. The windows were barred, 
and the invalid soldier who kept guard over us, 
with a cocked navy revolver in his hand, sternly 
forbade any one approaching them. One man, a 
little intoxicated, who insisted on looking out, he 
threatened to shoot. 

"We were kept confined in this room until near- 
ly three o'clock the following day. There were 
no seats ; neither was there sufficient room to lie 
down. Sleep was out of the question. Though, 
it is true, I did once drop into a fitful doze, in 
which I was strangely mixed up with the hold of 
a slave ship and the Black Hole of Calcutta. 

Coffee, bread, and meat, wholesome and good, 
were given the men, which they threw at one 
another and trampled under foot. They had too 
much money in their pockets to eat such plebeian 
food as beef. So they bribed the Sergeant of the 
guard to procure them ham and eggs, and such 
like delicacies, from a neighboring restaurant. 

Whiskey, too, was in great request. The de- 
mand far exceeded the supijly, for the risk to 
procure it was great, and the price high — ten, 
fifteen, even twenty dollai-s being paid for a 
bottle. 

Much to my relief, we were at last driven out 
of this room like so many wild beasts, and con- 
veyed to Riker's Island. 

When I enlisted, Hart's Island, with its com- 
modious and clean baiTacks, was not the rendez- 
vous for troops. 

I was kept on Hiker's Island for six weeks, i— 
though I made several appeals to be sent to my 
regiment, — doing nothing, eating the bread of 
idleness, not even being taught the common rudi- 
ments of drill, subjected to the mean and petty 
extortions of the non-commissioned officers, and 
treated, as a rule, like an ill-bred dog. 

Twenty-three of us were the occupants of one 
Sibley tent ; the necessary caloric was provided 
through the means of a small stove — value thix>o 
doUai's. This stove was the property of the Gov- 
ernment. The sergeant who had our street in 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



499 



charge came one day, and took it away. We re- 
monstrated ; he told us we could get it back by 
paying a dollar each — total, twenty-three dollars. 
As it was bitter cold weather, we were only too 
glad to do so. Such swindling was commonly 
practised, 

" The men belonging to the army of the Cum- 
berland leave the day after to-morrow." 

This announcement, while it elated, also de- 
pressed me. I had been wire-pulling for a pass 
to visit the city ; now I was ordered away with- 
out that wish being consummated. 

However, as luck would have it, my pass was 
handed to me that same morning ; so by the first 
boat I returned to the city. 

On my departure this time, I took leave of all 
my friends. One of them, as I kissed her good 
by, gave symptoms of a tear or two ; but chan- 
ging her mind, she gave a little laugh, and looking 
up in my face, said : 

" O, you'll come back. You're too homely to 
get shot." 

This remark may have been truthful ; it was 
anything but flattering. 



Sympathies. — An impromptu toast given in 
a saloon in New York, in June, 1861, by a loyal 
Canadian — present several Americans and Nova 
Scotians : 

" May the Rose of England never blow, 
The Thistle of Scotland never grow, 
May the Harp of Ireland never play. 
Till the Stars and Stripes have won the day.' ' 



During the battle of Tranter's Creek, N. C, 
Lieutenant Avery, of the Marine Artillery, thought 
he discovered rifle shots coming from the leafy 
boughs of a tall elm, not very far distant from 
the field of battle. He accordingly filled his 
howitzer with grape, and elevated it M'ith a very 
satisfactory result, tumbling half a score of the 
rebels to the ground. 



An Incident of Dranesville. — After the 
prisoners were taken into the cavalry camp of 
the nationals, an inquisitive young man, a mem- 
ber of a Wisconsin regiment, who wished to get 
a glimpse of them, went to the guard-house in 
which they were confined, where he immediately 
laid eyes on an overcoat which looked familiar to 
him.' He walked up to the prisoner, turned up 
the collar, and found the name of his brother 
sewed in the cloth. The young man became so 
enraged, that he would have immediately taken 
the life of the prisoner, had not the guards been 
there to prevent him. It appeared that his brother 
was in the fight at Bull Run, where he Avas killed, 
and this miserable secessionist had robbed him of 
his clothing. The bullet-hole in the coat had 
been sewed up so as to prevent it from tearing 
any further. 



AT GETTYSBURG. 

Like a furnace of fire blazed the midsummer sun 

When to saddle we leaped at the order, 
Spurred on by the boom of the deep-throated gun, 

That told of the foe on our border. 
A mist in our rear lay Antietam's dark plain. 

And thoughts of its carnage came o'er us ; 
But smiling before us surged fields of ripe grain. 

And we swore none should reap it before us. 

That night, with the Ensign who rode by my side. 

On the camp's dreary edge I stood picket ; 
Our ears intent, lest every wind-rustle should hide 

A spy's stealthy tread in the thicket ; 
And there, while we watched the first arrows of 
dawn 

Through the veil of the rising mist's quiver, 
He told how the foeman had closed in upon 

His home by the Tennessee River. 

He spoke of a sire in his weakness cut down, 

With last breath the traitor flag scorning 
(And his brow at the memory grew dark with a 
frown 

That paled the red light of the morning) . 
For days he had followed the cowardly band ; 

And when one lagged to forage or trifle. 
Had seared in his forehead the deep minie brand, 

And scored a fresh notch on his rifle. 

" But 07ie of the rangers had cheated his fate — 

For him he would search the world over." 
Such cool-plotting passion, such keenness of hate, 

Ne'er saw I in woman-scorned lover. 
O, who would have thought that beneath those dark 
curls 

Lurked vengeance as sure as death-rattle ? 
Or fancied those dreamy eyes — soft as a girl's — 

Could light with the fury of battle ? 

To horse ! pealed the bugle, while grape-shot and 
shell 

Overhead through the forest were crashing. 
A cheer for the flag ! and the summer light fell 

On the blades from a thousand sheaths flashiog. 
As mad ocean waves to the storm-revel flock. 

So on we dashed, heedless of dangers ; 
A moment our long line surged back at the shock 

Then swept through the ranks of the Rangers. 

I looked for our Ensign : ahead of his troop, 

Pressing on through the conflict infernal, 
His torn flag furled round him in festoon and loop. 

He spurred to the side of his Colonel. 
And his clear voice rang out, as I saw his bright 
sword 

Through shako and gaudy plume shiver, 
AVith, "This for the last of the murderous horde! " 

And, " This for the home by the river! " 

At evening, returned from pursuit of the foe. 

By a shell-shattered caisson we found him ; 
And we buried him there in the sunset glow, 

With the dear old flag knotted around him. 
Y^et how could we mourn, when every proud 
strain 

Told of foemen hurled back in disorder ! 
When we knew that the North reaped her rich har- 
vest grain 

Unharmed by a foe on her border I 



500 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



A Steange Incident. — Nine or ten years 
ago, a citizen of one of the towns in the eastern 
part of Massachusetts was unjustly suspected of a 
crime which the statute cannot easily reach, but 
which deservedly brings upon him guilty of it 
the indignation of upright men. There were 
circumstances which gave color to the suspicion, 
and the unfortunate gentleman suffered the mis- 
ery of loss of friends, business, and reputation. 
His sensitive nature could not face these trials, 
and he fell into a condition of body and mind 
which alarmed his family. At length, having in- 
vested his property where it could be easily man- 
aged by his wife, he suddenly disappeared, leav- 
ing her a comfortable home and the care of two 
boys, ten and t>velve years old. The first fear 
that he had sought a violent death was partly 
dispelled by the orderly arrangement of his af- 
fairs, and the discovery that a daguerreotype of 
the family group was missing from the parlor 
table. Not much effort was made to trace the 
fugitive. When, afterwards, facts were developed 
which established his innocence of the crime 
charged, it was found impossible to communicate 
with him ; and as the publication of the story in 
the columns of several widely-circulated journals 
failed to recall him, he was generally supposed 
to be dead. 

At the outbreak of the present civil war, his 
eldest son, now a young man, Avas induced by a 
friend, a captain in a Western regiment, to enlist 
in his company. He carried himself well through 
campaigns in Missouri and Tennessee, and after 
the capture of Fort Donelson was rewarded with 
a First Lieutenant's commission. At the battles 
of Murfreesboro' he was wounded in the left arm, 
but so slightly that he was still able to take 
charge of a squad of wounded prisoners. While 
performing this duty, he became aware that one 
of them, a middle-aged man, with a full, heavy 
beard, was looking at him with fixed attention. 
The day after the fight, as the officer Avas passing, 
the soldier gave the military salute, and said : 

" A word with you, if you please, sir. You 
remind me of an old friend. Are you from New 
England ? " 

" I am." 

" From Massachusetts ? " 

" Yes." 

" And your name ? " 

The young Lieutenant told his name, and why 
lie came to serve in a Western regiment. 

" I thought so," said the other, and turning 
away, he was silent. Although his curiosity was 
much excited by the soldier's manner, the officer 
forbore to question him, and withdrew. But in 
tlie afternoon he took occasion to renew the con- 
versation, and expi-essed the interest awakened 
in him by the incident of the morning. 

" I knew your father," said the prisoner. " Is 
he well ? " 

" We have not seen him for years. We think 
he is dead." 

Then followed such an explanation of the cir- 
cumstances of his disappearance as the young 
man could give. He had never known the pre- 



cise nature of the charges against his father, but 
was able to make it quite clear that his innocence 
had been established. 

" I knew your mother, also," continued the 
soldier. " I was in love Avith her when she mar- 
ried your father." 

" I have a letter from her, dated ten days ago. 
My brother is a nine months' man at New Or- 
leans." 

After a little desultory conversation the sol- 
dier took from under his coat a leather wallet, 
and disclosed a daguerreotype case. The hasp 
was gone, and the corners were rounded by wear. 

" Will you oblige me," he said, " by looking 
at this alone in your tent ? " Agitated almost 
beyond control, the young officer took the case 
and hurried away. He had seen the picture be- 
fore ! It represented a man and a woman, sitting 
side by side, with a boy at the knee of each. 

The romantic story moved the commander of 
the division to grant the youth a furlough ; and 
both father and son reached home soon after. 



The Little Flag-Bearer. — Among the 
many acts of heroism told of those engaged in 
the "fight up the Arkansas River is that of a 
mere youth, a little boy, who was attached to 
Tappan's Arkansas regiment, and carried two 
mimic flags, one in each hand. The regiment 
was driven to the Avater's edge, and the enemy 
poured in a terrific volley, killing many of them, 
Avho fell into the river ; and such as Avere not in- 
stantly killed met a Avatery grave. Among those 
struck Avas the little boy, Avho bore the flags. 
Giving one last hurrah, Avhich Avas cut short by 
the ebbing flood of his young life, he waved the 
flags over his head, tottered into the river, and 
Avas seen no more. The incident, says the nar- 
rator, Avas Avitnessed by a Avhole regiment that 
Avas crossing the riA'cr at thetime, and not one 
member of it but shed a tear at the sight. 



Coffee for the Southerners. — " The time 
is coming when every woman should do her duty 
in this struggle for our country's independence," 
said a " Avife and mother " in Richmond, in May, 
1861. " There are many things her hands can 
do Avhich will as materially aid our cause as if she 
were a soldier Avith musket in hand. The battle 
Avill be brought right to our doors. Let every 
Avoman, then, in this city, Avho possesses the abil- 
ity, prepare coffee, bread, and Avhatever else she 
may have to give, for our dear loved ones, wlfo 
offer their precious bodies a Avail of defence for 
our homes. 

" One third pure coffee, the rest wheat or rye, 
rightly prepared, Avill furnish a strengthening 
dr.nk Avhich Avill add greatly to their comfort. 
Let the coffee be broAvned a little, then add the 
Avheat or rye, toasting them together. In this 
Avay the taste of the coffee is imparted to the 
grain. Grind or pound well. To one measure 
of coffee add eight of boiling Avater. Let it boil 
Avell, stirring it doAvn until the entire mass disap- 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



501 



pears, when it will look clear. Add a little cold 
water, let it stand until it settles, and you have 
quite nice coffee. 

" Now, will not every woman at once toast her 
coffee, grind it, and have it ready for use P Surely 
all the milk carts, molasses barrels on carts, and 
any conveyance one may think of, can carry it to 
some places designated ; Avhen some persons, 
whose business it shall be, may portion it out. If 
a regiment were detailed for this business it would 
do good service. Let no one begrudge her little 
mite of coffee. There are some persons who have 
not the material, but who would gladly prepare it. 
Bfet, then, her more fortunate neighbor, who can 
spare of her little, pass it over to willing hands, 
longing to do something for our noble cause. 
Bid the men go — * be courageous and fear not.' " 



The Feat of the "Arkansas." — A corre- 
spondent states that after the ram Arkansas had 
successfully run the blockade of the national ves- 
sels and arrived off Vicksburg, she was boarded 
by General Van Dorn, who approached her com- 
mander, Captain Brown, and the following con- 
versation was had : 

General — " Captain Brown, allow me to con- 
gratulate you on your success in reaching us." 

Captain Brown — " Thank you. General ; it was 
a desperate undertaking ; but I knew what ray 
vessel was made of." 

General — "I hardly expected that you would 
come through them without making them more 
conscious of your superiority. It seems to me 
you might have sunk or disabled half a dozen of 
them. Why under heaven didn't you try it on? " 

Captain Brown — " General Van Dorn, I have 
accomplished what no naval officer in the Confed- 
erate service would have dared attempt, and what 
no one conversant with naval warfare would have 
supposed possible. The bare achievement of get- 
ting this vessel through that fleet is glory enough 
for one day." 

General — " Fie ! fie ! Captain, that's all very 
well ; you've clone well, but might have clone bet- 
ter. Get up steam again, and run up and try 
them a turn. When you have sunk six or eight 
of their turtles, you can come back and let the 
people cheer you." 

Captain Brown — " Su', I know what I have 
done. Nor do I propose to risk the reputation 
I've won by encountering that fleet again, espe- 
cially now that they have all got steam up and 
are prepared to meet me. I shall not risk my 
laurels by renewing the contest to-day." 

General — "I can see no reason why you should 
not go out again. They'll hardly expect you now ; 
and if they do, you know your vessel is a match 
for them. You hear my orders to go." 

Captain Brown — "General Van Dorn, this 
boat is without a commander. I shall forward 
my resignation to Richmond immediately. In 
the mean time please consider the vessel in your 
possession. You are at liberty to send her out 
under any commander you can find here to take 
her out, or you may take her out yourself." 



The General turned away chagrined and mor- 
tified. Captain Brown also left the boat almost 
immediately, and, although urgently requested 
to withdraw his resignation, obstinately refused 
to do so. Lieutenant Stevens was left in com- 
mand, and it was under his direction that the 
second and last chapter in her career was enacted. 



Reading in the Army. — George H. Stuart, 
the President of the Christian Commission, in a 
speech at the anniversary of that noble institu- 
tion related the following interesting incident : 
" There is a very large distribution of reading 
matter. The question sometimes arises, ' Is it all 
read ? ' You cannot, my friends, have any concep- 
tion of the avidity with which these publications 
are received and read, and treasured up. Thou- 
sands of them are sent back, after being well 
worn, to their homes, the soldier writing his 
name upon them, thus marking them with the 
evidence of his value of the possession. I have 
visited many of the hospitals, and some of the 
camps, and distributed many of these religious 
books, and I can testify that from the beginning 
until now I have never met a man who refused 
my books, save only one, and he was from my 
own city of Philadelphia. I do not believe in 
being conquered. I do not give up anything if 
it is practicable, and can be effected. But here was 
a case for me. The man told me that he was an 
infidel, that he did not believe in my books, that 
he did not need them. Said he, ' I am from Phil- 
adelphia ; I live at such a number Callowhill 
Street; if you will go there you will find out my 
character, and that I am as good a man as you 
are.' ' I trust a great deal better,' said I. But 
the case did seem a difficult one. ' Stuart,' said 
a friend to whom I related the incident, 'you 
are beaten for once.' ' No,' I replied, ' I am not 
done with that man yet.' I approached him a 
short time afterwards, and he said to me, ' What 
is the book you wanted to give me ? ' It was a 
selection from the Scriptures called Cromwell's 
Bible. ' O,' said he, ' I don't want your Bible ; I've 
no need of it ; I'm a good enough man without 
it ; ' and with a motion of supreme indifference he 
turned his head. Said I, ' My friend, I'm from 
Philadelphia, too; I know where you live, can find 
the exact house. On next Sunday evening, if 
God spares my life, I expect to speak for the 
Christian Commission in the Church of _ the 
Epiphany.' He looked at me with an inquisitive 
air — ' And what are you going to say ? ' _ 'I am 
going to tell the people that I had been distribut- 
ing tracts all day all through the hospitals and 
camps I had visUed, and that I found but one 
man who refused to take them, and he was from 
Philadelphia.' < Well, what more are you going 
to say ? ' the man asked with a steady gaze, ap- 
parently defying my attempts to move him. 
' Well, I'll tell them that I commenced my tract 
distribution this morning at the White House, in 
Washington, and the first gentleman I offered 
one of these little books to was one Abraham 
Lincoln ; that he rose from his chair, read the title, 



502 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



expressed great pleasure in receiving it, and 
promised to read it ; but that I came to one of 
his cooks, here in these quarters, and he was so 
exceedingly good that he didn't need a copy of 
the Word of God, and wouldn't have one ! ' 
' Well,' said the man, completely conquered, ' if 
the President can take one I suppose 1 can,' as he 
reached out his hand and received it." 



Incident of F.^ir Oaks. — Edmund Q.An- 
drews, of the Fortieth New York regiment, was 
wounded at the battle of Fair Oaks, while in the 
act of taking aim at a rebel soldier. The ball 
entered the left side, striking a daguerreotype 
(on iron) of his wife, which he carried in his vest 
pocket, completely demolishing the picture, and 
cutting off the top of the bowl of a wooden pipe, 
which was also in his pocket. The ball then con- 
tinued its course, entered the fiesh, and, passing 
across the pit of his stomach, came out of his side. 

The sudden and strong concussion of the ball 
doubled him up, and it was a long time before he 
was able to regain his breath. As soon as he 
again found himself capable of standing on his 
feet, he raised his musket, and fired at the man 
who had shot him, when he once more fell upon 
the ground from pain and exhaustion. 

Soon after, he discovered that the enemy were 
approaching him, when he managed to crawl off 
the field on his hands and knees. He remarked 
that he "thought he made good time, considering 
he was not used to walking; on all fours." 



A THOUGHT. 

Falling leaves and falling men ! 

When the snows of winter fall. 
And the winds of winter blow, 

Will be woven Nature's pall. 

Let us, then, forsake our dead ; 

For the dead will surely wait 
While we rush upon the foe, 

Eager for the hero's fate. 

Leaves will come upon the trees ; 

Spring will show the happy race ; 
Mothers will give birth to sons — 

Loyal souls to fill our place. 

Wherefore should we rest and rush ? 

Soldiers, we must fight and save 
Freedom now, and give our foes 

All their countrv should — a ffrave ! 



Things about General Grant. — Rev. J. L. 

Crane, the chaplain of the regiment of which 
Lieutenant-General Grant was Colonel, gives the 
following interesting reminiscences of his private 
and military character : 

" Grant," he says, " is about five feet ten inches 
in height, and will weigh one hundred and forty 
or forty-five pounds. He has a countenance in- 
dicative of reserve, and an indomitable will, and 
persistent purpose. 



" In dress he is indifferent and careless, making 
no pretensions to style or fashionable military 
display. Had he continued Colonel till now, I 
think his uniform would have lasted till this day ; 
for he never used it except on dress parade, and 
then seemed to regard it a good deal as David 
did Saul's armor. 

" ' His body is a vial of intense existence ; ' and 
yet when a stranger would see him in a crowd he 
would never think of asking his name. He is no 
dissembler. He is a sincere, thinking, real man. 

" He is always cheerful. No toil, cold, heat, 
hunger, fatigue, or want of money depresses him. 
He does his work at the time, and he requires ail 
under his command to be equally prompt. I was 
walking over the camp with him one morning 
after breakfast. It was usual for each company 
to call the roll at a given hour. It was now prob- 
ably a half hour after the time for that duty. The 
Colonel was quietly smoking his old meerschaum, 
and talking and walking along, when he noticed 
a company drawn up in line and the roll being 
called. He instantly drew his pipe from his 
mouth and exclaimed, ' Captain, this is no time 
for calling the roll. Order your men to their 
quarters immediately.' The command was in- 
stantly obeyed, and the Colonel resumed his smok- 
ing and walked on, conversing as quietly as if 
nothing had happened. For this violation of 
discipline those men went without rations that 
day, except what thej' gathered up privately from 
among their friends of other companies. Such 
a breach of order was never witnessed in the regi- 
ment afterwards while he was its Colonel. This 
promptness is one of Grant's characteristics, and 
it is one of the secrets of his success. 

" On one of our marches, when passing through 
one of these small towns where the grocery is 
the principal establishment, some of the lovers 
of intoxication had broken away from our lines 
and filled their canteens with whiskey, and were 
soon reeling and ungovernable under its influ- 
ence. While apparently stopping the regiment 
for rest, Grant passed quietly along and took each 
canteen, and wherever he detected the fatal odor, 
emptied the liquor on the ground with as much 
nonchalance as he would empty his pipe, and had 
the offenders tied behind the baggage wagons till 
they had sobered into soldierly propriety. On this 
point his orders were imperative : no whiskey nor 
intoxicating beverages were allowed in his camp. 

" In the afternoon of a very hot day in July, 
1861, while the regiment was stationed in the 
town of Mexico, Missouri, I had gone to the cars 
as they were passing, and procured the daily 
paper, and seated myself in the shadow of my 
tent to read the news. In the telegraphic column 
I soon came to the announcement that Grant, 
with several others, was made Brigadier-General. 
In a few minutes he came walking that way, and 
I called to him : 

" ' Colonel, I have some news here that will in- 
terest you.' 

'"What have you. Chaplain ? ' 

" ' I see that you are made Brigadier-General.' 

" He seated himself by ray side and remarked : 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



503 



" ' Well, sir, I had no suspicion of it. It never 
came from any request of mine. That's some of 
Washburne's work. I knew Washburne in Galena. 
He was a strong Republican, and I was a Demo- 
crat, and I thought from tliat he never liked me 
very well. Hence Ave never had more than a 
business or street acquaintance. But when the 
war broke out I found he had induced Governor 
Yates to appoint me mustering officer of the 
Illinois volunteers, and after that had something 
to do in having me commissioned Colonel of the 
Twenty-first regiment ; and I suppose this is some 
of his work.' 

" And he very leisurely rose up and pulled his 
black felt hat a little nearer his eyes, and made a 
few extra passes at his whiskers, and walked 
aAvay with as much apparent unconcern as if some 
one had merely told him that his new suit of 
clothes was finished. 

" Grant belongs to no church, yet he entertains 
and expresses the highest esteem for all the en- 
terprises that tend to promote religion. When 
at home he generally attended the Methodist 
Episcopal Church. While he was Colonel of 
the Twenty-first regiment, he gave every encour- 
agement and facility for securing a prompt and 
uniform observance of religious services, and was 
generally found in the audience listening to 
preaching. 

" Shortly after I came into the regiment our 
mess were one day taking their usual seats 
around the dinner table, when he remarked : 

" ' Chaplain, when I was at home, and ministers 
were stopping at my house, I always invited them 
to ask a blessing at the table. I suppose a 
blessing is as much needed here as at home ; and 
if it is agreeable with your views, I should be 
glad to have you ask a blessing every time we sit 
down to eat.' " 

A GENTLEMAN, about whose Teutonic origin 
there could be but one opinion, was passing 
along the street, when he came to a halt before 
one of the huge posters, announcing the coming 
of the Panorama o^ Paradise Lost. He read 
this line, "A Rebellion in Heaven," when he 
broke forth as follows : " A Rebellion in Heaven : 
mine Got ! that lasts not long now — Onkel Abe 
ish tare." 

Adventures of an Irishman. — Sitting in a 
rainy tent at Centreville, I overheard the follow- 
ing "fragment of a conversation between a party 
of Irish soldiers, which, for richness and raciness, 
Charles Lever would have immortalized himself 
by frescoing in one of his inimitable stories. The 
company were detailing their experiences, " hair- 
breadth escapes by flood and field," spinning Mun- 
chausian yarns and cracking wonderful jokes, 
when one Pat INIullooney, a genuine son of the 
sod, broke in with an account of his adventures 
during the battle of Bull Run. I give you the 
ebullition entire, though half its fun and force 
are lost by its transfer to paper : 

"Ye see, gintlemin," said Pat ("God forgeve 
me for calling such spalpeens out uv yer names "), 



" that time whin the ould Major came down like 
a flyin' divil on his chisnut mare with his illigant 
sword, that, be jabers, is like a scythe blade, a 
wavin' about his hid, and yelled to us to come 
on, and charge the bloody Yankees, be gorra, it 
was to Wasliington we thought we were goin' all 
the way, and the divil a time we were to stop at 
all, at all, on the road, not aven for a dhrap of 
wather. 

" Well, sure enough, the ould feller wint in him- 
self, and I after him, not thinking about anything 
at all, but jist goin' on. I jum])ed over a mite of 
a fence as tight as a toad, and took to the wather 
[Bull Run] like a duck ; and whin I got to the 
middle of the strame I looked around, and the 
divil resave the one uv yez near me, I was alone 
intirely sure. Thin I thought, big fools as ye all 
are, that I was a bigger wan for not sthaying in 
the woods, like the rist of yez, and waiting for 
the spalpeens to come over. But as I was out 
there, I thought to meself, I'll take a look at how 
things is, how things is beyant, and p'raps I'll 
have a crack o' me goon. But divil uv a thing 
could I say. Jist as I was makin' up me mind 
to return to ye all, a big Yankee, who looked as 
if he was seventeen feet high, livilled his musket 
at me and fired. The bullet whistled by me ear 
wid a shrake worse than Tim Flangan's fife. 

" ' Bad luck to ye, ye thafe o' the wurrld,' says 
I, ' what are ye tlivying to shoot me fur ? sure I 
niver done nothing to yez ; ' and thin I aimed 
shtraight betwane his eyes, and fired at him ; but 
the murtherin' ball didn't tuch a hnir uv his head 
that I mist. 'Be gorra,' sez I to meself, ' now I'll take 
ye a prisoner, anyhow ; ' and I put meself across 
the river as hard as iver I could. I joomped up 
the bank, and lookin' mighty fierce at 'im, I sed, 
' Surrender, ye divil, or I'll blow yer brains out.' 
The fun uv it was, I'd forgot, in me charge upon 
the spalpeen, to load me goon at all, at all, and 
the bloody tlaafe must av knew it, for he made at 
me wid his bay'net, like a two-legged locomotive. 
By the powers but I was frightened. As he was 
coming down, lapin' several fate at a time, says 
I to meself, ' Pat, me boy, mind yer eye ; now's 
yer time to kape wide awake, or you'll have a 
gimlet hole through yer valuable bow'lls, and 
Biddy Mullooney will be a widder.' Bad luck to 
the drillin', sure it's meself forgot to come to the 
charge. So I tuk me goon by the middle, just as 
ye wud hould a good ould-fashioned black-thorn 
shillaly, and balanced meself fur 'im. As he come 
down,"the divil take me if I knew how to git that 
bay'net point out o' the way. I twirled me mus- 
ket aroun' me head till me fingers ached ; but 
' suddenly, bliss all the Hooly Saints fur it, a root 
tuk the fut uv the bloody-minded rascal, and he 
went a sprawlin' on the turf, lookin' as jn-etty a 
lether X as ye iver signed to yer name ; at the 
same time that his bay'net shtruck a fut in the 
ground, I gin a yell, and was on him before a 
pig could grunt, and put me fut on his neck. 
' Surrender, ye divil,' said I ; but the divil a word 
did he spake. 

" I thought I had his throat too tight, an' I let 
him go, to give him a fair chance to utther his 



504 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



sentiments. What d'j-e think the spalpeen thried 
to do ? Sure it was to git his musket out uv the 
ground an' shtruck me wid it agin. But shtill I 
didn't want to hurt the baste ; so I jist hit 'im a 
little crack in the head wid the butt o' me goon, 
an' broke his jaw. Then he became quiet, an' I 
made 'im take his musket and cross the crake, 
when I druv 'im to the hospital, an' the divil uv 
a daccnter, betther-behaved feller ye niver saw 
afther that. He laid in bed six wakes, and didn't 
spake nary word. That's what I did at Bull Run. 
Who'll give me a poteen o' whiskey ? " 



CAMP LIFE. 

DESCKIBED BY A SOLDIER. 

Few can realize the real character of camp life, 
until they have tried its stern reaHties, until they 
forsake theii" brick and wooden walls for those of 
cotton. At home, where men only hear the roar 
of the storm, as its tones are muffled by the com- 
fortable protections around them, and know of 
the rain only as it patters on the window panes, 
they can realize very little what it is to have the 
walls and roof of their dwellings shake, and quiv- 
er, and crack like the report of musketry, and 
not only hear the cold blast without, but feel it 
creeping in at many openings it is quite impossi- 
ble to close. At home, locks and bars keep away 
intruders, and we lie down and sleep in stillness 
and safety. In camp, our locks are made of 
rope, and no other means are needed to open our 
doors than to untie a knot. Here, wake at Vihat 
hour you may, and you hear the dull tread of the 
sentry, or are startled by the sharp challenge 
which he gives to some luckless wight, whose ne- 
cessities have called him abroad at an unsea- 
sonable hour. At home, the wakeful cock, or 
speaking bell from the neighboring steeple, tells 
j'ou of the early dawn, and that the time has come 
to begin the duties of the rising day. Here, the 
sharp twang and roil of the martial drum start 
you into wakefulness, and make you feel the full 
reality of the strange and awfid scenes which have 
been pressed upon the land by this most unnat- 
ural rebellion. At our fireside we hear only the 
peaceful hum of agriculture, or the arts ; but here 
none of those things are seen or heard ; their 
place is taken by the shrill tones of the fife, the 
stirring notes of the bugle, as its blasts reverber- 
ate among the hills, the almost constant roll of 
the drum, the firing of musketry, and the roar of 
cannon. These, with the long ranks of martial 
men passing from point to point, the tread of 
horsemen, and the sharp, quick voice of those in 
command, are scenes all new and strange to our 
land of peace and thriftful enterprise. All these 
are scenes most intimately connected with camp 
life. 

Every plain is covered with tents, nearly every 
eminence with fortifications, bristling with cannon. 
An evening or two since, we saw several regi- 
ments on their respective grounds, at M-hat is 
fctyled " dress parade ; " the day had been cloudy ; 



just at this moment the sun looked brightly 
through a rift in the clouds, and threw a flood of 
brightness over the scene. Each regiment was 
formed in two lines, drawn with military precis- 
ion. As the light fell upon their thousand glit- 
tering bayonets, they presented above their head.-; 
a line of the most spotless white ; then, as they 
changed the position of the weapon to a charge, 
the line changed from above the dark mass of 
men to their front, the rays of the sun, in the 
mean time, glancing from each weapon, and quiv- 
ering in the quarter of a circle formed in the 
movement, untd it settled again into one long, 
bright line of spotless white, the Avhole forming 
one of the most fairy scenes on which the eye 
could rest. One finds it hard to believe that such 
a scene, so much like the moving of the wing of 
that angel Avho is clothed in light, is really the 
solemn waving of the wing of the angel of death. 

When leaving home, some of our friends said 
to us, " Tell us of the camp, and how you live 
there." There is some difficulty in doing this. 
If our friends were at our elboM', asking us ques- 
tions about what they were cvu-ious to know, then 
we could answer them ; as it is, we will do the 
best we can to meet their wishes. 

Every camp should have a parade ground. This 
forms the front. Beginning with this, and going 
backwards, you have the tents of the men, each 
company having their tents arranged in line? 
facing on a street where the company forms, pre- 
paratory to marching on to the parade ground, 
and where they also meet foi* roll call, which oc- 
curs three times each day — at sunrise, at sunset. 
and at eight in the evening. Next, after the tents 
of the men, come those of the commissioned offi- 
cers of the companies. These face on a street 
which runs at right angles with the company 
streets. In this broad aisle the men do their 
cooking and have their company fires. Hero they 
meet of evenings to smoke, and talk, and sing. 
Still back of these are the tents of the Colonel 
and staff. This is composed of the Colonel, Lieu- 
tenant-Colonel, Major, Adjutant, Quartermaster, 
Chaplain, and Surgeons, the tent of the Colonel 
forming the centre. The llag-stafl" is at the edge 
of the j)arade ground, immediately in front of the 
Colonel's tent. In the rear of the whole may be 
found the Quartermaster, Commissary, and Sut- 
ler's departments. 

When the ground has been marked off, the men 
proceed to pitch their tents, whicli, when raised 
and spread, are fastened to their places by cords 
and stakes ; then a shallow trench is usually dug 
around each, to carry away the water which may 
drip from the roof. The dirt from this trench is 
sometimes thrown into the middle of the tent to 
raise the ground, thus avoiding the collection of 
water under the cloth. When this is done, the 
occupant gets some boards for a floor, if he can ; 
if this cannot be, he uses the ground. He makes 
his bed by putting some stakes in the ground, on 
which he makes a platform, spreads it over with 
some boughs of evergreen or straAv, rolls himself 
in his blanket, and sleeps sweetly, dreaming, it 
may be, of home and glory. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



505 



The soldier generally cooks his rations in the 
open air. Then sitting in his tent, or under the 
shade of some neighboring tree, with his plate 
upon his lap, he enjoj's, with a soldier's zest, his 
frugal meal. 

The signal for retiring is given by the drum — 
the ever-present drum. And when the morning 
breaks, again the roll of the stirring drum shakes 
sleep from his drowsy eyelids, and calls him 
forth, with his musket and his belt, to duty and 
to drill. 

Each day the Colonel selects an officer, who is 
styled the officer of the day. He is known by his 
wearing his sash over his shoulder, the ordinary 
way of wearing it being around the waist. He 
has charge of the guard and the police of the 
camp. The guard is detailed for twenty-four 
hours by the Adjutant, each sentry being changed 
once in two hours. The guard entirely surrounds 
the camp, so that no one can leave, or come on 
the ground, M'ithout their notice and permission. 
Then when you retire to rest, you may be assured 
that these men are encamped round about you, 
and that they will be faithful ; for if found asleep 
on his post, the sentry may be shot, or such other 
penalty as the court martial may inflict. 

Such is the camp life of our noble soldiery. 
Near half a million of our fellow-citizens are daily 
meeting these fatigues for the weal of our nation. 
Let the whole church pray for them. 



THE FREEDMAN'S SONG. 

De Lord He make us free indeed 

In His own time an' way ; 
We plant dc rice an' cotton seed, 

An' see de sprout some day ; 
Wc know it come, but not de why — 

De Lord know more dan we ; 
We 'spected freedom by an' by, 

An' now we all are free. 

Praise de Lord ! Praise de Lord ! 
For now we all are^free. 

De Norf is on de side ob right, 

An' full of men, dey say ; 
An' derc, when poor man work, at night 

Ho sure to get his pay ; 
De Lord, He glad dey are so good. 

An' make dem bery strong ; 
An' when dey called to gib deir blood, 

Dey all come right along. 

Praise de Lord ! Praise de Lord ! 
Dey all come right along. 

Deir blue coats cover all de groim', 

An' make it like de sky ; 
An' cbery grayback loafin' roun', 

Ho tink it time to fly ; 
We not afraid ; we bring de child. 

An' Stan' beside de door ; 
An' O, we hug it bery wild. 

An' keep it ebermoro. 

Praise de Lord ! Praise de Lord ! 
We keep it ebermore. 

De massa's come back from his tramp ; 

'Pears he is broken quite ; 
He takes de basket to de camp 

For rations ebery night ; 



Dey fought him when he loud an' strong, 

Dey feed him when he low ; 
Dey say dey will forgive de wrong, 
An' bid him 'pent an' go. 

Praise de Lord ! Praise de Lord ! 
Dey bid him 'pent an' go. 

De rice is higher far dis year, 

De cotton taller grow ; 
De lowest corn-silk on de ear 

Is higher dan de hoe ; 
De Lord He lift up eberyting 

'Cept rebel in his grabe ; 
De negro bress de Lord an' sing 

He is no longer slabe. 

Praise de Lord ! Praise de Lord ! 
De ne£tro no more slabe. 



THE STORY OF PRAHIIE GROVE. 

Early in the month of December, General 
Blunt, commanding the Union forces in Arkansas, 
was encamped at Cane Hill, in the north-western 
part of the State, not far from Van Buren, and a 
few miles north of the Boston Mountain. 

Across that mount^n, twenty days before, he 
had driven Marmaduke, who commanded all the 
irregular and roving bands of horsemen that in- 
fested that part of the State. 

His own force was about ten thousand strong. 
One hundi-ed and twenty miles north of him, in 
Missouri, General Herron was encamped with a 
force about six thousand strong. On the 3d of 
December, he learned that all the rebel force in 
Arkansas had been assembled on the south side 
of the Mountain, and amounted to some twenty 
or twenty-five thousand, commanded by Hind- 
man, a prominent rebel politician, who had now 
become a prominent rebel General. The position, 
numbers, and commanders of the Union armies 
were well known to him, and his plan of opera- 
tions was obvious, and apparently very dangerous 
to the Union cause in Arkansas. If he should 
advance at once across Boston IMountain, fall 
upon Blunt with double his force, there was a 
flattering probability that he would crush him. 
Then continuing his march north, lie proposed to 
launch his flushed columns at Herron, and wiping 
him out, leave no organized and adequate force 
between him and St. Louis. Flushed with these 
anticipations, and confident by a few days' fight- 
ing to make himself the hero" of the Trans-Mis- 
sissippi Department, he advanced with confidence 
against Blunt, and crossed Boston Moimtain. 
Blunt saw his whole danger, and grasped his ene- 
my's plan. Couriers were at once despatched to 
Herron to come with all haste to his relief, as the 
enemy, with numbers double his own, was advan- 
cing upon him from the South. Nobly and with 
the promptitude of a true soldier did Herron re- 
spond to the summons. The annals of the war 
hardly furnish an instance of swifter movement. 
On the noon of AVednesday, the 3d, he broke 
camp at Springfield, Missouri, and headed his 
column for the Arkansas line. 

In three days he had marched one hundred and 
ten miles, and was in the vicinity of Fayetteville, 



506 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



and near the enemy. Hindman had in some 
manner contrived to steal a march on Blunt, and 
had passed him on his left flank, and Avas making 
for Herron as rapidly as possible. This startling 
intelligence reached Blunt about ten o'clock on 
the morning of the 7th, and he of course 
made his movements with the utmost rapidity 
to meet this new phase of affairs. Herron mean- 
while, pushing on south as rapidly as possible, 
expected to form a junction with Blunt, and had 
no idea that he should be the first to engage the 
enemy. He was about eight miles south of Fay- 
etteville, when his cavalry came dashing back in 
great disorder, having met the enemy advancing 
in great numbers. He rallied them and led them 
on against the foe, at the same time hurrying 
forward his artillery and his infantrj'. By ten 
o'clock he found himself on the north bank of 
Illinois Creek, the enemy on the other side 
strongly posted on a long ridge with magnificent 
positions for his batteries. 

From a prisoner he learned that Hindman was 
on the ridge with his whole force, and expected to 
whip him out before Blunt, who was ten miles 
distant, could come up. There were but two 
courses for Herron. One ivas to retreat at once, 
give up his trains to the enemj'^, and abandon 
Blunt to his fate, without the power to assist him. 
The other was to move promptly across the creek, 
engage the enemy, and hope that Blunt, hearing 
the cannon, would make all haste to his relief. 
He was too good a soldier to hesitate as to which 
horn of this dilemma to take, and riding forward 
to view the ground, decided at once on a plan of 
operations. 

Under a steady artillery fire from the enemy 
he crossed the creek, got all his guns in position, 
and thrcAV out his infantry in line of battle. Find- 
ing his batteries were telling upon the enemy's 
lir.e, he moved up the infantry, and in a few min- 
utes the whole of his left wing was engaged. 
The battle, commencing thus on the part of Gen- 
eral Herron, lasted some three hours, till the 
middle of the afternoon, his force holding their 
original position, but suffering terribly under the 
galling fire and frequent charges of the enemy, 
who made two vigorous efforts to turn his left by 
massing his forces on that wing. 

It was now past three o'clock, and nothing 
from Blunt. All of Herron's force had been en- 
gaged, and some of his regiments were l^adly cut 
up. He told all his officers they must hold out 
till night ; and there was no thought of anything 
else, though the case seemed a tough one. At 
four o'clock a battery opened on his extreme 
right. The shell came over and fell among liis 
skirmish line. What could it mean ? The fire 
soon grew hotter, and presently the ground was 
trembling with the heavy cannonade of seventy 
pieces, all actively worked. The roar of the first 
discharge had hardly died away, Avhen a thrilling 
cheer went up from the whole of Herron's line. 
Relief had come at last. It was Blunt's guns 
thundering on the right. He had heard the sound 
of the battle, and his men, leaving the main road, 
had taken a straight shoot through fields of thorn 



brush, and over fences and ditches, until Blunt 
found himself coming directly upon the enemy's 
left v>ing. Halting only to place his batteries, he 
at once opened fire, and from four o'clock till dark 
the battle raged along the whole of the now ex- 
tended line, fi-om Herron's left to Blunt's right. 
It was one of the loveliest days that ever beamed 
on a field of blood. In that mellow climate De- 
cember often gives a day as clear and warm as 
the loveliest of an Indian summer. 

As Hindman saw his plan had failed, he fought 
with desperation. 

His line was covered with a small growth of 
timber, and occupied a moderate elevation, which 
commanded an open country in front, called 
Prairie Grove. 

He had the advantage in position, as well as 
numbers. Again and again the Union infantry 
would charge into the woods, and drive the reb- 
els ; and then, again, they would rally and charge, 
driving the Union force back into tlie open prai- 
rie. Thus back and forth the battle vv'avered, till 
the sun set through lurid smoke, and darkness 
settled upon the scene. Blunt then ordered his 
forces to withdraw in good order. 

Hindman, considering this a repulse, ordered a 
general charge all along the line. Expecting this. 
Blunt had stationed his artillery, and the pieces 
were loaded with grape and canister. The rebel 
line advanced to within sixty yards when the fifty 
Federal cannon opened all along the line — a fire 
before Avhich nothing human could stand. 

A few desperate regiments rallied after the first 
discharge, and rushed almost to the cannon's 
mouth ; but a second discharge tore the bleeding 
lines into flying fragments, and they ran howling 
into the cover of the forest from which they had 
emerged. 

This closed the day. The Federal army biv- 
ouacked on their arms, expecting a renewal of the 
contest at daylight. But Hindman now thought 
discretion was the better part of valor, and taking 
his men's blankets to muffle his artillery wheels, 
he stole away so quietly, under cover of night, 
that by morning he had placed Boston Mountain 
between Blunt and the greater part of his force. 

Never was a reverse more complete. On the 
morning of the 7th, he had tlie Union force 
divided, and was confident that he could whip 
each division separately. As some of his officers 
expressed it in the elegant vernacular of the 
South-west, " He would chaw up Herron for his 
breakfast, and then turn and gobble up Blunt at 
dinner." He had not calculated upon such ob- 
stinate resistance from one, nor such swift march- 
ing from the other. 

Midnight saw his defeated and bleeding col- 
umn, stealthily, and with muffled cannon wheels, 
moving away through the gorges of Boston 
Mountain. 

Desolations of War. — A Federal cavalry- 
man, Avriting from the vicinity of Fredericksburg, 
where Burnside was encamped in December, J 862, 
gives the following account of the utter desola- 
tion that overtook so many of the old Virginia 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



507 



families, and the promptness with which even the 
kindest slaveholders were deserted by the negroes 
upon the advent of the Union armies : 

" While on a scout after my breakfast on Satur- 
day morning last, I galloped up to a fine-looking 
house, and as no one appeared, I shouted loudly 
for some one to come forth. I knew by the smoke 
from the chimney that it had an occupant ; and 
directly an aged lady made her appearance, and 
I was invited to dismount and enter the house, 
which invitation I gladly accepted, and visions of 
hot corn cake, bacon and eggs, flitted before my 
fancy. These are no trifles to a hungry soldier, 
though of little interest to you, or your readers, 
perhaps. Not a soul was in sight or hearing but 
this poor old lady, every slave, out of one hun- 
dred and sixty-five, having left her. Though the 
owner of thirty-five hundred acres of beautiful 
cleared land, she was, she said, ' the most un- 
happy wretch on earth.' Of all her slaves, not 
one could be induced to remain with her. Even 
those she loved as her own children, and reared 
as tenderly, were the first to desert her, though 
ofiered their fi-eedom and liberal wages. The 
tears trickled down her furrowed cheeks, and her 
gray head was bowed in anguish, as she told me 
the story of her last year's experience ; and I shed 
a sympathizing tear with her, and with a saddened 
heart mounted my horse and rode away, my 
appetite for hot corn cake and fried bacon having 
failed me. So it is with hundreds of others ; but 
of all the tales I have listened to, this afiiected me 
most." 

Exploits of a Foraging Party. — A soldier 
in the Fifty-sixth New York volunteers was en- 
gaged in one of those excursions — partly mili- 
tary and partly predatory — which characterized 
the earlier j-ears of the war. Just after his first 
exploits in that line in the winter of 18G2, he 
wrote home to his father the following account 
from Yorktown, Virginia : 

" In order to make my promise good to you, 
I will now endeavor to pen you a short sketch of 
our expedition to Gloucester Court House. 

" On the morning of the 1 1th of December, 
our regiment was drawn up in line at daylight, 
and a few minutes after, we started towards the 
fort. There was but little said by any of us as 
we marched along, keeping step to the beat of 
the drum. Every man's mind was busy; for 
none of us knew where we were to go. Some 
thought Ave were going to join Burnside's army ; 
others, that we were going to Richmond direct ; 
and none liked the idea of leaving our cheerful 
quarters for the fierce and bloody fight, and the 
hardships of a winter campaign. 

" Well, we trudged along, entered the fort, 
and went down to the river, where we found a 
boat waiting to take us over to Gloucester Point. 
We found out, soon after crossing the river, that 
we Avere to go to Gloucester Court House to drive 
out some rebels, Avho, it Avas said, were fortifying 
themselves there. AVe started a little after s6ven, 
and one hour later, had passed the outer pickets, 
and were fairly in Secessia. The people Avere 



surprised at the display Ave made. There had 
never been any soldiers through there before us. 
The darkies were overjoyed at our coming, and 
kindly gave us all the eggs, milk, and hoe-cake 
Ave Avanted. The country Ave passed through Avas 
a rich one. No army had been there to destroy 
their crops and cattle, and they possessed abun- 
dance. 

"At three P. M. Ave entered the town. Our 
cavalry had driven off a fcAV stray rebels, and Ave 
took ]3eaceable possession. There was no visible 
evidence of the rebels' intending to fortify the 
tOAvn. Not knoAving but that Ave might be 
attacked during the night, General Naglee had 
the battery planted in a good position, a strong- 
picket posted, and issued orders to have every 
man ready to fall in at a minute's notice. 

" Our regiment lay on their arms all night on 
the roadside. We suffered some from cold. The 
boys could not stand that ; so they commenced 
pi'owling about the place for plunder. There was 
soon a great uproar among the foAvls. Chickens 
cackled, geese and ducks quacked, and turkeys 
gobbled; but 'tAvas no use. It Avas too near 
Christmas to give them a chance for their lives. 
Consequently they lost their heads and feathers, 
and soon found themselves boiling in the camp- 
kettles. 

" A good old Secesh dominie, living in the up- 
per part of the toAvn, heard a great racket in the 
neighborhood of his hennery. He poked his 
head out of the window to see Avhat Avas going 
on. He saAV three or four blue-jackets. One 
Avas lugging off a skip of honey. 

" ' Stop ! stop ! I command you ! ' roared out 
the old felloAv. 

" His Avife (who, no doubt, had been in Rich- 
mond, and learned the military) told him to call, 
' Corporal of the guard.' He did so, when a fel- 
low jumped into the yard, saying he Avas a Cor- 
poral, and Avanted to knoAV what Avas the matter. 
Dominie told him hoAv he had been robbed, and 
asked him to take care of his honey. 

" ' To be sure I Avill,' says the Avilling Corporal ; 
and he picks up a skip, and starts ofi' Avith it. 

" ' But Avhere are you going Avith that skip ? ' 
says dominie. 

'" ' O, I am going to take care of it for you,' says 
Bogus ; and off he goes. 

'' The dominie hauls in his head, and the boys 
limil in the rest of his honey and foAvls. 

"At noon Ave pitched our camp in a gentle- 
man's door-yard. We did nothing more to-day, 
and had a bully night's rest. Next morning the 
General gave orders for the Fifty-sixth to go out 
foraging. Captain Smith headed' the party, num- 
bering forty or fifty. We started for the planta- 
tion of a Mr. Field, a strong secessionist. On 
arriving at his house the Captain halted and 
fronted us, and then Avent up to Field and told 
him that Ave Avanted some of his stock for Govern- 
ment use. He told the Captain to help himself 
to Avhat he Avanted. The Captain then divided 
the squad into tAVO equal parts, one to capture 
and bring in stock, the other party to act as re- 
serve and guard. Well, this fun lasted about an 



508 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCmENTS. 



hour, and I caught but one old setting hen, and 
my sides ached with laughter. The ground was 
thickly strewn with dead poultry, for the boys 
soon learned to kill their birds, and they now set 
about picking them up. The Captain started 
twenty men back to camp with the plunder. The 
rest of us went to another house, but luckily for 
somebody, it Avas deserted. Farther on was to 
be seen another house. The first glance, on ar- 
riving at the place, told us that these folks were 
poor. Captain went to speak to an old woman, 
who came to the door. I went to the negro 
quarters, and found by inquiry, that the old ^ady 
had long been a widow, that she was very poor, 
and had three sons in the rebel army. One had 
been killed in the battle before Richmond. The 
boys now commenced a war on the poultry, and 
I was determined that all the fowls should be 
spared to the old lady. There she stood in the 
door with clasped hands, her gray hair looking 
out from underneath the wide border of her cap. 
A pretty little girl of five or six years (a grand- 
child), with golden hair in curls, stood near, cling- 
ing to the old lady's skirt, and trying to get her 
in and shut the door. The boys were bent on 
having the poultry, and as Captain Smith had not 
forbidden it, they took everything. Here I did 
one of the meanest acts that I ever did in all my 
life. It was this : after trying to save the old 
lady's property, I caught a duck and wrung its 
neck before her eyes. Never shall I forget the 
look she gave me. She thought me to be her 
only friend before this ; but now I, too, had proved 
an enemy. O, how her heart sunk within her ! 
She sank down into a chair, and gave herself up 
to the loudest lamentations. I can reconcile my- 
self to take property from rich secessionists for 
the Government, but now I am down on robbing 
poor people's hen-roosts.'* 



Obeying Orders. — While in front of Peters- 
burg, General Butler received information that 
his favorite horse, " Almond Eye," had been ac- 
cidentally killed by falling into a ravine. Upon 
the departure of his informant, he ordered an 
Irishman to go and skin him. 

" What ! Is Almond Eye dead ? " asked Pat. 

" What's that to you ? Do as I bid you, and 
ask no questions." 

Pat went about his business, and in an hour or 
two returned. 

"Well, Pat, where have you been all this 
time ? " 

" Skinning the horse, yer honor." 

" Docs it take nearly two hours to perform 
such an operation ? " 

" No, yer honor ; but then, you see, it tuck 
'bout half an hour to catch him." 

"Catch him! Fire and furies ! Was he alive?" 

" Yes, yer honor ; and you know I could not 
skin him alive." 

" Skin him alive ! Did you kill him ? " 

" To be sure I did. You know I must obey 
orders, without asking any questions." 

General Butler eyed his servant with such a 



malicious look, that Pat thought he meditated 
skinning an Irishman, in revenge for the death 
of his horse. 

Incidents of the Christian Commission. 

— At the meeting of this noble institution, at 
Washington, in February, 1864, the Rev. Rob- 
ert J. Parvin, in stating the practical operations 
of the Commission on the battle-fields and in the 
hospitals, said : 

" At Gettysburg, in the Fifth Corps Hospital, 
of which I had charge in the Christian Commis- 
sion's work for a few weeks, I had many such 
home links fastened to the last hours of dying 
soldiers. I remember well a Captain of your own 
State, sir [addressing Mr. George H. Stuart, the 
President], of the 20th Maine volunteers, who 
was brought into that old barn, where were six- 
ty-five of the worst' cases in the whole corps. O, 
they were all sadly wounded. The brave fellow 
had some of his own men lying on the floor not 
far from him. He loved them with a father's 
love. As one after another they died around 
him, it worked so upon his mind, that he became 
a raving maniac, until it took four or five to hold 
him. With great difficulty we got him away 
from his men who were dying, — in a room by 
himself, — and he rallied, became a little better. 
The Surgeon went in to see him. He came out, and 
I passed in. The Surgeon had told me he could 
not live. If he had had a primary amputation, 

— an amputation, that is, on the field, — he might 
have recovered, but he could not now. I took 
him by the hand. His first words were, ' Chap- 
lain' (for such they call us), ' what did the Sur- 
geon say ? ' ' Why, Captain, you are in a criti- 
cal case.' ' I know that. Chaplain, but does the 
Surgeon think I can live ? ' ' He thinks it is 
hardly possible that you will live. Captain.' ' My 
wife. Chaplain — have you heard from her since 
your message yesterday ? ' ' No, we have re- 
ceived no answer. The lines are in the hands of 
the Government, who needs them ; perhaps that 
is the reason we cannot get an answer at once. 
We hope she will be here.' ' Does the Surgeon 
say I cannot live long, Chaplain ? ' ' Yes ; but 
you are a Christian man. Captain Billings ? ' 
' Yes, Chaplain, I have no fears. I left my place 
in the Sabbath school for my place in the army. 
My hope is in the Lord Jesus Christ. I have 
tried to serve him in the army, and he will not 
forsake me now. I would like to see my wife,' 
he continued, as his thoughts recurred to that 
dear one. ' Well, Captain, if you have anything 
to say, will you give the message to me ? ' He 
asked me to give her his knapsack and sword, 
and other little things that he mentioned ; and if 
she came, the message he wished me to deliver ; 
and then he seemed to dismiss all these things 
from his mind, as he lay there calm, peaceful, 
a dying man, as well as a dying soldier, and, 
above all, a dying Christian. ' Now,' said he at 
length, ' don't stay longer with me. Go and min- 
ister' to the boys, and run in here as you can to 
read a few words of Scripture to me, and kneel 
down and pray Avith me.' After I had prayed 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



509 



with him, he said to me, ' Could you have my 
body embalmed and sent home ? I lost my money 
on the field.' ' Certainly, Captain, it shall be 
done ; give yourself no further thought about 
that.' Not another time did he refer to it, but he 
passed away a dying Christian, triumphing over 
all the horrors of war, over all the sad circum- 
stances surrounding him. It was in the morning 
at eleven o'clock that he passed away. At five 
o'clock that afternoon his body Avas sent to the 
embalmers. At ten o'clock that night, as I was 
busy writing letters from memoranda taken 
through the day, a knock was heard at my door. 
' Walk in,' I responded. In stepped a man, in- 
quiring, ' Is Captain BilHngs, of the 20th Maine, 
here ? ' What a question for us to meet ! But 
I thought of the home-link. * Who are you ? ' I 
asked. 'I am Jiis brother. I haveliis icife loith 
me. I have buoyed her tip this long %vay loith 
the hope that roe ivould find the Captain in good 
condition. Where is he, sir ? ' ' You have 
not brought the Captain's wife out here with you 
to-night ? ' The corps hospital was four miles 
from Gettysburg. * No ; I left her in town for 
to-night.' ' O, it is well ; the body of your 
brother was sent to the embalmers at five o'clock 
this afternoon ! ' ' O ! O ! ' said he, * I cannot 
tell her ! I cannot tell her ! I cannot trust my- 
self to tell her, or even to see her again, to- 
night ! ' The poor man seemed overcome. ' I 
cannot see her,' he continued ; ' I have brought 
her on all the way to Gettysburg, and now you 
must, yoic must tell her all.' And so our duty 
was to see the wife, and deliver to her the mes- 
sages and the tokens of the dying love of her 
husband, and speak to her words of comfort in 
the name of the Lord ! His body was carried on 
to the State of Maine, to repose with those of his 
kindi"ed there." 

Female Patriotism. — A Southern officer re- 
lates the following: " Let me now tell the story 
of a Kentucky lady. It was related to me by one 
in whom implicit confidence can be placed. Some 
time ago the hirelings of Lincoln went to Cyn- 
thiana, Ky., in search of ' arms ' and ' secession- 
ists.' A gentleman whom I will call Smith was 
a strong Southern man, and feeling that he would 
be among the first to be arrested, hastened away 
at dead of night. He was a man of wealth and in- 
fluence ; but such was the precipitancy with which 
Ife left his home and his all, that he could carry 
nothing with him. He hurriedly escaped in his 
shirt sleeves to a widow's house in the neighbor- 
hood, with whom he was well acquainted, and 
stated his condition. The lady, who was herself 
wealthy, instantly and intuitively conceived a 
plan to relieve him. And what does the reader 
suppose that plan was ? She ordered a horse to 
be saddled, took a servant behind her, went to 
Cynthiana, six miles distant, procured money for 
her friend, bought cloth, returned home, had the 
cloth cut and made into garments by the next 
morning, and started Smith off bright and early !" 

Here is another : General Marshall sent his 
(Quartermaster here for the artillery destined for 



his command. There was not a sufficient number 
of horses to be bought in the ordinary way, and 
the Quartermaster was empowered to impress. 
He met with a lady on a splendid gray horse. 
She was visiting some of her friends during the 
Christmas, and Avas twenty miles from home. 
She was asked the price at which she would sell 
her horse. She replied it was the only horse she 
had, and she had refused two hundred dollars for 
him frequently. The Quartermaster informed 
her that one hundred and fifty was as much as 
the Government could give, and he thought that 
the horse was necessary to aid in the defence of 
the country. Her reply was characteristic of the 
ladies in this country. " Kentuckian, take him." 



JOHN BROWN'S SONG. 

John Brown's body lies a-mouldering in the grave ; 
John Brown's body lies a-mouldering in the grave; 
John Brown's body lies a-mouldering in the grave; 
His soul is marching on 1 

CHOBUS. 

Glory, halle — hallelujah ! 
Glory, halle — hallelujah ! 
Glorj^, halle — hallelujah ! 

His soul is marching on ! 

He's gone to be a soldier in the army of the Lord ! 
He's gone to be a soldier in the army of the Lord ! 
He's gone to be a soldier in the army of the Lord ! 
His soul is marching on ! 
Glory, halle — hallelujah! &c. 

John Brown's knapsack is strapped upon his back! 
John Brown's knapsack is strapped upon his back ! 
John Brown's knapsack is strapped upon his back! 
His soul is marching on ! 
Glory, halle — hallelujah ! &c. 

The pet lambs and angels will meet him on the way, 
The pet lambs and angels will meet him on the way. 
The pet lambs and angels will meet him on the way, 
As they go marching on ! 
Glory, halle — hallelujah ! &c. 

We'll hang Jeff Davis to a sour apple-tree ! 
We'll hang Jeff DaA-is to a sour apple-tree ! 
We'll hang Jeff Davis to a sour apple-tree ! 
As we go marching on ! 
Glory, halle — hallelujah ! &c. 

Now, three rousing cheers for the Union ! 
Now, three rousing cheers for the Union ! 
Now, three rousing cheers for the Union ! 

As we are marching on ! 
Glory, halle — hallelujah ! &c. 

Hip, hip, hip, hip, hurrah ! 



Incidents of Fredericksburg. — The fol- 
lowing are from letters of soldiers written soon 
after the repulse of Burnside : " One man showed 
himself a hero. On the top of a house, apparently 
undismayed by the shells and bullets crashing 
around, "above, and below him, stood a signal 
officer all day long ; he calmly looked through his 



510 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



glass, and signalled with his flags. Fortunately 
he escaped unhurt." 

A Lieutenant tells the following : " On passing 
through a street of the town, while in the heat 
of the engagement, my horse suddenly reared, 
and I could distinctly hear the shell whizzing 
either directly in front or under his fore feet. 
Looking down, I sav/ an artillery driver, of whom 
I was just asking a question, picking himself out 
of the mud, the shell having passed through both 
of his horses : fortunately he was unhurt. 

" ' Ee jabers, Liftinant, but that was a close 
call for you and me,' said he. 

" I replied, * Are you hurt ? ' 

" ' No, sir ; I b'lieve Ise only scared.' " 



President Lincoln and the Farmer. — 
A Western farmer sought the President day after 
day until he procured the much desired audience. 
He had a plan for the successful prosecution of 
the war, to which Mr. Lincoln listened as patiently 
as he could. When he Avas through, he asked 
the opinion of the President upon his plan. 
" Well," said Mr. Lincoln, " I'll answer by telling 
you a story. You have heard of Mr, Blank, of 
Chicago ? He was an immense loafer in his way 
— in lact, never did anything in his life. One 
day he got crazy over a great rise in the price of 
wheat, upon which many wheat speculators gained- 
large fortunes. Blank started off one morning 
to one of the most successful of the wheat spec- 
ulators, and with much enthusiasm laid before 
hira a plan by which he (the said Blank) was cei'- 
tain of becoming independently rich. When he 
had finished, he asked the opinion of his hearer 
upon his plan of operations. The reply came as 
follows : ' My advice is that you stick to your 
business.' ' But,' asked Blank, ' what is my 
business ? ' • I don't know, I am sure, what it is,' 
says the merchant ; ' but whatever it is, I advise 
j'ou to stick to it.' And now," said Mr. Lincoln, 
" I mean nothing offensive, for I know you mean 
well, but I think you had better stick to your 
business, and leave the war to those who have 
the responsibility of managing it." 



Uncle Sam in Virginia. — In the early part 
of the war, some four or five of the Union cavalry 
were out towards the Blackwater, on a scout. 
They called at a large, nice-looking farm-house, 
and asked the matron to get them some dinner. 
While they were eating, the old lady asked them 
if they knew a man in Suffolk called " Uncle Sam- 
uel." They told her they did, they were very 
well acquainted with him. She then said, " I 
did not know but they had played a Yankee 
trick on me. Some of your men came here a 
few days ago, and bought all my turkeys and 
chickens ; and when they had them all put up, 
ready to take away, they told me to come down 
to Suffolk, and Uncle Sam would pay for them." 
The old lady said she had lived within ten miles 
of Suffolk all her life, and had never heard of 



that man before. She asked if he was a North- 
ern man, and belonged to the Northern army. 
The cavalry told her that he was a very generous 
old gentleman, and if she would come down to 
Suffolk, he would not only pay her for her poultry, 
but pay her for their dinner beside. 



A Colonel on Guard. — A Lieutenant in one 
of the Ohio regiments was making a detail of 
men to guard a lot of army stores captured from 
the enemy. He approached a crowd of men all 
wearing overcoats such as Uncle Sam gives his 
boys, and selected four or five for special duty. 
It ha]ipened that Lieutenant-Colonel Gazley, of 
the Thirty-seventh Indiana, was in the crowd, 
and was selected by the Lieutenant. This was fun 
for the Colonel, and without a word he shouldered 
his gun and went to his post of duty. Not long 
afterwards, the Lieutenant, going his rounds, dis- 
covered by the firelight the bugle upon Gazley's 
cap. He rather authoritatively inquired where he 
got that bugle. The Colonel said he " must 
have picked up an officer's cap somewhere," and 
the Lieutenant passed on. 

The Colonel stood his turn all night long, and 
was found in the morning walking his post. Hav- 
ing laid off his overcoat, his shoulder-straps ap- 
peared very conspicuously in connection with the 
musket on his shoulder. As soon as the Lieuten- 
ant discovered a Colonel on guard, he approached 
him, and courteously inquired how he came to be 
there upon guard ? " Well, sir, you placed me 
here." With no little agitation the Lieutenant 
inquired who he was. "My name is Carter 
Gazley, and I am Lieutenant-Colonel of the 
Thirty-seventh Indiana regiment." The Colonel 
was speedily " released," but the Lieutenant was 
not yet relieved from his embarrassment. 



Incidents of Grierson's Paid. — While sev- 
eral of the Union scouts were feeding their horses 
at the stables of a wealthy planter of secession 
proclivities, the proprietor looking on, apparently 
deeply interested in the proceeding, suddenly 
burst out with : " Well, boys, I can't say I have 
anything against you. I don't know but that, on 
the whole, I rather like you. You have not taken 
anything of mine except a little corn for your 
horses, and that you are welcome to, I have 
heard of you all over the country. You are 
doing the boldest thing ever done. But you'll be 
trapped, though ; you'll be trapped, mark me." 

At another place, where the men thought it 
advisable to represent themselves as Jackson's 
cavalry, a whole company was very graciously 
entertained by a strong secession lady, who in- 
sisted on Avhipping a negro because he did not 
bring the hoe-cakes fast enough. 

On one occasion, seven of Colonel Grierson's 
scouts stopped at the house of a wealthy planter 
to feed their jaded horses. Upon ascertaining 
that he had been doing a little guerrilla business 
on his own account, our men encouraged him to 
the belief that, as they were the invincible Van 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



511 



Dorn cavalrj', they would soon catch the Yankees. 
The secession gentleman heartily approved of 
what he supposed to be their intentions, and en- 
joined upon them the necessity of making as 
rapid marches as possible. As the men had 
discovered t'.vo splendid carriage horses in the 
planter's stable, they thought, under the circum- 
stances, they would be justified in making an 
exchange, which they accordingly proceeded to 
do. As they were taking the saddles from their 
own tired steeds, and placing them on the backs 
cf the v/ealthy guerrilla's horses, the proprietor 
discovered them, and at once objected. He was 
met with the reply that, as he was anxious the 
Yankees should be speedily overtaken, those after 
them should have good horses. " All right, gen- 
tlemen," said the planter ; " I will keep your ani- 
mals until you return. I suppose you'll be back 
in two or three days, at the farthest. When you 
return, you'll find they have been well cared for." 
The soldiers were sometimes asked Avhere they 
got their blue coats. They always replied, if they 
were travelling under the name of Van Dorn's 
cavalry, that they took them at Holly Springs of 
the Yankees. This always excited great laughter 
among the secessionists. The scouts, however, 
usually wore the regular " secesh " uniforms. 



A SouTHERx Conundrum. — Which action 
of the Confederates was the most liberal towards 
the Yankees, but which they disliked the most ? 

The battle of ]\Ianassas, where they received a 
Confederate clieck, on which they made a run on 
the Bull Run banks, and drew more metallic cur- 
rency than they wanted. 



DRIVING HOME THE COWS. 

Out of the clover and blue-eyed grass, 
He turned them into the river-lane ; 

One after another he let them pass. 
Then fastened the meadow bars again. 

Under the willo-ws and over the hill, 
He patiently followed their sober pace ; 

The merry whistle for once was still, 

And something shadowed the sunnj' face. 

Only a boy ! and his father had said 
He never could let his youngest go : 

Two ali'eady were lying dead 

Under the feet of the trampling foe. 

But after the evening work was done. 

And the frogs were loud in the meadow-swamp. 
Over his shoulder he slung his gun. 

And stealthily followed the foot-path damp, — 

Across the clover and through the wheat, 
With resolute heart and purpose grim. 

Though cold was the dew on his hurrying. feet, 
And the blind bats flitting startled him. 

Thrice since then had the lanes been white, 
And the orchards sweet with apple-bloom ; 

And now, when the cows came back at night, 
The feeble father drove them home. 



For news had come to the lonely farm 

That three were lying where tv.-o had lain ; 

And the old man's tremulous, palsied arm 
Could never lean on a son's again. 

The summer day grew cool and late ; 

He went for the cows when the Avork was done; 
But down the lane, as ho opened the gate, 

He saw them coming, one by one, — 

Brindle, Ebony, Speckle, and Bess, 

Shaking their horns in the evening wind, 

Cropping the buttercups out of the grass — 
But who was it following close behind ? 

Loosely swang in the idle air 

The empty sleeve of army blue ; 
And worn and pale, from the crisping hair. 

Looked out a face that the father knew ; — 

For Southern prisons will sometimes yawn, 
And yield their dead unto life again ; * 

And the day that comes with a cloudy dawn 
In golden glory at last may wane. 

The great tears sprang to their meeting eyes ; 

For the heart must speak when the lips are dumb. 
And under the silent evening skies 

Together they followed the cattle home. 



The Christian Commission. — The Rev. 
George J. Mingins, in an address delivered at the 
great meeting of the Christian Commission at 
Washington, on the 2d day of February, 1864, 
spoke as follows : 

"When, in 1861, in the month of November, 
the various representatives of the Young Men's 
Christian Associations of the loyal North met to- 
gether to organize this United States Christian 
Commission, they asked and answei'ed one simple 
question. It was this : AVhat can Ave, Avho are 
at home, surrounded by home comforts, the recip- 
ients of every blessing, living in peace Avith each 
other, who have the liberty of Avorshipping God 
beneath our own vine and fig tree, — what can Ave 
do for those brave men Avho have left their homes 
and all that is near and dear to them, to sacrifice 
and suffer, that Ave may be blessed Avith the bless- 
ings of peace and safety ? This AA'as the simple 
question. For this these meetings have been 
held. For this we are gathered to-night, that 
you may understand precisely the simple, practi- 
cal Avorkings of this Commission. They are held 
that the loyal people of the North may be aroused 
to a due sense of their oAvn responsibility in this 
matter. We desii-e that every man and every 
woman belonging to the loyal North may look at 
this matter aright, and be prepared to do their 
duty, so that our national existence may be sus- 
tained, and Ave may go on, a brighter, grander, 

* Yet there are tAA-elve thousand nine hundred and 
nineteen graves of Union soldiers at tlie one rebel 
prison-pen of Andersonvillc ; while from the comfort- 
able quarters in which the rebel prisoners were kept, 
there went back into the rebel armies some of ** the 
finest fighting material " the rebel Commissioner of 
Exchange ever saAv. 



512 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



nobler, truer nation in the future than ^ve have 
been in the past. 

" I have not the honor to be ' native to this 
manor born.' I first saw the light in good old 
Scotland. Her sunlight first slanted adown the 
liill-side into the valley where my mother's cot 
was nestled ; and I am ready to confess, sir, that 
when this great and gigantic Avar burst over our 
land, I used to look on coldly, not understanding 
thoroughly the great principle which prompted 
men to leave their homes and carry their lives in 
their hands, that they might save the land of 
Washington ; and when I used to see soldiers 
going to the war, I used to indulge in a sort of 
vain philosophy, that I know a great many men 
indulge in to-day. I used to say, ' Now, these 
men like to fight: I don't. Therefore they are 
right in going to fight, and I am right in staying 
at home.' Or I used to say, ' Now, these men 
want fame, they want a name, they v/ant position. 
I am perfectly satisfied with what I have and 
what I am. It is right for them to battle for 
fame ; it is right for me to live quietly in all hu- 
mility.' And I used to fling around my shoulder 
the philosopher's robe, and stand unmoved, as I 
saw men passing before me, going to battle and 
to death, and quiet my conscience with this mis- 
erable philosophy, that will never stand before 
the intelligent, the great, and the noble, and that 
the very devil despises ! 

" A touching little incident, Mr. President, con- 
verted me from the error of my way ; and if you 
will permit me, I will relate it, for, I confess, it 
was a great turning-point in my life ; I feel it so 
now. I happened to be in attendance on a meet- 
ing or Synod in the city of Easton, at the time 
when our honorable Chief Magistrate called out 
seventy-five thousand men to beat back the foe that 
was plunging onward to desecrate this holy tem- 
ple. I stood in the street, one day, and heard the 
sound of martial music. I saw the men march- 
ing down. I knew who they were the moment I 
saw them — sturdy yeomen, who had left the hills 
of Pennsylvania and poured along her valleys ; 
who had left their fields, and looms, and benches, 
their wives and little ones, their homes, and all 
that they held dear, to stand in front of the foe 
that had risen up against us. AVhen I saw them 
my old philosophy came up, because I must have 
something to comfort me, you know. 

" Just then I saw a little girl standing on the 
doorstep. She was ten or twelve years of age, I 
should judge. As I looked in her face my atten- 
tion was arrested. I thought I saw a deep cloud 
of sorrov/ come pver and rest upon that little 
brow. She stood with her little hands clasped 
tightly, and her little face seemed pinched with 
very agony. And I thought, AVell, now, what 
can be the matter with the child ? I determined 
to watch her ; so I took my stand near by. The 
sound of the music drew nearer and nearer. By 
and by the lieavy tramp of men was heard. As 
they drew near to us, I saw that little form be- 
coming more fixed and rigid ; the little hands 
began to quiver, her neck was stretched out with 
eager intensity, and she stood with eyes fairly 



riveted upon the men as they came marching 
slowly by the door. At last I was startled with 
the penetrating little voice, as it cried out, ' 0, 
that's hira ! that's him ! It's pa ! it's pa ! He's go- 
ing ! he's going ! He's gone ! ' and with loud sob- 
bing she turned away and entered into the house. 
" Now conscience, just at that time, asked me 
one or two very ugly questions. One question that 
it asked me was, * Well, what was the matter with 
the child?' The answer was at hand. I knew 
that that man who had marched to defend the 
Union was her father ; that he was her all ; that 
he was her comfort, her joy, her support, her sus- 
tenance ; and when that little one had given up 
that, she had given up the very sunlight of her 
little existence, literally her all. And then con- 
science asked me another question. It said, ' Well, 
sir, wliat have you done for your country 7' I 
whispered, ' AVell — but — but I don't rea^Z^/ be- 
long to the country ! ' ' Don't belong to the 
country ? ' said conscience ; ' don't belong to the 
country ? — then, you infernal scamp, get out of 
it ! Get out, of it ! This is not the country for 
men who belong nowhere — it's somewhere else ! 
Don't belong to it ? ' and then memory carried 
me iDack many a year, when I first landed upon 
these hospitable shores, a poor, unknown lad, 
when year after year I struggled, and at every 
step I took I met sunlight, and warm hearts, and 
generous natures ; and all the high road to an 
honest and a true ambition opened uj) before me. 
And ' not belong to the country ? Then quit it ! 
and give up all you have received from it and 
have in it ! ' ' Well, but,' conscience interposed, 
' you got a wife here.' ' Yes ; and I Avould not 
give hor up for a great deal.' I thought, * No, I 
cannot quit it ; ' and then the blush of very 
shame mantled my cheek ; and standing in that 
street in Easton, as I looked back at the silent, 
dumb door that had closed upon that brave and 
God-like little patriot, I determined that, though 
not * native to the manor born,' I would allow no 
man living here to outdo me, so far as I had the 
ability, in upholding, and sustaining, and defend- 
ing the nation that had been my generous and my 
noble benefactor. 

" But conscience was not done with me yet. 
I walked down the street. I saw the same com- 
pany of men drawn up in line. I saw an old 
woman who was pulling a tliin shawl about her. 
Ah, she was one of the poor of the earth. She 
hurried on, eagerly, anxiously scanning the faces 
of the men as she came. At last she stopped be- 
fore a great, tall, raw-boned fellow who was jok- 
ing with his companions. * Well, boys,' he said, 
'we're going oft' — ar'n't we?' And they said, 
' Yes, we are.' He had a little bundle, tied up 
with a red handkerchief, in his arm. ' AVhen we 
get down there, maybe we won't give them fits, 
eh ? ' They said, ' Maybe we won't.' They seemed 
to be making the same mistake with some of us 
just about that time, for we none of us had an 
idea that such a terrible desolating shadow was 
rising up in our midst. 

" Just then the old woman pushed her way 
through the crowd, and stood before this man. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



513 



His eyes dropped in a moment, and his face was 
covered with a flush, and as he turned his head 
he lifted his finger to his eyes, and shook it with 
a twirl — ' Now, mother, mother ! You promised 
me that you wouldn't come out, didn't ye ? Now 
you promised me. When I said " good by " to 
ye, mother, I told ye I didn't want you to come 
out here and unman me ; and here you've done it ! 
Now I wish you hadn't ! ' The old woman lifted 
her hands up, and putting them on the great 
high shoulders of her son, as the tears streamed 
down her furrowed cheeks, she said, ' O Jack, 
don't scold me ; don't scold your poor old mother. 
Jack : you know ye're all I have, Jack ; and I 
didn't come out to unman ye, I didn't come out 
to unman ye — I have come to say, God bless ye. 
Jack, God bless ye ! ' and folding the thin shawl 
over her bosom she went away. The big fellow 
drew the sleeve over his face, and bringing down 
his arm with a sort of vexed emphasis, as if to 
defy the emotion he could not control, turning to 
the men, he said, ' Hang it, boys, she's mother, 
you know ! ' There, I felt, will be a brave man in 
the field. He's a noble, a true fellow. Men who 
have a right and true appreciation of their coun- 
try's cause are lovers of their home and of their 
mother. It is unnecessary to say that conscience 
had done its work faithfully with me that time ! 

" And now, when I heard, Mr. Chairman, that 
the Christian Commission designed to follow these 
men wherever they go, with their homes and the 
influences of the loved ones there, that it was to 
be, as you have heard, a home-link of the war, I 
could not but admire and support it. When 
this Christian Commission was organized, many 
said, * Now I hope you will stick to your legiti- 
mate business.' Well, we say, ' Pray what is 
the legitimate business of the Christian Commis- 
sion ? ' ' Well, it is the giving of tracts, and 
prayer-books, and Testaments, and all sorts of 
good books ; it is preaching, and praying, and 
talking with the men, and it is not anything else.' 
Now, I was sent out by the worthy Chairman of 
this Christian Commission in May, 1861, to see 
if there was anything to do for an organization 
like this within the lines of the army ; and in the 
second place, if there was, to see how Me could do 
it. We found there was plenty to do ; and I 
found that there was only one way of doing it, 
and that was by following the example set us by 
the Master. Now, I have not the slightest re- 
spect for, nor the slightest faith in, that Chris- 
tianity that goes into the deepest cellar or into the 
highest garret, and beholds the poor, wretched 
beings there, dressed in rags, and shivering in the 
cold, and pitches a sermon at the poor things' 
heads. It is not the religion of my Lord and 
Master that does this. For I remember that 
when he stood upon the earth, his hands were al- 
ways busy, and his great heart was always drawn 
out in sympathy for the poor and lowly ; and he 
ministered to their bodies as well as to then- 
souls. When the poor leper came to him, say- 
ing, ' Lord, if thou wilt thou canst make me 
clean,' he first healed the man's body, and then 
talked to him of his soul's welfare. However, in 
33 



this work in the army we soon find out from the 
soldier himself the kind of religion he wants. 
The soldier is the best judge, after all, of this. 
One of our delegates, in the early history of the 
Commission, approached a soldier who seemed 
very tired and worn, and holding in his hand a 
tract, he said, extending it to him, 'My good 
friend, will you have a tract ?' ' No, but I'll have 
a cracker ! ' was the quick reply ; and the delegate 
said, ' Pardon me, I did not know you were hun- 
gry, my good fellow, or I would not have offered 
you the tract first ; ' and putting his hand in his 
satchel, he pulled out a nice Boston cracker, and 
said, ' Take this ; end if that is not sufficient, if 
you will wait ten minutes, till I run over to the 
Christian Commission's tent, I will bring you as 
much as you want.' The fellow's eyes bright- 
ened ; he was moved; and he said, ' Well, stranger, 
excuse me ; I didn't want to be impertinent, but I 
tell you I was hungry, that's a fact ; and when you 
offered me that tract, I thought I would much 
rather have a cracker, and I said so. But give 
me the tract, too, stranger; give it to me. I 
promise you I will read it, and keep it ; for if this 
is the kind of religion you men of the Christian 
Commission bring down to the soldiers in the 
army, it's just what they want.' And from the 
first time that its delegates have set out for the 
lines of the army, up to this present time, the uni- 
versal testimony — 1 say it boldly — of every man 
who has come in contact with the Christian Com- 
mission, has been, 'til\t it's just the very 

THING FOR THE ARMY.' 

" The Eev. Mr. Parvin has given you some idea 
as to how the Commission's delegate goes to 
work. Out of these twelve hundred delegates 
every man has acted upon the simple principle 
of the organization, that it is the duty of every 
man to do something for his country. I suppose 
I have what you may consider a curious definition 
of patriotism. I believe that the word ' patriot ' 
means ' one who is willing to inake sacrijices for 
his country.' But you know there are ' many 
men of different minds,' and I have met some 
who would come down to the breakfast table at 
the hotel, with the luxuries of life spread out be- 
fore them, and with their newspapers in hand, 
very complacently lean back, and with pompous 
air bolt out an oath from their unclean throats, 
' By George, I told you so ; the Government is 
going to smash ; it is a wreck already ! ' and 
they would grumble and growl, and yet think 
tiieinselves true patriots ; indeed, if you doubted 
their patriotism they would become excessively 
angry ! I may be mistaken, but the only patri- 
otism it is right to acknowledge, in my opinion, 
in presenting this cause before the people of the 
North, is this : that whether this war be right or 
wrong, every man is bound to do what he can 
to relieve the sufferings of those men who are 
fighting for him, to bind up their broken bodies, 
and pour the oil of soothing upon the weak and 
weary wounded soldiers. 

" You may ask me. How are these ministrations 
of delegates received by the soldiers? I have 
been out several times as delegate, and I testify 



514 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



that I have always been received most kindly by 
them. I hiet with but one exception. He was 
an Irishman. I do not say this to cast any re- 
flection upon our Irish fellow-citizens ; for I re- 
member well when I stood at the battle-field of 
Antietam, that I was pointed out a ditch which 
lay full of the rebel dead, and when I asked, 
' Whose work is this ? ' I was answered, ' The 
Irish brigade, sir ! ' and I said then, ' God bless 
them ! ' and so I say noAv, if that is the way they 
do ! (Applause.) And I say, God bless all whom 
America has received from foreign countries, and 
made them sons ; and may he confound all who, 
■walking and living in the sunlight of its prosper- 
ity, defile her with curses and trample upon the 
bosom that has nourished them. 

" Well, notwithstanding that, this was a very 
tough old Irishman, I assure you. It was at "a 
time when a great many were sick, at Yorktown, 
with the typhoid fever and chronic ch'sentery — 
men who had marched, and marched, and dug 
and delved, and marched again, until they were 
completely broken down. A great many of them 
had no clean shirts on — for they had worn them 
long. I had got a large supply, and was going 
through the tent, giving thera to the poor fellows. 
And here let me illustrate the Commission's pro- 
ceeding in such cases. When word came that the 
men wanted shirts, we did not go back to the tent 
and hold a council of war over it. One did not 
rise and say, ' Now, do you think that man has a 
shirt ? Do you really think it ? ' And after con- 
sidering a while, and discussing the point, they 
conclude he has not. ' Well, do you think we 
had better give him one ? ' is asked ; and it is 
agreed that it would be advisable to do so. ' I 
propose, then, that we give him a shirt,' says one. 
' Is it seconded ?' 'It is.' ' It is moved and sec- 
onded that this man have a shirt. All in favor, 
say ay.' They say ay, and the shirt is procured. 
' But,' says one, ' how long have you been here, 
my friend ? ' ' Seven weeks.' ' O, then, you must 
give the man the shirt, because you are the senior 
officer here ! ' And at last the poor man gets the 
needed garment. 

" No, no ; it is nothing like this that the Com- 
mission goes to work. I had gone to the needy 
men and distributed what I had. I came to this 
Irishman. ' My dear friend,' said I, ' how are you ? 
You seem to be an old man.' ' Shure and I am 
an ould mon, sir ! ' ' Well, how came you here, 
in the army, old as you are ? ' ' Och, sir, I'm not 
only an ould mon, but an ould soldier, too, I'd 
have ye know.' He had been twenty years in the 
British service in the East Indies, and had fought 
America's foes in Mexico. ' Yes, sir,' he contin- 
ued, ' I'm ould, and I know it ; but I'm not too ould 
to shoulder a musket and hit a rap for the ould 
flag yet ! ' (Applause.) ' You're a brave fellow,' 
said I, 'and I've brought these things to make 
you comfortable,' as I held out to him a shirt and 
drawers. He looked at me. Said he, 'What, 
thi7n things ? ' ' Yes, I want to give them to you 
to wear.' ' Well, I don't want them ! ' ' You do 
want them.' ' Well, I don't ! ' and he looked at 
me and then at the goods, and said somewhat 



sharply as I urged them again, ' Niver mind, sir, 
I don't want them, and I tell ye, I won't have 
them ! ' ' Why ? ' ' Shure,' said he, ' do ye take 
me for an object of charity ? ' That was "a kind 
of poser. I looked at him. ' No, sir,' said I, ♦ I 
do not take you for an object of charity, and I 
don't want you to look upon me as a dispenser 
of charity, either, for I am not.' ' Well, what are 
you, tliin ? ' ' I am a delegate of the United States 
Christian Commission. I have left my home and 
my church, and I have come down here to serve 
the brave fellows. I have washed their feet, and 
have dressed them, and done everything that a 
nurse could do, for the sick and suffering men 
here. I came as a delegate from the loyal North, 
bearing the thank-offerings of mothers, and wives, 
and sisters, to you, brave defenders of the Stars 
and Stripes.' And I thought, surely, after such 
a speech as that, I would get hold of the old fel- 
low's heart. But he looked at me and said, ' Any 
hoic, I won't have thim ! ' (Laughter.) I felt 
really wounded. I did not at all like it. I have 
told you he v/as an Irishman, and I happened to 
be a Scotchman, and somehow you scarcely ever 
see an Irishman and Scotchman meet without 
there is a row. I couldn't help it, but it is so, 
that I didn't like the idea of that old Irishman's 
bluffing me oft' so, I was determined not to be 
conquered. I meant to try further ; and when a 
Scotchman means to try a thing, he will comf very 
near doing it. (Laughter.) I didn't forget my 
obligations, however, the cause I was serving, and 
that I was a Christian man. I didn't talk any fur- 
ther then, but determined to prove by my acts, 
my deeds, that I had come down to do this old 
man and his fellows good. So day after day I 
went about my work, nursing, giving medicines, 
cleaning up the tent, and doing anything and 
everything that I could. 

" One day, as I went in, a soldier said, ' There's 
good news to-day, chaplain.' ' Ah, what is it ? ' 
' The paymaster 's come.' ' Well, that is good 
ncM's.' ' Yes, but not to me, chaplain.' ' How is 
that? ' ' I've not got my descriptive list, and if 
a fellow's not got that, the paymaster may conte 
and go, and he's none the better off for it.' ' "Well, 
why don't you get it ? ' 'I can't write, chaplain ; 
I am suffering from chronic rheumatism.' ' Shall 
I write for you ? ' 'If you only would, chaplain I ' 
I hauled out paper and pencil, asked the luimber 
of his regiment, name of his Captain, his company, 
&c., and sent a simple request that the descriptive 
list might bo remitted to that point. When I had 
done this I found a good many who wanted their 
lists, and I went on writing them until I came tu 
the cot next to the old Irishman's, It was occu- 
pied by another Irishman. I said to him, ' ^ly 
friend, have you your descriptive list?' 'No.' 
' Shall I write to your Captain for it ? ' ' If you 
please ; ' and I began to write. I noticed the old 
Irishman stretching over, all attention, listening 
to what I was saying. I spoke now and then a 
word meant for him, though I affected not to no- 
tice him. After I had written the request, I said 
to the young man, ' Shall I read it to you ? ' 'If 
you please, sir ;' and I read aloud the simple note. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



515 



When I ha;l done the old Irishman broke out 
with, ' Upon my sowl, sir, you -write the natest 
letther for a descriptive list that I ever heard in 
my life! Shure, and a man would think ye had 
been a soldier all your days, you do write so nate a 
letther for a descriptive list ! ' I turned around 
and said, ' Have you got yours ? ' ' An' I haven't, 
sir.' ' Do you want it ? ' * To be shure I do,' 
he said, flaring up ; ' an' that's a queer question 
to ax a man, does he want his descriptive list, 
does he Avant his pay to buy some little delicacies 
to send home to the ould woman and the childer ! 
I do want it, an' if you will lend us the shtroke 
of your pen, chaplain, you'll oblige us.' I sat 
down and wrote the letter, and when I had done, 
said, * Now, boys, give me your letters, and I'll 
have them post-paid and sent for you.' 

" When I returned sad work awaited me, for a 
delegate meets shadows as well as sunshine in 
his work. In that tent were several of the brave 
sons of New England. One of Massachusetts' 
sons lay there dying. You could tell it by the 
pale face, the sunken eye, and the pale, quiveTing 
lip. Then came the delegate's work as the min- 
ister of Christ. Tliis Christian Commission, Mr. 
Chairman, believes that men are immortal, and 
that all the patriotism on God's earth will not 
open the gates of eternal glory to any soul unless 
it be saved by the great mercy of God, through 
Jesi s Christ, our Lord ; and then trembling, re- 
menibering the terrible responsibility that rests 
upon the living minister standing by a dying 
man, we try to preach the gospel to him. 

" I spoke to the dying boy of mother, of Jesus, 
of home, of heaven. O, mothers who are here 
to-night, let me say to you that whatever else a 
soldier forgets, he never, never, never forgets 
his mother. And I will tell you, my friends, that 
is one of the things I have noticed in an Ameri- 
can army that I believe is a great characteristic 
of the American heart, that it clings to home and 
mother. I have stood by the cot of a dying sol- 
dier, and stooping down to catch his last breath, 
have heard him whisper ' mother.' I remember 
passing over a battle-field and seeing a man just 
dying. His mind was wandering. His spirit was 
no longer on that bloody field ; it was at his home, 
far away. I stood and looked upon the poor fel- 
low. A smile passed over his face — a smile, O, 
of so much sweetness, as, looking up, he said, ' O 
mother, O mother ! I am so glad you have 
come.' And he seemed as if she was there by 
his side. By and by he said again, ' Mother, it's 
cold, it's cold ; won't you pull the blanket over 
me ? ' I stooped dov/n and pulled the poor fel- 
low's ragged blanket closer to his shivering form. 
And he smiled again. ' That will do, mother, that 
will do ! ' and he turned over and passed sweetly 
to his rest, and he was borne up to the presence 
of God on the wings of a pious mother's prayers. 

" But to come to the case in the tent. After I 
had done all I could for the Massachusetts boy, 
and had shook his hand in parting, I turned to 
leave the tent, when just as I was going out of 
the door I happened to see the old Irishman. 
He looked very queerly. There was certainly 



something the matter with him. He was rubbing 
his hands through his hair, pulling his beard, 
and acting otherwise very strangely ; but I didn't 
take much notice of him, as I had been so sol- 
emnly engaged. Then he came up to me, and 
clasping my hands, he said, ' Be me sowl, sir, you 
are no humbug, anyhow ! ' ' What do you mean ? ' 
I said. ' O,' said he, ' haven't I watched you as 
day by day ye've been going through the tent 
caring for the boys ? Why, ye've been like a 
mother to iv'ry one of them. Thanks to ye, chap- 
lain, thanks to ye, an' may God bless ye,' he re- 
peated, as he again wrung my hand. ' And,' said 
he, ' ye do this all for nothing ; the boys have 
been telling me about ye.' ' 0,' said I, ' that's a 
mistake.' ' Well, now, how's that ? They been 
tellin' me that ye were a Presbyterian minister, 
and that ye came away from yer home, down 
here, for the love ye had for the boys. But ye 
don't do it for nothing, eh ? AVho, thin, pays ye ? 
the Government ? ' ' No. If it means to pay 
me, it would take a great deal more money than 
it can spare. I would not sell my experience to- 
day for any price.' ' Well, does the Commission 
pay ye ? ' ' No.' ' Well, thin, if the Government 
doesn't pay ye, and the Commission doesn't, who 
does pay ye ? ' I looked the man straight in the 
face, and I said, ' That honest, hearty grasp of the 
hand, and that hearty " God bless ye," is ample 
reward for all that I have done for you. Remem- 
ber, my brave fellow, that you have sufi'ered and 
sacrificed for me, and I couldn't do less for you 
now.' He was broken down. He bowed his 
head and wept, and then, taking me by the hand 
again, said, ' Shure, an' if that's the pay ye take, 
why, God bless ye, God bless ye, God bless ye ! 
Ye'll be rich of the coin of me heart all your 
days.' And after a few moments' pause, he said, 
' And noio, cJiaplain, if ye toill just give us the 
shirt and the drawers, Til icear them till there's 
not a thread of thejn left ! ' (Cheers and laugh- 
ter.) 

" This incident will illustrate how we approach 
the soldier, what we try to do for him, and how- 
it is received by him. I have already occupied 
my full time ; "but if you will permit me, Mr. 
Chairman, I want to say a word as to the great 
work of the Commission, after all. It sends its 
stores and cares for the bodies of men because 
it is Christ-like to do it, and because it gives it the 
key to the men's hearts ; and this is its grand 
aim, to benefit and save the soul — to teach the 
men that it is * not all of life to live, nor all of 
death to die.' 

" Let me say, first, that the soldiers are accessible 
to this work. A great many seem to believe that 
the moment they put on the uniform of their 
country, they are left at once free of all moral 
obligations ; and I tell you that I have seen in 
this city of Washington more wretched wicked- 
ness amongst our soldiers than I ever saw down 
in the lines of the army. The men there will 
come out to hear the gospel. _ I have preached 
nio-ht after night, within four milesof this city, to 
soTdier audiences larger, I am safe in saying, than 
I ever saw a minister of the gospel address on 



516 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS, 



any special religious subject in any church in this 
country. And these men came voluntarily to- 
gether. The Christian Commission have a chapel 
capable of holding a thousand men, within four 
miles of this city, and it is better attended, far 
better, I do not hesitate to say, than the majority 
of the churches here. And let me also say, 
though do not let it startle you when I tell you, 
that the soldiers are not only more accessible to 
the gospel than the young men are at home, but 
that there are more brought to Christ, more are 
converted to God, in our armies, than there are 
at home ! I will say even more — that, humanly 
speaking, there is more likelihood of your son's 
becoming a soldier of the cross down in the lines 
of the army than there is at home. ' How do 
you make it out? ' some may ask. I answer, be- 
cause the prayers of the people of the North are 
centring on that mighty and majestic host ; be- 
cause there is no mother in the land who does 
not lift up holy hands unto God, and beseech that 
victory may perch upon the banner of this nation, 
and that her son may return to her home a child 
of the eternal God ; because there is not a wife 
or a sister in the land but who asks that the shad- 
ow of the Almighty's wings may be flung over 
their loved ones who have left them. 

"I know, Mr. Chairman, that we have all suf- 
fered in this war ; but it seems to me that those 
who suffer most are the Christian fathers and 
mothers of the soldiers. In conclusion, just let 
me give you an instance of a mother's keen and 
deep-felt anxiety about the welfare of her boy. 
Over a year ago, I saw a scene in an out hospital, 
near my own, as I was looking through the veran- 
da, which I shall never forget. On a couch lay 
a young man of twenty or twenty-two years, just 
hovering between time and eternity. 

" Bending over his couch in an attitude of ago- 
ny, O, how intense ! stood a woman. Her pale 
face has seemed to haunt me ever since. Her 
eye was fixed upon her dying boy before her. 
Ever and anon she would stoop down, and her 
lip would quiver as she whispered over that dull 
ear ; and then she would noiselessly slip away 
from his side to get him some little delicacy, and 
swiftly coming back, would gently, gently steal her 
arm under his head, and minister to him. Then 
she would lay the head softly back again upon the 
pillow, and folding her hands, would watch, watch, 
watch, O, how long ! how anxiously ! 

" I entered the room. She motioned to me. I 
approached and told her who I Mas ; that I was a 
delegate of the Christian Commission. 

*' ' What is it you do, sir ? ' 

" ' I came down here as a minister of the as- 
cended Jesus, to speak to sinners of the Lamb of 
God, that taketh away the sins of the world ; to 
tell the living and the dying soldier that there is 
a holier, a brighter, better home above.' 

" She put her hand in mine in a moment. ' O 
sir,' said she, ' I am so glad to see you ! ' and 
])ointing to the cot, she said, ' Do you see that ? 
do YOU see him, sir ? ' 

"'Yes, I do.' 

*' ' Well, that is Joseph. O, that is my Joseph 



— all I have, sir — all that God ever gave me, 
sir — my comfort, my joy, my support! — and 
lie's dying, sir! — he's dying!' 

" ' O, my dear friend, it may not be so bad as 
you think. He may get better.' 

" ' Ah,' she replied, ' I wish you could comfort 
me; but the doctors, who have been so kind to 
me, tell me that he must die. Why, sir, a bullet 
went crashing through his lung. If you will 
come, I will show you, sir.' 

" ' No, I do not want to see it.' 

"After a moment, she said, as if to herself. 
' It's hard ; isn't it ? You know he's all I've got. 
I know that we must sacrifice for this war, and I 
know that many have given one son, and more ; 
but they had somebody left behind to love them. 
But O ! my Joseph I my Joseph ! O sir, he 
came to me and said, " I must go, mother. My 
friends are going, and I cannot stay behind ! " 
And he put his arms around my neck, and begged 
me so. "I will come back again, mother — O, 
j^es, I will — all safe; and you will be proud of 
me, mother, and glad you let me go." .A.nd I 
said, " Well, go, Joseph, my son ; and Go I bless 
you ! " And ever since that day, I've been asking 
God to shield the widow's son, sir. But, sir. He 
has done what seemed well in His sight, and it is 
all well.' 

" And she paused a moment. I could but wit- 
ness that sacred grief in silence. She then turned 
to me with even deeper grief, as she said : ' And 
that is only half the sacrifice.' Ah, I knew what 
was coming — I feared it. ' O sir, if his country 
only asked his body, I could give it. Yes, I could 
give it ; for I could take his poor, cold body home, 
and lay it to rest with his father ; but O ! ' — and 
with a look of unutterable woe she said it — ' O 
my God ! I cannot give up his soul ! 0, save his 
soul for Christ's sake ! ' 

" Then, turning more composedly to me, she 
continued: 'Joseph is not a Christian, sir. Won't 
you come and speak to him of Jesus ? ' — and she 
brought me to the bedside. I spoke to Joseph. 
He was conscious. I found that he was like hun- 
dreds and thousands of others who had gone up 
from their mothers' knees to war — had been 
tossed about by temptation, and at last had fallen 
into grievous sin. He said, ' Chaplain, I have 
been a wicked fellow. Is there any use in my 
hoping ? ' 

" 2'hen came the grand mission of the cross of 
Jesus. Ah ! I sat in this gallery yesterday, and 
in the gallery of the Senate-house, and I heard 
the men of the nation standing up pleading for 
their country's good ; and I was proud of them, 
and I thought, ' O that I could have such a posi- 
tion!' — when something whispered, 'Hush! thou 
hast a higher and a holier one ! ' and I felt it ; 
and I felt, ' May God give me strength to fill it 
faithfully.' (Amen ! amen !) O, how glorious was 
my commission to that dying man, that seeking 
soul ! To tell him that Jesus was ready to save 
to the uttermost — that God had no pleasure in 
the death of him that dieth. I delivered my mes- 
1 sage. ' Will you pray for me, chaplain ? ' the 
I dying boy asked. We knelt down, I on one side, 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



517 



and his mother on the other, and he stretched out 
his thin hand, and took one hand of mine, and 
one hand of his mother's, and I prayed for him. 
When I had done, he let go my hand, and took 
both his mother's in one hand, and covered them 
with the other, and looked up into her face as the 
tears streamed down, and said, ' Mother, mother 
dear ! ' 

" ' Well, Joseph, what is it ? ' 

" ' O mother, you know you will never take 
me home alive. Noio I think, mother, of what 
you used to tell me long ago, when I was at 
home. Mother, this man says that God loves us 
all, that Jesus is willing to receive us all, that I 
need not be cast out, mother, that I may see you 
again. Mother, I am going to try to love Jesus ; 
I am going to trust him.' 

" I had never seen a tear upon that mother's 
face until Joseph uttered that sentence, and then 
the fountains of her soul seemed to be broken up. 
The tears rolled down her cheeks, as she clasped 
her hands, and said, ' Thank God ! Thank God \ 
Thank God! Now, Joseph, I can give you up. 
You are dying in the cause of your country, Jo- 
seph, and you're going home to Jesus. Thank 
God ! Thank God ! ' And murmuring, ' Thank 
God ! ' as she kissed him, she pillowed her face 
upon his bosom heaving in death. 

" Now, my friends, we owe a man in this Chris- 
tian country two things. We owe our brave sol- 
diers two things. We owe them food for the 
body and sympathy for the heart, and food for 
the soul. We owe them the message of Christ 
and him crucified, that they may be led to live 
godly and sober lives, to the honor and glory of 
God. To my mind, Mr. President, this war hath 
been conducted by the Great Jehovah. He hath 
unsheathed the sword of his might, and he hath 
been stripping off from us our hideous sins that 
have made us deformed and hateful in his sight, 
and he hath stood us upon the platform of the 
great truth of equal liberty to all his creatures ! 
(Long and loud cheers and applause.) In my 
mind he is crying out from the hill-tops, and the 
mighty voice is resounding from one hill-top to 
the other, ' Ye are my people, and they who fol- 
low in my paths, and care for my words, shall 
never be destroyed, for the Word of the Lord 
hath declared it!'" 

Rather Funny. — A company of some thirty 
or forty Union men were trying to make their 
escape to Kentucky, to join the Northern army. 
They came to a creek which they were compelled 
to wade. Not wishing to get their clothes wet, 
they shelled off all to their shirts, and while in this 
condition they were surprised by a company of 
Jeff's cavalry boys, who were in hot pursuit of 
them. Being somewhat frightened, they fled in 
double-quick, making a " straight shirt sail "up hill 
and down hill, leaving their clothing in the pos- 
session of our boys, who, of course, took posses- 
sion and appropriated the same. What became 
of the tories we are unable to say, but rather 
suppose they are in a poor condition for the cold 
weather. 



THE HEART OF THE WAR. 

Peace in the clover-scented air, 

And stars within the dome. 
And underneath, in dim repose, 

A plain New England home. 
Within, a murmur of low tones 

And sighs from hearts oppressed, 
Merging in prayer at last, that brings 

The balm of silent rest. 

I've closed a hard day's work, Marty — 

The evening chores are done ; 
And you are weary with the house. 

And with the little one. 
But he is sleeping sweetly now, 

With all our pretty brood ; 
So come and sit upon my knee. 

And it will do me good. 

Marty ! I must tell you all 
The trouble in my heart. 

And you must do the best you can 

To take and bear your part. 
You've seen the shadow on my face, 

You've felt it day and night ; 
For it has filled our little home, 

And banished all its light. 

1 did not mean it should be so. 
And yet I might have known 

That hearts that live as close as ours 

Can never keep their own. 
But we are fallen on evil times, 

And, do whate'er I may. 
My heart grows sad about the war, 

And sadder every day. 

I think about it when I work, 

And when I try to rest, 
And never more than when your head 

Is pillowed on my breast ; 
For then I see the camp-fires blaze, 

And sleeping men around, 
Who turn their faces towards their homes, 

And dream upon the ground. 

I think about the dear, brave boys. 

My mates in other years, 
Who pine for home and those they love, 

Till I am choked with tears. 
With shouts and cheers they marched away 

On glory's shining track, 
But, ah ! how long, how long they stay ! 

How few of them come back ! 

One sleeps beside the Tennessee, 

And one beside the James, 
And one fought on a gallant ship, 

And perished in its flames. 
And some, struck down by fell disease, 

Are breathing out their life ; 
And others, maimed by cruel wounds, 

Have left the deadly strife. 

Ah, Marty ! Marty ! only think 

Of all the boys have done 
And suffered in this weary war I 

Brave heroes, every one ! 
0, often, often in the night, 

I hear their voices call : 
" Come on and help its ! Is it right 

That ice should bear it allt" 



518 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



And when I kneel and try to pray, 

My thoughts are never free. 
But cling to those who toil and fight 

And die for you and me. 
And when I pray for victory, 

It seems almost a sin 
To fold my hands and ask for what 

I will not help to win. 

O, do not cling to me and crj", 

For it will break my heart ; 
I'm sure you'd rather have me die 

Than not to bear my part. 
You think that some should stay at home 

To care for those away ; 
But still I'm hel^jless to decide 

If I should go or stay. 

For, Marty, all the soldiers love. 

And all are loved again ; 
And I am loved, and love, perhaps. 

No more than other men. 
I cannot tell — I do not know — 

Which way my duty lies, 
Or where the Lord would have me build 

My fire of sacrifice. 

I feel — I know — I am not mean ; 

And though I seem to boast, 
I'm sure that I would give my life 

To those who need it most. 
Perhaps the Spirit will reveal 

That which is fair and right ; 
So, Marty, let us humbly kneel 

And pray to Heaven for light. 



Peace in the clover- scented air, 

And stars within the dome ; 
And, underneath, in dim repose, 

A plain New England home. 
Within, a widow in her weeds, 

From whom all joy is flown, 
AVho kneels among her sleeping babes, 

And weeps and praj's alone ! 



Scouting Adventures. — The following sto- 
ry of hair-breadth 'scapes along the border is 
told by a Federal cavalryman, who was scouting 
ill the winter of 1862 : 

" We had a scout, on Monday last, towards the 
Isle of Wight, and an exciting one it was. Four 
companies of our regiment were detailed to carry 
ballot-boxes to Smitlifield, about twenty-two 
miles south of this place ; and on our return to 
camp we were almost entrapped by a large force 
of rebels, who had crossed the Blackwater on a 
foraging expedition ; but we escaped after a des- 
perate chase of five miles, and a little hard fight- 
ing. Your correspondent, in company with a 
friend, came near taking their Christmas dinners 
in Puchmond ; but, thanks to the pluck of friend 
llogers, and the speed of our noble horses, we 
escaped. We had become hungry from long 
fasting, and, mounting our chargers, we slipped 
out of our camping-grounds to look for a warm 
breakfast, and feed for our jaded horses. After 
riding two or three miles we came to a comforta- 
ble-looking farm-house, and requested the fright- 



ened hostess to provide us with the Virginian's 
favorite breakfast — corn-cake, bacon, and fried 
eggs. In a few minutes we were discussing these 
delicious dishes, forgetting, for the time, that we 
were in the heart of Rebeldom, and only three 
miles from the famous Black\vater, where a large 
force of rebel cavalry was known to be posted 
the day previous. We had finished our break- 
fast, and were quietly Avending our way to the 
stable, where our horses had been taken, when 
our attention was drawn to the fair hostess, who 
appeared to be telegraphing to some unseen ob- 
ject in the pine swamp in the rear of the house. 
Not liking to be inquisitive yet desiring to know 
the meaning of these strange movements, we kept 
our eyes upon the thicket, and we soon had the 
sequel. Two forms were there, each signalling 
in opposite directions ; and soon five rebels stepped 
out from the shaded grove, and came slowly and 
cautiously towards the house. But v,e were not 
idle. With quickened steps we went towards the 
stable, and reached it just in the nick .of time. 
We had barely entered, Avhen our ears Avere sa- 
luted by the crack of a rifle, and a: yell that made 
even our horses shudder. One moment more, 
and we were in the saddle, bounding over fences, 
fallen trees, and deep trenches, while the speed 
of our noble horses was accelerated by an occa- 
sional shot from our pursuers ; but not a hair 
was injured, and M'ith a defiant shout we were 
about to leap the fence that separated us from the 
main road, when two rebels darted from behind 
the fence, and shouted to us : ' Surrender, you 

Yankee sons of ' But Rogers' fight was up, 

and quickly drawing his sabre, he made a dasii 
at the foremost of the two, and wounded him in 
the shoulder, while your correspondent unslung 
his trusty carbine, and as the rebel was in the act 
of discharging his rifle, took deliberate aim, and 
lifted his hat into the air. But we were not yet 
out of danger, for we had barely recovered our 
composure, ere we had a new danger to contend 
with. At least twenty rebels were in pursuit of 
us ; and putting spurs to our horses, we dashed 
away towards our picket at full speed, and reached 
it fifty yards ahead of our pursuers, who, think- 
ing ' discretion the better part of valor,' in their 
turn took to flight, and were soon hidden by the 
pine forest. We slipped into camp as quietly as 
we had left ; but our foaming horses betrayed us, 
and the Colonel demanded an explanation, which 
we Avere compelled to give. He, thinking our po- 
sition rather a dangerous one, ordered an imme- 
diate move towards camp, on a different road 
from that on which we had been riding ; but we 
had not proceeded three miles before an attack 
Avas made on our advance guard, and learning 
from a prisoner we had taken that the rebels Avere 
in large force, the order to retreat Avas given ; but 
we had gone but a short distance, Avhen the whole 
rebel force of cavalry, nine hundred strong, came 
up Avith our rear, and attacked it. But they Avere 
kept at bay until the main body got out of range, 
of their guns, and Ave returned to camp at a much 
more rapid pace than Ave left it, Avith only tAVo 
slightly Avounded ; Avhile the enemy's loss is 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTkS. 



519 



known to be eight killed and as many wo.unded. 
This was the first ' skedaddle ' I ever witnessed, 
and I sincerely hope it may be the last." 



Suddenly waked up. — " Some time ago there 
was published in this paper," says the Puchmond 
Dispatch, " a revolutionary reminiscence, wherein 
allusion was made to the sufferings of General 
Greene's army, in the early struggle for indepen- 
dence, for the want of suitable clothing, which 
in many instances rendered the men unfit for ser- 
vice. It chanced that a copy of the paper fell 
into the hands of a wealthy citizen of Alabama, 
who had previously resisted all the appeals of 
patriotism to his purse. We don't know how it 
happened that he put such a novel interpretation 
upon the revolutionary article, but after he got 
through he exclaimed, 'By Jove ! that will never 
do in the world ! * So he collected together a 
considerable quantity of clothing and other arti- 
cles requisite for the comfort of the soldier, and 
packing the whole securely, directed the box to 
' General Greene, of the Confederate army,' and 
started it off to Richmond. It arrived here in 
due season, and as a matter of course the depot 
agent was puzzled to find ' General Greene ; ' but 
it was finally turned over to the military authori- 
ties, who distributed the contents where they 
were needed. Whether the Alabamian had been 
asleep ever since the revolutionary war or not, we 
don't undertake to say; but we give him credit 
for doing a good thing, even though we could not 
help laughing when we heard the story." 



Incidents of the Battle of Belmont. — 
A correspondent, giving an account of the burial 
of the Union dead upon the field of battle at Bel- 
mont, by a party which returned, after the battle, 
.with a flag of truce, relates the following incidents : 

" Our dead were mostly lying upon their backs, 
and everything taken from their bodies that could 
be of value to the enemy. The countenances of 
the dead were mostly expressive of rage. One 
or two features were expressive of fear. One 
poor fellow, after he was wounded, bethought 
himself to take a smoke. He was found in a 
sitting position, against a tree, dead, with his 
pipe in one hand, his knife in the other, and his 
tobacco on his breast. 

" A young lad about sixteen was found lying 
across a log, just as he fell, grasping his musket 
in both hands. 

" A wounded man, with both legs nearly shot 
off, was found in the woods, singing the Star- 
spangled Banner ; but for this circumstance the 
surgeons say they would not have discovered him. 

" A Captain of one of the regiments was look- 
ing at the prisoners captured at Belmont, and 
recognized one as his own brother." 



Ax Eloquent Peroration. — Governor John 
A. Andrew, in his address to the Legislature of 
Massachusetts, Jan. 8, 1864, concluded as follows : 



" The heart swells with unwonted emotion when 
we remember our sons and brothers, whose con- 
stant valor has sustained on the field, during 
nearly three years of war, the cause of our coun- 
try, of civilization, and liberty. Our volunteers 
have represented Massachusetts, during the year 
just ended, on almost every field, and in every 
department of the army where our flag has 
been unfurled. At Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, 
Vicksburg, Port Hudson, and Fort Wagner; at 
Chickamauga, Knoxville, and Chattanooga, under 
Hooker, and Meade, and Banks, and Gillmore, 
and Rosecrans, and Burnside, and Grant; in 
every scene of danger and of duty, — along the 
Atlantic, and the Gulf;- on the Tennessee, the 
Cumberland, the Mississippi, and the Rio Grande, 
under Du Pont, and Dahlgren, and Foote, and 
Farragut, and Porter, — the sons of Massachu- 
setts have borne their part, and paid the debt of 
patriotism and valor. Ubiquitous as the stock 
they descend from, national in their opinions, and 
universal in their sympathies, they have fought, 
shoulder to shoulder, Avith men of all sections and 
of every extraction. On the ocean, on the rivers, 
on the land, on the heights where they thundered 
down from the clouds of Lookout Mountain the 
defiance of the skies, they have graven with theii 
swords a record imperishable. 

"The Muse herself demands the lapse of silent 
years to soften, by the influence of time, her too 
keen and poignant realization of the scenes of 
war — the pathos, the heroism, the fierce joy, the 
grief of battle. But dui'ing ages to come she 
will brood over their memory, and into the hearts 
of her consecrated priests will breathe the inspi- 
rations of lofty and undying beauty, sublimity 
and truth, in all the glowing forms of speech, of 
literature, and plastic art. By the homely tra- 
ditions of the fireside, by the head-stones in the 
churchyard consecrated to those whose forms re- 
pose far off" in rude graves by the Rappahannock 
or sleep beneath the sea, embalmed in the memo- 
ries of succeeding generations of parents and chil- 
dren, the heroic clead Avill live on in immortal 
youth. By their names, their character, theii 
service, their fate, their glory, they cannot fail : 

' They never fail who die 
In a great cause. The block may soak their gore ; 
Their heads may sodden in the sun, their limbs 
Be strung to city gates and castle walls ; 
But still their spirit walks abroad. Tlwugh years 
Elapse, and others share as dark a doom, 
They but augment the deep and sweeping thoughts 
Which overpower all others, and conduct 
The world at last to freedom.' 

" Tlie edict of Nantes, maintaining the religious 
liberty of the Huguenots, gave lustre to the fame 
of Henry the Great, whose name will gild the 
pages of philosophic history after mankind may 
have forgotten the martial prowess and the_ white 
plume of Navarre. The great proclamation of 
liberty will lift the ruler who uttered it, our na- 
tion and our age, above all vulgar destiny. 

" The bell which rang out the Declaration of In- 
dependence has found at last a voice articulate, to 
' proclaim liberty throughout all the land and to 



520 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



all the inhabitants thereof.' It has been heard 
across oceans, and has modified the sentiments 
of cabinets and kings. The people of the old 
world have heard it, and their hearts stop to 
catch fhe last whisper of its echoes. The poor 
slave has heard it; and with bomiding joy, tem- 
pered by the mystery of religion, he worships and 
adores. The waiting continent has heard it, and 
already foresees the fulfilled prophecy, when she 
will sit ' redeemed, regenerated, and clisinthralled 
by the genius of universal emancipation.' " 



THE SONG OF THE SOUTH. 

BY CAPTAIN E. JI. ANDERSON.* 

Another star arisen, another flag unfurled ; 
Another name inscribed among the nations of the 

world ; 
Another mighty struggle 'gainst a tyrant's fell decree, 
And again a burdened people have uprisen, and 

are free. 

The spirit of the fathers in the children liveth 

yet, — 
Liveth still the olden blood that hath dimmed the 

bayonet ; 
And the fathers fought for freedom, and the sons 

for freedom fight ; 
Their God Avas with their fathers, and is still the 

God of right. 

Behold, the skies are darkened ! a gloomy cloud 
hath lowered ! 

Shall it break in happy peacefulness, or spread its 
rage abroad ? 

Shall we have the smiles of friendship, or feel the 
fierce, foul blow, 

And bare the red right hand of Avar to meet an in- 
sulting foe ? 

In peacefulness we wish to live, but not in slavish 

fear ; 
In peacefulness we dare not die, dishonored on our 

bier ; 
To our allies of the Northern land we offer heart 

and hand ; 
But if they scorn our friendship, then the banner 

and the brand. 

Honor to the new-born nation ! honor to the brave ! 

A country freed from thraldom, or a soldier's hon- 
ored grave ! 

Every rock shall be a tombstone, every rivulet run 
red. 

And the invader, should he conquer, find the con- 
quered in the dead. 

But victorj' shall follow where the sons of freedom 

go. 
And the signal for the onset be the death-knell of 

the foe ; 
And hallowed be the sacred spot where they have 

bravely met. 
And the star that rises yonder shall never, never set. 

* Captain R. M. Anderson, of Louisville, Kentucky, 
offered his whole command, consisting of ninety rifles, 
to the Governor of South Carolina, stipulating that 
they would bear their own expenses in going to 
Charleston and returning to Kentucky. — Southern 
Literary Messenger. 



The Rebels over the Boeder. — On the 
16th of June, 1863, it was first known in Cham- 
bersburg. Pa., that Milroy had been defeated at 
Winchester, and that the rebel General E,hoads 
was advancing across the Potomac, and approach- 
ing the Pennsylvania line. 

On the morning of Monday, June 17, the 
flood of rumors from the Potomac fully con- 
firmed the advance of the rebels ; and the citi- 
zens of Chambersburg and vicinity, feeling unable 
to resist the rebel columns, commenced to make 
prompt preparation for the movement of stealable 
property. Nearly every horse, good, bad, and in- 
different, was started for the mountains as early 
on Monday as possible, and the negroes dark- 
ened the different roads northward for hours, 
loaded Avith household effects, sable babies, &c., 
and horses and wagons and cattle croAvded every 
avenue to places of safety. About nine o'clock 
in the morning, the advance of Milroy's I'etreat- 
ing Avagon train dashed into town, attended by a 
few cavalry, and several afl'righted Avagon-mas- 
ters, all of Avhom declared that the rebels Avere in 
hot pursuit ; that a large portion of the train was 
captured, and that the enemy Avas about to enter 
Chambersburg. This startling information, com- 
ing from men in uniform, who had fought val- 
iantly until the enemy had got nearly within sight 
of them, naturally gave a fresh impetus to the 
citi«ens, and the skedaddle commenced in magnifi- 
cent earnestness and exquisite confusion. Men, 
women, and children, Avho seemed to think the 
rebels so many cannibals, rushed out on the turn- 
pike, and generally kept on the leading thorough- 
fares, as if they Avere determined to be captured, 
if the rebels Avere anywhere Avithin range and 
Avanted them. The motley cavalcade rushed 
along for a few hours, Avhen it seems to have oc- 
curred to some one to inquire Avhether the rebels 
Avere not some distance in the rear ; and a fcAv 
moments of reflection and dispassionate inquii'y 
satisfied the people that the enemy could not be 
upon them for several hours at least. The rail- 
road men Avere prompt and systematic in their 
efforts to prepare for anotlier fire ; and by noon 
all the portable property of the company Avas 
safely under control, to be hauled and moved at 
pleasure. The more thoughtful portion of the 
people, who felt it a duty to keep out of rebel 
hands, remained until the cutting of telegraph 
communication south, and the rejjorts of reliable 
scouts rendered it advisable to give Avay to the 
guerrilla army of plunderers. 

Greencastle, being but five miles north of the 
Maryland line, and in the dnect route of the reb- 
els, Avas naturally enough in the highest state of 
excitement on Sunday night and Monday morning. 
Exaggerated rumors had of course flooded them, 
and every half hour a stampede Avas made before 
the imagined rebel columns. Hon. John Rowe 
at last determined to reconnoitre; and he mounted 
a horse, and started out toAvards HagerstoAvn. 
A little distance beyond, he Avas captured by a 
squad of rebels, and held until tlie rebel cavah-y 
leader, General Jenkins, came up. Jenkins asked 
Rowe his name, and was answered correctly. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



521 



He subsequently asked Mr. , who was with 

Rowe, what Rom'c's name was, and upon being 
told that the name had been given to him cor- 
rectly, he insisted that the Major had been an 

ofHcer in the United States service. Mr. 

assured Jenkins that the Major had never been 
iu the service, and he was satisfied. (Jenkins 
had evidently confounded Major Rowe with his 
son, the gallant Lieutenant-Colonel Rowe, of the 
One Hundred and Twenty-sixth.) Jenkins then 

asked Mr. whom he had voted for at the 

last Presidential election. He answered that he 
had voted for Lincoln. To which Jenkins gave 
the following chaste and classic reply — " Get off 
that horse, you d — d Abolitionist." The horse 
was surrendered, and the same question was pro- 
pounded to Major Rowe, who answered that he 
had voted for Douglas, and had scratched every 
Breckinridge man off his ticket. Jenkins an- 
swered — "You can ride your horse as long as 
you like — I voted for Douglas myself." He 
then demanded to know what forces were in 
Greencastle, and what fortifications. Major Rowe 
told him that the town was defenceless ; but Jen- 
kins seemed to be cautious lest he might be 
caught in a trap. He advanced cautiously, re- 
connoitred all suspicious buildings, and finally, 
being fully satisfied that there was not a gun in 
position, and not a man under arms, he resolved 
upon capturing the town by a brilliant charge of 
cavalry. He accordingly divided his forces into 
two columns, charged upon the vacated streets, 
and reached the centre of the town without the 
loss of a man ! 

The rebels were evidently under the impression 
that forces would be thrown in their way at an 
early hour, and they pushed forward for Cham- 
bersburg. About eleven o'clock, on Monday 
night, they arrived at the southern end of the 
town, and the same intensely strategic move- 
ments exhibited at Gi'eencastle were displayed 
here. Several Avere thrown forward cautiously 
to reconnoitre, and a few of the Union boys cap- 
tured them and took their horses. This taste of 
war whetted the appetite of Jenkins, and he re- 
solved to capture the town by a briUiant dash, 
without so much as a demand for surrender. He 
divided his forces into several columns — about 
two hundred in advance as a forlorn hope, to 
whom was assigned the desperate task of char- 
ging upon the empty and undefended streets, 
store-boxes, mortar-beds, <S:c., of the ancient vil- 
lage of Chambersburg. 

Every precaution that strategy could invent 
was taken to prevent failure. Men were detailed 
to ride along the columns before the charge was 
made, bawling out as loudly as possible to plant 
artillery at different points, although the redoubt- 
able Jenkins had not so much as a swivel in his 
army. The women and children having been suf- 
ficiently frightened by the threatened booming of 
artillery, and all things being in readiness, the 
forlorn" hope advanced, and the most desperate 
charge ever known in the history of war — in 
Chambersburg at least — was made. Down the 
street came the iron clatter of hoofs like the tem- 



pest with a thousand thtmderbolts ; but t'he great 
planhad failed in one particular, and the column 
recoiled before it reached the Diamond. A mor- 
tar-bed_ on the street, in front of Mr. White's 
new building, had not been observed in the re- 
connoitring of the town, nor had wilKng sjmpa- 
thizers advised him of it. His force was hurled 
against it ; down went some men, and bang went 
a gun. To strike a mortar-bed and have a gun 
fired at the same time, was more than the strategy 
of Jenkins had bargained for ; and the charge 
was broken and fell back. A few moments of 
fearful suspense, and the mortar-bed was carefully 
reconnoitred, and the musket report was found to 
be an accidental discharge of a gun in the hands 
of one of his own men who had fallen. With 
a boldness and dash worthy of Jenkins, it was 
resolved to renew the attack without even the 
formality of a council of war. Again the steeds 
of war thundered down the street, and there be- 
ing nothing in the way, overcame all opposition, 
and the borough of Chambersburg was under the 
rule of Jenkins. Having Avon it by the most de- 
termined and brilliant jn'owess, Jenkins resolved 
that he would be magnanimous, and would allow 
nothing to be taken from the people — excepting 
such articles as he and his men wanted. 

Jenkins had doubtless read the papers in his 
day, and knew that there were green fields in the 
" Green Spot ; " and what is rather remarkable, 
at midnight he could start for a forty-acre clover 
patch belonging to the editor of the Repository 
without so much as stopping to ask where the 
gate might be found. Not even a halt was called 
to find it ; but the march was continued until the 
gate was reached, when the order, " File right " 
was given, and Jenkins was in clover. Happy fel- 
low, thus to find luxuriant and extensive clover as 
if by instinct ! By way of giving the devil his 
due, it must be said that, although there were 
over sixty acres of wheat, and eighty acres of 
corn and oats, in the same field, he protected it 
most carefully, and picketed his horses so that it 
could not be injured. And equal care was taken 
of all other property about the ]3lace, excepting 
half a dozen of the fattest Cotswold sheep, which 
were necessary, it seems, to furnish chops, &c,, 
for his men. No fences were wantonly destroyed ; 
poultry was not disturbed, nor did he compli- 
ment the blooded cattle so much as to test the 
quality of their steak and roasts. Some of his 
men cast a wistful eye upon the glistening trout 
in the spring ; but they were protected by volun- 
tary order, and save a few quarts of delicious 
strawberries gathered with every care, after first 
asking permission, nothing in the gardens or 
about the grounds was taken. 

However earnest an enemy Jenkins may be, he 
don't seem to keep spite, but is capable of being_ 
very jolly and sociable when he is treated hospi-' 
tably. For prudential reasons, the editor was not 
at home to do the honors at his own table ; but 
Jenkins was not particular, nor was his appetite 
impaired thereby. He called upon the ladies of 
the house, shared their hospitality, behaved in all 
respects like a gentleman, and expressed very 



522 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



earnest regrets that he had not been able to make 
the personal acquaintance of the editor. We beg 
to say that v,e reciprocate the wish of the Gen- 
eral, and shall be glad to make his acquaintance 
personally — " when this cruel war is over." Col- 
onel French and Surgeon Bee spent much of their 
time with Mrs. McClure, and the former showed 
his appreciation of her hospitality by taking her 
revolver from her when he left. An order having 
been made for the citizens to surrender all the 
guns ar d pistols they had, Colonel French took 
the pistol of his hostess. 

Horses seemed to be considered contraband of 
war, and were taken without the pretence of com- 
pensation : but other articles wei'e deemed legiti- 
mate subjects of commerce even between ene- 
mies, and they were generally paid for after a 
fashion. True, the system of Jenkins would be 
considered a little informal in business circles ; 
but it's his way, and the people agreed to it, per- 
haps to some extent because of the novelty, but 
mainly because of the necessity of the thing. But 
Jenkins was liberal — eminently liberal. He 
didn't stop to higgle about a few odd pennies in 
making a bargain. For instance, he took the 
drugs of Messrs. Miller, Spangler, Nixon, and 
Heyser, and told them to make out a bill, or, if 
they could not do that, to guess at the amount, 
and the bills were paid. Doubtless merchants 
and druggists would have preferred " green- 
backs " to Confederate scrip that is never payable, 
and is worth just its Aveiglit in old paper ; but 
Jenkins hadn't " greenbacks," and he had con- 
federate scrip, and such as he had he gave unto 
them. Thus he dealt laj-gely. To avoid the 
jealousies growing out of rivalry in business, he 
patronized all the merchants, and bought pretty 
much everything he could conveniently use and 
carry. Some people, with the antiquated ideas 
of business, might call it stealing, to take goods 
and pay for them in bogus money ; but Jenkins 
calls it business, and for the time being what Jen- 
kins called business, was business. In this way 
he robbed all the stores, drug shops, &c., more 
or less, and supplied himself with many articles 
of great value. 

Jenkins, like most doctors, don't seem to have 
relished his own prescriptions. Several horses 
had been captured by some of the Union boys, 
and notice was given by the General commanding 
that they must be surrendered or the town would 
be destroyed. The city fathers, commonly known 
as the town council, were appealed to in order to 
avert the impending fate threatened. One of 
the horses, and some of the equipments, were 
found and returned, but there was still a balance 
in favor of Jenkins. It was finally adjusted by 
the council appropriating the sum of nine hun- 
dred dollars to pay the claim. Doubtless Jen- 
kins hoped for nine hundred dollars in " green- 
backs," but he had flooded the town with Confed- 
erate scrip, pronouncing it better than United 
States currency, and tlie council evidently be- 
lieved him, and desiring to be accommodating with 
a conqueror, decided to favor him by the pay- 
ment of his bill in Confederate scrip. It was so 



done, and Jenkins got just nine hundred dollars 
worth of nothing for tis trouble. He took it, 
however, without a murmur, and doubtless con- 
sidered it a clever joke. 

Sore was the disappointment of Jenkins at the 
general exodus of horses. It limited his booty 
immensely. Fully five hundred had been taken 
from Chambersburg and vicinity to the moun- 
tains, and Jenkins' j^lunder was thus made just 
so much less. But he determined to make up 
for it by stealing all the arms in the tovtn. He 
therefore issued an order requiring the citizens to 
bring him all the arms they had, public, or pri- 
vate, within two hours ; and search and terrible 
vengeance were threatened in case of disobe- 
dience. Marty of the citizens complied with the 
order, and a committee was appointed to take a 
list of the persons pi-esenting arms. Of course 
very many did not comply ; but enough did so to 
avoid a general search, and probable sacking of 
the town. The arms were assorted — the indif- 
ferent destroyed, and the good taken along. 

On the following day, a few of Milroy's cavalry, 
escaping from Martinsburg, were seen by the re- 
doubtable Jenkins hovering in his front. Al- 
though but thirteen in number, and without the 
least appetite for a battle with his two thousand 
men, he took on a fright of huge proportions, and 
prepared to sell his command as dearly as possi- 
ble. Like a prudent general, however, he pro- 
vided fully for his retreat. The shrill blast of the 
bugle brought his men to arms with the utmost 
possible alacrity : his pickets were called in to 
swell the ranks ; the horses and baggage, con- 
sisting principally of stolen goods, were sent to 
the rear, south of the town ; the surgeon took 
forcible possession of aU the buildings, houses, 
barns, sheds, &c., to be used as hospitals, and 
especially requested that their wounded should be 
humanely treated in case of their sudden retreat 
without being able to take them along. 

The hero of two brilliant cavalry charges upon 
undefended towns was agitated beyond endur- 
ance at the prospect of a battle ; and instead of 
charging upon a little squad of men, who were 
me-rely observing the course of his robberies, he 
stood trembling in battle array to receive the 
shock. No foe was nearer than the State capital, 
over fifty miles distant, and there the same scene 
was being presented. Jenkins in Chambersburg, 
and the militia at Harrisburg, were each momen- 
tarily expecting to be cut to pieces by the other. 
But these armies, alike terrible in their heroism, 
were spared the deadly clash of arms, inasmuch 
as even the most improved ordnance is not 
deemed fatal at a range of fifty miles. Both 
armies, as the usual reports go, " having accom- 
plished their purpose, retired in good order." 

As a rule, private houses Avere not sacked by 
Jenkins' forces ; but there were some exceptions. 
The residences of Messrs. Dengler and Gipe, near 
Chambersburg, were both entered (the families 
being absent), and plundered of clothing, kettles, 
and other articles. Bureaus and cupboards were 
all emptied of their contents, and such articles as 
they wanted were taken. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



523 



A very few of the citizens exhibited the spirit 
of the genuine " sympathizers ; " but Jenkins and 
his men in no instance treated them even with 
courtesy. That they made use of some such 
creatures to obtain information, cannot be doubt- 
ed ; but they spurned all attempts to claim their 
respect because of professed sympathy with their 
cause. To one who desked to make fair weather 
with Jenkins, by ardent professions of sympathy 
■with the South, he answered : " Well, if you be- 
lieve we are right, take your gun and join our 
ranks ! " It is needless to say that the cowardly 
traitor did not obey. To another he said — " If 
we had such men as you in the South we would 
hang them ! " They say, on all occasions, that 
there are but two modes of peace; — disunion or 
subjugation, — and they stoutly deny that the lat- 
ter is possible. 

General Jenkins was fully informed as to the 
nrovements of one of the prominent citizens of 
Chambersburg, and described the horse he rode, 
and added that there were people in Chambers- 
burg sufficiently cowardly and treacherous to 
give such information of their neighbors. When 
it was suggested that such people should be sent 
within the rebel lines, he insisted that the South 
should not be made a Botany Bay for Northern 
scoundrels. 

Quite a number of negroes, free and slave, — 
men, women, and childi'en, — were captured by 
Jenkins, and started South to be sold into bon- 
dage. Many escaped in various ways, and the 
people of Greencastle captured the guard of one 
negro train, and discharged the negroes ; but, 
perhaps, full fifty were got off to slavery. One 
negro effected his escape by shooting and seriously 
wounding his rebel guard. He forced the gun 
from the rebel and fired, wounding him in the 
head, and then skedaddled. Some of the men 
were bound with ropes, and the children were 
mounted in front or behind the rebels on their 
horses. By great exertions of several citizens, 
some of the negroes were discharged. 

The southern border of the county was literally 
plundered of everything in the stock line, except- 
ing such as could be secreted. But it was diffi- 
cult to secrete stock, as the rebels spent a full 
week in the county, and leisurely hunted out 
horses and cattle without molestation. Among 
many unfortunate, perhaps the greatest sufferer 
was Ex-Sheriff Taylor, from whom the rebels cap- 
tured a drove of fat cattle in Fulton County. 

The route of Jenkins was through the most 
densely jjopulated and wealthiest portion of the 
county. From this point he fell back to Green- 
castle and south of it ; thence he proceeded to 
Mercersburg, from where a detachment crossed 
the Cove Mountain to McConnellsburg, and struck 
down the valley from there. The main body, 
however, was divided into plundering parties, and 
scoured the whole southern portion of the county, 
spending several days in and about Greencastle, 
and Waynesboro', and giving Welsh Run a pretty 
intimate visitation. 

The rebels seemed omnipresent, according to 
reports. They m ere, on several occasions, after 



their departure, just about to reenter, and the 
panic-stricken made a corresponding exit at the 
other side. On Thursday, the 18th, they Avere 
reported within two miles in large force, and a 
general skedaddle took place ; and again on Sun- 
day, the 21st, they were reported coming with 
reenforcements. A few ran off, but most of the 
people, knowing that there was a military force to 
fall back upon between Chambersburg and Scot- 
land, shouldered their guns and fell into ranks to 
give battle. Prominent among these was Rev. 
Mr. Niccolls, whose people missed a sermon in 
his determination to pop a few rebels. 

One of the first acts done by the rebels was to 
march down to the railroad bridge at Scotland, 
and burn it. The warehouse of Mr. Criswell, and 
several cars, were spared upon satisfactory assur- 
ance that they were private property. As soon 
as the rebels fell back, the Railroad Company 
commenced to rebuild the bridge, and on Sunday 
evening, the 21st, trains passed over it again. 
The only other instance of fh'ing property was the 
warehouse of Oaks & Linn. It was fired just as 
they left the town ; but the citizens extinguished 
it. 

General Jenkins received his education at 
Jefferson College, in Pennsylvania, in the same 
class with J. McDowell Sharpe, Esq., and gave 
promise of future usefulness and greatness. His 
downward career commenced when, in an evil hour, 
he became a member of Congress from Western 
Virginia, and from thence may be dated his de- 
cline and fall. From Congress he naturally 
enough turned fire-eater, secessionist, and guer- 
rilla. He is of medium size, has a flat but good 
head, light brown hair, blue eyes, immense flow- 
ing beard of a sandy hue, and rather a pleasant 
face. He professes to cherish the utmost regard 
for the humanity of war,and seemed sensitive onthe 
subject of his reputation as a humane military lead- 
er. He pointed to the raids of Union troops, who 
left, in many instances, wide-spread and total deso- 
lation on their tracks, and expressed the hope that 
henceforth the Union raids would do no more 
damage to citizens than he does. He takes 
horses, cattle, and articles necessary for the army, 
as both sides treat them as contraband of war, 
and help themselves on every occasion offered. 
He pointed with bitter triumph at the raid of 
Montgomery in South Carolina, and at the de- 
struction of' Jacksonville, Fla., and Jackson, Mis- 
sissippi, by the national troops, and reminded 
the people that his actions were in accordance 
with civilized warfare, while those referred to 
of the Union troops were barbarous. 

On Sunday, 28th, the Eighth New York militia 
arrived at Chambersburg, having marched from 
Shippensburg, and they were received with the 
wildest enthusiasm. Considering that they were 
onthe border in advance of any Pennsylvania 
regiments, they merit, as they will receive, the 
lasting gratitude of every man in the border. 

The old men of the town organized a company, 
headed by Hon. George Chambers, for the de- 
fence of the town. None were admitted under 
forty-five. On >Ionday every man capable of 



524 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



bearing arms had his gun, and was in some or- 
ganization to resist the rebels. 

The ladies of Chambersburg gave the rebels 
rather a jolly time while they were there. They 
did not imitate the wives and daughters of the 
chivalry by spitting in the faces of soldiers, poi- 
soning their meat and drink, flaunting flags in 
their faces, and unsexing themselves generally ; 
but they did give them rather an unwelcome taste 
of their heroism and strategy. One lady took 
her chickens from the rebels after they had killed 
them, and dined sumptuously at home at least 
one day under rebel rule. Another arrested Dr. 
Todd in his insolence by informing him, in rather 
an earnest manner, that further searches in her 
house would result in the splitting of his head 
with her hatchet. The valiant doctor subsided. 
Another amused herself by running rebel desert- 
ers out of the lines dressed in hoops and calico : 
and generally the ladies resented the arrogance 
of the rebel hosts with such spirit and determi- 
nation as to astound them. In many instances 
the ladies prevented the boldest thieving by res- 
olutely resisting, and shaming the rebels out of 
their purpose. Those who were so fortunate as 
to return to Virginia must carry with them the 
liveliest appreciation of the heroism and intelli- 
gence of Pennsylvania ladies. 

Some of the border State, and most of the 
more Southern rebels, had rather peculiar concep- 
tions of the Pennsylvania Dutch. Quite a num- 
ber Avere astonished to find the people speaking 
English, as they supposed that the prevalent lan- 
guage was the German. At first, when they at- 
tempted derisive remarks, they would imitate the 
broken English of the Germans ; and judging 
from Ewell's demand for twenty-five barrels of 
sourkrout at a season when it is unknown in any 
country, even the commanding officers must have 
considered the Chambersburg people as profound- 
ly Dutch. It would require an intensely Dutch 
community to supply sourkrout in July. The 
farm buildings, and especially the large and fine 
barns all through the valley, at once excited their 
astonishment and admiration. Quite a number 
of ofiicers visited the barn of the editor as a 
matter of curiosity, although there are many in 
the valley much larger and quite as well finished. 
The private soldiers generally concluded that it 
must be the church of some very large denomi- 
nation in this community ; and the out-buildings 
about it, such as chicken-house, hog-pen, carriage- 
house, &c., were generally supposed to be ser- 
vants' houses, and very neat ones ! 

Clean as General Lee has kept his record by 
his humane orders, his army did the most gigan- 
tic and systematic stealing. They stole every- 
thing they could possibly use, or hope to use ; 
and when their little remnant of shame compelled 
them to oft'er some apology for it, they invariably 
answered that the Union troops had done so, and 
much more, in their country. Every rebel who 
wanted to steal a chicken, or a hat, or a watch, 
insisted that he was a most generous and humane 
conqueror — that his home had been burned 
down over the heads of his family by the Yan- 



kees, while he generously spared their homes 
from the torch. 

Never was an army more confident and jubi- 
lant than were the rebels while in Chambersburg, 
and the oflScers evidently appreciated the neces- 
sity of keeping their hopes up to the highest 
point. The Richmond papers were received al- 
most daily during their stay, and the men were 
inspired by the sensation lies published represent- 
ing rebel success in almost every portion of the 
South ; and the universal demand made by the 
rebel press for a general devastation of the North 
induced the soldiers to believe that as soon as 
their lodgment was made safe, they Avould be at 
liberty to occupy or sack houses at pleasure. 
One edition of the Richmond papers received at 
Chambersburg announced that General Johnson 
had defeated General Grant and raised the siege 
of Vicksburg. It was read to the army when on 
parade, and they cheered themselves hoarse over 
their imaginary triumph. They were inspired 
by every conceivable falsehood. Not a rebel in 
the ranks doubted that Lee had from a hundred 
and twenty-five thousand to a hundi'ed and fifty 
thousand men, while he had not over eighty 
thousand, all told ; and they were all firmly con- 
vinced that they had eluded General Meade's 
army, and that it was in search of them in the 
valley of Shenandoah, while nothing but the mi- 
litia stood between them and Harrisburg, Balti- 
more, and Washington. Their rather sudden re- 
treat from York and Carlisle threw a shadow of 
doubt over their high expectations, and their con- 
fidence was not strengthened any by the defiant 
and jubilant tone of the Pennsylvania people, 
who confronted them at every step Avith the as- 
surance that they were marching to defeat, and 
many to death. 

The only private property destroyed by the 
order of an officer in the Cumberland Valley was 
the extensive iron works of Hon. Thaddeus Ste- 
vens, ten miles east of Chambersburg. They 
consisted of a large charcoal furnace, forge, roll- 
ing-mill, coal-house, shops, &c. On Tuesday, 
the 23d, a portion of Jenkins' cavalry came upon 
the works by an unfrequented mountain road 
from Hughes' works, and demanded the horses, 
and especially the two riding horses, which they 
described. They threatened that they would de- 
stroy the buildings if the horses were not given 
up. Mr. Sweene)', Avho had charge of the works, 
agreed to deliver up the riding horses if the prop- 
erty should be protected. This they agreed to ; 
but on going for the riding horses, they met the 
teamsters, and compelled them to produce all the 
horses and mules, nearly forty in all, with gears, 
harness, &c. They had evidently been minutely 
informed of the whereabouts of Mr. Stevens' 
horses, as they described them, and knew exactly 
where to go after them. The day after, General 
Early rode up to the works, accompanied by his 
staff', and avowed his intention to destroy them. 
Mr. SAveeney reminded him that he Avould inflict 
a much more serious injury upon some hundred 
poor laborers Avho worked there than upon Mr. 
Stevens. General Early replied that Mr. Stevens 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



525 



■was " an enemy of the South, in favor of confis- 
cating their property, and arming their negroes, 
and the property must be destroyed." He then 
placed a guard around it, and gave special in- 
structions that it should not be destroyed until 
he gave the order. He seemed exceedingly 
fearKil that he might miss the delightful spec- 
tacle of Mr. Stevens' works in flames. He 
then returned to Greenwood, where he had his 
headquarters, but returned the next day, and per- 
sonally detailed Colonel French, of Jenkins' guer- 
rillas, with his command, to illustrate Southern 
chivalry and humanity by applying the torch to 
the private property of Mr. Stevens because he 
was guUty of the crime of defending the Repub- 
lic. The work of destruction was well done, and 
soon all the works were in ashes. The houses oc- 
cupied by families were not fired. Some three 
thousand dollars worth of charcoal was destroyed, 
seven thousand pounds of bacon stolen, leaving 
the families of the laborers without food, in spite 
of the earnest representations made by Mr. Swee- 
ney as to their necessitous condition. 

When the rebel horde first entered the State, 
flushed with the hope of easy victories on the 
field, and boundless plunder in Harrisburg, Phil- 
adelphia, Baltimore, and Washington, they would 
yell insolently at every man or woman they met : 
•' Well, Yank, how far to Harrisburg ? " " How 
far to Baltimore ? " "What's the charge at the 
Continental ? " " How do you like our return to 
the Union ? " " Which is the way to Washing- 
ton ? " " How do you like Lincoln's Devils ? " 
These and similar inquiries were made with a de- 
gree of arrogance and confidence that clearly be- 
tokened their expectations to see, as conquerors, 
all the cities named during their stay. When, 
however, their shattered and bleeding columns 
commenced their retreat on Saturday, after bat- 
tle, there was but one inquiry made, alike by ofii- 
cers and men : ■*' Hoio far to the Potomac ? " 
" Hoio far to the Potomac^" And thus their 
broken, decimated ranks straggled along the 
mountain passes, grasping for the last hope left 
them — the Potomac ! 

The only engagement, beyond the skirmishing 
of scouts in the Cumberland Valley, was at Car- 
lisle. General Lee had recalled his troops from 
York, Carlisle, and other points north, to join 
him at Gettysburg. General Fitzhugh Lee, with 
his division of cavalry, had crossed from Hano- 
ver Station to join General Rhodes at Carlisle; 
but when he reached that point, he found General 
Smith in the town Avith several thousand Union 
troops. Lee was evidently disconcerted ; and in 
order to lead General Smith to suppose that he 
had purposely advanced to engage him, and thus 
enable him to make his escape should Smith's 
force be very large, he at once demanded an im- 
mediate surrender of the town. This General 
Smith emphatically refused ; and when a second 
demand for his surrender was sent him, he noti- 
fied Lee that he would receive no more such com- 
munications from him. Twenty minutes were 
generously allowed by the son of the rebel Com- 
mander-in-Chief for women and children to get 



out of the town. Of course but few got away, 
as it Avas after night, and the chivaLric Lee opened 
his guns upon the town. He threw nearly two 
hundred shells, most of which did not explode, 
and but little damage was done. Several houses 
were penetrated, but none of the citizens were in- 
jured. Lee then retreated to witness his father's 
Waterloo at Gettysburg. — Franklin Repository. 



THE SONG OF THE CAMPS. 

BY J. R. M. 

Far away in the piny woods, 

Where the dews fall heavy and damp, 

A soldier sat by the smouldering fire, 
And sang the song of the camp. 

" It is not to be weary and worn. 

It is not to feel hunger and thirst, 
It is not the forced march, nor the terrible fight, 

That seems to the soldier the worst ; 

" But to sit through the comfortless hours, — 
The lonely, dull hours that will come, — 

With his head in his hands, and his eyes on the fire, 
And his thoughts on visions of home ; 

" To wonder how fares it with those 
Who mingled so late with his life, — 

Is it well with ray little children three ? 
Is it well with my sickly wife ? 

" This night-air is chill, to be sure. 

But logs lie in plenty around ; 
How is it with them where wood is so dear, 

And the cash for it hard to be found ? 

" O, that north air cuts bitterly keen. 
And the ground is hard as a stone ; 

It would comfort me just to know that they sit 
By a tire as warm as my own. 

" And have they enough to eat ? 

May lads are growing boys. 
And my girl is a little tender thing. 

With her mother's smile and voice, 

" My wife she should have her tea, 

Or maybe a sup of beer ; 
It went to my heart to look on her face, 

So white, with a smile and a tear. 

" Her form it is weak and thin, — 

She would gladly work if she could, — 

But how can a woman have daily strength 
Who wants for daily food ? 

" My oldest boy he can cut wood. 

And Johnny can carry it in ; 
But then, how frozen their feet must be 

If their shoes are worn and thin ! 

" I hope they don't cry with the cold — 
Are there tears in my little girl's eyes ? 

O God ! say i^eace ! to these choking fears, 
These fears in my heart that rise. 

«' Many rich folks are round them, I know, 
And their hearts are not hard nor cold ; 

They would give to my wife if they only knew, 
And my little one three years old. 



526 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



" They would go, like God's angels fair, 

And enter the lowly door, 
And make the sorrowful glad with gifts 

From their abundant store. 

" In this blessed Christmas-time, 

When the great gift came to men, 
They would show, by their gentle and generous 

deeds, 
How He cometh in hearts again. 

" And my sickly, patient wife, 

And my little children three. 
Would be kindly warmed and fed and clothed 

As part of Christ's family. 

" Well, I leave it all with God, 

For my sight is short and dim ; 
He cares for the falling sparrow ; 

My dear ones are safe with Him." 

So the soldier watched through the night, 
Through the dew-fall, heavy and damp ; 

And as he sat by the smouldering fire. 
He sang the song of the camp. 



How "Pat" entrapped an Officer. — The 
Confederate pickets had stationed themselves on 
the road from AVarrington, Virginia, through New 
Baltimore, a mile or two beyond the latter point. 
Seeing a mounted soldier approaching from be- 
low, they supposed him to be an enemy, and sent 
forward one of their number, an Irish boy, newly 
recruited, to blarney him within reach. Patrick 
sauntered along on his mission, and when met by 
the Federal soldier was asked to what service he 
belonged. " And it's Mister Linkin, sure," an- 
swered Pat, " for it's a good Union boy I am." 
The other responded that he was the same. 
" Come wid me, then," says Pat, " and PU take ye 
to the camp and show you to the boys, and ye 
shall have something to eat." On they moved, till 
the Federalist came near enough to see the home- 
spun uniform of one of our men. This opened 
his eyes. He stopped, and said he had forgotten 
his pipe, and would go back for it. " Niver mind 
the pipe, man," said Pat ; " sure and we'll give you 
a pipe." The Yankee, however, insisted that he 
must go back, and started to execute his pur- 
pose. " You are my prisoner ! " said Pat, " and if 
you move a foot I'll kill ye ! " The Yankee, how- 
ever, resolved to take the chances of running the 
blockade, and had already gained some rods, when 
young Ireland fired upon him, killing him in- 
stantly. On examining the papers upon his per- 
son, he proved to be a Sergeant of a New York 
company. Accompanying the Sergeant rode a 
negro, who also led a third horse. All the horses 
were secured, but the negro escaped. 



Farragut and his Son. — They were on the 
Mississippi, and Farragut's fleet was about to pass 
Port Hudson, which was then held by the Con- 
federates. Farragut's son, a lad of about twelve, 
had been importuning his father that he might 
be sent to West Point, where the military cadets 



are educated. Old Farragut said : " I don't know 
how that would do ; I am not sure whether you 
would stand fire." " O, yes, father, I could do 
that." " Very well, my boy, we'll try ; come up 
with me here." The Admiral and his son M'ent 
up together into the maintop ; the old man had 
himself and the boy lashed to it, and in this way 
they passed Port Hudson. The boy never flinched, 
while th% shot and shell were flying past him. 
" Very well, mv boy, that will do ; you shall go 
to West Point!" " 

An Incident. — On the evening jn-evious to 
the battle of Sunday, at Bull Run, two of the 
Minnesota boys took it into their heads to for- 
age a little, for amusement as well as eatables. 
Striking out from their encam.pment into the 
forest, they followed a narrow road some distance, 
until, turning a bend, five secession pickets 
appeared not fifty yards distant. The parties 
discovered each other simultaneously, and at 
once levelled their rifles and fired. Two of the 
Confederates fell dead, and one of the Minneso- 
tians, the other also falling, however, but with the 
design of trapping the other three, who at once came 
up, as they said, to " examine the d — d Yankees." 
Drawing his revolver, the Minnesotian found he 
had but two barrels loaded, and Avith these he 
shot two of the pickets. Springing to his feet, and 
snatching his sabre bayonet from his rifle, he 
lunged at the survivor, who proved to be a stal- 
wart Lieutenant, armed only with a heavy sword. 
The superior skill of the Southerner Avas taxed 
to the utmost in parrying the vigorous thrusts 
and lunges of the brawny lumberman, and for 
several minutes the contest waged in silence, 
broken only by the rustle of the long grass by 
the roadside, and the clash of their Aveapons. 
Feigning fatigue, the Minnesotian fell back a few 
steps, and as his adversary closed upon him Avith 
a cat-like spring, he let his sabre come down on 
the head of his antagonist, and the game Avas up. 
Collecting the arms of the secessionists, he re- 
turned to the camp, where he obtained assistance, 
and buried the bodies of his companions and his 
foes in one grave. 

Picture of Robert E. Lee — " General Lee is, 
almost Avithout exception, the handsomest man of 
his age I ever saw," says an English Avriter, who 
passed some time with him in the field. " He is 
fifty- six years old, tall, broad-shouldered, ^-ery 
Avell made, Avell set up — a thorough soldier in 
appearance ; and his manners are most courteous, 
and full of dignity. He is a perfect gentleman 
in every respect. I imagine no man has so few 
enemies, or is so universally esteemed. Througli- 
out the South, all agree in pronouncing him to 
be as near perfection as a man can be. He has 
none of the small vices, such as smoking, drink- 
ing, cheAving, or SAvearing ; and his bitterest ene- 
my never accused him of any of the greater ones. 
He generally wears a well-Avorn long gray jacket, 
a high black felt hat, and blue trousers tucked 
into his Wellington boots. I never saAv him 
carry arms, and the only mark of his military 



AKECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



527 



rank are the three stars on his collar. He rides 
a handsome horse, which is extremely well 
groomed. He himself is very neat in his dress 
and person, and in the most arduous marches he 
always looks smart and clean. 

" In the old army he was always considered one 
of its best oificers, and at the outbreak of these 
troubles he was Lieutenant-Colonel of the Second 
cavalry. He was a rich man, but his fine estate 
was one of the first to fall into the enemy's hands. 
I believe he has not slept in a house since he has 
commanded the Virginian army, and he invariably 
declines all offers of hospitality, for fear the per- 
son ofi'ering it may afterwards get into trouble 
for having sheltered the rebel General. The rela- 
tions between him and Longstreet are quite 
touching. They are almost always together. 
Longstreet's corps complain of this sometimes, 
as, they say, they seldom get a chance of detached 
service, which falls to the lot of Ewell. It is 
impossible to please Longstreet more than by 
praising Lee. I believe these two Generalsto be 
as little ambitious, and as thoroughly unselfish, as 
any men in the world. Both long for a success- 
ful termination of the war, in order that they 
may retire into obscurity. Stonewall Jackson 
(until his death the third in command of their army) 
was just such another simple-minded servant of 
his countrj'. It is understood that General Lee 
is a religious man, though not as demonstrative 
in that respect as Jackson ; and, unlike his late 
brother in arms, he is a member of the Church 
of England. His only faults, so far as I can learn, 
arise fcom his excessive amiability." 



MARCfflNG ALONG. 

BY WILLIAM B. BRADBURY. 

The army is gathering from near and from far ; 
The trumpet is soimding the call for the war ; 
For Grant is our leader — he's gallant and strong ; 
We'll gird on our armor and be marchmg along ! 



Marching along, we are marching along, 
Gird on the armor and be marching along ; 
For Grant is our leader — he's gallant and strong ; 
For God and our country we arc marching along ! 

The foe is before us in battle array, 
But let us not waver, nor turn from the way ! 
The Lord is our strength, and the Union's our song ; 
With courage and faith we arc marching along ! 
Marching along, &c. 

Our Avives and our children we leave in your care ; 
We feel you will help them with sorrow to bear ; 
'Tis hard" thus to part, but we hope 'twon't be long ; 
We'll keep up our hearts as we're marching along ! 
ilarching along, &c. 

We sigh for our country — we mourn for our dead ! 
For them, now, our last drop of blood we will shed ! 
Our cause is the right one — our foe's is the wrong ; 
Then gladly we'll sing as we're marching along. 
Marching along, &c. 



The flag of our country is floating on high; 
We'll stand by that flag till we conquer or die ! 
For Grant is our leader — he's gallant and strong 
We'll gird on our armor and be marching along ! 
ilarching along, &c. 



Incident of Pkairie Grove. — The following 
is related by Lieutenant William S. Brooks, of 
the Nineteenth Iowa regiment : " The fight was 
most determined, and the slaughter immense. I 
was struck at four o'clock P. M., while we were 
being driven back from a too far advanced 
position. We were outflanked, and had to run 
three hundred yards over open ground, and ex- 
posed to a murderous fire from the right, left, 
and centre, or rear. Here we lost our Lieuten- 
ant-Colonel McFarlaiid. We lost one half our 
regiment, and in company D more than half our 
effective men. I was hit at the commencement 
of the retreat, and was near being captured, as I 
could not run. When more than half way to our 
battery, our color-sergeant fell, and I received the 
colors. The pursuing rebel Colonel shouted: 
' Blast them, take their colors ! ' This enraged 
me, and I hallooed back, ' You can't do it.' The 
cowardly scoundrels did not dare to close on me, 
but let go a volley, which left nine holes in the 
flag, and eighteen in my clothes. Four bullets 
passed through the cuff of my sliirt sleeve, but 
they could not M'ound the hand that held tl:ie 
'Old Flag.'" 

A Southern Anecdote. — An English officer, 
who passed some time with the army of General 
Lee, writes the following, in the pages of Black- 
wood : 

" As we were riding back to Hagerstown, we 
fell in with Colonel Wickham, who commands a 
brigade of Stuart's cavalry, in connection with 
whom the following story Avas told me : — 

" It will be remembered that Virginia was one 
of the last States to secede, and did not do so 
until she had exhausted every eflbrt to effect a 
compromise ; and when she did so, the few 
Southern States that were still hesitating followed 
her example, and the war became inevitable. 

"Matters were coming to a crisis, when the 
leading men of Virginia sent a deputation of three 
of their number to wait on the President, Mr. 
Lincoln. They tried to impress him with a sense 
of the gravity of the situation, and urgently en- 
treated that he would do something to calm the 
excitement amongst the people, whose irritation 
at the threats of the Administration, and of the 
Northern States, was getting beyond control. 

" It was just after the taking of Fort Sumter, 
and Lincoln's having called out seventy-five 
thousand men to coerce the South. 

" ' But what would you have me do ? ' said Mr. 
Lincoln. 

" ' Mr. President,' replied one of the deputation, 
'I would beg you to lend me your finger and 
thumb for five minutes ' — meaning, of course, 
that he wished to write something that should 
allay the prevailing excitement. 



528 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



"But Mr. Lincoln did not choose to under- 
stand him. ' I\Iy finger and thumb ! ' he repeated, 
' My finger and thumb ! What -would you do 
with them ? Blow your nose ? ' 

" The deputation retired in disgust, and Vir- 
ginia seceded!" 

Camp Jewelry. — " ' Jewelry,' you think and 
wonder, and perhaps it may be worth an explana- 
tion," says B. F. Taylor, in one of his inimitable 
letters from the army of the Cumberland. " The 
Tennessee and Stone Rivers are strewn with 
shells of rare beauty and exquisite coloring ; 
blue, green, pink, and pure, clear pearl. If you 
look in any boy's knapsack you will be quite 
sure to find a shell in it. Of these queer, broken, 
little chests of former life, the soldiers make rings, 
pins, hearts, arrows, chains, crosses ; and to see 
the rough tools they use, and then note the ele- 
gance of form and finish in the things they make, 
would set the means and the results incredibly 
apart. With a flat stone for a polishing table, 
they grind down the shells, and then with knife 
and file shape little fancies that would not be 
out of place on a jeweller's velvet, and beautiful 
souvenii-s of fields of battle. Every ring and 
heart has a bit of a story the maker is not reluc- 
tant to tell. This little touch of fine arts gives to 
camps a pleasant, home-like look ; and I have 
seen many a soldier putting the final polish to a 
pearl trinket by the light of his inch of candle 
flaring from a bayonet, as earnest over his work 
as if the shell possessed the charm of Aladdin's 
lamp, and rubbing it would summon spirits po- 
tent if not gray." 

A Soldier's Adventure. — William M. Heck- 
er, a soldier belonging to one of the Indiana regi- 
ments, gives the following account of his adven- 
tures in returning from the expedition to Grenada, 
Mississippi, which destroyed such an immense 
quantity of Southern railroad stock, from which 
will be gathered a better understanding of what 
the soldiers had often to endure in service of which 
no mention is ever made, than from the elaborate 
lamentations of elegant writers. After the dash 
upon Grenada, and the destruction of the railroad 
track, he, with seventeen other men, under Lieu- 
tenant Shaddock, was sent out to gather up 
mules. Here his adventures begin, and he thus 
tells them : 

" We gathered up a lot of mules, and when we 
got back to the road we were four hours behind 
the column, with about two hundred rebels be- 
tween us. We had arrived to within six miles 
of Cold Water Springs before we knew of this. 
Here the rebels had a skirmish with the rear of 
our advance column, and we took a side road, 
intending to go around them and cross the 
river at another place. When we reached there, 
however, the bridge had been burned, the river 
was full of snags, very deep, and about five rods 
wide, with a few rebels on each side to guard it. 
We did not ofl'er to hurt them ; neither did they 
propose to molest us. I swam my horse across 



could not get their horses across, and called to 
me to help them. Charles Keatch and myself 
stripped ofi" and ' went in,' and all the horses but 
one were soon over, and the men crossed on logs, 
about fifteen yards below. I swam back after 
the horse still remaining, but it would not come. 
As I was returning, about one hundred rebels 
charged up the other side, and fired at the boys 
on the side I was going to. They didn't see me 
until I attempted to climb up the bank. They 
then began yelling at a desperate rate, and fired 
twenty or thirty shots at me, the balls striking 
all around. I was an excellent mark for them. 
I got upon the bank, but could not get to my 
clothing or arms. I, however, saw a rifle lying 
near, and picked it up, and ran back about two 
rods, and stopped. The other bojs had taken 
cover behind trees, and the Lieutenant ordered 
me to do the same. I told him I would not do 
it until I got my clothes ; but the rebel bullets 
came so thick and fast that I was glad to get out 
of the way the best I could. I fired three good 
shots at them. Some of them went up and others 
down the river, until they got into such shape as 
to cross-fire on us. I Avas only about three steps 
from Hardu when he was shot in the breast. I 
started to go to him, but the balls came so thick 
I couldn't. 

" The rest of the boys had got back about 
twenty rods by this time, and called to me to 
come in ; so I shouldered my rifle and followed, 
and ran about a mile before I stopped. Here we 
were fired into, and ran another mile, and hid in 
some canebrakes, Keatch and I being stark naked. 
I left my horse and all my equipments, my arms, 
consisting of a five-shooting revolving rifle and a 
Colt's revolver, every bit of my clothing and big 
boots. One of the boys loaned me a pair of 
drawers, and another a blouse, and I tied a hand- 
kerchief over my head. We lay until dark, and 
then took a northerly course, directed by the 
stars. We ran within a quarter of a mile of a 
rebel camp, and had to back out ; went through 
the woods, over blufi"s, s>vamps, brier patches, 
and of all the times you ever heard of, this beat 
them. One time we got to a blufi" where it was 
about twenty-five feet perpendicularly down. We 
let ourselves over by the grubs, and travelled 
nearly all night in the woods. About an hour 
before day we got within four miles of Hernando, 
having travelled eight miles, and lay down till 
daylight. There were now only ten of us to- 
gether ; some had anus, and some hadii't. 

" After daylight the Lieutenant and I went out 
to find a road, so as to get the right start. We 
got separated from the rest of the boys, and, after 
hunting about an hour, gave up. We then lay 
down again (it was foggy). Then we took a due 
north course through the woods, and travelled 
until noon, when we became so weak that we 
could hardly go farther, as we had not eaten 
anything since the morning before. The Lieu- 
tenant here lay in the bushes, and I went up to 
an old log house, and told the old man there that 
I had been taken prisoner by the Yankees at 



fii-st, being the best swimmer. Many of the boys | Grenada, and had escaped from them the night 



I 







Gex. jos_ e. johxstow 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



52& 



before. He took pity on me, and a good meal 
was i}rovided, which I ate with a good deal of 
satisfaction. I had a long talk with him, and 
cursed the Yankees up and down at a great rate. 
I was furnished with a quantity of food to eat on 
the road, which I gave to the Lieutenant, and 
also a hat to keep the sun from burning me. 
Boots and shoes he Avas mLnus of. We kept in 
the swamps all day. 

" About sundown we arrived within eighteen 
miles of Germantown, and were entirely ' used 
up.' We stopped at the house of a half-way 
Union man, and got supper, and revived so as 
to go on eight miles farther. Here we gave out 
entirely, and lay down and rested until morning, 
and then started, and went M'ithin two miles of 
camp, and I gave out again. The Lieutenant 
made out to get in, and sent men and a horse 
out after me. I reached there a little before 
noon, my feet swollen nearly as big as half 
bushels, and all cut to pieces. I was so sore 
the next morning that I couldn't stir, but felt 
well every other way. 

" The boys had all given us up, and, when I 
went in, said I was the hardest looking sight they 
ever beheld. They did everything they could for 
my comfort. Some c^f the boys said they were 
so glad of our safe arrival, they did not know 
whether to laugh or cry." 



NEW ORLEANS WON BACK. 

A LAY FOR OUR SAILORS. 
BY KOBEET LOWELL. 

[The opening words of the burden are a scrap of an old 
song caught up.] 

Catch. O, up in the morning, up in the morning, 
Up in the morning early ! 
There lay the town that our guns looked 
down, 
With its streets all dark and surly. 

God made three youths to walk unscathed 

In the furnace seven times hot ; 
And when smoky flames our squadron bathed, 

Amid horrors of shell and shot, 
Then, too, it was God that brought them through 

That death-crowded thoroughfare : 
So now, at six bells, the church pennons flew, 

And the crews went all to prayer. 
Thank God ! thank God ! our men won the fight. 

Against forts, and fleets, and flame : 
Thank God ! they have given our flag its right, 
In a town that brought it shame. 

O, up in the morning, up in the morning, 

Up in the morning early ! 
Our flag hung there, in the fresh, still air. 
With smoke floating soft and curly. 

Ten days for the deep ships at the bar ; 

Six days for the mortar-fleet. 
That battered the great forts from afar ; 

And then, to that deadly street ! 
A flash ! Our strong ships snapped the boom 

To the fire-rafts and the forts, 
34 



To crush and crash, and flash and gloom, 

And iron beaks fumbling their ports. 
From the dark came the raft, in flame and smoke ; 

In the dark came the iron beak ; 
But our sailors' hearts were stouter than oak, 
And the false foe's iron Aveak. 

O, up in the morning, up in the morning. 

Up in the morning early ! 
Before they knew, they had burst safe 
through. 
And left the forts grim and burly. 

Though it be brute's work, not man's, to tear 

Live limbs like shivered wood, 
Yet, to dare, and to stand, and to take death for 
share, 
Are as much as the angels could. 
Our men towed the blazing rafts ashore ; 

They battered the great rams down ; 
Scarce a wreck floated Avhere was a fleet before, 

When our ships came up to the town. 
There were miles of batteries yet to be dared. 

But they quenched these all, as in play ; 
Then with their yards squared, their guns' mouths 
bared, 
They held the great town at bay. 

O, up in the morning, up in the morning, 

Up in the morning early ! 
Our stout ships came through shell, shot, 
and flame. 
But the town will not always be surly ; 

For this Crescent City takes to its breast 

The Father of Waters' tide ; 
And here shall the wealth of our world, in the 
West, 
Meet wealth of the world beside : 
Here the date-palm and the olive find 

A near and equal sun ; 
And a hundred broad, deep rivers wind 

To the summer-sea in one : 
Here the Fall steals all old Winter's ice, 

And the Spring steals all his snow ; 
While he but smiles at their artifice, 
And like his own nature go. 

O, up in the morning, up in the morning, 

Up in the morning early ! 
May that flag float here till the earth's last 
year, 
AVith the lake mists fair and pearly. 



Letters from Home. — Occupation is a 
grand thing, and quite as important to the tone 
and heart of an army as hard bread and bacon. 
The monster against which Dr. Kane fought so 
successfully in the Arctic night, with theatre and 
frolic, wanders listlessly up and down our camps. 
Would you believe — and yet it is true — that 
many a "poor fellow in this army of the _ Cum- 
berland has literally died to go home ; d\eA of 
the terrible, unsatisfied longing, homesickness? 
that it lies at the heart of many a disease bearing 
a learned name? It is languor, debility, lo\v 
fever, loss of appetite, sleeplessness, death ; and 
yet, through all, it is only that sad thing they call 
Nostalgia. Who shall dare to say that the boy 
who " lays him down and dies," a-hungered and 
starving for home, does not fall as well and truly 



530 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



for his country's sake as if a rebel bullet had found 
his heart out ? Against it the Surgeon combats 
in vain, for " M'ho can minister to a mind dis- 
eased ? " 

The loved ones at home have something to an- 
swer for in this business, and it pains me to think 
that more than one man has let his life slip out 
of a grasp too weak to hold it, just because his 
dearest friends did not send him a prescription 
once a week — price three cents — a letter from 
home. Is some poor fellow sinking at heart be- 
cause you do not write him ? If there is, lay my 
letter down at once and write your own, and may 
He who sent a messenger all the way from 
Heaven to earth with glad tidings, forgive you 
for deferring a hope to some soldier boy. You 
would not wonder at my warmth had you seen 
that boy waiting and waiting, as I have, for one 
little word from somebody. Too proud to own, 
and yet too sincere to quite conceal it, he tries to 
strangle the thought of home, and goes into the 
battle, whence he never comes forth. Let me 
relate one incident. An Indiana soldier was 
struck in the breast at Chickamauga and fell. 
The bullet's errand was about done when it 
reached him ; it pierced coat and underclothing, 
and there was force enough left in it to wound, 
if not to kill him ; it had to work its way through 
a precious package of nine letters, indited by one 
dear heart, and traced by one dear hand ; that 
done, the bullet's power expended, there it lay 
asleep against the soldier's breast ! Have you 
been making such a shield, dear lady, for any- 
body ? Take care that it does not lack one letter 
of being bullet-proof. — B. F. Taylor. 



Incidents of Chickamauga. — Colonel John 
T. Wilder, of Indiana, who participated in the 
battle of Chickamauga, relates these incidents : 
" There was fearful slaughter of Longstreet's men 
at the time they were driving back the left wing 
of the nationals. This celebrated corps, as des- 
perate soldiers as ever lived, attacking two divis- 
ions. Van Cleve's and Davis', to the right and a 
little in front of Wilder, separated them and 
pushed on through the open space, yelping — the 
rebel shout is a yelp, instead of a civilized hur- 
rah — and confident of victory. A portion of 
them had to cross a small field, behind which, in 
the bordering woods. Wilder lay, and through 
which ran a ditch five or six feet deep, to carry 
off" the water of an adjacent stream or swamp. 

" As the rebels entered this field, in heavy 
masses, fully exposed, the mounted infantry, with 
their seven-shooting rifles, kejit up a continuous 
blast of fire upon them, while Lilly, with his In- 
diana battery, hurled through them double-shot- 
ted canister from his ten-pounder rifles, at less 
than five hundred yards. The eft'cct was awful. 
Every shot seemed to tell. The head of the 
column, as it was pushed on by those behind, ap- 
peared to melt away, or sink into the earth, for 
though continually moving it got no nearer. It 
broke at last, and fell back in great disorder. It 
was rallied and came on again, and with a des- 
perate resolution pushed through the solid fire to 



the ditch. Here all who could get in took shel- 
ter. Instantly Lilly wheeled two of his guns and 
poured right down the whole length of the ditch 
his horrible double canister. Hardly a man got 
out of it alive. ' At this point,' said Wilder, ' it ac- 
tually seemed a pity to kill them so. They fell 
in heaps, and I had it in my heart to order the 
firing to cease, to end the awful sight.' But 
the merciless seven-shooters and canister would 
not stop, and again the boasted flower of Lee's 
army was crushed into a disorderly mob and 
driven off". 

" When the firing ceased, one could have walked 
for two hundred yards down that ditch on dead 
rebels, without ever touching the ground." 



Army Discipline. — A soldier of the Second 
regiment of Rhode Island, writing from Brandy 
Station, Virginia, says : " Military discipline, 
though neither novel nor intei'esting in the army, 
would present many scenes and incidents of cu- 
rious interest to the uninitiated. Let us take a 
short Avalk through the regimental guard-houses 
of this brigade. At the first, which is that of the 
Second Rhode Island, we see one with his knap- 
sack strapped on his back, and a stick of wood 
weighing, say forty pounds, on his shoulder. 
With these he walks a beat of twenty paces for 
ten hours. Crime, absent from duty without 
leave and without reasonable excuse. Another 
walks a similar beat, with knapsack and musket. 
He was corporal of guard, but was reduced to the 
position of private, and sentenced to walk his 
beat twelve hours, for sending a private to post 
his guard while he slept. We pass to another 
guard-house. Here we find a man bucked and 
gagged. Crime, drunkenness. The operation 
consists of putting a stick in the mouth, with a 
string passed from each end around the back of 
the head. The bucking process consists of tying 
the hands together securely, placing them over 
the knees, and running a stick through under the 
knees and over the arms. Still another has his 
hands tied together and fastened as far up a tree 
as he can conveniently reach. He also is gagged. 
These have three hours on, and one off" for twelve 
hours. We pass to a thii-d guard-house. Here 
is one who has skulked from dut}'. He has a 
large pile of stone to move some twenty feet, a 
task many times as arduous as the fatigue duty 
he shirked. Near by is a grave fresh dug and 
rounded up, with a head sticking out at one end. 
At his head stands a board prepared and marked 
in large letters : 

HERE LIES 
THE BODY OF 

GEORGE MARS, 

WHO FELL 

DEAD (DRUNK) 

Nov. nth, 1863. 

" Doubtless the good friends at home would 
think this severe, but it is deemed necessary for 
the discipline of the army, by military command- 
ers at least." 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



531 



The Fight at Port Hudson. — A citizen of 
New Orleans, -who was on board the Richmond 
when she attempted, with the rest of Farragut's 
fleet, to pass the batteries at Port Hudson, fur- 
nishes the following interesting account of the 
fight: 

"A minute after, ^2:2; went a rocket from the 
opposite (west) bank of the river, and shot away 
up into the air, while another seemed to rush 
across the river. It was a signal that we were 
discovered ; and in a few moments a sudden flash 
appeared on the dark shore, a little ahead of us, 
and bang went the first gun. Then another and 
another, in quick succession. It was now just 
twenty-two minutes past eleven. 

"All at once the Hartford revealed herself just 
ahead of us, a flood of flame leaping from her side, 
and a great cloud of white smoke rolling up, fol- 
lowed by a roar like the loudest and sharpest 
thunder, which went rolling and echoing down 
the river. From that time her broadsides con- 
tinued in quick succession. The mortar schoon- 
ers, too, opened from their station below — a sul- 
len bellow, and then a shooting star traversing 
the sky in a vast curve, and dropping on the bluff 
with a loud explosion. 

" All was quiet and silent with us ; but now 
shot and shell began to whiz overhead; and it 
was plain that we, too, Avere aimed at in the rapid 
fire of the enemy. Mr. Cummings said, with a 
firm, quiet voice, 'Point your guns two points 
forward of the beam ; aim at every flash, and give 
them grape and canister as fast as you can. Fire 
coolly, and don't hurry. Now, give them the bow 
guns. Now, the whole broadside.' The blaze, 
and concussion, and crash of this last were terrific. 
It took me some minutes to comprehend that our 
fire, which was most startling to eye and ear, was 
friendly, and to enjoy and exult in it. 

*' The real teiTors were those swift flashes on 
the shore, and the missiles that went crashing and 
hissing over and around us. The fii'st effective 
shot that I saw was a shell, which burst in the 
side near me, and set it on fii'e ; but this was soon 
extinguished. A twenty-pounder Parrott shot 
had, however, already entered near the after gun, 
worked by marines, killed two men, and knocked 
down, though Avith slight injuries, some twelve 
men — in fact, demolished a whole gun's crew. 
Showers of splinters from the rigging fell all 
over us. Our tremendous fire, however, seemed 
to silence the lower batteries, until our own smoke 
enwrapped the ship so that we could not see half 
its length, and had to cease firing to let the smoke 
clear away, for fear we should go ashore. This 
was done several times. 

" Meanwhile we were slowly ranging up, within 
a hundred yards of the batteries (some think less), 
as I could plainly see by the flashes, and also by 
fires which the enemy had kindled on the bluff. 
The Hartford, revealed at times by her blazing 
guns ; the ships following, pouring in their fire ; the 
rapid and deadly fire from the shore ; the cool- 
ness and yet ardor of all our people, oflScers and 
men, — all this is more than I can describe. At 
this time I went, at the Captain's request, to carry 



the word from Mr. Terry (second Lieutenant), 
who, with heroic coolness and great skill, was on 
the lookout forward, to the men at the wheel. 
Two or three minutes after I left there, a round 
shot took off Mr. Cummings' left leg, just above 
the ankle, knocking him off the bridge to the 
deck, and he was carried below. Captain Alden 
was also thrown down, but not hurt. 

" We were now abreast of the upper batterv, 
and nearly 'jmst Port Hudson.' I called out, 
' There is the low land above the bluff,' as I caught 
a glimpse of it, from the forecastle, by the flash 
of a gun. We were just heading around to turn 
the point, and go up the other reach out of fire, 
when a loud and sharp ' sh-h-h-h ' was heard 
amidships, and a cloud of steam came pouring out 
of the steam-pipe, and up from the engine-room. 
The sight and sound of this evidently guided the 
enemy's fire, for it was concentrated upon us, and 
with redoubled rapidity. We were evidently also 
no longer making progress against the mighty 
current which sweeps around there, and were 
therefore a stationaiy target, within short musket 
range of their biggest guns. Besides, we could 
scarcely hear or see anything on the deck for the 
steam. A moment more, and we might have 
di'ifted ashore, and been torn to pieces by shot 
and shell ; surrender, I am satisfied, we never 
should have done. 

" ' Starboard ! ' shouted Captain Alden, and we 
went about rapidly; and with the steerage-way 
which the Genesee was able to give us, we went 
swiftly down, passing all the batteries, under this 
terrific fii'e, and brought up at our old anchorage 
ground. The last I saw of the Hartford was by 
one of her own illuminations, as she sailed rap- 
idly up the reach above Port Hudson, looking as 
stanch and stately as ever, from her water-line 
to her trucks, and with her cloak of battle-smoke 
thrown around her fighting side. 

"It was only after we were disabled that I 
learned of Mr. Cummings' misfortune, and then 
from Captain Alden, who was greatly affected by 
it, more even than by his great disappointment. 
At his request I went below to see Mr. Cummings. 
and to carry him a most affectionate message. 
The mangled hero, awaiting amputation, asked 
me what we were doing ; and when I told him 
we were nearly out of danger, having been dis- 
abled in our steam and compelled to drop back, 
he uttered a cry of disappointment. 'O,' said 
he, ' I would have given my other leg to have 
gone by.' A noble tar lying there, terribly 
wounded, and who died soon after, said, 'Mr. 
Cummings, don't give up the ship.' ' No, How- 
ard,' said he, ' we won't give up the ship.' All 
the officers and men were greatly grieved at Mr. 
Cummings' wound. 

" We had hardly let go the anchor when a light 
began to show above, increasing rapidly. We 
feared it was one of om- consort ships, all of which 
we had hoped had passed up successfully. Con- 
jectures were divided between the flag-ship, the 
Monongahela, and the Mississippi. Soon after a 
boat's crew of the Mississippi came on board, and 
reported her hopelessly aground and abandoned. 



532 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



We still feared that the fire might be on another 
ship. But soon the flames got such headway that 
they. revealed the form of that stanch and valiant 
old ship ; and we also learned that the Mononga- 
hela had returned to her anchorage, while the 
flag-ship was doubtless safe above. After a while 
the Mississippi swung off, headed down stream, 
and sailed right towards us, blazing to the top of 
her masts, a glorious but mournful and even ter- 
rible sight, for we could not get out of her way. 
She soon, however, sheered off to our port, and 
swept down past, firing oft' her port guns only a 
little before she passed us ; and so, amid ex- 
ploding shells, she passed down the river out 
of sight, and blew up, away below, about five 
o'clock. 

" It was half past one when we let go our an- 
chor, so that we had been nearly two hours under 
fire ; and it was some time before any one could 
compose himself to sleep, though I did get some 
three hours' rest. The next morning was de- 
voted to cleaning up the soiled and blood-stained 
decks, taking care of the wounded, receiving our 
unlucky comrades of the Mississippi, a noble set 
of officers and men, with the heroic Captain Smith 
at their head, all worthy to be the shipmates of 
the ' Richmonds ' (I could not say more), prepar- 
ing the deck for burial, and writing home. A 
heavy rain delayed some of these things. 

" The next morning (Monday), having sent off 
to the city our guests of the Mississippi, with Mr. 
Cummings (whose valuable life seemed about to 
be spared to us, to his family, to his country), the 
crew was mustered at nine. Captain Alden made 
a pithy speech to them of praise for their cool- 
ness, bravery, and fidelity, and then prayers were 
offered by the acting Chaplain, and thanksgiving 
for our deliverance. It was a most solemn and 
beautiful termination to these transactions. The 
dead being buried with all solemnity, repairs were 
at once commenced, and by the next day we 
had steam up, and were * ready for any ordinary 
. seryice.' " 

REBEL ATTEMPT TO TAKE A TRAIN, 
AND HOW IT CAME OUT.* 

BT DANIEL D. STEEL, COMPANY G, SEVENTY-EIGHTH 
NEW Y'ORK STATE VETERAN VOLUNTEERS. 

Attention to these verses, 

And I will tell no lies : 
'Tis how the rebels came to take 

The Yankees by surprise. 
They came with empty haversacks, 

A victory for to gain ; 
They said they would chaw our rations 

When they took our wagon train. 

* About midnight of October 28, 1863, the rebels 
came off from Lookout Mountain into Lookout Valley, 
at "VVauhatchie, Tennessee, to capture the Eleventh 
corps supply train ; but, to their mortification and 
chagrin, it proved to be a part of the White Star 
division (Second division, Twelfth corps), who gave 
them a sound thrashing, and they fled back, helter- 
skelter, in dismay, into their lines, with considera- 
ble loss. 



They came so close upon us, 

So slyly they did creep, 
They thought they had surely caught 

The Yankee boys asleep. 
They fired in upon us ; 

They don't deny this tale ; 
But when they saw the " White Star," 

Their appetites did fail. 

They said they never saw the like 

Since ever they were born ; 
Before they would fight the White Star, 

They would g(j and live on corn. 
Away they went on double-quick, 

Saying, " If we come again, 
We will take our rations with us, 

For fear we will miss the train." 

It was on the road these graybacks 

Their comrades they did meet ; 
Some wanted Yankee hard tack. 

While others wanted meat. 
The Yankees would not give it up, 

As sure as we are born ; 
Methinks we heard the General say, 

AVe would have to live upon corn. 

Had we have known what we know now, 

We would never went so far ; 
We never thought the Yankee train 

Was guarded by the Star. 
Where is the rest of our boys ? 

Why did they not come back ? 
They were taken sick upon the field. 

By receiving Y'ankee tack. 

Now Geary says, " If that's their game, 

We'll go and drive them back ; 
We'U go and take their wagon train. 

And dine upon rebel tack. 
We'll charge up Lookout Mountain, boys, 

Where they have made a stand to fight ; 
We'll take them when they are wide awake, 

And not go at night. 

On November, the twenty-fourth, 

General Geary took in hand 
To drive them off the mountain, 

Where they have made a stand. 
He took with him a little force. 

Advanced upon the hill ; 
Said he, " My boys, we'll go and see 

How Hardee likes his drill." 

They looked upon our little force, 

As it was drawing nigh ; 
They said, "I wonder if the Yanks 

Are coming up to die ? " 
They then got in their breastworks. 

They said they would have some fun ; 
For up the mountain they were sure 

The Yankees could not come. 

They laid there in their breastworks, 

But little did they fear, 
Until they saw the White Star 

Advancing m their rear ; 
It came so close upon them, 

It glittered like the gold. 
Which sent a terror to their hearts, 

And made their blood run cold. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



533 



" Our breastworks are not made aright," 

The Johnny Rebs did cry ; 
While on every side they heard the word, 

♦' Surrender, Rebs, or die ! " 
They left their shoes and stockings, 

Through bushes they did creep, 
While stones and briers plenty 

Came in contact with their feet. 

On Missionary Ridge they got, 

Determined not to run ; 
The Stars followed after them, 

And captured all their guns. 
Now Johnny Rebs, they felt so bad. 

They knew not what to do ; 
They turned around to look for Bragg, 

But he had skedaddled too. 

Now Johnny Rebs have gone so far. 

We cannot see their flag ; 
Jeff Davis says he'll have revenge, 

And lays it all to Bragg. 
But when he comes he'll find the Star ; 

We'll meet him hand to hand, 
Determined they will not be whipped 

By any such a man. 

Here's health to brave General Geary, boys, 

Likewise to General Green ; 
Success to the Veteran Volunteers, 

And Colonel Hamerstine. 
We have showed the R.ebs a Yankee trick, 

And will do the same again 
When they come to catch us Yanks asleep. 

And take our wagon train. 



One of a Hundred. — A rural conscript ap- 
peared before a Board of Enrolment, and desired 
to be exempted forthwith, that he might return 
to his country home. " What are your claims ? " 
demanded the Doctor. " Fm entirely dependent 
upon my mother for support" was the innocent 
reply. Whereupon, thus the Doctor, while a smile 
faintly illumined the face of the Board : " I am 
happy to assure you, my honest-hearted friend, 
that the government is prepared at once to re- 
lieve your mother of so unsuitable a burden, and 
assume your entire charge and expense during 
the next three years, without the slightest re- 
course to the maternal fount for support or suc- 
cor." The young draftee appeared a little bewil- 
dered, and referred to the papers to ascertain 
what was the matter. 



An Affectionate Horse. — Many instances 
have been given by travellers of the affection 
shown by the Arabian horses towards their mas- 
ters ; and so much, also, has been written to 
prove their sagacity, as to make one believe, at 
times, that they must be endowed with an instinct 
which approaches nearly, if not quite, to the rea- 
soning faculty of a human being. We very much 
doubt if among the feats narrated of the horses 
of the East any can be found that exceeds in af- 
fectionate devotion the following incident, which 
was told by the soldier to whom it occurred. 



The narrator, a young Irishman, like many 
others of his nation, joined, shortly after his ar- 
rival in America, Sheridan's brigade. It was in 
one of those forced marches when they had driven 
back the enemy, and had been in the saddle sev- 
eral consecutive days and nights, that this trooper 
availed himself of a temporary halt to slip from 
his saddle and stretch himself upon the turf — 
his horse, meanwhile, browsing in the immediate 
vicinity. He had slept for some little time, when 
he was suddenly awakened by the frantic pawing 
of his horse at his side. Fatigued by his long 
ride, he did not rouse at once, but lay in that 
partially conscious state which so frequently at- 
tends great physical prostration. Soon, however, 
the faithful animal, perceiving that its efforts had 
failed to accomplish their object, licked his face, 
and placing its mouth close to his ear, uttered a 
loud snort. Now thoroughly awake, he sprang 
up, and as the horse turned for him to mount, he 
saw, for the first time, that his comrades had all 
disappeared, and that the enemy were coming 
down upon him at full gallop. Once mounted, 
the faithful beast bore him with the speed of the 
wind safely from the danger, and soon placed 
him among his companions. " Thus," he added, 
with emotion, " the noble fellow saved me from 
captivity, and perhaps from death." 



Story of the " Albemarle." — On the night 
of the 27th of October, 1864, a small steam 
launch left Albemarle Sound, on the coast of 
North Carolina, and entered the mouth of the 
Roanoke River. 

So small that she looked more like a yawl than 
a war vessel, and with no signs of armament, 
there was nothing about her to excite suspicion 
or to awaken hope. Yet she had been prepared 
and fitted up, manned by a picked crew of vol- 
unteers, and furnished with a terrible engine of 
destruction, for the sole purpose of fighting ^nd 
sinking the most formidable war-vessel, after the 
Merrimac, that rebel skill had been able to launch 
upon the Southern waters. 

The Albemarle had come out from the recesses 
of Roanoke River in April, and for six months 
had been the champion of the Southern waters, 
and the terror of the North Carolina squadron. 

TAvice she had fought long pitched battles with 
some of the best war-vessels in the United States 
navy, and had come out almost unscathed from a 
fierce storm of hundred pound Parrotts, nine- 
inch solid shot, percussion shell, shrapnel, and all 
the formidable enginery of modern naval war- 
fare. 

Torpedoes had been sunk for her, and men had 
swum the river at midnight in the hope of bring- 
ing some secret and sufficiently destructive agent 
to bear upon her mailed sides. But she had so 
far escaped all open attacks, and all secret tor- 
pedo plots. 

The little steam launch that was now stealing 
up to attack the iron-clad giant was commanded 
by Lieutenant Cushing, an ofiicer who brought to 
naval adventure the headlong dash of the play- 



534 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



ground, combined with the coolness and skill of 
an admiral. 

Of an age and appearance that seemed to in- 
dicate an enthusiast in boat-racing, rather than 
in fighting iron-clads, he had associated liis name 
with some of the most brilliant exploits, and the 
most fearless and dashing adventures of the war. 

Having on previous occasions gained the ad- 
miration of the department by his daring and 
adventurous heroism, he had been selected to 
command this picket-boat, and use her in apply- 
ing to the Albemarle a torpedo of extraordinary 
power, which had been invented by chief engi- 
neer W. W. Wood, and whose arrangements and 
aijplication were suggested by Rear- Admiral Greg- 
ory and his able assistants. During the summer 
of 1864, the gallant young officer had gone on to 
New York. Admiral Gregory had explained and 
illustrated the best manner of conducting this 
novel but formidable mode of attack, but the 
details had been left wholly to Lieutenant 
Gushing. 

No service could be more fraught with danger. 
One discharge from the Whitworth guns of the 
Albemarle would shatter and pierce the little 
picket-boat, as certainly as a minie ball shot at an 
egg-shell. And the torpedo was an invention 
whose recoil might prove as fatal to the vessel 
which carried it as to that to which it Avas to be 
applied. 

The distance from the mouth of the river to 
where the ram was moored was about eight miles. 
The stream was on an average two hundred yards 
wide, and lined with the enemy's pickets. 

The launch succeeded in passing the pickets, 
and even the wreck of the Southfield, within 
twenty yards, without discovery, and the Lieu- 
tenant was not challenged till within hail of the 
lookout on the Albemarle. 

One of the Shamrock's cutters, which he had 
in tow, was then cast off by Lieutenant Gushing, 
and ordered back down the river, while under a 
full head of steam he made directly for the 
enemy. 

The rebels sprang their rattles, rang the bell, 
and commenced firing. The light of a fire burn- 
ing on the shore showed the iron-clad made fast 
to the wharf, with a j)en of logs around her about 
thirty feet from her side. 

Passing close by hei-, the launch made a com- 
plete circle, and turning so as to strike her fairly, 
went into her, bows on. By this time the enemy's 
fire was very severe ; but. the Lieutenant returned 
it vigorously with grape. An instant more, and 
the launch had struck against the logs of the 
stockade, behind which her enemy Mas ensconced, 
breasting them in some feet, and her bows rest- 
ing on them. A storm of bullets now swept the 
decks of the launch. Three pierced the clothing 
of Lieutenant Gushing, and one struck Frank 
Swan, an officer of the Otsego, who Avas standing 
close beside the commander, wounding him se- 
verely, and rendering his escape impossible. 

Now, or not at all, must the torpedo be ap- 
plied. The boom to which it was attached was 
lowered, and by a vigorous pull the deadly engine 



was swung under the overhang of the ram, and 
brought close beneath her mailed side. 

Simultaneously with its explosion came a 
crashing bolt from one of the big guns of the 
Albemarle. An immense wave from the bursting 
of the torpedo came surging over the little launch, 
and in an instant she was filled with water and 
wholly disabled. 

The enemy continued their fire at fifteen feet 
range, and twice demanded surrender. This was 
refused, and Gushing ordered his men to save 
themselves as best they could, while he, throw- 
ing off his coat and shoes, sprang overboard. 

Frank Swan was too much hurt to follow him, 
and soon became a prisoner in the hands of the 
enemy. 

Most of the party, of thirteen officers and men, 
were captured ; some were drowned, and only 
one besides the Lieutenant made his escape. 
Gushing swam ashore, crept exhausted into the 
swamp, and the next day succeeded in capturing 
a skiff" from the rebel pickets, in which he made 
his way to the Valley City. 

On the 30th he commenced his report to Ad- 
miral Porter, with this proud sentence : " Sir, I 
have the honor to report that the rebel iron-clad 
Albemarle is at the bottom of the Roanoke River." 



Reminiscences of President Lincoln. — A 
correspondent, writing from Springfield, gives the 
following incidents in the early career of Mr. 
Lincoln, obtained from his law partner, Mr. Hern- 
don : 

" Mr. Lincoln came to Sangamon Gounty in 
183L He cut the timber for a canoe at the 
mouth of Spring Greek, on which he floated down 
to Sangamon town, seven miles north-west of 
Springfield. In April of that year he went to 
New Orleans on a flat-boat, and returned the fol- 
lowing August. He was at this time fine and 
noble-looking, Aveighed two hundred and ten 
pounds, was six feet three or four inches in 
height, and of florid complexion. Going to the 
town of New Salem, the judges of election being 
minus one clerk, and impressed with the good 
appearance of the young man, chose him as the 
clerk of election. 

" Mr. Herndon said that Mr. Lincoln approached 
more nearly the angelic nature than any person 
he ever saw, women not excepted. He had, he 
said, more of the angel-looking eye and face than 
he had ever seen. Yet he was not without pas- 
sions. These in Lincoln were powerful ; but 
they were held under control by a giant will. 
He was, said Mr. Herndon, a great animal, but a 
great angel Avas ingrafted upon it. He had a 
towering ambition, but that ambition was directed 
to the attainment of power Avith Avhich to elevate 
man. 

" He seems to have retained very vivid impres- 
sions of his mother's virtues, and a tender sense 
of his obligations to her. Familiarly he once 
said to his partner, ' Billy, all that I am I owe to 
my blessed mother.' 

" Because of his transparent honesty, he was 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



535 



taken as a clerk in a store by a man named OfFutt. 
This OfFutt reposed all confidence in him, and in 
no point was he deceived. 

" He obtained the name of ' Honest Abe ' as 
follows : A lady came to pay him fur a dress she 
had purchasepl of him; and in computing the 
amount, he made it come to two dollars and thir- 
ty-seven and a half cents ; whereas it Avas six and 
a half cents too much. In the evening, after 
business hours were over, he took the six cents 
to the woman and corrected the mistake. At 
another time, a lady came to buy a pound of tea. 
By mistake a half pound weight was placed in the 
scale. After Lincoln discovered the error, he 
closed the store about sunset, and took the half 
pound of tea with him to the lady. 

" In addition to this business integrity, he was 
extremely humorous, sociable, and agreeable, be- 
coming everybody's friend and nobody's enemy. 
By these qualities people came to know him 
thoroughly. He was taken into every man's 
house as one of his own household. From his 
nature, honesty, purity, &c., people termed him 
' Honest Abe.' 

" When he first came to Springfield, he was 
extremely poor, having not a shilling in his pocket, 
and with but a very scanty wardrobe. He would 
stop a while with one, and then with another, go- 
ing from neighbor to neighbor, all esteeming it a 
favor to have him in their houses. At that time 
he had read well and thoroughly everything he 
had touched, including the Bible and Shakspeare, 
which were his leading books at the time of his 
death. He was, said Mr. Herndon, a good bib- 
lical scholar. When he was tAventy-three years 
of age, he had read history and biography con- 
siderably, and he had mastered Burns when he 
was twenty-five. 

" He never, while engaged in his profession, 
accumulated much property. He seemed not to 
have had much care to gather wealth. When he 
did a service professionally, he would charge 
accordingly as he estimated the value of the work 
done, and not according to the standard of other 
men's fees. If he regarded a service worth a 
dollar, he charged only that, although other men 
might charge twenty dollars for doing the same 
thing. 

" His strict fidelity to principle was illustrated 
by his partner by the following incident : He said, 
when Mr. Lincoln collected any money belonging 
to the firm, he Avould always take half the amount 
received, and fold up the other half, write upon it 
the word ' Billy ' (the name he familiarly called 
his partner), and lay it away in his pocket-book. 
One time Mr. Herndon said to him : 

" ' Why do you do that ? Why not take the 
whole of the money, and use it ? ' 

" ' Because,' said Lincoln, ' I promised my 
mother never to use anybody's money. Should 
anything happen to me, that money would be 
known to be yours.' 

" Mr. Herndon took me into the law office 
where Mr. Lincoln used to sit and toil. It is 
plain and unpretending. Indeed, everything about 
the man was indicative of the simplicity of his 



character. And yet, though so transparent and 
unassuming, he was sagacious. His friend told 
me that he was a man of profound policy. His 
neighbor, to whom I have referred, said he was a 
great thinker — that he was accustomed to think 
much on the affairs of the nation. Sometimes he 
would pass his friends on the street without a 
sign of recognition — lost in his deep musings. 
Again, as a neighbor approached him, he M'ould 
cast up his eye, smile, and remark, ' I've been 
thinking,' and then proceed to unfold the subject 
of his thoughts. 

" Assassination cast its shadow on the hearts 
of his friends as early as the Presidential election 
of 1860. Mr. Herndon told me that himself and 
two other friends guarded Mr. Lincoln to the polls 
in Springfield on that day to prevent a stiletto 
from being aimed at his heart. At length he fell, 
but not until his great work was done, and he 
was enthroned among the chiefest of the illus- 
trious benefactors of humanity." 



A YEAR AGO. 

The grass was wet with glistening dew, 

In the clear blue sky the stars were glowing, 

Mournfully cried the whip-poor-will, 
Softly the mild south wind was blowing. 

He kissed me once, he kissed me thrice ; 

" Sweet," said my love, " time fast is flowing ; 
My troopers wait — we will meet again, 

When the perfumed rose of June is blowing." 

Sharply his sabre rang as he rode, 
In the still night-air loud echoes waking ; 

And oft he turned to wave adieu 

Where I stood with a heart that was well nigh 
breaking. 

The watch-dog howled and clashed his chain ; 

" Come back," I cried, in terror springing ; — 
Alas ! I coidd but faintly hear, 

Ear down the road, his horse-hoofs ringing. 

The roses of June are withered and dead — 
Their shrivelled leaves on his grave are lying ; 

Once more cries sadly the whip-poor-will, 
And softly the mild south wind is sighing. 

Wolve7-i7ie. 

THE SIEGE OF CINCINNATI. 

BY T. BUCHANAN READ.* 

The live man of the old Revolution, the daring 
Hotspur of those troublous days, was Anthony 
Wayne. The living man to-day of the great 
North-west is Lewis Wallace. With all the chi- 
vah-ic dash of the stormer of Stony Point, he has 
a cooler head, with a capacity for larger plans, 
and the steady nerve to execute whatever he con- 
ceives. When a difficulty rises in his path, the 
difficulty, no matter what its proportions, moves 
aside ; he does not. When a river, like the Ohio 
at Cincinnati, intervenes between him and his 
field of operations, there is a sudden sound of 

* Written in January, 1863. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS, 



saws and hammers at sunset, and the next morn- 
ing beholds the magic spectacle of a great pon- 
toon-bridge stretching between the shores of 
Freedom and Slavery, its planks resounding to 
the heavy tread of almost endless regiments and 
army wagons. Is a city like CiDcinnati menaced 
by a hungry foe, striding on by forced marches ? 
— that foe sees his path suddenly blocked by ten 
miles of fortifications, thoroughly manned and 
armed, and he finds it prudent, even with his 
twenty thousand veterans, to retreat faster than 
he came, strewing the road with whatever arti- 
cles impede his haste. Some few incidents in the 
career of such a man, since he has taken the field, 
ought not to be uninteresting to those for whom 
he has fought so bravely ; and we believe his ser- 
vices, when known, will be appreciated ; other- 
wise we will come under the old ban against re- 
publics, that they are ungrateful. 

While returning from New York, at the expi- 
ration of a short leave of absence, the first asked 
for since the beginning of the war, General Wal- 
lace was persuaded by Governor Morton to stump 
the State of Indiana in favor of voluntary en- 
listments, which at that time were progressing 
slowly. Wallace went to work in all earnest- 
ness. His idea was to obtain command of the 
new levies, drill them, and take them to the field ; 
and this idea was circulated throughout the State. 
The result was, enlisting increased rapidly ; the 
ardor for it rose shortly into a fever, and has not 
yet abated. Regiments are still forming, shed- 
ding additional lustre upon the name of patriotic 
Indiana. 

General Wallace was thus engaged when the 
news was received from Morgan of the invasion 
of Kentucky by Kirby Smith. All eyes turned 
at once to Governor Morton, many of whose regi- 
ments were now ready to take the field, if they 
only had officers to lead them. Wallace came 
promptly to the Governor's assistance, and of- 
fered to take command of a regiment for the 
crisis. His offer was accepted, and he was sent 
to New Albany, where the Sixty-sixth Indiana 
was in camp. In twelve hours he mustered it, 
paid its bounty money, clothed and armed it, and 
marched it to Louisville. Brigadier-General 
Boyle was in command of Kentucky. Wallace, 
who is a Major-General, reported to him at the 
above-named city, and a peculiar scene occurred. 

" General Boyle," said Wallace, " I report to 
you the Sixty-sixth Indiana regiment." 

" Who commands it ? " asked the General. 

" I have that honor, sir," was the reply. 

" You want orders, I suppose." 

" Certainly." 

" It is a difficult matter for me," said Boyle. 
" I have no right to order you." 

" That difficulty is easily solved," Wallace re- 
plied, with characteristic promptness. " I come 
to report to you as a Colonel. I come to take 
orders as such." 

General Boyle consulted with his Adjutant- 
General, and the result was a request that Gen- 
eral Wallace would proceed to Lexington with 
his command. Here was exhibited the ready. 



self-sacrificing spirit of a true patriot ; he did not 
stand and wait until he could find the position to 
which his high rank entitled him, but stepped into 
the place where he could best and quickest serve 
his country in her hour of peril. 

While Wallace was still at the railway station, 
he received an order from General Boyle, putting 
him in command of all the forces in Lexington. 
Here was a golden opportunity for our young 
commander. What higher honor could be cov- 
eted than to relieve the brave Morgan, pent up 
as he was with his little army in the mountain 
gorges of the Cumberland? The idea fired the 
soul of Wallace, and he pushed on to Lexington. 
But here he was sadly disappointed. He found 
the forces waiting there inadequate to the task. 
Instead of an army, there were only three regi- 
ments. He telegraphed for more troops. In- 
diana and Ohio responded promptly and nobly. 
In three days he received and brigaded nine regi- 
ments, and started them towards the Gap. 

No one but an experienced soldier, one who 
has indeed tried it, can conceive of the labor in- 
volved in such an undertaking. The material in 
his hands was, to say the best of it, magnificently 
raw. Officers, from Colonels to Corporals, brave 
though they might be as lions, knew literally 
nothing of military affairs. The men had not 
learned even to load their guns. Companies had 
to be led, like little children, by the hand, as it 
were, into their places in line of battle. There 
was no cavalry, no artillery. It happened, how- 
ever, that guns, horses, and supplies, intended for 
Morgan at the Gap, were in depot at Lexing- 
ton. Then Wallace began to catch a glimpse of 
dawn through the dark tangle of the wilderness. 
Some kind of order, prompt and immediate, must 
be forced out of this chaos ; and it came, for the 
master spirit was there to arrange and compel. 
He mounted several hundred men, giving them 
rifies instead of sabres. He manned new guns, 
procuring harness and ammunition for them from 
Louisville. Where there were no caissons, he 
supplied wagons. But his regiments were not his 
sole reliance ; he is a believer in rifiemen, a fight- 
ing class of which Kentucky was full. These he 
summoned to his assistance, and was met by a 
ready and hearty response ; they came trooping 
to him by hundreds. Among others. Garret Da- 
vis, United States Senator, led a company of 
Home Guards to Lexington. In this way. Gen- 
eral Wallace composed, or rather improvised, a 
little army, and all Avithout help, his staff being 
absent, mostly in Memphis. 

" Kentucky has not been herself in this war," 
exclaimed General Wallace ; " she must btr 
aroused ; and I propose to do it thoroughly." 

"How will you do it? " asked a sceptic. 

" Easily enough, sir. Kentucky has a host of 
great names. Kentuckians believe in great 
names. It is to this tune that the traitors 
have carried them to the field against us. I will 
take with me to the field all the men living, old 
and young, who have made those names great. 
Buckner took the young Crittendens and Clays 5 
by Heaven, I'll take their fathers ! " 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



537 



" But they can't march." 

" I'll haul them, then." 

" They can be of no service in that way." 

"But the magic of their names!" exclaimed 
Wallace. " What will the young Iventuckians 
say, when they hear John J. Crittenden, Leslie 
Coombs, Robert Breckinridge, Tom Clay, Garrett 
Davis, Judge Goodloe, and fathers of that kind, 
are going down to battle with me ? " 

The sceptics held their peace. 

General Wallace now constituted a volunteer 
staff. Wads worth, M. C. from Maysville dis- 
trict, was his Adjutant-General. Brand, Gratz, 
Goodloe, and young Tom Clay were his Aids. 
Old Tom Clay, John J. Crittenden, Leslie Coombs, 
Judge Goodloe, Garrett Davis, were all prepared 
and going, when General Wallace was suddenly 
relieved of his command by General Nelson. 

Without instituting any comparison between 
these two Generals, it is enough to say that the 
supersedure of Wallace by Nelson at that mo- 
ment was most unfortunate and untimely, as the 
sequel proved, fraught, as it was, with disas- 
trous consequences. The circumstances were 
these : 

Scott's rebel cavalry had whipped Metcalf's 
regiment of loyalists at Big Hill, some twelve or 
fifteen miles from Richmond, Kentucky, and fol- 
lowed to within four mileA of that town, where 
they were stopped by Lenck's brigade of infantry. 
The affair was reported to Wallace, with the 
number and situation of the enemy. He at once 
took prompt measures to meet the exigence of 
the situation. He covdd throw Lenck's and Clay's 
brigades upon the rebel front; the brigade at 
Nicholasville could take them in flank by cross- 
ing the Kentucky River at Tait's Ford ; while, 
by uniting Clay Smith's command with that of 
Jacob, then en route for Nicholasville, he could 
plant seventeen hundred cavalry in their rear be- 
tween Big Hill and Mount Vernon. 

The enemy at this time were at least twenty 
miles in advance of their supports, and a night's 
march would have readily placed the several 
forces mentioned in position to attack them by 
daylight. This was Wallace's plan — simple, fea- 
sible, and soldier-like. All his orders were given. 
A supply train, with extra ammunition and 
abundant rations, was in line on the road to 
Richmond. Clay's brigade was drawn up ready 
to move, and General Wallace's horse was sad- 
dled. He was writing a last order in reference 
to the city of Lexington in his absence, and di- 
recting the ofhcer left in charge to forward regi- 
ments to him at Richmond as fast as they should 
arrive, when General Nelson came, and instantly 
took the command. Fifteen minutes more, and 
General Wallace would have been on the road to 
Richmond, to superintend the execution of his 
plan of attack. The supersedure was, of course, 
a bitter disappointment ; yet he never grumbled 
or demurred in the least, but, like a true soldier 
who knows his duty, offered that evening to serve 
his successor in any capacity, a generosity which 
General Nelson declined. The well-conceived 
plan which Wallace had matured failed for the 



simple reason, that, instead of marching to exe- 
cute it that night, as common sense would seem 
to have dictated, Nelson did not leave Lexington 
until the next day at one o'clock ; and at day- 
light, when the attack was to have been made, 
the rebel leader, Scott, discovered his danger, 
and wisely retreated, finding nobody in his rear. 
The result was. Nelson went to Richmond, and 
was defeated. It is possible that the same result 
might have followed Wallace ; but by those com- 
petent to judge, it is thought otherwise. 

He had a plan adapted to the troops he was 
leading, who, although very raw, would have beCn 
invincible behind breastworks, as American troops 
have always shown themselves to be. Wallace 
never intended arraying these inex])erienced men 
in the open field against the veteran troops of 
the rebels. Neither did he intend they should 
dig. He had collected large quantities of in- 
trenching tools, and Avas rapidly assembling a 
corps of negroes, nearly five hundred of whom 
he had already in M'aiting in Morgan's facto- 
ry, all prepared to follow his column, armed 
with spades and picks. In Madison County he 
intended getting at least five hundred more. " I 
will march," he said, " like Ctesar in Gaul, and 
intrench my camp every night. If I am attacked 
at any time in too great numbers, I can drop 
back to my nearest works, and wait for reen- 
forcements." Such was his plan ; and those who 
know him believe firmly that he could have been 
at Cumberland Gap in time not only to succor 
our little army there, but to have prevented the 
destruction and evacuation of that very impor- 
tant post. 

Wallace, finding himself thus suddenly super- 
seded, his plans ignored, and his voluntary ser- 
vices bluffly refused, left Lexington for Cincinnati. 
While there, the battle of Richmond was fought, 
the disastrous results of which are still too fresh 
in the public mind to require repeating. Nelson, 
who did not arrive upon the field until the day 
was about lost, and only in time to use his sword 
against his own men in a fruitless endeavor to 
rally them, received a flesh wound, and hastened 
back the same night to Cincinnati, leaving many 
dead and wounded on the field, and thousands of 
our brave boys prisoners, to be paroled by the 
rebels. These are simple matters of record, and 
are not here set down in any spirit of preju- 
dice, or to throw a shadow upon the memory 
of the misguided, unfortunate, but courageous 
Nelson. 

At this juncture. General Wallace Avas again 
ordered to Lexington, this time by General 
Wright, a General whose gentlemanly bearing 
in all capacities makes him an ornament to the 
American army. Wallace was ordered thither to 
resume command of the forces ; but on arriving 
at Paris, the order was countermanded, and he 
was sent back to take charge of the city of Cin- 
cinnati. Shrewdly suspecting that our forces 
would evacuate Lexington, he hastened to his 
new post. General AVright was at that time in 
Louisville. On his way back, Wallace was asked 
by one of his aids : / 



538 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



" Do you believe the enemy will come to Cin- 
cinnati ? " 

" Yes," was the reply. " Kirby Smith will 
first go to Frankfort. He must have that place, 
if possible, for the political effect it will have. If 
he gets it, he will surely come to Cincinnati. He 
is an idiot if he does not. Here is the material 
of war, — goods, groceries, salt, supplies, ma- 
chinery, &c., — enough to re-stock the whole bo- 
gus Confederacy." 

" What are you going to do ? You have noth- 
ing to defend the city with." 

" I will show you," was the reply. 

Within the first half hour after his arrival in 
Cincinnati, General Wallace wrote and sent to 
the daily papers the following proclamation, which 
fully and clearly develops his whole plan : 

" PROCLAMATION. 

" The undersigned, by order of ISIajor-General 
AVright, assumes command of Cincinnati, Coving- 
ton, and Newport. 

" It is but fair to inform the citizens, that an 
active, daring, and powerful enemy threatens 
them with every consequence of war ; yet the 
cities must be defended, and their inhabitants 
must assist in the preparation. 

" Patriotism, duty, honor, self-preservation, call 
them to the labor, and it must be performed 
equally by all classes. 

" First. All business must be suspended at 
nine o'clock to-day. Every business house must 
be closed. 

" Second. Under the direction of the Mayor, 
the citizens must, within an hour after the sus- 
pension of business (ten o'clock, A. M.), assem- 
ble in convenient public places, ready for orders. 
As soon as possible, they will then be assigned to 
their work. 

" This labor ought to be that of love, and the 
undersigned trusts and believes it will be so. 
Anyhow, it must be done. 

" The willing shall be properly credited ; the 
unwilling promptly visited. The ])rinciple adopt- 
ed is : Citizens for the labor, soldiers for the 
battle. 

" Third. The ferry-boats will cease plying the 
river after four o'clock A, M-., until further or- 
ders. 

" Martial law is hereby proclaimed in the three 
cities ; but until they can be relieved by the mili- 
tary, the injunctions of this proclamation will be 
executed by the police. 

" Leavis Wallace, 
" Major-General commanding." 

Could anything be bolder, and more to the 
purpose? It placed Cincinnati under martial 
law. It totally suspended business, and sent every 
citizen, without distinction, to the ranks or into 
the trenches. " Citizens for labor, soldiers for 
battle," was the principle underlying the whole 
plan — a motto by which he reached every able- 
bodied man in the metropolis, and united the en- 
ergies of forty thousand people — a motto origi- 
nal with himself, and for which he should have 
the credit. 



Imagine the astonishment that seized the citj', i , 
when, in the morning, this bold proclamation was i 
read — a city unused to the din of war and its 
impediments. As yet there was no word of an 
advance of the enemy in the direction of Cincin- 
nati. It was a question whether they would 
come or not. Thousands did not believe in the 
impending danger; yet the proclamation was 
obeyed to the letter, and this, too, when there 
was not a regiment to enforce it. The secret is 
easy of comprehension ; it was the universal con- 
fidence reposed in the man who issued the order ; 
and he was equally confident, not only in his own 
judgment, but in the people with whom he had 
to deal. 

" If the enemy should not come after all this 
fuss," said one of the General's friends, " you 
will be ruined," 

" Very well," he replied ; " but they will come. 
And if they do not, it will be because this same 
fuss has caused them to think better of it." 

The ten days ensuing will be forever memora- 
ble in the annals of the city of Cincinnati. The 
cheerful alacrity with which the people rose en 
masse to swell the ranks and crowd into the 
trenches was a sight worth seeing, and being 
seen, could not readily be forgotten. 

Here were the representatives of all nations 
and classes. The sturdy German, the lithe and 
gay-hearted Irishman, went shoulder to shoulder 
in defence of their adopted country. The man 
of money, the man of law, the merchant, the 
artist, and the artisan, swelled the lines hasten- 
ing to the scene of action, armed either with 
musket, pick, or spade. Added to these was 
seen Dickson's long and dusky brigade of colored 
men, cheerfully wending their way to labor on 
the fortifications, evidently holding it their espe- 
cial right to put whatever impediments they could 
in the northward path of those whom they con- 
sidered their own peculiar foe. But the pleasant- 
est and most picturesque sight of those remarka- 
ble days was the almost endless stream of sturdy 
men who rushed to the rescue from the rural dis- 
tricts of the State. These were known as the 
" Squirrel Hunters." They came in files number- 
ing thousands upon thousands, in all kinds of 
costumes, and armed with all kinds of fire-arms, 
but chiefly the deadly rifle, which they knew so 
well how to use. Old men, middle-aged men, 
young men, and often mere boys, like the " min- 
ute-men" of the old Revolution, they left the 
plough in the furrow, the flail on the half-threshed 
sheaves, the unfinished iron upon the anvil — in 
short, dropped all their peculiar avocations, and 
with their leathern pouches full of bullets, and 
their ox-horns full of powder, poured into the 
city by every highway and by-way in such num- 
bers that it seemed as if the Avhole State of Ohio 
were peopled only with hunters, and that the 
spirit of Daniel Boone stood upon the hills op- 
posite the town beckoning them into Kentucky. 
The pontoon bridge, which had been begun and 
completed between sundown and sundown, 
groaned day and night with the ])erpctiial stream 
of life all setting southward. In tliice days there 
Avere ten miles of intrenchments lining the hiUs, 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS, 



539 



making a semicircle from the river above the 
city to the banks of the river below ; and these 
were thickly manned from end to end, and 
made terrible to the astonished enemy by black 
and frowning cannon. General Heath, with his 
twenty thousand rebel veterans, flushed with 
their late success at Richmond, drew up before 
these formidable preparations, and deemed it 
prudent to take the matter into serious consider- 
ation before making the attack. 

Our men were eagerly awaiting their approach, 
thousands in rifle pits, and tens of thousands 
along the Avhole line of the fortifications, while 
our scouts and pickets Avere sl^rmishing with 
their outposts in the plains in front. Should the 
foe make a sudden dash, and carry any point of 
our lines, it was thought by some that nothing 
would prevent them from entering Cincinnati. 

But for this, also, provision was made. The 
river about the city, above and below, was well 
protected by a flotilla of gunboats, improvised 
from the swarm of steamers which lay at the 
wharves. A storm of shot and shell, such as 
they had not dreamed of, would have played upon 
their advancing column, while our regiments, 
pouring down from the fortifications, would have 
fallen upon their rear. The shrewd leaders of 
the rebel army were probably kept well posted 
by traitors within our own lines in regard to the 
reception prepared for them, and, taking advan- 
tage of the darkness of night, and the violence 
of a thunder-storm, made a hasty and ruinous 
retreat. Wallace was anxious to follow them, 
and was confident of success, but was overruled 
by those higher in authority. 

The address which he now published to the 
citizens of Cincinnati, Covington, and Newport, 
was manly and well-deserved. He says : 

"For the present, at least, the enemy has 
fallen back, and your cities are safe. It is the 
time for acknowledgments. I beg leave to make 
you mine. When I assumed command, there was 
nothing to defend you with, except a few haU- 
finished works and some dismounted guns ; yet I 
was confident. The energies of a great city are 
boundless ; they have only to be aroused, united, 
and directed. You were appealed to. The an- 
swer will never be forgotten. Paris may have 
seen something like it in her revolutionary days, 
but the cities of America never did. Be proud 
that you have given them an example so splen- 
did. The most commercial of people, you sub- 
mitted to a total suspension of business, and 
without a murmur adopted my principle, ' Citi- 
zens for labor, soldiers for battle.' In coming 
time, strangers, viewing the works on the hills of 
Newport and Covington, will ask, 'Who built 
these intrenchments ? ' You can answer, ' We 
built them.' If they ask, ' Who guarded them ? ' 
you can reply, ' We helped in thousands.' If 
they inquii-e the result, your answer will be, ' The 
enemy came and looked at them, and stole away 
in the night.' You have won much honor. Keep 
your organization ready to win more. Hereafter 
be always prepared to defend yourselves. 

" Lewis Wallace, Major-General." 



It can safely be claimed for our young Gen- 
eral, that he was the moving spirit which inspired 
and directed the people, and thereby saved Cin- 
cinnati and the surrounding cities, and, in the 
very face of Heath and his victorious hordes 
from Pdchmond, organized a new and formida- 
ble army. That the citizens fully indorsed this, 
was well exemplified on the occasion of his lead- 
ing back into the metropolis a number of her vol- 
unteer regiments when the danger was over. 
They lined the streets, crowded the doors and 
windows, and filled the air with shouts of ap- 
plause in honor of the great work he had done. 

In writing this notice of Wallace and the 
siege, we have had no intention to overlook the 
services of his co-laborers, especially those ren- 
dered to the AVest by the gallant Wright, who 
holds command of the department. The writer 
has attempted to give what came directly under 
his own observation, and what he believes to be 
the core of the matter, and consequently most 
interesting to the public. 



CAPTAIN SEMMES, C. S. A. N. 

June 19, 1864. 

Out of Cherbourg harbor, one clear 
Sunday morning, the cavalier, 
Captain Semmes, with his cap a-cock, 
Sailed from the friendly Frenchman's dock. 
Gayly along the rebel came. 
Under the flag of the cross of shame ; 
Knight of the handcuff and bloody lash, 
He twirled the point of his red mustache, 
And swore, in English not over nice, 
To sink our Yankee scum in a trice, 
Or burn our ship, as the thing might be, 
Where the eyes of Cherbourg all should see. 

'< Heigh-ho ! you don't say so ! " 
Whispered his friend, little Jean Crapeau. 

Semmes has been a wolf of the deep 

For many a day to harmless sheep ; 

Ships he scuttled, and robbed, and burned, 

Watches pilfered, and pockets turned ; 

And all his plunder, bonds, and gold, 

He left for his Gallic friend to hold. 

A little over-prudent was be, 

For a cavalier of high degree ; 

And Raphael Semmes don't sound, indeed, 

As if it came of the purple seed ; 

But all the blood in his veins was blue, 

And his clay was porcelain through and through. 

Heigh-ho ! the Lord doth know 
We are but dirt, and our blood's so-so. 

What will the doughty Captain do 
With his British ship, his British crew, 
His gunners, trained in the <' Excellent," 
The guns his cousin Blakeley sent, 
His shot and shell at Woolwich made, — 
What will he do with the whole parade ? 
Up to the top of his cliffs Crapeau 
Had clambered to see the Sunday show ; 
And his brother Bull, in his fancy yacht, 
Stood off and on towards the fated spot ; 
And right across the bold Captain's way 
The Kearsarge steamed in her war array. 

" Heigh-ho ! " said Semmes. " Let's blow 
That craft to splinters before we go." 



540 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



Semmes had heard, with his lip a-curl. 

In Cherbourg, that some Northern churl, 

Backed by a gang of onion-eaters. 

Waited the noble negro-beaters. 

Shop-keeping, peddling, vulgar knaves, 

To stick their heads into open graves ! 

" 'Sdeath ! 'Swounds! 'Ods bodikins ! Ha ! what 

then ? 
Will they dare to fight with gentlemen ? 
O, had I my lance, and shield, and things, 
With which I tilted at Sulphur Springs ! 
Or a troop of horse marines ! Of course, 
A knight is nothing without his horse." 

Hcigh-ho ! this seemed to show 
Our hero's spirits were running low. 

Straight out to sea the Kearsarge drew. 

And Semmes, who followed all that flew, 

Followed, perhaps by some mistake. 

Close in his foeman's frothing wake ; 

But when three leagues were gained from shore, 

Slowly and grimly the Yankee wore ; 

And our starry ensign leaped above. 

Round which the wind, like a fluttering dove, 

Cooed low, and the sunshine of God's day 

Like an open blessing on it lay ; 

So we felt our friendless ship would fight 

Full under the great Disposer's sight. 

^Heigh-ho ! 'tis well to know 
Wno looks on the deeds done here below. 

Semmes led the waltz, and struck the tune : 

Shots at the sea and at the moon 

The swashing, wasteful cavalier 

Scattered around him, far and near. 

The saving Yankees squandered not 

An ounce of powder or pound of shot. 

They held their peace till the guns would tell, 

Then out they burst like the mouths of hell. 

Terrible, horrible ! how they tore 

The Alabama, until the gore 

From her bursting scuppers smoked and streamed. 

The dying groaned, and the wounded screamed. 

" Heigh-ho ! " said Semmes ; "let's show 
The Yankees the heels we boast of so." 

Seven times in that deadly round 
Sped the ships to the cannon's sound. 
The vulture, through the smoke and din, 
Saw the eagle's circles narrowing in ; 
And every time her pivots roared 
The fatal bomb-shells came straight aboard. 
His helm was useless, his engine failed. 
His powder was wet, his Britons quailed ; 
And in his course, like a warning hand. 
Stretched forth the flag of his outraged land. 
In vain he hoisted his sails to flee ; 
For each foot he sailed, his foe sailed three. 

Heigh-ho ! " Why, here's a blow," 
Said Semmes, as he hauled his flag below. 

Well was it for the cavalier. 

That brother Bull was lying near. 

His vessel with a haughty curl 

Turned up her nose, and in the whirl 

Of the white sea, stern foremost, tore 

As if in scorn of the crew she bore. 

Then the thrifty Briton laimched his boat, 

To pick up aught that might be afloat. 

And, amongst other less precious spoil. 

Fished swordless Semmes from his watery coil ! 



" Hide me ! " the gallant cried in affright ; 
" Cover me up from the Yankee's sight." 

Heigh-ho ! they laid him low. 
With a bit of sail to hide his woe. 

Safely they bore the chief aboard. 
Leaving behind his fame and sword ; 
And then the Deerhound stole away. 
Lest Winslow's guns might have 3^ say ; 
Landed him in Southampton town, 
AVhcre heroes like him have hand renown, 
Ever since Lawrence, Perry, and Hull, 
Took hold of the horns of great John Bull. 
Had I been Winslow, I say to you. 
As the sea is green, the sky is blue. 
Through the Deerhound I'd have sent a shot, 
And John might have liked the thing or not ! 

Heigh-ho ! come soon or slow. 
In the end we are bound to have a blow. 

What said the Frenchman from his hill, 

After the cannon shots were still ? 

What said the Briton from his deck, 

Gazing down on the sunken wreck ? 

Something was said of guns like mortars, 

And something of smooth-bores at close quarters 

Chain armor furnished a word or two. 

But the end of all was, both looked blue. 

They sighed again o'er the " Great Contention," 

But never hinted at "Intervention." 

One thing they wished, which they dared not say- 

" If the fight had but gone the other way ! 

Heigh-ho ! I told you so ! 
O, Semmes was a sorry fool to go ! " 

George II. Boker. 



Brave Officers make a Brave Army. — A 
correspondent, writing of the battle of Chicka- 
mauga, says : " The rebel forces from the East 
fought with a gallantry allied to desperation, and 
I do not wonder that our boys were proud to say, 
when asked to whom they were opposed, * Long- 
street's men.' The rebel fashion of coming out to 
battle is peculiar. Had you seen them streaming 
out of the woods, in long, gray lines, into the open 
field, you could have likened them to nothing bet- 
ter than to streams of turbid water pouring through 
a sieve. And writing of valor, let me say that 
the difiference among regiments consists not more 
in the material of the rank and file than it does in 
the coolness, judgment, and bravery of the officers, 
and the faith the soldiers repose in them. That 
faith has a magic in it that tones men up, and 
makes more and nobler of them than there was 
before. It is the principle recognized by the 
great Frederick when he addressed his General — 
' I send you against the enemy with sixty thou- 
sand men.' ' But, sire,' said the officer, ' there are 
only fifty thousand.' ' Ah, I counted you as ten 
thousand,' was the monarch's wise and quick re- 
ply. I have a splendid illustration of this in an 
incident which occurred on the Sunday at Chick- 
amauga. It was near four o'clock on that blazing 
afternoon, when a part of General Steedman's 
division of the Reserve corps bowed their heads 
to the hurtling storm of lead, as if it had been 
rain, and betrayed signs of breaking. The line 



ANECDOTES, POETllY, AND INCIDENTS. 



541 



wavered like a great flag in a breath of wind. 
They were as splendid material as ever shouldered 
a musket ; but then what could they do in such a 
blinding tempest ! General Steedman rode up — 
a great, hearty man, broad-breasted, broad-shoul- 
dered, a face written all over with sturdy sense 
and stout courage ; no lady's man, to make bou- 
quets for snowy fingers, and sing, ' Meet me by 
moonlight alone,' like some Generals I could name, 
but realizing the ideal of ray boyhood, Avhen I 
read of the stout old Morgan of the Kevolution. 
Well, up rode Steedman, took the flag from the 
color-bearer, glanced along the wavering front, 
and with that voice of his that could talk against 
a small rattle of musketry, cried out, ' Go back, 
boys, go back ; but the flag can't go with you,' — 
grasped the stafi", Avheeled his horse, and rode on. 
Must I tell you that the column closed up, and 
grew firm, and moved resistlessly on like a great 
strong river, and swept down upon the foe, and 
made a record that shall live when their graves 
are as empty as the cave of Machpelah ? They 
were, in a sense nobler than Shakspeare's, they 
Tvere tliemselves again." 



A New KNiGur of the Garter. — Wliile 
the Seventh regiment of New York was passing 
through Philadelphia, a fine old Quaker lady, ob- 
serving that one of the band was in a state of 
great embarrassment for the lack pf a string with 
which to secure the mouth of his bag of provis- 
ions, observed quietly, " Friend, I would not give 
thee an implement of war, but thee shall have a 
string to preserve thy food." Then she turned 
partly away for an instant, and stooped down, to 
tie her shoe, apparently ; but when she rose up 
she handed to the blushing blower of brass a neat 
green band, that a moment before had been doing 
duty as a — a — a — well, garter. 



Force of Habit. — A Captain, who had been 
a railroad conductor before the war, was drilling 
a squad, and while marching them by flank, turned 
to speak to a friend for a moment. On looking 
again towards his squad, he saw they were in the 
act of "butting up " against a fence. In his hur- 
ry to halt them, he cried out, "Down brakes! 
Down brakes ! " 

A lover's letter picked up at Laurel Hill 
Camp, Va., runs as follows : " I say agen deer 
Melindy weer fltin for our liburtis to dew gest as 
we pleas, and we wil fite fur them so long as 
goddlemity give us breth." 



A Practical Joke. — A gallant volunteer of- 
ficer was searching the houses of citizens for arms, 
with a squad of men, and on arriving at the resi- 
dence of an old gentleman named Hayes, M'as met 
in the hall by his daughter, — a beautiful, black- 
eyed girl of eighteen, — who appeared deeply agi- 
tated, and imi)lored the Captain not to search 
the house. The officer was sternly immovable. 



resolved to do his duty, and the more bent upon 
searching from the apparent dismay of the fair 
girl. "Indeed — indeed," she exclaimed, "we 
have only three guns in the house." 

The Captain smiled incredulously. " Fetch 
them to me," said he, remembering the fate of 
poor Ellsworth. The young lady hurried up 
stairs, and returned with an old, rusty, double- 
barrelled shot gun that no prudent man would have 
ventured to load and discharge. " The others — 
the other two ! " demanded the officer. " sir, 
my brothers !" sobbed the girl. " I cannot take 
them from them ! " 

The Captain pushed her on one side. " Forward, 
men ! " he shouted, falling into the rear himself. 
As the file of soldiers hastily mounted the stairs, 
the young lady clung to the skirts of the officer, 
who was the last to ascend, exclaiming wildly : 

"But — but, sir, my brothers — you will not 
harm my brothers ? " 

The Captain shook her off" somewhat ungal- 
lantly, and rushed up after the soldiers, who, by 
this time, reached the closed door of a chamber. 
After a pause, the men pushed open the door, and 
rushed in with bayonets fixed, when two juvenile 
Zouaves, of the ages of eight and ten years, fully 
armed and equipped with wooden guns, appeared 
drawn up in line before them. At the same mo- 
ment the silvery laugh of tlie black-eyed beauty 
was heard on the stairs, echoed by a couple of 
chambermaids, who were peeping over the balus- 
ters from above. The officer beat a hasty retreat, 
without making a seizure of the two remaining 
guns. 

Love, Hate, and Piety on the Battle- 
field. — A Rhode Island soldier, utterly ex- 
hausted, stepped aside to rest a few moments 
under the shade. There he found a gasping and 
dying Southern soldier, and put his almost ex- 
hausted canteen to his parched lips. The dying 
soldier — an enthusiast in his cause — with high 
excitement gasped out : " Why do you come to 
fight us ? We shall utterly annihilate you. We 
have ninety thousand men. You can never sub- 
jugate us. We have a series of batteries beyond 
which will destroy all the armies you can bring." 
The Rhode Island soldier proceeded to state — 
and how strange and how tremendously real the 
discussion then and so ! — that the object of the 
war was not the subjugation of the South, but 
the preservation of the Union. " And now," said 
the manly fellow, " I have given you water from 
my canteen, when its drops are more precious 
than diamonds. If you had found me in this 
state, what would you have done ? " The eyes 
of the dying man gleamed, as the soldier said, 
like those of a basilisk, and he replied, " I would 
have put my bayonet to your heart." In a few 
moments he went into eternity, and the Rhode 
Islander resumed his place on the battle-field. 

But there were also instances of Christian feel- 
ing exhibited on the battle-field, one of which is 
very afi"ecting. A wounded Federal soldier was 
hastily carried to a wood, and placed by the side 
of a dying Georgian. The Georgian, evidently 



542 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



a gentleman, said to him, as they lay bleeding 
side by side, "We came on this field enemies — 
let us part friends ; " and extended to him his 
hand, which the other grasped with the reciprocal 
expression of friendly feeling. They were both 
Christian men, and they lay with clasped hands 
on that bloody field, until the hand of the noble 
Georgian was cold in death. How beautiful that 
scene, amid the horrors of the battle-field ! Who 
shall say, in ^iew of it, that because of this strife 
between therforth and South, they can never 
again clasp hands in mutual friendship and es- 
teem? Who shall say that the time shall not 
come, when, on some well-fought field, they who 
met as enemies shall part as friends, and peace 
and restoration and mutual esteem ensue ? 

Another incident was sublime, and shows how 
close Christ Jesus is to his people, wherever they 
may be. A strong, tall man from Maine received 
a minie ball directly in his breast ; and with the 
outstretched arms and the upward leap which is 
said often to mark such a death, he exclaimed, 
" Lord Jesus, receive my spirit." 



To THE Women of the South. — The Mem- 
phis Appeal of April 21, 1861, contains the an- 
nexed communication : 

" While the men in every part of the coimtry 
are arming themselves and mustering in squadrons 
to resist the invasion and oppression threatening 
our beloved land, let us emulate the enthusiasm 
of our husbands, sons, and friends in the cause. 
Many of our daughters are already active in the 
service with their needles. Let the matrons of 
every city, village, and hamlet form themselves 
into societies, called by some appropriate name, 
pledged to take care of the sick and wounded 
soldiers of the Confederate army, whenever the 
changing drama of war shall bring them in their 
neighborhood ; to take them, if necessary and 
practicable, to their own homes. Let the organ- 
izations be commenced at once, with officers ap- 
pointed and known, to whom the ofliicers of the 
military companies may communicate the wants 
of the soldiers, and call upon for aid when the 
time for action shall come ; and Baltimore has 
taught us how soon it may come. I offer myself 
for the work. Will not some matron Avith more 
time take the lead, and allow me to serve in a 
subordinate capacity ? Let the women of the 
entire South join and spread the organization 
till not a spot within the Southern borders shall 
be without its band of sisters, pledged to the 
work and ready for it ; and thus shall every mother 
feel assured, in sending her sons to the field, that 
in time of need they shall have the tender care 
of some other mother, whose loved ones are in 
the patriot ranks at other points, and our soldiers 
feel sure that true hearts are near them wherever 
they may be. ]\Iary E. Pope." 



Juvenile Patriotism. — Li Manchester, New 
Hamp.shire, a little fellow just past his first de- 
cade stepped into his father's office, and said to 



one of the clerks, " I shall get my company full 
pretty soon; I have sworn in three to-day." 
" Sworn in," said the clerk ; " how did you do it ? " 
" I made them hold up their hands and say, ' Glory 
to God,' " said the incipient Captain. 

The following is a counterpart for the above 
story. A six-year old Boston boy, who had be- 
come deeply imbued with the martial spirit, un- 
dertook to act as commander of a diminutive 
company in a New Hampshire town, where he 
was spending his vacation. He somewhat " as- 
tonished the natives " by the following order, 
given in a very excited tone : " Company ! Ene- 
my's coming ! Forward, march ! A7nen ! " 



THE JAGUAR HUNT. 

BY J. T. TROWBRIDGE. 

The dark jaguar was abroad in the land ; 

His strength and his fierceness what foe could with- 
stand ? 

The breath of his anger was hot on the air, 

And the white lamb of peace he had dragged to his 
lair. 

Then up rose the farmer ; he summoned his sons : 
" Now saddle your horses, now look to your 

guns ! " 
And he called to his hound, as he sprang from the 

ground 
To the back of his black pawing steed with a 

bound. 

O, their hearts, at the word, how they tingled and 

stirred ! 
They followed, all belted, and booted, and spurred. 
" Buckle tight, boys! " said he, " for who gallops 

with me, 
Such a himt as was never before shall he see. 

"This traitor, we know him! for when he was 
yoimger, 

We flattered him, patted him, fed his fierce hun- 
ger : 

But now far too long we have borne with the 
wrong, 

For each morsel we tossed makes him savage and 
strong." 

Then said one, " He must die ! " And they took 
up the cry, 

" For this last crime of his he must die ! he must 
die ! " 

But the slow eldest-born sauntered sad and forlorn, 

For his heart was at home on that fair hunting- 
morn. 

"I remember," he said, "how this fine cub we 

track 
Has carried me many a time on his back ! " 
And he called to his brothers, " Fight gently ! be 

kind ! " 
And he kept the dread hound, Retribution, behind. 

The dark jaguar, on a bough in the brake, 
Crouched, silent and wilj, and lithe as a snake : 
They spied not their game, but, as onward they 

came, 
Through the dense leafage gleamed two red eyeballa 

of flame. 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



543 



Black-spotted, and mottled, and whiskered, and 

grim, 
White-bellied, and j^ellow, he lay on the limb. 
And so still that you saw but one tawny paw 
Lightly reach through the leaves, and as softly 

withdraw. 

Then shrilled his fierce cry, as the riders drew 

nigh. 
And he shot from the bough like a bolt from the sky : 
In the foremost he fastened his fangs as he fell, 
Wliile all the black jungle re-echoed his yell. 

O, then there was carnage by field and by flood ! 
The green sod was crimsoned, the rivers ran blood, 
The cornfields were trampled, and all in their track 
The beautiful valley lay blasted and black. 

Now the din of the conflict swells deadly and loud, 
And the diist of the tumult rolls up like a cloud : 
Then afar down the slope of the Southland recedes 
The wild rapid clatter of galloping steeds. 

With wide nostrils smoking, and flanks dripping 

gore, 
The black stallion bore his bold rider before, 
As onward they thundered through forest and glen, 
A-hunting the stark jaguar to his den. 

In April, sweet April, the chase was begun ; 
It was April again when the hunting was done ; 
The snows of four winters and four summers green 
Lay red-streaked and trodden, and blighted be- 
tween » 

Then the monster stretched all his grim length on 

the groimd ; 
His life-blood was wasting from many a wound ; 
Ferocious and gory, and snarlmg he lay, 
Amid heaps of the whitening bones of his prey. 

Then up spoke the slow eldest son, and he said, 
" All he needs now is just to be fostered and fed ! 
Give over the strife ! Brothers, put up the knife ! 
We will tame him, reclaim him, but not take his 
life 1 " 

But the farmer flung back the false words in his 

face : 
" He is none of my race who gives counsel so base ! 
Now let loose the hound 1 " And the hound was 

unbound, 
And like lightning the heart of the traitor lie foimd. 

" So rapine and treason forever shall cease ! " 
And the)"- wash the stained fleece of the pale lamb 

of peace ; 
When, lo ! a strong angel stands winged and white 
In a wondering raiment of ravishing light ! 

Peace is raised from the dead ! In the radiance 

shed 
By the halo of glory that shines round her head. 
Fair gardens shall bloom where the black jungle 

grew, 
And all the glad vallev shall blossom anew ! 



A Patriotic Maryland Lady. — In making 
the surveys for the intrenchments to be made 
on the northern and eastern sides of the city of 
Washington, the engineer officers came to a 
lovely spot near Bladensburg. A pretty cottage 



stood on the brow of the hill, surrounded on all 

sides by shrubbery, grapevines, orchards, shade 
trees, a superb lawn, a beautiful flower garden, 
&c. It was, indeed, a little paradise. It was the 
residence of a lady and her daughters, whose 
husband was now away fighting in the service of 
his country. The line of the intrenchments, as 
surveyed, passed directly over this spot. The hill 
commands the surrounding country for miles, and 
therefore is the proper spot for a battery. But 
the officers saw at a glance that if a battery was 
erected there, it would be necessary to cut down 
every tree in the orchard, to clear away all the 
shrubbery, and to make the ditch for the par- 
apet in the flower garden. In a word, the mili- 
tary works would completely demolish the place, 
and render it a desert. The officers made sev- 
eral surveys, in hopes of finding some way in 
which to avoid the necessity of occupying this 
property at all. But in vain. There was no 
other hill in the neighborhood that possessed the 
necessary military qualifications. Calling upon 
the lady, therefore, the offi.cers explained, in the 
most delicate manner, the object of their visit, 
and the military necessity which doomed her 
beautiful grounds to destruction. The lady lis- 
tened in silence. Tears rose to her eyes. She 
arose, walked to the open window, looked for a 
moment upon the lovely scene, and then, turning 
to the officers, said : " If it must be so, take it 
freely. I hoped to live here in peace and quiet, 
and never to leave this sweet spot, which my hus- 
band has beautified for years past. But if my 
country demands it, take it freely. You have my 
consent." Then offering refreshments to the offi- 
cers, she said no more on the subject. In the 
war of the revolution, in 1777, a lady of South 
Carolina brought to General Marion the arrows 
with which to set fire to her own house. But 
surely the devoted patriotism of this Maryland 
lady is deserving of no less praise. — Washing- 
ton Letter. 

VlLLUM AND HIS Havelock, — The members 
of the Mackerel Brigade, says the inimitable 
Orpheus C. Kerr, now stationed on Arlington 
Heights, to watch the movements of the_ Poto- 
mac, which is expected to rise shortly, desire me 
to thank the ladies of America for supplies^ of 
havelocks and other delicacies of the season just 
received. The havelocks, my boy, are rather 
roomy, and we took them for shirts at first ; and 
the shirts are so narrow-minded that we topk 
them for havelocks. If the women of America 
could manage to get a little less linen into the col- 
lars of the latter, and a little more into the other 
department of the graceful "garmint," there 
would be fewer colds in this division of the 
Grand Ai-my. The havelocks, as I have said be- 
fore, are roomy — - very roomy, my boy. YilUara 
Brown, of company G, put one on last night 
when he went on sentry duty, and looked like a 
broomstick in a pillow-case, for all the world. 
When the officer came round, and caught sight 
of Villiam in his havelock, he was struck dumb with 
admiration for a moment. Then he ejaculated : 



544 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



" What a splendid moonbeam ! " 

Villiam made a movement, and the Sergeant 
came up. 

" What's that white object ? " says the officer 
to the Sergeant. " Thunder ! " roared the offi- 
cer ; " tell him to go to his tent, and take off that 
nightgown." 

•' You're mistaken," says the Sergeant ; " the 
sentry is Villiam Brown, in his havelock, which 
was made by the women of America." 

The officer was so justly exasperated at his 
mistake, that he went immediately to his head- 
quarters and. took the oath three times running, 
with a little sugar. 

The oath is very popular, my boy, and comes 
in bottles. I take it medicinally myself. 

The shirts made by the ladies of America are 
noble articles, as far down as the collar, but 
would not do to use as an only garment. Cap- 
tain Mortimer de Montague, of the skirmish 
squad, put one on when he went to the Presi- 
dent's reception, and the collar stood up so high 
that he couldn't put his cap on, while the other 
department didn't reach quite to his waist. His 
appearance at the White House was picturesque 
and interesting, and as he entered the drawing- 
room. General Scott remarked very feelingly : 

" Ah ! here comes one of the wounded he- 
roes." 

" He's not wounded, General," remarked an 
officer standing by. 

" Then why is his head bandaged up so ? " 
asked the venerable veteran. 

" O," says the officer, " that's only one of the 
shirts made by the patriotic women of America." 

In about five minutes after this conversation I 
saw the venerable veteran and the wounded hero 
at the office taking the oath together. 



A Rebel killed by a AVoman. A Union 
man by the name of Glover, residing in one of 
the counties west of Quincy, Illinois, owning a 
number of valuable horses, and having fear of 
their appropriation to rebel uses, concluded to 
place them in the hands of a company of Home 
Guards in the neighborhood for safe keeping. A 
day or two afterwards, while Glover was absent 
from home, a rebel called at his house to inquire 
for him. His wife was in the garden adjoining 
a cornfield, some distance from the house, when 
the rebel approached her, and made several in- 
quiries, to which she gave no very satisfactory 
answers. He then insisted on being informed 
where Glover was, and, with revolver in hand, 
threatened instant death if not told. He also de- 
manded of her to deliver up a valuable gun 
owned by Glover. The two started for the house 
through tlie cornfield, and on the way, Mrs. 
Glover succeeded, without being observed, in get- 
ting possession of a large corn knife that had been 
left in the field, and M'atching the opportunity, 
took a favorable moment for striking a blow, 
which she did most effectually, the knife severing 
the skull, and killing the rebel instantl)'. Mrs. 
Glover had a small child with her in the gar- 



den, which she left when starting for the house, 
intending to return for it immediately. Having 
despatched the rebel, she returned to the gar- 
den, when she discovered several other rebels in 
ambush, a short distance from her. She took her 
child, and being yet unperceived by them, sought 
a place of concealment until they should retire. 
They soon emerged from their hidiiig-jilace, and 
searching for their companion, they found his 
lifeless Ijody where he had been stricken down, 
and bore it off, greatly to the relief of Mrs. 
Glover. 

" Confiscate de Ole 'oman ! " — One of the 
Pike County boys at Louisiana (Missouri) found 
an old negro in the woods who had heard that 
secession property was to be confiscated, and 
therefore commenced by executing the order upon 
himself. He surrendered to the invader, and 
gave a history of himself, concluding by saying : 
" Gorry, massa ! I'll brack your boots, brush your 
close, bring your water — do anything you want 
me, if you'll only confiscate de ole 'oman ! " 



A Touching Incident. — Just before the ad- 
vance of the national army toAvards Piichmond, 
General Sherman's brigade, consisting of the 
Thirteenth, Sixty-ninth, and Seventy-ninth New 
York, and the Second Wisconsin regiments, was 
encamped near Ball's Cross-Roads, not far from 
a church known as Ball's Church. In the church- 
yard is the grave of a little child belonging to a 
Union family by the name of Osborne. The 
grave is surrounded by a picket fence, upon 
which there was no inscription. This being ob- 
served by Captain Haggerty, of the Sixty-ninth, 
he went to the trouble of placing upon it a board 
bearing the age and name of the little one. In 
a few days the brigade marched for the fatal field 
of Bull Run, where the gallant Haggerty met a 
soldier's fate, while acting as Lieutenant-Colonel 
of his regiment. After the return of the troops 
to the Potomac, Ball's Cross-Roads and the 
Church were used as outposts, and quite a num- 
ber of soldiers who were from time to time sta- 
tioned in the neighborhood, placed additional in- 
scriptions upon the fence commemorative of the 
departed officer. One of these read as follows : 

"Bull Run was where Haggerty was lulled. 
Will they do as much for him as he did for this 
poor child ? " 

The incident was related by private B. F. Mor- 
gan, of company A, Tliirteenth regiment. Mr. M. 
visited the spot afterwards, in company with the 
mother of the child, as her escort. She was 
greatly affected on seeing what had been done. 



Rattlesnakes vs. Rebels. — The best piece 
of satire upon the leniency observed by the au- 
thorities, in the early part of the war, in reference 
to rebels found committing depredations, is con- 
tained in the following story : Some of the sol- 
diers belonging to General Cox's army, stationed 
in Kanawha, Virginia, caught a large rattlesnake, 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



545 



which manifested a most mischievous disposition, 
snapping and thrusting out its forked tongue at 
all who came near it. The boys at last got tii-ed 
of the reptile, and as nobody wanted such a dan- 
gerous companion, the question arose, "What 
shall we do with him ? " This question was pro- 
pounded several times without an answer, when 
a half-drunken soldier, who was lying near, upon 
his back, rolled upon his side, and relieved his 
companions by quietly remarking: "D — n it! 
swear him, and let him go ! " 



ONLY ONE. 

•' There is no cloud in all the sky "; 

I hear the distant bugles play ; 
You tremble, sister — so do I. 

Our soldiers both come home to-day." 

" One cloud there is, Maud, on the blue ; 

'Tis but a rustic horn you hear. 
I tremble ? — nay ! or if I do. 

It is not for myself I fear." 

"Not for j-ourself? For whom, then, pray ? 

For Avhom can you have cause to feel ? 
Those are the bugles, Anne, I say. 

And — ha ! I see the flash of steel ! " 

The sabres glitter in the sun ; 

The war-worn ranks ride slowly past ; 
One soldier halts, — ah ! only one ! — 

And cries, "At last, beloved — at last ! " 

His steed stands, wistful-eyed, apart, 
And looks upon the ripening grain ; 

But who is to the rider's heart 
Thus pressed — again, and yet again ? 

Alas ! one cloud still spans the sky ; 

And still the distant bugles play. 
Poor Maud ! the ranks have long passed by ; 

But only One came home to-day ! 



Peactical Patkiotism. — In the early part 
of the war, when patriotic merchants and manu- 
facturers were sending their clerks and workmen 
to the field, with a promise to provide for the 
wants of their families, as well as to continue 
their salaries during their absence, a very en- 
thusiastic landlady of New York offered to 
allow her boarders' bills to run on, as usual, 
should any of them desire to go for the defence 
of the nation. 

A Cosmopolitan Hibernian. — A son of the 
Emerald Isle, but not himself green, was taken 
up (for he was at the time down) near a rebel en- 
campment, not far from Manassas Junction. In 
a word, Pat was taking a quiet nap in the shade, 
and was roused from his slumber by a scouting 
party. He wore no special uniform of either 
army, but looked more like a spy than an alliga- 
tor, and on this was arrested. 

" Who are you ? " " What is your name ? " 
and " Where are you from ? " were the first 
questions put to him by the armed party. 
35 



Pat rubbed his eyes, scratched his head, and 
answered : 

"Be me faith, gentlemen, them is ugly ques- 
tions to answer, anyhow ; an' before I answer 
any o' them, I'd be afther axin'ye, by yer lave, the 
same thing." 

" Well," said the leader, "we are of Scott's 
army, and belong to Washington." 

" All right," said Pat ; " I know'd ye was gin- 
tlemen, for I am that same. Long life to Gen- 
eral Scott." 

" Aha ! " replied the scout, " now, you rascal, 
you are our prisoner," and seized him by the 
shoulder. 

" How is that," inquired Pat ; " are we not 
friends ? " 

" No," was the answer. " We belong to Gen- 
eral Beauregard's army." 

" Then ye tould me a lie, me boys ; and think- 
in' it might be so, I tould you another. And 
now tell me the truth, an' I'll tell the truth, too." 

" Well, we belong to the State of South Caro- 
lina." 

" So do I," promptly responded Pat, " and to 
all the other States uv the country, too ; and there, 
I'm thinkin', I bate the whole uv ye. Do ye 
think I would come all the way from Ireland to 
belong to one State, when I had a right to be- 
long to the whole uv 'em? " 

This logic was rather a stumper ; but they took 
him up, as before said, and carried him for fur- 
ther examination. 

Incidents of Yorktown. — The following 
stories by an officer show the temper and spirit 
with which the advent of the Yankees was looked 
for by the negroes. A couple of officers were 
advancing some distance apart from their men, 
when they were hailed by an old negro woman 
standing in the door of her rude cabin. " Bless 
de Lord, bless de Lord," she exclaimed as loud 
as she could, " yer's come at last, yer's come 
at last ! I've looked for yer these many 
years, and now yer's come. Bless de Lord." 
Nothing could exceed the old woman's de- 
light at seeing the Yankees. This means 
something, and how much ! In the childish de- 
light of that old woman what a history is 
suggested. Long years she had waited to see 
this deliverance. Slave she was, and the slow 
years dragged their weary lengths past her youth, 
and still hope whispered that the hour would 
come when the bondage woidd be broken. At 
last it comes, when the spring of hfe is gone, and 
yet her aged lips are eloquent with joy. 
# # ♦ * # * 

The battery of which I spoke is in charge of 
the First Connecticut artillery, and is built in 
front of a large and stately brick mansion, which 
is surrounded by peach orchards. It is the prop- 
erty of Mrs. Fan-enholt, whose son and husband 
are in the rebel army. 

Mrs. Farrenholt is a lady somewhat advanced 
in years, very secesh in opinion, who has re- 
mained on her estate ; but she is now dwelling 
in a small house removed from the danger result- 



546 



ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



ing from the guns of her own friends. The other 
day an officer belonging to the artillery corps had 
some little conversation with the lady, to the fol- 
lowing effect : 

Federal Officer. — Madam, good morning ; I 
desire to purchase a horse from you. 
-- SecesJi Lady. — I require what horses I have 
to plough ; I cannot spare one. 

F. 0. — (Referring to the shells from the ene- 
my.) That will be quite unnecessary ; your peo- 
ple are ploughing up your ground for you. 

8. L. — Are they planting also ? 

F. 0. — They haven't planted any of us yet. 
But as they have not concluded their work yet, I 
cannot tell you what they will do. 

8. L. — Ah ! well, if they plant any of your 
blue-coated comrades, I hope they wont sprout. 
Good morning. 

The officer withdrew. Evidently the secesh 
lady thought Uncle Sam's sprouts were quite 
thick enough on her estate. 



The Effect of Music. — A correspondent, 
writing from the army of the Potomac, in June, 
1862, says : " Speaking of the spirit of the men 
reminds me of an incident, both grand and beau- 
tiful, which took place in Butterfield's brigade. 
For months there has been a standing order 
against the playing of bands in camp, and in not 
one instance of the numerous late battles have 
our splendid bands been allowed to inspire the 
heart of the brave soldier by the strains of patri- 
otic music. A great mistake, all will say. Dur- 
ing the fight yesterday afternoon, an order came 



for Morell's division to repair to the hill near 
where the battle was going on, and act as a sup- 
port for the reserve artillery. The men obeyed 
the order to fall in promptly, though the weather 
was scorching hot, and they had been four days 
without rest or sleep. 

" A happy thought struck Captain Thomas J. 
Hoyt, of General Butterfield's staff, who saw that 
the men looked weary and exhausted. He im- 
mediately gathered all the regimental bands, 
placed them at the head of the brigade, and or- 
dered them to i^lay. Th^ started the ' Star- 
spangled Banner ; ' and the first note had hardly 
been struck when the men caught the spirit, and 
cheer after cheer arose from regiment after 
regimenf, and was borne away upon the bosom 
of the placid river. The band continued to 
play, and other regiments and other brigades 
caught the spirit, and the air resounded with tu- 
multuous applause at the happy hit, until all the 
columns on that vast plain«were vying with each 
other to do homage to the inspiriting strains of 
the band. After several tunes, Major Welch, of 
the Sixteenth Michigan, in a brief speech, pro- 
posed three cheers for the hero of the command, 
General Daniel Butterfield, which were given in 
magnificent style. To add to the enthusiasm; 
General McClellan happened to ride through tht 
field just then, and was received w'ith an out- 
burst that fairly astonished him. 

" The scene was continued, the brigade moved 
off with the band playing, and had there bfeen a 
fight in the next field, the men would have gone 
into action on the double-quick to the tune of 
Yankee Doodle, if every one had known that 
death would be his fate. " 



IliTDEX. 



" A Baptist, an' allers was," an anecdote, 253 

A battle within a battle, a scene at Fair Oaks , ... 218 
A beautiful incident of the surrender of Lexington, 465 
A belligerent woman at Branchville, S. C, .... 450 

Abou Ben Adhem, the other one, 73 

Abou Ben Butler, a poem, 23 

A case of affection, the old woman and her mule, . . 318 
A challenge from the Pillow Guards to the Pren- 
tiss Guards, 160 

A classic soldier, 289 

A contraband refrain, 31 

Adams, H. A., Lieutenant Commander, incident un- 
der a flag of truce, 225 

Adams, Lyman Beecher, an anecdote, 354 

A dinner party broken up, an incident of Vicks- 

burg, 435 

" Advance, ass, and give the countersign," .... 145 

Adventure with an alligator, 303 

Adventures of a despatch-bearer, 56 

Adventures in the South, 105 

Adventures in Virginia, 133 

Adventures of a spy, Dan. K. Cole, 308 

Adventures of an Iowa boy, 4r0 

A frightened contraband, 141 

After the fight, a poem, 375 

A good ruse, an anecdote of Kentucky, 440 

" A Griswold for an Alabama," 145 

Ague, a Southern cure for, 404 

A heroic chaplain, 370 

A hospital incident, " legs versus souls," 329 

A humorous incident of a Boston court 73 

A Joan d'Arc, account of Miss Oldora, 347 

Akers, Paul, Mrs., poem by, 139 

A laughable adventure, by J. H. Spencer, 319 

"Alabama," the cruise of the, 87 

" Alabama," the end of the, described by a Confed- 
erate, 238 

" Alabama," the destruction of the, a poem, .... 539 

Alabama, the Union men of, described, 215 

Alabama, an instance of the freedom of speech in, 354 
Albemarle, story of the destruction of the, . < . . 533 

Aldrich, T. B, poems by, 9 

" Alex," how he got his pocket Bible, IGO 

Alexandria, Mo., incidents of, 304 

Alger, Horatio, Jr., poem, by, 243 

Alienations of war, father and son, 347 

Allen, Tom, Captain, the dead brought to life, . . 58 

Alligator, a soldier's adventure with an, 303 

"All we ask i.i to be let alone." by H. H. Brow- 
nell 29 



A lover's letter, curious specimen, 541 

A man of nerve, 56 

A Masonic incident, 134 

Ambiguity, an anecdote, 404 

Amenities of war, incidents of General McCall's 

experience, 340 

American geography, French notions of, 214 

A military execution in the army of the Potomac, 394 

Amnesty proclamation, how received by the rebels, 23 

A Mohammedan Colonel, 134 

Amongthe rebels at Camp Dennison, 488 

Amputation, how it is performed, 349 

An affecting incident of the hospital, 341 

An agreeable surprise ; none of them dead, .... 300 

A narrow escape, 125 

A national hymn, by Park Benjamin, 71 

Anderson, Robert, General, at Fort Sumter, .... 27 
Anderson, Robert, General, the providential deliv- 
erance of, 441 

Anderson, R. M, song by, 520 

Anderson, T. M., his account of his capture and es- 
cape, , 194 

Andrew, John A., anecdote of, 484 

Andrew, John A., eloquent peroration of, 519 

An editor before the cabinet, 32 

A negro's prayer, 2S9 

A new Knight of the Garter, 541 

An epitaph by a rebel, 06 

A night in Missouri with the fleas, 408 

An incident of the great South Carolina expedition, 453 

Antietam, incidents of 129 

Antietam, Corporal Roach's incident of, 101 

Antietam, the dead at, 170 

Antietam, a Masonic incident of, 299 

Antietam, a young woman at the battle of, 451 

Antietam, heroism of General Sturgis' division at, . 457 

Antietam, the charge at, 401 

Antietam, the Seventh Maine at, 462 

Antietam, the missiles used at, 466 

Antietam, the story of, by George W. Smalley, . . 409 

Antietam, Burnside at the bridge of, 470 

Antietam, Richardson's incidents of, 485 

A patriotic artist, anecdote of Powers, the sculptor, 408 

A patriotic Maryland lady, 543 

Apocalypse, " All hail to the stars and stripes," by 

Clarence Butler, 164 

Appeal to volunteers, 134 

Apple, Peter, how he caught a rebel, 04 

A practical joke, 541 

At Port Royal, by John G. AVhittier, rf30 

A psalm of life, as chanted by Gideon J. Pillow and 
his boys on retreating from Lafayette, Georgia, 

June 24, 1804 261 



548 



INDEX TO ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



A race for life, "the pig they didn't waut," .... 49 

A raid by a negro, 431 

A raiuy day in camp, 12 

Ardnt's Michigan battery, wonderful precision of 

the firing of, 103 

A rebel Icilled by a woman, . 544 

A rebellion in heaven, 503 

" Arkansas," some account of the ram, 501 

Arkansas tactics, 2G1 

Arkansas Post, a Hoosier's account of thecapture of, 307 

Army discipline, some account of, 312 

Army discipline, curious incidents of, 530 

Army signals, their efficacy and value, 202 

A romantic incident, in which Governor Curtin takes 

part, 451 

"Arter revenge like a four year old," ....... 321 

Articles of war, the third article, . 312 

A sanitary incident, 494 

A sharp ride, experience of Mr. Cones, 49 

A singular incident, how Alex got his pocket Bible, 101 

A snowball battle, 389 

A soldier's last letter, an incident of Gettysburg, . 457 

A song, by Fitzgreene Halleck, 127 

A Southern martyr, nameless, 572 

A Southern scene, a poem, 09 

A Spartan girl, 118 

A spunky prisoner from the South, 4S6 

A square meal, description of, 407 

A strange incident, 500 

A substitute wanted, 330 

At Gettysburg, a poem, 499 

Atkins, J. D. C, Lieutenant-Colonel, his speech on 

the capture of " Lincoln guns," 255 

A touching incident of the war, 199, 544 

A true experience, by Frank Cahill, 497 

A true Kentuekian, Willard Davis, 335 

At the front, an incident of Tresident Lincoln's fu- 
neral,' 48S 

Averill, W. W., General, one of his " outrages," . 57 

A verse of welcome, 433 

A war picture of Chickamauga, by a Southerner, . . 438 
A Yankee in Dixie, by Corporal Purdum, 107 



B 



Baby on the battle-field, C2 

Badeau, Adam, the literary soldier, 122 

Baker, Colonel, at Ball's Blufl", 41 

Baldwin, P. P., Colonel Sixth Indiana, bravery of, at 

Chickamauga 389 

Balloon reconnoissance of Fitz-John Porter, . . . 343 

Ball's Bluff, the story of, 41 

Ball's Bluff, Greenhall's reminiscences of, 137 

Ball's Bluff. See Leesburg, 452 

Baltimore, the heroine of, 3G 

Banks, N. P., General, how his army was saved in 

the Valley of Virginia, 123 

Barbara Fritchie, by John G. Whittier, 496 

Barton, Clara, " the angel of the battle-field," ... 244 

Bartow, Colonel, bravery of, at Bull Run, 209 

Basnett, Peter, exploit of, 71 

Battle anthem, by John Neal, 125 

Battle cry of freedom, a song, 332 

Battle-field, feelings on the, 385 

Battle hymn of the republic, by Julia Ward Howe, 103 

Battle in the air, a, 169 

Beaufort, S. C, incidents of the fight at, 151 

Beaufort, S. C, incidents of the capture of, related 

by a negro, 458 



Beauregard, P. G. General, his advice, 253 

Beauregard, anecdote of his bells, 317 

Beauregard's bells, sale of, at Boston, 465 

Beau Hackett as a Zouave, 13 

Bedard, Charles A., heroism of, 82 

Bedford boy " Alex," the, 144 

Belgian muskets, kill at both ends, 137 

Belmont, after the fight, incidents related by John 

Seaton, 133 

Belmont, the colored hero of, 426 

Belmont, Major Bledsoe Harmon's incidents of, . 455 

Belmont, the dead at, 519 

Benedict, Lewis, Colonel, at Port Hudson, .... 290 
Benjamin, Judah P., narrative of the escape of, . . 481 

Benjamin, Park, hymn by, 71 

Bennett, L. G., engineer, narrative of a tour through 

the South-west, 323 

Berdan sharpshooters, death of one of the, .... 222 
Berdan sharpshooters, " Old Seth " of the, account 

of, 339 

Berton, Peter, his adventure in Virginia, 133 

Bethel, before the battle of, 97 

Beyond the Potomac, by Paul H. Hayne, 132 

Bible on the battle-field, the, 23 

Bible captured in battle, 66 

Bible anecdote of General Lander, 12S 

Bible Incident of Antietam, 129 

Big Bethel, a Confederate story of, 73 

Billy Bray, a story of the draft, 427 

Birds in battle, 253 

Blacksmith, a patriotic, of the 14th New York State 

Volunteers, 84 

Black Tom, a poem, 223 

Bob, the " bully boy," one of Sherman's men, ... 411 

Body guard, description of a model, . . • 77 

Boggs, Commodore, his account of the boy hero 

" Oscar," 223 

" Bohio," strategy of the captain of, 39S 

Boight, Captain, 23d Kentucky regiment, 7 

Boker, George H., poems by, . . . 100, 143, ISO, 214, 539 
Booth, Major, speech of the widow of, at Fort Pick- 
ering, 413 

Booth, Mary H.C., poem by, 31S 

Border scouts, the Breedins and Norrises, 467 

Boston, humorous incident in a court in, 73 

Botham, Captain, of Michigan, gallantry of, . • . . 306 

Both legs too short, an incident, 317 

Boughton, Dick, his incidents and scenes in the war, 236 

Bowen, John W., a romance of the war, 200 

Bradbury, William B., song by, 527 

Bragg, Braxton, General, how he was deceived about 

the whiskey, 447 

Brandon, William C, an incident of the hospital, . 341 

Brandy Station, story of the fight at, 453 

Brashears, William, a Union volunteer in Arkansas, .325 

Brave oflicers make a brave army, 540 

Bray, John, account of his escape from Richmond, 142 
Breckinridge, John C, how he escaped from the 

country, 396 

Breedin, the border scout 467 

Bristoc, Virginia, an incident of, 179 

Brockway, Rufus, some account of, 120 

" Broke the connection," an incident of Champion 

Hills, 350 

Brooks, W. T. H., General, 330 

Brooks, W. T. H., General, anecdote of, 214 

Brother against brother, 132 • 

Brother Jonathan's lament for sister Caroline, by 

O. W. Holmes, 400 -- 

Brown, E. B., General, a brilliant exploit, 71 



INDEX TO ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



549 



Brown, E.B., General, order on the heroism of Miss 

Schwartz, , 126 

Brown, Henry C. See Religious Music, 48 

Brownlow, W. G., (Parson,), his opinion of ZoUi- 

coffer, .■ . . . 464 

Brownell, H. H., poems by, 29, 417 

Bruner, Charles, a brave Pennsylvanian, 348 

Bryant, William Cullen, poems by, 100, 227 

Buchanan, James, the other Abou Ben Adhem, . . 73 
Buchanan, James, and the Pottstown, Pennsylvania, 

bank bills, 291 

Buell, D. C, General, his strategy at Pittsburg Land- 
ing, 317 

Buford, General, an anecdote of, 254 

Bull, H. C, Lieutenant, captures a secession flag, . 331 

BuUard, W. N., the story of, 218 

Bullets, the tone of, and the songs they sing, ... 82 
Bullets, the touch of, a cure for treason, . ..... 94 

Bullets, praying for an equal distribution of, ... . 128 

Bull Run, the modern Gilpin, a ballad of, 36 

Bull Run, incidents of, 39 

Bull Run, horses at, 76 

Bull Run, incidents of, 118, 120, 269 

Bull Run, Stonewall Jackson at, 234 

Bull Run, Edwin S. Barrett's adventures at, . . . -256 

Bull Run, story of the flight from, 262 

Bums, Anthony, the rendition of, 80 

Burns, John, the hero of Gettysburg, story of, . . 296 
Burnside, Ambrose E., General, at Knoxville, . . . 357 
Burnside, General, scenes on the march of, in Ten- 
nessee, 895 

Burnside at the bridge, an incident of Antietam, . . 476 

'Bushwhackers, female, at the South, 423 

Butler, B. F., General, anecdote of, " Get your shirts 

at Moody's," 131 

Butler, General, and one of the Virginia reserves, . 182 
Butler, General, his correspondence with the Nor- 
folk Perfectionists, 239 

Butler, General, anecdote of, " Shoot another," . . 342 
Butler, General, anecdote of, " That dear old flag," 428 

Butler, General, epigram on, 429 

Butler, Gteneral, sells Beauregard's bells, 465 

Butler, General, anecdote of, " Almond eye," ... 508 
Butler, Rev. Dr., impressive scene at the church of, 457 

Butterfield, General, 51 

Butterfield, Captain, Eighth Ohio ; incident of 
Romney, S3 



o 



Cahill, Frank, a true experience by, 497 

Calhoun, John C, the spotted hand, an anecdote of, 30 

Call all ! Call all ! a poem, 34 

Camp anecdotes, 127 

Camp, Henry W., a soldier with the right spirit, . 123 

Camp jewelry, a description of, 528 

Camp life, described by a soldier, 504 

Canadian sympathy, a verse, 499 

Captain and the chaplain, 140 

Capturing a gun, how " Old Seth " did it, 339 

Card-playing, inorduiate love of, 358 

Carney, Sergeant, the bravery of, at Fort Wagner, 145 

Carpenter, Captain, of the Jessie scouts, 45 

Carrick's Ford, incidents of, 227 

Carte-de-visite, a poem, 113 

Carter, Captain, his scouting, 53 

Carter, Sergeant, halts a whole rebel regiment, . . 152 

Cascaux, , of New Orleans, 358 

Cavalry service, incidents of the, 400 



Cavalry song, by E. G. Cutler, 238 

Cavender, , sufferings of, the Tennessee hero, . 144 

Challon, Father, a hero of Chickamauga, 297 

Chambcrsburg, Pennsylvania, story of the inva- 
sion of, 520 

Champion Hills, an incident of, 356 

Chaplain and the Captain, 140 

Chaplains, who and what they are, 401 

Charge of the Mule Brigade, the, by Thomas H. 

Elliott, 225 

Chase, S. P., Chief Justice, anecdotes of, 402 

Chattanooga, incidents of, 223, 251, 482 

Cheatham, B. F., General, the escape of, 30- 

Chickamauga, death of a young woman on the 

battle-field of, 158 

Chickamauga, father Challon a hero of, 297 

Chickamauga, battle of owls and crows at, 169 

Chickamauga, or the river of death, description of, . 224 

Chickamauga, the battle-field of, described, .... 373 

Chickamauga, the stream of death, a poei(> .... 342 

Chickamauga, good shooting at, 345 

Chickamauga, Thomas's great fight at, 376 

Chickamauga, heroic conduct of officers at, .... 366 

Chickamauga, story of Captain Ogan at, 388 

Chickamauga, " a little hurt " at, 397 

Chickamauga, a war picture, 438 

Chickamauga, Ihe star brigade at, 341 

Chickamauga, Colonel Wilder's incidents of, ... 530 

Child, L. Maria-, her sketch of William Fuller, ... 95 

Christian Commission, what it does, 366 

Christian Commission, incidents of the, 501 

Christian Commission, Rev. Robert J. Parvin's in- 
cidents of the, 508 

Christian Commission, Rev. George J. Mingin's ad- 
dress, 511 

Christmas among the freedmen, 22 

Christmas with the slave, 465 

Cincinnati, the siege of, by T. B. Reed, 536 

Civilities of war, 307 

Claiborne, the contraband, how he escaped, .... 76 

Clapp, Zeruah, Mrs., anecdote of, 338 

Clayton, Rev. Mr., his kindness at Camp Dennison, 488 

Clem, Johnny, the drummer-boy, 160 

Close quarters, fighting at, 161 

" Close up," an anecdote of Philippa, 356 

Coffee for the Southerners, 500 

Cole, Daniel R., adventures of a spy, 398 

Coleman, General, 403 

Collins, Maurice, his heroism at Spottsylvania, . . 188 
CoUyer, Robert, Rev., his narrative sermon on the 

battle at Fort Donclson, 292 

CoUyer, Robert, his account of Old Hannah, the 

nurse, "^ 

Comedy of battle, 305 

Conde, Samuel, bravery of, ou Pope's retreat, ... 263 

Cones, Mr., the ride of, 49 

Confederate song of freedom, by Emily M. Wash- 
ington, 288 

" Confiscate de ole 'oman," 544 

Connecticut, a patriotic boy of, 128 

Conscription, relentless at the South, 431 

Conservative chorus, a verse, 455 

Contraband, a talk with a, 225 

Conundrums, one of a teamster, 1'9 

Conundrums, a Southern .one, 511 

Conway, H. A., incidents of Alexandria, Mo., ... 304 

Coolness in battle, anecdote of, 311 

Coolness ou the field, an instance of, 1S2 

Cooper, Sandy, his adventure in Virginia, 133 

Corinth, an orator disturbed at, 07 



550 



INDEX TO ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS, 



Corinth, a wife on the battle-field of, 85 

Corinth, an incident of, 449 

Corinth, the hero of, 4C3 

Corse, Major, his exploit at Island Number Ten, . 335 

Cotton-doodle, by a lady of the South, 414 

Cotton is king, " Give us this day our daily 

cotton," 234 

Cox, James, Sergeant, his bravery at Olustee, . . . 359 
~"^rane, J. L., Rev., his remarks concerning General 

Grant, 502 

Crnven, T. Augustus, address to the officers of the 

navy, 34 

Crawford, General, 25 

Creedon, Father, speech of, the Sunday after Pi-esi- 

dent Lincoln's first call for troops, 400 

Crook, George, General, how he lost his boots, . . . 370 
Cross, Edward E., heroism of, at Fredericksburg, . 11 

Cross, E. E., Colonel, at Antictam, 300 

Crowninshield, Lieutenant, noticed, 224 

Cruelties of w*r, the, 140 

Culbertson, Willie F. B., an incident of home, . . . 134 
— Culpepper, the farmer of, who took no sides in the 

rebellion, 248 

Cumberland, Sailor Willard's story of the destruc- 
tion of the, 410 

Cummings, Kobert, a hero boy of the Harriet Lane, 302 

Curiosities of army life, 372 

Curtis, General, incidents of his march, 300 

Gushing, Captain, the exploit of, in Cape Fear River, 240 
Gushing Lieutenant, his exploit with the Albemarle, 533 

Cutler, Elbridge Gerry, song by, 238 

Cutler, Miss, tribute to the memory of, 343 



D 



Dabney, the colored scout, 207 

Dahlgrcn, Ulric, the story of, 291 

Dahlgren, Ulric, another story of, 470 

Danville, the colored school at, described, 487 

Darlington, W. B. Major, adventures of, ..... 125 

Davis, John, the heroic sailor of the Valley City, . 346 

Davis, what the name means, 137 

Davis, Jefferson, a Southern girl's lines to, .... 251 

Davis, Jefferson, story of tlie capture of, 411 

Davis, Jefferson, on his election as president, . . . 479 

Davis, Willard, a true Kentuckian, 335 

Day, Ishmael, the story of, 280 

Day, Ishmael, poem to, 281 

Day, Ishmael, the ballad of, 347 

Dead brought to life, 58 

December in Virginia, a poem, 130 

■"Defrees, John D., anecdote of, 407 

De Kay, Drake, how he captured Smithfield, Va., 70 

De Kay, Drake, exploit of, on the James River, . . 393 

Delaney, Frenchy, the story of, 189 

De Montieii, Colonel 44 

Demoralized, but not scattered, 214 

"Dennison, F., Rev., a heroic chaplain, 370 

De Peystcr, J. L., Lieutenant, 360 

Desolations of war, 508 

Devil, to the, or Washington, 50 

De Villiers, Colonel, Eleventh Ohio, adventures of, 154 

Dick, the drummer, C8 

Dirge for a soldier, in memory of General Philip 

Kearney, 143 

Dirge for one who fell in battle, 467 

Discipline, time to get sober in, 465 

Discovering a friend, 134 

Dodging shells, when to do it, 253 



Dog, a faithful, at the battle of Pittsburg Landing, 120 
Dog, faithfulness of John Ferguson's, at the battle 

of Pittsburg Landing, 35*! 

Dogs, anecdote of " Shep," 455 

Dorsheimcr, Major, story of Zagonyi's charge at 

Springfield, 442 

Doughnuts, a feast of, in 3Iaine, 72 

Dow, Neal, General, in Libby Prison, 149 

Draft, operations of the, at Savannah, 77 

Draft, an editor's lines on the, 241 

Draft, Billy Bray, a story of the, 427 

Draft, one of a hundred, an incident of, 533 

Dragoon's song, by George H. Boker, 180 

Dranesville, negro captures rebels at, 4G7 

Drancsville, incident of, 499 

Dreams, the pleasant ones of the soldiers, 359 

Driving home the cows, a poem 511 

Du Barry, Frank, his burial at sea, 193 

Dugan, sufferings of, in East Tennessee, 69 

Dunksburg, Mo., amusing account of a battle at, . 423 

Dunn, James L., Dr.,his description of Clara Barton, 244- 

Duryea, General, at the battle of Bethel, 97 

Duskie, Miss, a Southern heroine, 224 



E 



East Tennessee, a scout to, by the Lochiel cavalry, . 16 

East Tennessee, life in, 59 

East Tennessee, loyalty manifested in, 321 

Educiition in the army, 2S9 

Edwards, William B., Sergeant, story of the adven- 
tures of, 304 

Effective Recognition, 142 

" Ein Feste Burg 1st Unser Gott," by John G. 

Whittier, 14S 

Elegy on my leg, 09 

Elliott, Thomas H., poem by, 225 

Ellsworth, Elmer E., Colonel, story of the death of, .391— 
Ellsworth, Elmer E., Colonel, his last speech, . . . 105 

Enlisted, by W. A. Kendall, 24 

" E Pluribus Unum," a poem, by John Pierpont, . 475 

Essex gunboat, heroism on the, 47 

Ethan Spike, account of the secession of Hornby, 

Slaine, 34 

Everybody resembles his neighbor in the army, . , 372 

Execution of a spy at Pulaski, 403 

Experience on a gunboat, an incident of Southern 

sea service, 440 

Exploits of a foraging party, 507 



F 



Fair Oaks, General Heintzleman at, 190 

Fair Oaks, experience of Edmund Q. Andrews at 

the battle of, 502 

Fair Oaks, an incident of, 412 

Faithful unto death, a story of the war, 4S4^ 

Falling Waters, the destruction of the pontoons at, 22! 
Farewell to Brother Jonathan, by Caroline, .... 494 

Farmer, Samuel, Captain, of Arkansas, 32.") 

Farragut, D.G., Admiral, anecdote of, 52(1 

Feminine wrath, an instance of, 131 

Ferguson John, faithfulness of his dog, 3,')> 

Fernandina, Florida, an incident of the attack on, . 10 
Fernandina, Florida, the colored schools of, . ... 1 10 

Fever and ague, a Southern cure for, 404 

Fiddler, the rebel " Betsey," 40 

Fields, James T., poem, by 329 



INDEX TO ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



551 



Fifteenth army corps, the badge of the, 51 

" Fighting- by the day," an anecdote of Lexington, 321 

•Fighting ministers, some account of, 460 

First experience in battle, 155 

-First fiital shot, the, 39S 

Fishback, \Vilham M., scenes in the South-west, . . 323 
risher, II. D., Rev., narrative of the massacre at 

Lawrence, 322 

Five days a prisoner, the experiences of Charles O. 

Phillips, 239 

Flag, love for the, an incident of the hospital, .... 442 

Fleas, a night in the army with, 40S 

Fletcher, Sergeant, Third Vermont, bravery of, at 

Lee's Mills, 349 

Fletcher, Pat, the Irish regular, 25 

— - Florida, the troops of, complimented by General II. 

E. Lee, 241 

Florida, a curious letter from, 495 

" Florida," the cruise of the, 101 

'■'"^ Floyd, John B., an epitaph for, by a soldier, .... 245 
-■ Floyd, John B., recollections of, by a Soutliern sol- 
dier, 432 

Fon Rodd, John, the patriotic family of, 483 

Fontaine, Lamar, adventures of, 50 

Foote, A. II., Commodore, anecdote of, 58 

Foraging, some account of, 507 

Foraging, the way it was done by a Wisconsin regi- 
ment, 148 

Force of habit, in a railroad Captain, 541 

Ford, Tom, Colonel 32d Ohio, how he catechised 

secession, 458 

Forrest, N. B., General, how he acted at Tunnel Hill, 357 

Forrest, how Lieut. Mclntire escaped from him, . . 187 

Forrest, remarks on Fort Pillow, 450 

Fort Corcoran, baptism of the big gun at, 217 

Fort Donelson, incidents of the fight at, SO 

Fort Donelson, the spirit of '70, an incident .... 105 

Fort Donelson, reminiscence of the surrender of, . 192 

• Fort Donelson, Rev. Robert Collyer's incidents of, 292 

Fort Donelson, incidents of, 317, 400 

Fort Pickens, letter to a Yankee, found In, 14 

Fort Pickens, one of the modes of attacking, ... 03 

Fort Pillow, incidents of, 00 

Fort Pillow, Mrs. Booth's speech on the atrocities 

at, 413 

Fort Pillow, General Forrest's conversation on the 

affair at, 450 

Fort Sumter, the occupation of, 27 

Fort Sumter, a revival in, 357 

Fort Sumter, a providential deliverance at, .... 441 
Fort Sumter. See Sumter. 

Fort Wagner, an incident of, 130 

Fredericton, Mo., the oldnegro of, 374 

Fredericksburg, incidents of, 118 

Fredericksburg, the Minnesotians at, 123 

Fredericksburg, heroism of James H. Piatt at, . . 318 

Fredericksburg, a night scene at, 300 

Fredericksburg, incidents of the first battle at, . . 509 

Freedmen, Christmas among the, 22 

Frcedmen's bureau, anecdote of the negro woman, 1.30 

Freedman's song, the, 505 

Freedom of speech in Alabama, 354 

Freedom of speech, an anecdote of " Shop," the 

dog, 455 

Free schools, the value of, 132 

French notions of American geography, 214 

Fristoc, James, his adventure in Virginia, 133 

Fuller, John W., Colonel Twenty-seventh Ohio, . . 403 

Fuller, William, one of the army of martyrs, ... 95 

Fun on the Rappahannock, 8 



a 



Galveston, incident of the fight at, 295 

Ganter, chaplain, his account of Willieh's victory, 252 
Gardner, Charles Howard, the drummer-boy of the 

Eighth Michigan, 424 

Garfield, General, heroism at Paiutsville, 48 

Garfield, General, notice of, lOO 

Garrabrant, James, narrow escape of, 60 

Gates, Charles, an amusing incident, 193 

Gazley, Lieutenant-Colonel, anecdote of, 510 

Geary, John W., bravery of, 632 

Geary, General, at Lookout, 431 

Gere, E. B., Captain, anecdote of, 374 

General Lee's wooing, a poem, 3.38— 

Generosity, an anecdote of, 478 

" Gentleman from Jones," his speech, 351 

German, Delia R., a poem by, 450 

" Get off that stump '. " an anecdote of the long Mis- 

sourian, 410 

Gettysburg, an incident of, 140 

Gettysburg, scenes on the battle field of, 209 

Gettysburg, Illinois at the battle of, 215 

Gettysburg, the battle of, by Howard Glyndon, . . 290 

Gettysburg, the battle of, by Samuel Wilkeson, . . 333 
Gettysburg, an English oflieer's anecdotes of the 

battle of, 320 

Gettysburg, "Whose father was he .'" an incident 

of, 321 

Gettysburg, Lieutenant Bayard Wilkeson a hero of, 300 

Gettysburg, Bible found at 382 

Gettysburg, German chaplain at, 383 

Gettysburg, how John Mosely died at, 457 

Gettysburg, three weeks at, 489 

Gibson, John M., thrilling adventure of, 140 

Gillem, Colonel, and the soldier, 288 

Gillingham, Ned, adventure of, 155 

Glassell, W. T. See " Ironsides," 2.37 

Glezen, J. P., incidents of a march by, 383 

" God save the South," the Confederate anthem re- 
viewed, SCO 

Goddard, C, Lieutenant-Colonel, 55 

Good for evil, a synonym, H5 

Goodridge, Ellen, faithful unto death, 484 

Good shooting at Chickamauga, 345 

Gordonhire. See Romance of the war, 200 

Gould, Orrin B., the hero of Corinth, 403 . 

Graham, J. S., Captain, story of the capture of 

Mosby's horse, 289 

Grant, Ulysses S., Lieutenant-General, pumpkin-pie 

anecdote of, •'5 

Grant, noticed, 81 

Grant and the Dutchman at Shiloh, 1S2 

Grant, a story of, about taking Richmond, 192 

Grant, how he treated a politician, 20<> 

Grant obeys orders in camp, • • • 225 

Grant, a Scotch anecdote of, 254 

Grant at the battle of the Big Black, 348 

Grant, an incident of the Wilderness, 408 

Grant, a verse of welcome to, 48:) 

Grant, account of his war horse and his love of 

horses, • • *^^ 

Grant, some things concerning, 502 

Gratitude on the battle-field, an incident of Fort 

Donelson, 13'' 

Great Bethel, Sergeant Goodfellow's bravery at, . . 397 

Greble, Lieutenant, at Great Bethel, 73 

Green, WilUara N., Captain, the bravery of, ... . 124 

Greenbacks, a poem, 292 



552 



INDEX TO ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS, 



Greenleaf, Charles H., his account of the saving of 

Banks's army, 123 

Grenewald, Leonard, bold exploit of, 221 

Greyhound, Pollard's story of the capture of, . . . 1~0 

Gri£«"son, General, 187 

Grierson's raid, incident of, CIO 

Gross, G. J., his story of Gettysburg, 209 

Guerrillas, how they were scared at Curlew, Ky., . 63 



H 



Hagerstown, incident of, 341 

Hale, Henry, the scout of the West, 46 

Half an hour among the rebels in Philadelphia, . . 351 

Halleek, Fitz- Greene, a song by, 127 

Halpine, Charles G., " Paddy on Sambo," by, . . . 269 

Halpiae, Charles J., song by, 300 

Hamilton, Corporal, adventure of, 133 

Hampton, Wade, Major, 125 

Hanna, J., Marshall, poem by, 44G 

Hannah, the old nurse, 79 

Hanover court-house, incidents of the battle at, . . 76 
Hardaway, Kobert, Mrs., a noble woman of the 

South, 486 

Hardee, General, and the straggler, 187 

Hardee, his " tactics " thrown in the shade, .... 344 

Hardee outdone as a tactician, 359 

Harker, General, his brigade at Eocky Face, .... 345 

Harlan, Colonel, and the Presbyterian minister, . . 00 

Harmon, Bledsoe, Major, incidents of Belmont, . . 455 

" Harriet Lane," Kobert Cummings, the hero of the, 302 

Harrington, John, bravery of, at Lee's Mills, . . . 349 

"Harry Flash," poem by, 119 

Hart, John, Mrs., heroism of, 300 

Hart, Joseph, the guide of West Virginia, 73 

■Hartz, Asa, song by, 153 

Hasbrouck, A. H., Captain, 93 

Hatchie, a baby found on the battle-field of, ... . 62 

Hayes, Alex., General, his latest thoughts, .... 134 

Hayes, Alex., his bravery at Gettysburg, 414 

Hayne, Paul H., poem by, 132 

Hayne, the Kentucky partisan, by, 403 

Haven, John, the bravery of, at Scarytown, Va., . 228 

" Hawkins Zouaves " at the bridge at Antietam, . . 477 

Heart-rending boat ballad, the, 180 

Heatherly, cruelties of war, 140 

Hecker, William M., adventures of, 528 

Helena, incidents of, 307 

Hendershot, Robert Henry, the drummer-boy of 

the Rappahannock, 245 

Hendrick, James, faithful unto death, 484 

Henkefer, Hiram, an incident of the hospital, . . . 358 

Ilerndon, W. II. See Lincoln, 209 

Herndon, liis reminiscences of President Lincoln, . 538 

Heroism under suffering, . , 50 

Heroism of a boy on board the gunboat Galena, . . 460 

Hess, F. W., Captain, bravery of, 339 

Hill, D. H., General, his algebra, 47 

Hill, John F., to and from Libby Prison, by, . . . 270 
Hines, Captain, how he escaped with General Mor- 
gan, 314 

Hinks, Edward W., Colonel, the first Massachusetts 

man iu the war, 402 

Hoag, Joseph, a remarkable prophecy of, 24 

Holmes, Oliver Wendell, poems by, . . . 8,52,114,460 

Home Guards, " Iv'e jined' em," 67 

Home Guards, Sparrowgrass on the, 94 

Home life in the South, a description of, 205 



Home scene in the South, 72 

Homesickness in the hospital, 129 

Homespun dress, a Southern song, 174 

"Home, sweet home," an incident of the camp, . . 342 
Hooker, Joseph, General, how he talked to a cav- 
alry brigadier 305 

Hooker, General, at Lookout, 431 

Horrors of the war 320 

Horse, an affectionate one, 533 

Horses at Bull Run, account of some, 70 

Hospitals, sketches in the, 00 

Hospitals, incidents of the, 358 

" Housatonic," the torpedo boat that sunk the, . . 303 

"Housewife," the value of a, 192 

How a captain was captured, .355 

Howard, O. O., the Christian soldier, 495 

Howard, O. O., his incident of Sherman's march, . 490 

How brave men suffer and die, by B. F. Taylor , . . 181 

How I enlisted, a story of the war .364 

How Pat entrapped an officer, 526 

How the baby was named, 340 

How to clean a well, 179 

How to preserve your country, an anecdote, .... 317 

How to cross a river 7 

Howe, Julia Ward, poem by, 103 

Howe, Orion P., the drummer-boy, 104 

Howland, Mrs., poem by 82 

Iloxic, Joseph, his liberality, 117 

Ho ! Yankee boys throughout the West, by R. Tomp- 
kins, 177 

Humors of the camp, 2SG 

Hunter, John T., the first Union volunteer, .... 398 
Ilurd, Phincas B., Mrs., her sufferings with the 

Sioux Indians, 248 

Ilutchings, W. V., how he used a slave hunter, . . 446 
Hyman, R. G., Lieutenant, gallantry of, at Spottsyl- 

vania, 155 



" I fights mit Sigel," by Grant P. Robinson, ... 202 

Illinois at the battle of Gettysburg, 215 

Illinois, the spirit of, 291 

Incident by the way 178 

Incident in the cars, 170 

Incidentof the hospital, the affection of a boy, . . 355 

Incident of the hospital, how Charlie died, 72 

Incident of the battle-field, the value of the little 

" housewife," 192 

Incident of the South, 488 

Incident that carries its own comment, 35 

Incident with a moral 30 

Indiana, Eleventh regiment of, at a flag-raising in 

Kentucky, 400 

Indiana's roll of honor, 388 

Indian strategy at Petersburg, 175 

Inheriting wounds, an anecdote of the hospital, . . 120 

"In statu qtco," an incident, 124 

Irishman, a brave, goes for his whiskey flask on the 

field of battle, 201 

Irishman, adventures of an, at Bull Run, 503 

Irishman, his view of a shell, 140 

Irishman, how Pat entrapped' an officer, 520 

Irishman, a cesmopolitan, 545 

Irish gunner, account of one, at Fredericksburg, . . 319 

Irish, regular, anecdote of the, 25 

Irish wit always ready, 85 

" Ironsides," a Southern account of the attack on 

the, 2.37 



INDEX TO ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



553 



Island No. Ten, an Incident of, 335 

" Is tbat mother.'" a touching incident 66 



Jackson, T. J., (Stonewall,) anecdotes of, 123 

""■• 'Jackson, T. J., some account of his peculiarities, . 171 

Jackson, T. J., administers the sacrament, .... 256 

Jackson, T. J., soldiers' admiration of, 357 

Jackson, T. J., obedience to orders sustained by, . 375 

Jackson, T. J., anecdote of " drive 'em in the river," 307 

Jackson, T. J., how he acted at Bull Run, 234 

Jackson, T. J., a notice of, 166 

" Jackson, by Harry Flash," 119 

Jackson, Thomas, heroism of, at Beaufort, .... 152 
Jallonack, H., captures an old Bible on the battle- 
field, 60 

Janvier, F. d'Haes, poem by, 3S4 

Jenkins, Elijah D., heroism of, 300 

"Jessie scouts," exploits of the, 45 

Joanof Arc in the West, how she recruited, . ... 121 

Joe Parsons, a Maryland brave, 08 

John Brown's song, 509 

Johnson, Andrew, an incident of Nashville, .... 334 

Johnson, Andrew, and the Ohio boy, 485 

Johnson, Willie, the drummer-boy of the Third Ver- 
mont, 427 

Johnson's Island, a story of, 412 

Joke on a rebel editor, 50 

Juvenile patriotism, cases of, 542 



K 



Kearny, Philip, General, anecdotes of, 314 

Kelley, General, and the secession girl, 65 

Kelley'slsland, story of the fight at, 386 

Kendall, W. A., poem by, 24 

Kenesaw, incidents of, 200 

Kentucky, spirit of a farmer in the legislature of, . 221 

Kentucky, partisan rangers in, 160 

Kentucky, a flag-raising in, 400 

" Kentucky ! O Kentucky '. " a poem, 236 

Kerr, Orpheus C, farewell address to the mackerel 

brigade, 10 

Kight, Dempsey, a hero indeed, 151 

King, Captain, the man who would not be taken a 

prisoner, 30 

King Cotton, in a tableau, 91 

King, Curtis, the wonderful old soldier, 130 

Kinney, B. J., incidents of Alexandria, Missouri, . 304 
Kirksville, Missouri, an incident of the battle of, . 464 
Knoxville, Tennessee, incidents of the siege of, . . 356 
Knoxville, Tennessee, scenes on the entry of Burn- 
side's army into, 395 



Ladd, Luther C, apocalypse, 164 

Lander, General, and the Bible, 128 

Landreth, William 11., his poems, 180 

Lawrence, account of the massacre at, 322, 352 

Learned, J. M., patriotism of his family, 28 

Lee, Robert E., General, compliments the Florida 

troops, 241 

Lee, General, at Gettysburg, 320 

Lee, General, an English picture of, 526 

Lee's Mills, Virginia, instances of bravery at, . . . 349 



Leesburg, Southern incidents of the battle at, . . . 452 

L. E. G. on my leg, 59 

" Let me kiss him for his mother," an incident, . . 247 
" Let us love our flag," an incident of the hospital, 442 

Letters from home, their value in the army, . . . 529 

Letters from soldiers, how many were written, . . 445 

Letters to the soldiers, 03 

Lewinsville, an incident of, 253 

Lexington, Missouri, Colonel Mulligan's story of 

the fall of, 415 

Libby Prison, the escape from, in February, 1864, • 149 

Libby Prison, to and from the, by John F. Hill, . . 270 

Libertytown, Maryland, incident of, 126 

Life and death of a patriot soldier, 144 

Lincoln Abraham, and the paymaster, 22 

Lincoln, Abraham, reminiscences of, 28' 

Lincoln, Abraham, abutment anecdote of, 32 

Lincoln, Abraham. See an editor before the cabinet, 32 

Lincoln, Abraham, a dying soldier prays for, ... 83 

Lincoln, Abraham, what the name means, 137 

Lincoln, Abraham, account of a visit to, 144 

Lincoln, Abraham, kindheartedness of, I66 

Lincoln, Abraham, splitting the diflerence, .... 167 
Lincoln, Abraham, had very little influence with the 

administration, 177 

Lincoln, Abraham, story of Bill Sykcs's dog, ... 194 

Lincoln, Abraham, his first speech, 209 

Lincoln, Abraham, his indorsement of the report of 

F. W. Smith's court-martial, 213 

Lincoln, Abraham, " good on the chop," 217 

Lincoln, Abraham, lines to, 247 

Lincoln, Abraham, draft-horse anecdote, 248 

Lincoln, Abraham, his tribute to the women of 

America, 266 

Lincoln, Abraham, story of the German Lieutenant, 269 

Lincoln, Abraham, " peg away," story of, 304 

Lincoln, Abraham, anecdote of " blasting," .... 365 

Lincoln, Abraham, the last inauguration of, ... . 382 

Lincoln, Abraham, " sugar-coated," anecdote of, . 407 

Lincoln, Abraham, anecdote of the slaveholder, . . 410 

Lincoln, Abraham, a beautiful anecdote of, .... 427 

Lincoln, Abraham, his pass to Richmond of no eflect, 435 
Lincoln, Abraham, anecdote of the nomination of 

Judge Chase, 440 

Lincoln, Abraham, anecdote of his choice, "an 

election or Richmond," 447 

Liacoln, Abraham, Senator Sherman's sketch of, . 449 
Lincoln, Abraham, the Blondin anecdote of, ... . 453 
Lincoln, Abraham, " no vices and few virtues," . . 457 
Lincoln, Abraham, reminiscences of the Presiden- 
tial life of, 482 

Lincoln, Abraham, characteristics of, 489 

Lincoln, Abraham, his interview with the Western 

farmer, 510 

Lincoln, Abraham, a Southern anecdote of, ... . 527 

Lincoln, Abraham, Mr. Herndon's reminiscences of, 534 

Linn Creek, Missouri, an incident of, 321 

Lipscomb, Martin 3Ieredith, the story of Colonel 

Dahlgren, 480 ■ 

Little Eddie, the drummer-boy, 6 

Little John Clem, the drummer-boy, 160 

Lochiel cavalry, a scout to East Tennessee by the, . 16 

Logan, John A., General, anecdote of, 482 

Logan guards, the, 10 

Lohman, F.W. E., the story of Ulric Dahlgren, . . 480 

Longfellow, Henry W., the Cumberland, by, . . . 183 

Longstreet, General, at Gettysburg, 320 

Lougstreet, at Lookout, 431 

Looking alike, or how to polish ragged shoes, ... 187 

Lookout Mountain, an incident of, ... 201 



554 



INDEX TO ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



Lookout Valley, incident of the, 431 

Louisiana, the pelican of, a dirty bird, 52 

Love for the Qag, au incident by the way, 3-15 

Love, hate, and piety on the battle-field, 541 

Lovell, Mansfield, song about, Ill 

Lowell, J. Kussell, 437 

Lowell, Kobcrt, a poem by, 529 

Lucky and unlucky, an incident of Cold Harbor, . , 487 

" Lymau Eeecher Adams," an incident of the war, 354 
Lyon, Kathaniel, General, at the taking of Potosi, 

Missouri, 226 

Lyon, Kathaniel, his memory cherished by the sol- 
diers, 235 

Lyon, Kathaniel, how his body was saved by Mrs, 

Phelps, 458 

"Lyon," a poem, 97 

Lytic, General, the death of, 221 



M 



Mackie, John H., Dr., 425 

MagoflBn, Beriah, Governor, 171 

Magruder, J. B., General, anecdote of, 4SS 

Maine, Seventh regiment of, heroism at Antietam, 462 

Manchester, Jlissouri, capture of a secession flag at, 331 

Mangum, \yillie P., Jr., how his life was saved . . 79 

Manly, Ann, the heroine of Baltimore, 36 

March along, by George H. Boker, 214 

Marching along, a song, by W. B. Bradbury, . . . 627 

Blarriage in camp, a, 1C6 

" Maryland," a song, by James K. Randall, .... 48 

Maryland, the 2d regiment of, at Antietam, .... 4G1 

Massachusetts, first man from iu the war, 462 

Massachusetts, patriotism of, 519 

Masonic incident of Antietam 299 

Mattoon, George B.,' a juvenile warrior of experi- 
ence, 225 

Maury, Harry, the first Southern Admiral, .... 411 
McAllister, Bryan, account of an interview with 

Forrest at Fort Pillow, 450 

McCall, George A., General, 340 

McClellan, George B., General, how he was helped 

in West Virginia, 73 

McClellan at Antietam, 409 

McClellan's soliloquy, by a daughter of Georgia, . 358 

McClernand, General, his heroic servant, 425 

McCook, General, his pass for a rebel, 70 

•McCullough, S. K., account of a noble Southern 

girl, 402 

McDougal, Joseph, how he was raptured by John 

Morgan, 213 

McFadden, Eddy, an incident, 50 

McGilvery, Mrs., her exploit, 75 

Mclntyre, Lieutenant, how he escaped from Forrest, 187 

McKee, John, Lieutenant, poem by, • 156 

McKim, Lucy, Miss, 98 

McKnight, Major of General Loring's staff.poem by, 153 

McLaughlin, John, the boy soldier, 121 

McKcil, Colonel, at Kirksville battle, 464 

McKcil, Hugh, Colonel, anecdote of South Moun- 
tain, 338 

McKcill, Jesse, Lieutenant, his exploit, 115 

McPherson, James B., General, how he was killed, 197 

" M. D.'s," heroism of the mule drivers, 392 

Meagher, Thomas Fi-ancis, at Bull Itun, 269 

Meagher, Thomas Francis, an incident of Fair Oaks, 412 

Meredith, Sol., Colonel, anecdote of, 253 

" Merrill's horse," the bravery of, at Kirksville, . . 464 



Merrimac and Monitor, the fight in Hampton Boads, 404 

Military necessity, resolves of the correspondents, 348 

Mill Spring, incidents of the retreat from, m 

Mill Spring, an incident of, 71 

Milroy, General, 153 

Mingins, George J., Rev., his address before the 

Christian Commission, 51t- 

Minnesotians at Bull Run, 520 

Mirrors vs. chickens, an incident, 140 

Mission Ridge, negro song of, .302 - 

Mississippi, speech of the gentleman from Jones in 

the convention of, .351 

Mississippi River, a thrilling scene on the, 359 

Mitchell, W. H., Rev., prayer for JeiT. Davis. . . . 0G-.„_^^ 

Mobile, incidents of the wounded at, 460 

Montgomery, Colonel, narrative of his escape from 

the Confederates, 284 

Montgomery, James E., his experience at the battle 

of West Point, 219 

Moouey, Father, baptizes the big gun at Fort Cor- 
coran, 217 — 

Morse, Rev. Dr., on etymology, 137 

Morgan, James, Brigadier General, anecdote of, . . 478 
Morgan, James, Brigadier General, his incident of 

Rocky Face, 203 

Morgan, John, General, incidents of his raid, . 161, 213 
Morgan, John, General, how he escaped the Rabun 

Home Guards, 222 

Morgan, John, General, verses supposed to have 

been written by, on surveying his solitary abode 

in his cell in the Ohio penitentiary, 254 

Morgan John, General, narrative of the escape of, 314 -— 

Morse, George, the Korth AVoods guide, 174 

Morton, O. P., Governor, 171 

Mosby, incidents of a fight with, 93 

Mosby, the capture of his horse, 289 

Mosby, outwitted by the Yankees, 374 

Mosely, John, how he died at Gettysburg, .... 457 

" Most thar," anecdote of a Vermontcr, 253 

Mule, how an old woman loved her, 318 

Mule, story of the Zouave, -396 

Mule-drivers, heroism of the, 392 

Mulligan, William, Colonel, his account of the fall 

of Lexington, 415 

Mulligan, Vrilliam, Colonel, a beautiful incident of 

Lexington, 465 

MuUooney, Patrick, his adventures in the service, • 503 

Murkland, John, Sergeant, bravery of, at Antietam, 134 

Music among the soldiers, 47 

Music of the Port Royal negroes, 98 

Music, Sherman's love of, 178 

Music, songs upon the battle-field, 245 

Music, the efi'ect of, 546 

My love and I, a song by Asa Hartz, 153 



N 



Kashville, Tennessee, the American flag in, ... . 267 

Kashville, an incident of, 3.34 

Keal, John, battle anthem by, 125 

Kealy, Mary E., the '• Maul," by, 393 

Kcglcy, General, on free schools, 132 

Kcgloy, General, anecdote of taking the oath, ... 410 
Kegley, General, and the whiskey drinker " of 

Gooletsville," '^57 

Kegro, speech of a, on Christmas, 22 

Kegro, Claiborne the Contraband, 70 

Kegro, a frightened Contraband, 141 

Kegro, music of the Port Royal, 98 



INDEX TO ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



555 



Negro, the colored schools at Fernandina, 116 

Neg^o, patriotism of a, 58 

Negro schools at Newbern, 131 

Negro Sergeant of Paducah, 139 

Negro, the worship of the, 146 

Negro, an observing, 134 

Negro, his life to himself, 170 

Negro, the story of a North Carolina, 222 

Negro, how one got off, 253 

Negro, the clothes-line telegraph of a, 2G3 

Negro, Dabney, the negro scout, 267 

Negro, danger of attempting to run guard of a, . . 286 

Negro, the prayer of a, 289 

Uegro, Robert Small, the hero of the " Planter," . 298 

Negro, song of Mission Ridge, 302 

Negro, Millie of Helena, 307 

Negro, endurance of colored troops, 341 

Negro, " one of God's noblemen," 350 

Negro, the old man of Fredericton, 374 

Negro, servile insurrection in the South, 409 

Negro, William Stains, the hero of Belmont, . . . 426 

Negro, a raid by a, 431 

Negro, incidents of Beaufort, related by a, .... 458 
Negro, anecdote of a negro who did not dare to 

" trus' de Lord twice," 4G4 

Negro, Christmas with the slaves, 465 

Negro, account of Commodore Porter's guide, . . 466 

Negro, what one captured at Dranesvillc, 467 

Negro, an incident of Chattanooga, 482 

Negro, the colored school at Danville, 487 

Negro, how tliey deserted their masters, 507 

New Orleans, Louisiana, a Union woman at, ... . 63 
New Orleans, Louisiana, Judith's account of the 

capture of, Ill 

" New Orleans won back," a lay for our soldiers, 

by Robert Lowell, 529 

Newsham, T. J., noticed, 80 

Newspaper correspondents, the resolves of the, . . 348 
New York fireman, what he intended to do after his 

time was up, 286 

New York Sixty-ninth regiment, anecdote of the, . 391 

Ninth army corps, how thieves were treated in the, 180 

Norris, the border scout, 467 

North Carolina, the cruelties of war in, 206 

North Carolina vs. South Carolina, 398 

Northern bravery. Southern ideas of, 80 

Notes from an officer's journal, 320 

Notes from the saddle, by the " Courier," 420 

Not yet, by William CuUen Bryant, 227 

Nowlan, William C, spirit of, at the battle of the 

Hatchie 461 



o 



Obedience to orders, an anecdote of Stonewall 

Jackson, 375 

Obeying orders, an anecdote of General Butler, . . 508 

O'Brien, Fitz-Jamcs, poem by, 231 

October,.a thought, 502 

Ogan, Captain, Fourteenth Ohio regiment, at Chick- 

amauga, 388 

Ohio at Stone River, . : 305 

" Old Abe," the soldier bird, 193 

Old Dick, the drummer, 68 

« Old Greenbacks, I know yc," 402 

Old Hannah, the nurse, 79 

" Old Seth," the sharpshooter, .339 

Old woman's welcome to the flag, 218 

Oldom, Cornelia, the exploit of, 347 



Olustee, Sergeant Cox's bravery at, 359 

On board the Cumberland, by George H. Boker, . . 106 

One-armed, the story of the, 167 

One of a hundred, an incident of the enrolment, . . 533 

O'Neill, Phil, an incident of Fair Oaks, 412 

Only a private, a strange scene, 92 

On the shores of Tennessee, a poem, 44 

Orator, disturbing an, 67 

Orpheus C. Kerr, his definition of patriotism, ... 270 

Oscar, the boy-hero of the Varuna, 223 

Osterhaus, P. J., General, at Pea Ridge, 119 

Our country's call, by William CuUcn Bryant, ... 100 

" Our rights," a Southern anecdote, 288- 

" Out raking oysters," an anecdote of a raw recruit, 365 

Owls and crows, fight at Chickamauga, 169 



Paddy on Sambo as a soldier, by Private Miles 

O'Reilly, 269 

Paducah, Tennessee, the negro Sergeant of, ... . 139 

Paducah, tlie story of, 147 

Paintsville, incidents of the battle of, 48 

Parsons, Joe, heroism of, 68 

Parting words to the Yankees, 08 

Parvin, Robert J., his account of the Christian Com- 
mission, 508 

Pass for a rebel, a, how General McCook gave one, 70^ 
Passing to the front, an incident of the Christian 

Commission 37^^. 

Patience under suffering, 50 

Patriotism of a Boston boy, 92 

Patriotism of a Norfolk negro, 58 

Patriotism, Orpheus C. Kerr's definition of, ... . 270 

Pea Ridge, incidents of the battle of, 119 

Peninsular, Virginia, incidents of the, 348 

Pennsylvania Bucktails, the, at South Mountain, . 338 

Perry, F., his adventures in the South, 105 

Perry, J. B., Captain, at Antietam, 200 

Petect. See Romance of the war, 200 

Petersburg, Virginia, narrative of a rfiid from, . . . 370 

Pets in the army, 373 

Phelps, John F., heroism of the wife of, 458 

Phenomena, a remarkable, 373 

Philadelphia, Pa., a welcome in, 243 

Philadelphia, the glory of, volunteer refreshment- 
room, 281 

Philadelphia, half an hour among the rebels in, . . 351 
Philadelphia vohinteer refreshment-room described 

by a lady, 281 

Philips, Charles O., Lieutenant, his experiences as 

a prisoner, 239 

Phillippa, an anecdote of, I'r.G 

Picciola, a poem, 200 

Picket conversation, an account of a, 459 

Picket duty, the amenities of, 323 

Pictures of war, one of the, ISl 

Pierpont, John, poem by, 475 

Pigeon, account of a loyal, 79 

Pike, Albert, poem by, !H 

Pikcton, incident of the battle of, 155 

Pillow, Gideon J., General, his "psalm of life," . . 261 

Pillow Guards, a challenge from them, 160- 

Pincr, George B., anecdote of, 179 

Pirates, taken by, 20 

Pittsburg Landing, anecdote of a dog at 130 

Pittsburg Landing, incidents of, 358 

Pittsburg Landing, Buell's strategy at, 317 

" Planter," story of the escape of the, 20& 



556 



INDEX TO ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



Piatt, James H. J., heroism of, at Fredericksburg, 318 

Platte Valley steamer, how she was brought to, . . 94 

Pleasant dreams, an anecdote, 359 

Pleasant Hill, La., an incident of, 14G 

Plunkett, Sergeant, heroism of, 134 

-Pope, Mary E., a Southern woman, 542 

Porter, Edwin A., story of his bravery, 267 

-Porter, Fitz-John, General, the balloon recomiois- 

eancc of, 343 

Port Hudson, the charge at, 290 

Port Hudson, the twin brothers at, 322 

Port Hudson, an incident of the passage of, by the 

fleet, 526 

Port Hudson, story of the fight at, 531 

Postal affairs, curious superscription, 10 

Potosi, Mo., story of the capture of, 226 

Potter, K. B., Brigadier-General, how he treated a 

thief, 180 

Powers, Hiram, anecdote of the sculptor, 408 

Prairie Grove, the story of, 505 

Prairie Grove, bravery of Lieutenant W. S. Brooks 

at the battle of, 527 

Prentiss, William O., Kev., his apostrophe to cot- 
ton, 2.34 

Prentiss Guards, a challenge to the, 160 

" Price's appeal to Missouri," by M. Jeff. Thompson, 481 

Private soldier, a tribute to the, 246 

Prize money and bullets to be equally distributed, . 128 

Prophecy, Joseph Hoag's, 24 

Prophecy, a woman's, 27 

Pryor, Eoger A., his feat at Fort Sumter, 25 

Pryor, Roger A., how he was captured and how he 

escaped, 59 

Pugh, William P., his adventures in the South, . . 105 

Purdum, Corporal, a Yankee in Dixie, 107 

j'JPut it in gold letters," an anecdote of the South, 496 



Q 

Quakers, conscript at the South, 22 

Quaker, a patriotic woman 314 

Quaker guns at Frankfort, Ky 182 



R 



Rabbits, hunting of, in the army, 9 

Rabbits, account of one in battle, 319 

Ragged shoes, how to polish them, 187 

" Rally round the flag, boys," an incident of the 

hospital, 235 

Randall, James R., poems by, 11, 48, 468 

Ransom, Lieutenant-Colonel, Eleventh Illinois reg- 
iment, bravery at Charleston, Mo., 228 

Rat, a surgeon, 153 

Rattlesnakes vs. rebels, 544 

Read, T. Buchanan, Sheridan's ride, a poem by, . . 399 

Reading in the army, 501 

Reading the lists 170 

Rebel attempt to take a train, and how it came out, 

by Daniel D. Steele, 532 

Rebels, a poem, 32 

Rebel song, found at Fort Bartow, 47 

Reeve, A. Z., incidents of his experience in Tennes- 
see 158 

Reichcnbachcr, JIartin, account of a raid from Pe- 
tersburg, .370 

Rcid, William, a hero of the Owasco, 295 

Religion, true soldiers, 15 



Religious music among the soldiers, 47 

Reno, General, his last moments, 208 

Reprieved at last, 178 

Eesaca, Georgia, the mocking-bird of, 198 

Resaca, Georgia, incidents of the battle of, .... 346 
Rhode Island, the One Hundred and Fifth regiment 

of, 269 

Richmond, Virginia, the first American flag over, , 3G0 

Eichmun' on the Jeems, a song, 219 

Riker, Lafayette, Colonel, the last moments of, . . 460 

Rip Van Winkle, in West Virginia, 383 

Roach, William, Corporal| incident of Antietam, . 161 

Roanoke Island, incidents of, 44, 47 

Robie, Colonel, the bravery of, 464 

Robinson, Grant P., poem by, 202 

Rockingham, Virginia, a girl of, 140 

Rockwood, E. P., his experience at Cold Harbor, . 487 

Rocky Face, Georgia, an incident of, 203 

Rocky Face, Georgia, gaining the crest of, 345 

Roll Call, by N. G. Shepherd, 116 

Romance of the war, a, 200 

Romney, Virginia, an incident of, 83 

Rosecrans, Bishop, anecdote of, 14 

Rosecrans, AV. S., General, secret service of, ... . 53 

Rosecrans, General, anecdote of, 131 

Rosecrans, General, conversation with the Confed- 
erate Captain, .349 

Ross, Frederick A., Rev., anecdote of, 32 

Rosseau, LoveU H., General, and the rebel clergy- 
man, 32 

Rosseau, General, his incidents of Shiloh, 50 

Rosseau, General, incidents of, on the march to 

Nashville, ■ 456 

Rosser, General, his oper.itions on the border, . . 4.35 

Russell, Colonel, Tenth Connecticut volunteers, . . 44 

Russell, W. JI., ye Londonne Times correspondente, 199 

Ryder, William, a genuine nobleman, 182 



S 



Salute, " a kind of a," 15 

Sanitary Commission, the " marked articles " of, . 247 

Sanitary Commission, '76 and '64, an incident, . . . 338 

Sanitary Commission, what it docs, 366 

Sans culotte, an incident, 517 

Sansom, Emma, of Cherokee, account of, 145 

Sargent, Lucius Manlius, " Sigma," poem by, . . . 479 

Satan or the rebels, 329 

Savannah, amusing account of drafting at, 77 

Scenes in the hospital, 286 

Schofield, Joseph, traitor's coat-of-arms described 

by, 447 

Schwartz, Miss, heroism of, 126 

Scotland, friends to America in, 420 

Scott, J. Traviso, his parting words to the Yankees, 69 
Scott, William, the dying soldier who prayed for 

the President, 82 

Scott, William, the sleeping sentinel 384 

Scouts and spies, the value of, 141 

Scouts, the story of Wallace's, 386 

Scouting adventures, as told by a cavalryman, • . . 518' 

Soaton, John, incidents of Belmont, by, 138 

Secession catechised, 458 

Sclheimer, John B., Capt.ain, 10 

Semmcs, Captain, of the Alabama, 539^ 

Servile insurrections at the South, 409 

Seventh regiment N. Y. S. M., the march of the, by 

Fitz-James O'Brien, 228 

Seward, William H., attack on, by Payne, 363 



INDEX TO ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



557 



Seymour, Charles C, his death at Memphis, .... 466 

Shackleford, Colonel, exploit of his regiment, ... 35 

Shaler, Henry, gallantry of, at Gettysburg, .... 224 

Shanly, Charles Dawson, poem by, 381 

Sharpsburg, incidents of, 181 

Shells, and how they are dodged, 394 

Shell on board ship, what it did, "; 425 

Shepherd, N. G., poem by, 116 

Sheridan, Philip, General, 125 

Sheridan's early orders, a poem, 435 

Sheridan's ride, by T. Buchanan Read, 399 

Sherman, John, Senator, sketch of President Lin- 
coln, 449 

Sherman, W. T., General, his letter on Orion P. 

Howe, 104 

Sherman, General, his love of music, 178 

Sherman, General, incidents of his march, . 170, 339, 496 
Sherman, General, Southern opinion of the army 

of, 186 

, Sherman, General, his flank movements described by 

a Southern woman, 221 

Sherman, General, how he treated the British consul 

at Savannah, 350 

Sherman, General, his reign at HuntsviUe described 

by a Southerner, 428 

" Sherman's in Savannah," a poem, 194 

Shiloh Mills, incidents of, 50 

Shiloh, reminiscence of the battle-field of, 64 

Shiloh, an incident of, spiking guns at, 182 

Shiloh, thrilling incidents of, 263 

Sights on the battle-field, a story of Shiloh, .... 438 
" Silent Observer," the adventure of a, in Western 

Virginia, 353 

Sill, General, his quaker guns at Frankfort, Ken- 
tucky, 182 

Simmons, Mrs., of Jasper county, Mississippi, en- 
ergy of 120 

Simons, Ned, the old negro, 117 

Sioux Indians, Mrs. Hurd's narrative of her suiTer- 

ings among the, 248 

Sixteenth Army Corps, incidents of its passage 

down the Mississippi, 359 

Skedaddle, a poem by T. B. Aldrich, 9 

Skedaddle, origin of the word, C6 

Slave labor, Eev, W. O. Prentiss on the power of, . 234 

Slave song of Fernandina, 117 

Slave's prayer, a, 51 

Sleeper, Henry, a strange scene, 92 

Small, Robert, the hero of the " Planter," 298 

Smalley, George W., the story of Antietam, by, . . 409 

Smith, A. J., General, his discipline in the army, . 313 
Smith, C. F., General, incidents of a flag-raising in 

Kentucky, 400 

Smith, Charles H., Fourth Iowa cavalry, adven- 
tures of, 475 

Smith, Diana, the heroine of the North-west, . . . 223 
Smith, Franklin W., Abraham Lincoln's indorse- 
ment of, 213 

Smith, Morgan L., General 51 

Smith, W. F., General 336 

Smith (Extra Billy), Governor, his tactics, 359 

Smithfield, Virginia, how it was captured by Drake 

De Kay 70 

Smuggling in camp, the Irishwoman and her 

chicken, 11 

Snowballing in the army, 310 

Snowballing in the Soutliern army, 389 

Snow-Bird and O was so, a tradition, 342 

Soldier Morals, an incident of Sherman's march, . 170 

Soldiers' Aid Societies, a poem 55 



Song of the croaker, by Horatio Alger, Jr., .... 243 
Song of the negro boatmen, by John G. Whittier, . 430 
Song of the soldiers, by Charles G. Halpino, . ... 360 

Songs upon the battle-field, 245 

" South Carolina Gentleman," a poem, 15 

South Carolina vs. North Carolina, 393- 

Southern ideas of Northern bravery, so 

Southern mathematics, D. H. Hill's algebra, .... 47 

Southern prisons, life in, 194 

Southern rights, an anecdote, 283 

Southern victories, "couldn't understand them," . 243. 
" Southrons, hear your country call you," by Albert 

Pike, 94 

South's true balance, the 05 

Sparrowgrass' proposition for tho Home Guards, . 94 

Spencer, J. H., anecdote related by, 319 

Spies, the value of, 141 

Spiller, C.C, Captain, incidents of the retreat from 

Mill Spring, •■. 09 

Spiritualism at the White House, 3.57 

Sports in the army, 9 

Spottsylvania Court House, gallantry of Lieutenant 

Hyman at, 155 

Spottsylvania Court House, incidents of, 188 

Spring at the Capital, by Mrs. Paul Akcrs, 139 

Springfield, Zagonyi's charge at, 442 

Spy, adventure of a, 39 

Spy, execution of a, at Pulaski, Tennessee, 403 

Squire, T. H. Surgeon, his tribute to Miss Cutler, . 344 
Stains, WiUiam, the colored hero of Belmont, . . . 420 
Stedman, Edmund C, the cavalry charge by, ... 455 

Steedman, General, at Chickamauga, 389 

Steele, Daniel D., poem by, 532 

Steele, William Henry, heroism ofj at Beaufort, . . 151 
Stevens, A. B., Rev., the revivalin Fort Sumter, . 357 

Stevens, Hazzard, Captain, 177 

Stevens, General, the death of, 177 

Stoddard, R, H., poem by, 389 

Stone, Newton, Colonel, the last words of, 205 

Stone River, an incident of, 299 

Stone River, Ohioans at, 365 

Stonewall Jackson's way, a poem, 99 

Storey, Marshall, his adventure, 83 

Story of the one-armed, 167 

Strategy, a Captain's, on the Mississippi, 63 

Streight, A. D., Colonel, his raid through the South, 194 

Strong, W. E., adventure of, 233 

Stuart, George H., his incidents of the Christian 

Commission, 501 

Stuart, J. E. B., General, an anecdote of the death 

of his child 382- 

Stuart, J. E. B., General, the death and burial of, . 203 - 
Sturgis, General, incidents of his expedition, ... 175 

" Substitute wanted," a, 330 

Suddenly awakened, a confused idea of history, . . 519 

Sumner, E. V., General, as a stage driver, 23 

Sumnerat Antietam, an incident, 201 

Sumner, General, reminiscences of, 189 

Sumter, Fort, how it was provisioned 254 

" Supping in heaven," a soldier's story, 350 

" Surgeon Rat," an incident of the hospital, .... 153 

Swan, Frank H., paymaster, anecdote of, 533 

Sykes, Bill, President Lincoln's story of his dog, . 194 
" Sykesy," what ho would do after the war, .... 286 



T 



Tableau, exhibition, at Murfreesboro', 91 

Taken by pirates, a story, 26 



558 



INDEX TO ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



Taking the oath, how a young woman did in Rich- 
mond, 482 

Taking the oath in Tennessee, an incident, .... 410 

Talk with a rebel picket in Mississippi, 99 

Taylor, 15. P., 181 

Taylor, Maria, lieroism of, 1G7 

Teamster's conundrums, 179 

Telegraph, the clothes-line, 2fi3 

Tenant, Dick S., at Arkansas Post, 310 

■ Tennessee, a rebel's adventures In, 11 

Tennessee, Union in, an anecdote, 52 

Tennessee, the story of the Fourteenth regiment of, 220 
Tennessee, J. P. Glezen's incidents of tlie march in, 383 
.S'ee East Tennessee. 

Tennyson's poems read in the army, 35 

Terry, Alfred, General, and Colonel Olmstead, an 

anecdote, 340 

Texan, a " pressed," an incident of Pleasant Hill, . 140 

The ancient mariner, by Anthracite Hill 418 

" The angol of the battle-field," 244 

The ballad of Ishmael Day, 347 

The battle-cry of freedom, a song 332 

The battle of Gettysburg, by Howard Glyndon, . . 290 

The bonnie blue flag, a Southern song, 240 

The brier-wood pipe, by Charles Dawson Shanly, . 381 

The captain's wife, by Theodore Tiltou, 191 

The cavalry charge, by E. C. Stcdrnan, 455 

The common soldier, a poem, 407 

The Confederate primer, 122 

The Cumberland, by Henry W. Longfellow, . ... 183 
The dead cavalier, J. E. 1$. Stuart, by J. Jlarshall 

Ilanna, 440 

The dead drummer-boy, a poem, 51 

" The doctor know'd what hegiv' him," an incident 

of the hospital, 201 

The dog of the regiment, a poem, 440 

The drumtner-boy of the Eighth Michigan, .... 424 

The drummer-boy of the Third Vermont, 427 

The dying patriot, a story of the Essex, 404 

The dying soldier, 138 

The dying soldier's dream of childhood, 2S0 

The eagle of Corinth, a poem, 309 

The fight of tlic Hatteras and Alabama, a song, . . 91 

The first fatal shot, 398 

The first rebel admiral, . 411 

The Florida's cruise, by a foretop-man of the C. S. 

S. Florida, n song, 188 

The freedman's song, 505 

The gallant Sixty-ninth, an Irish toast, 391 

The great bell lioland, by Theodore Tilton, .... 75 

The guerrillas, by S. Teukle Wallis, 80 

The heart of tlic war, a poem, 517 

The hero of Sugar Pine, 158 

The hospital, a poem, . 312 

" The house that Jeff built," a recitation, 429 

The Jaguar hunt, by J. T. Trowbridge, 542 

The Kentucky partisan, by Paul H. llayne, .... 403 

The last man of Beaufort, 28 

The little drummer, by It. H. Stoddard, 389 

The little fl.ig bearer, an incident of Arkansas, . . 500 

The Maul, by Mary E. Nealy, 393 

The meeting on the border, 171 

The men of the Cumberland, a poem, 371 

The mocking-bird of llesaca 198 

The modern Gilpin, a ballad of Bull Run, 30 

The new ballad of Lord Lovell, Ill 

The new river shore, a ballad, by AV. H. Landrith, 180 
The old rifleman, by Frank Ticknor, M. D., .... 424 

The old Sergeant, liy Forecythc Willson, 204 

The patriot Ishmael Day, by W. H. Hayward, . . 281 



The picket guard, by Mrs. Howland, 82 

The present crisis, by James Russell Lowell, ... 437 
The rebels on the border, a story of the invasion of 

Pennsylvania 520 

Tlie ride of the wounded brigade, 304 

The river fight, by H. H. IJrownell 417 

The secret service. Carter's exploits, 53 

The Seventh, a song by Fitz-James O'Brien, .... 231 
The sharpshooter's lament on the banks of the Po- 
tomac, 251 

The sleeping sentinel, by F. d'llaes Janvier, . . . 384 

The song of the camps, by J. R. M., 525 

The song of the South, by R. M. Anderson, .... 520 

The South boys, a song, 91 

The Southern Cross, by St. George Tucker, .... 483 

The Southern Cross, a song, 208 

The Southern wagon, a song, 397 

The spotted hand, an anecdote of John C. Calhoun, 30 

The spirit of '70, an anecdote, 87 

Tlie stars and bars, a Southern song, 213 

The stars and bars, a canzonet, 91 

The stars and stripes, by James T. Fields, .... 329 

Tlie traitor's coat of arms, described, 447 

The twin brothers, an incident of Port Hudson, . . 322 - 

The voice of the North, by John G. Whitticr, ... 22 

The wood of Chancellorsville, by Delia R. German, 450 

The woods of Tennessee, 169 

The wounded soldier, by Lieutenant John McKee, 150 
" There's life in the old land yet," by James R. 

Randall, 11 

Third article of war, the, 312 

Thomas, George H., General, his fight at Chicka- 

mauga, 370 

Thompson, M, Jeff., General, a poem by, 481 

Thompson, N. A., sells Beauregard's bells at Bos- 
ton, 405 

Thoughts of home, 353 

Thorne, Mary Lee, the wrath of, 431 

Three weeks at Gettysburg, a journal, 489 

Ticknor, Frank, the old rifleman, a poem, by, . . . 424 

Tilton, Theodore, poems by, 75, 191 

Time to leave, or how the negro got off, 253 

Tipton, cruelties of war, 140 

To Canaan, by O. W. Holmes, 52 

Tod, David, Governor of Ohio 403 

Tomkins, R., poem by 177 

To President Lincoln, a poem, 247 

To the women of the South, 542 

Torpedo boat, the history of the one that sunk the 

Housatonic, 363 

Tranter's Creek, incident of, 499 

Travis, Buck, his capture of " Lincoln guns," . . . 255 

Treason, how it should be treated, 95 

Trout, Jacob, a chaplain of the Revolution, .... 401 

Trowbridge, J. T., poem by, 542 

Trumpet song, by O. W. Holmes, 114 

Tucker, St. George, poem by 483 

Tuttle, Ira B., his daring adventure in the South, . 244 

" Twinkly twinkle," or how they dressed fritters, 131 

Tyler, John, why he is like an ass, 34 

Typo warriors, some account of the, 152 



u 



Unacquainted with the ropes, 478 

Uncle Sam in Virginia, 510 

Uncle Sam everywhere, an anecdote of a wounded 

Dutchman, 484 

Uncle Tom at Mumfordsville, 407 



INDEX TO ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



559 



Under the Washington elm, by O. W. Holmes, . . 8 

Union men at the South, 215, 242 

United States national anthem, by William Koss 

Wallace, 437 



Value of life, as estimated by a negro, 170 

Van Cleve, General, 158 

Vaneman, Corporal, adventure of, 133 

Van Zant, G., and President Johnson, 485 

Vermont brigade, the, described, 335 

Vermonter, one wlio was " most thar," 253 

Veterans, how made comfortable, 51 

Vicksburg, Mississippi, incidents of the siege of, . 103 

Vicksburg, the church and cemetery at, 218 

Vicksburg, the dead at, . . .• 297 

Vicksburg, story of the surrender of, 305 

Vicksburg, passing the batteries of, 42G 

" Villiam and his havelock," by Orpheus C. Kerr, . 542 

, Virginia Reserves, one of the, 182 

^yiVirginia, spirit of the women of, 123 

Virginia, the loyal girl of, 266 



w 



Wads worth, James S., General, the patriotism of, 235 

Waifs and cstra3'^s, 180 

Walker, Joseph D. See Prentiss Guards, 160 

Walker, Thomas H., how he named his baby, . . . 340 

Wallace, William Ross, poem by, 487 

Wallace's mounted scouts, a story of, 386 

Wallis, S. Teakle, poem by, 86 

Wanderers at the North, 4S6 

Wanted to " get out," a story of Johnson's Isl- 
and 412 

Ward, B. C, the fighting clergyman, 28 

Ward, Frank, story of his charge at Springfield, . . 442 

War spirit of a soldier, 461 

Washburn, C. C, General, 307 

Washburne, Elihu B.,hi8 bravery at Bull Run, . . 262 

Washing-day in camp, 302 

-Washington, D. C, impressive scene in Dr. Butler's 

church at 457 

Washington, George, the granddaughter of, ... . 28 
Washington, George, an incident of the death of a 

member of the family of, 224 

Washington, George, General, the death of, ascer- 
tained in West Virginia, 383 

Washington, Emily M., poem by, 288 

Waterbury, Connecticut, a patriotic boy of, ... . 128 

Waterford, Virginia, how it was saved, 314 

Waters, William, hia adventure, &3 

Webb's Cross feoads, incidents of, 143 

Weber, James, the boy-hero of the Galena, .... 400 
Weljster, Daniel, an impressive scene at Washing- 
ton, 458 

Wedding on horseback, a, 151 

Wedding party brought to grief, 57 

Weer, Colonel, how he crossed a river, 7 

Welles, Gideon. ,Sce John Davis 346 

Western Virginia, adventures of a " silent obser- 
ver," in, 353 

West Virginia, General Washington dead in, ... 383 
Whaley, K. V., narrative of the remarkable escape 

of, 235 

What are trumps ? by James R. Randall, 407 



What shall we do for Jeff Davis ? a poem, 489 

" When you is about, we is," 9 

" While God he leaves me reason, God he will leave 

me Jim," a poem, 313 

Whiskey in camp, or how General Bragg was de- 
ceived 447 

White House, Virginia, incident of, 27 

Whittier, John G., poems by, 22, 148, 430, 496 

Whittier, John G., his conversation with the Ala- 
bama planter, 215" 

Who first answered the President's call ? 10 

" Whose father was he?" an incident of Gettys- 
burg, 321 

Wife on the battle-field, a, &) 

Wife, the devotion of a, an incident of Vicksburg, . 22 

Wild Cat, incidents of the battle at, 84 

Wilder, John T., Colonel, his incidents of Cliicka- 

mauga, 530 

Wilderness, Virginia, incidents of the, 125,408 

Wilderness, an anecdote of the, 203 

Wilkeson, Bayard, Lieutenant, a hero of Gettys- 
burg, 3GC 

Wilkeson, Samuel, account of the battle of Gettys- 
burg, 33:j 

Wilkins, Captain, experiences of, after his capture 

at Chancellorsville n.*; 

Willard, L. B., an affecting incident related by, . . 235 

Willard, , sailor of the Cumberland, his story 

of her destruction, 410 

Williams, T. J., Captain, account of the esc^e of, ia3 

Williamsburg, Virginia, an incident of, 281 

Willich, Colonel, story of his victory, 252 

Willson, Forceythe, poem by, 264 

Wilmington, Korth Carolina, story of the occupa- 
tion of, 187 

Wilson, Fanny, the adventures of, 413 

Winthrop, R. C, his interview with Senator 3Ia- 

son 32 

Winthrop, Theodore, Major, how lie was killed, . . 481 
AVoman, a brave one, captures secessionists, ... 7 

Women, heroism of, in Tennessee, 59 

Woman, a Union, at New Orleans, 63 

Women. General Kelley and the secession girl, . 65 
Women. Mrs. McGilvery's exploit, ....... 75 

Woman, how one died at Alexandria, 76- 

Women, heroism of the Southern, 77 

Women. A wife on the battle-field, 85 

Women. A Spartan girl in Baltimore, 118 

Women. Mrs. Simmons of Mississippi, 120 

Women, spirit of the, in Virginia, 123 

Women. A girl worth having, 140 

Women, loyal, of Termessee, 142 

Women. Emma Sansom, of Cherokee, 145 

Woman, death of a young, on the field of Chicka- 

mauga, 158 

Women. The little girl's kindness to the sol- 
diers ISl 

Women. An old woman's welcome to the flag, . . 218 
Woman, a Southern, describes Sherman's flank 

movements, 221' 

Women. Diana Smith, the heroine of the North- 
west, 223 

Women, President Lincoln's tribute to American, . 266 
Women, how a loyal girl saved the war maps, . . . 266 . 
Women. A young woman's description of the re- 
ception of the American flag in Nashville, ... 207 
Women, Miss Cornelia Oldom, bravery of, .... 347 

Women. " She regretted it," 350 

Women, how they .appeared in Tennessee, 383 

Women. A noble Richmond girl 402 



560 



INDEX TO ANECDOTES, POETRY, AND INCIDENTS. 



Women. Female bushwhackers at the South, . . . 423 

Women. " That dear old flag," 423 

Women. The wrath of Mary Lee Thome, ,431 

Women. How Mrs. Johnston was deceived, , . . 440 
Woman. A negro woman's description of the re- 
treat from Yorktown, 458 

Women. An incident of Corinth, 449 

Woman, a, at the battle of Antietam, 451 

Woman, a belligerent one, at Branchville, South 

Carolina, 450 

Woman. How Mrs. Phelps saved the dead body of 

General Lyon, 458 

Woman. An even chance, a story, 481 

Woman, how a young, took the oath in Kichmond, 482 

Women. Noble ones at the South, 486 

Women. Female patriotism at the South, . '. . . 509 
Woman's sacrifice, a tribute to Miss Cutler, .... 344 

Women of the South, industry of the, 360 

Wood, A. E., Colonel, orders his own execution, . 442 
Wood, Captain, Fourth Rhode Island, how he cap- 
tured a schooner, 253 

Wood, T. J., General, at Lookout Mountain, ... 201 

Wormouth, Ezra, his coolness in battle, 310 

Wounded soldier, the experiences of a, 248 

Wright, Clark, the Yankee soldier, a graphic ac- 
count of him, 241 

Wyman, General, anecdote of, 157 



Yankees "got no horns," an incident of Williams- 
burg, 4S1 

Yankees vs. Hyenas, Justinian's comparison, . . . 423 

Yankee kindness, instances of, 488 

Yankee strategy on board the Bohio, 398 

Yankee Vandals, a song, . . , 167 

Yankeeism on the field, 159 

Yates, Richard, the spirit of, 291 

" Ye Londonne Times correspondente, his BuUe 

Runne Lettere," 199 

Yorktown, "Virginia, who raised the flag at, ... . 99 
Yorktown, a contraband's description of the retreat 

from, 453 

Yorktown, incidents of, 545 

" Youeas and Weans," 84 



Zagonyi, Colonel, story of his charge at Spring- 
field, 442 

ZollicoflFer, Felix R., General, at Wild Cat, .... 84 
ZoUicoffer, General, Parson Brownlow's opinion of, 464 

Zollicofi'er, General, the death of, 143 

Zouave and the mule, the, 390 



"THE CYCLOPEDIA OF THE WAR." 

'The embodiment of all that is valuable, and the only HISTORY of 
the "War that can be relied on." 



THE 



REBELLION RECORD, 



EDITED BT ; 



"A work which every intelligent man needs and should have." 
D. VAN" NOSTRAND, PulDUsher, 

New-York. 



""Without question, the moat valuable contempoiary History ever prepared, is Frank Mo„. 
Eebellion Becord."- ABRAHAM! UNCOLIf. 



THE EEBELLION KECOED, 



EDITED BT 



FEAl^K MOOEE. 

Publishing in parts, at Sixty Cents, each part Illustrated with Two Portraits 

engraved on steel. 

TIJW VOLUMES, ROYAL 8vo, ]^OW BEADY. 

CLOTH . $6 00 per Voluma. 

SHEEP. 6 00 « 

HALF CALF, or HALF MOROCCO 6 50 " 



There are very few men of ordinary intelligence, and possessing an ordi 
nary share of interest in tlie war which for a long period so entirely en- 
grossed the public attention, who have not very often desired to fix the date of 
some important battle, some change of commanders, or the issue of some not^ 
worthy proclamation. There are fewer still who would not feel an interest in re- 
curring to the vivid description of some important engagement by sea or land, in 
which mayhap a kinsman or friend participated. They read it at the time in the 
newspaper, and thought they would preserve it, nay, perhaps, supposed they had ; 
but newspapers, especially in these days when paper stock is so high, have a way 
of taking themselves off; and in all probability Bridget or the Chiffonier had 
taken possession of it within an hour after it was carefully put away in some cup- 
board or drawer, and when next sought for re-perusal or reference, it was not to 
be found. 

Incidents of the war, and war poetry, too, are things we all like to treasure 
up, and yet we are perpetually finding that at the very time we want them to 
show to a friend or to refresb our own memories, they are missing, and after a 
long and fruitless search we are at last compelled, greatly to our vexation, to 
give them up. 

These are wants which all feel ; annoyances confined to no particular class, 
sex, or age of readers ; grievances which are occurring a thousand times everv 
day, and alike in city or country. 



^ There are otlier annoyances in reference to the facts and incidents of the war 
which affect particular classes. The clergyman who wishes to introduce into hia 
discourse some pertinent reference to or illustration from the conflict, or who desires 
to commemorate some of the great epochs in its history, finds himself uncertain 
about the date or the parties engaged, or some other equally important fact ; he 
ransacks with ill-disguised impatience his file of newspapers, but the very one 
wanted is not there, and his hearers either lose a vivid illustration or a stirring ap- 
peal, or it is introduced with an uncertainty in regard to facts and dates which robs 
it of half its power. The lawyer engaged to try an important cause, having rela- 
tions to some one of the many phases of the war, finds some fact of which he has 
an imperfect recollection absolutely indispensable to the successful presentation ot 
his case, and yet, after hours of unavailing search, can not find it. 

The editor, in the midst of one of his most brilliant and forcible leaders, desires 
to recur to the date or circumstances of a battle, to the text of an important pro- 
clamation, diplomatic communication, ofiS.cial report, or other document, the lan- 
guage or facts of which, if quoted at all, must be quoted accurately — ^but, alas 1 a 
hurried reconnoissance of his files fails to bring it to light, and he must rely on an 
imperfect recollection or abandon the leader which begun so hopefully. 

The public orator with whom the events of the rebellion, its great battles, the 
deeds of its generals, the reports of ofl&cers and government officials, and the pro- 
clamations which it has called forth, constitute his capital, will be sorely troubled 
for the material from which to weave his harangues, if he is compelled to hunt 
through files of daily papers, and often fruitlessly, for the facts and documents 
he needs. 

The statistician, seeking for facts and figures on which to base his deductions 
respecting the cost of armies, the expenditure of human life, the proportions of 
the sick and wounded, the strength of fortifications and of vessels of war, and the 
thousand other topics now coming under the domain of statistical science, accumu- 
lates his store of papers, books, and pamphlets on the war, only to find, to his dis- 
may, that important data, the keystones, so to speak, of the structure he is rearing, 
are yet wanting. 

The historian, greedily gathering for future use the treasures of this history- 
making epoch, and storing away most carefully the various documents which re- 
cord its great movements, still finds himself unsupplied with some books for the 
continuous narrative he hppes by-and-by to prepare of the rise and fall of the 
great rebellion. 

Now to all these classes, as well as many more, the Eebellion Eecord is 
the very work needed ; the indispensable book to complement and supplement 
what they may have culled from other sources. Gathering its material from a 
wider range of sources than are to be found elsewhere, comparing them critically 
and repeatedly, so as to sifc out the errors of a strictly contemporaneous record, and 
then weaving them into a daily record, presenting in its order every official report 
or document, and in connection with these, gathering up the incidents and rumora 
which exhibit so strikingly the temper and spirit of the time, it forms a photo- 



grapli of each day of the eventful period. This will be more clearly seen when 
we describe the 

PLAN OF THE WORK. 

The editor having had a previous training in the preparation of his admirable 
Diary of the American Revolution^ decided, in the commencement of this work, upon 
a plan which all subsequent experience has proved the best possible for the pur- 
pose designed. 

It contains Three Divisions, namely : 

1st. A diary of verified occurrences, giving, in chronological order, the import- 
ant events of each day in all parts of the country, and with a delay sufficient to 
establish their accuracy. 

2d. Official Documents, careful and well-prepared Narratives of Battles, etc. ; 
Proclamations of the President, and General Orders of leading Generals ; Speeches 
and Essays of men of mark on matters pertaining to the Eebellion ; Legal De- 
cisions and Opinions on questions of Governmental Policy connected with it, etc 

3d. Poetry, Incidents, Anecdotes, Narratives of Particular Events, etc. 

These, like the documents, are drawn impartially from both sides, and give 
the coloring of each. The rumors which produce a temporary excitement on one 
side or the other, are also inserted here. It adds greatly to the value of this work, 
as a record of the materials for history, that it has from the beginning presented 
every ofl&cial document and every clear and distinct narrative from the Southern 
side, and placed them in juxtaposition with the documents and narratives of the 
Union side, referring to the same events. These documents and narratives have 
in many instances b.een prepared and corrected by their authors, especially for the 
Rebellion Eecord, and many of them appear for the first time in its pages. 

The Rebellion Record has, as we believe, a claim to a very wide circulation 
in England as well as in this country, on the following grounds : its accuracy, its 
impartiality, its completeness, its preservation of all the materials for a future his- 
tory of the struggle now in progress, its connected diary, its valuable documents, 
its interesting collection of incidents, its garnering up the poetry called out by the 
war, and its unique character, as the only work of its kind. We might enlarge on 
these points, but we prefer to give from our abundant stores the testimony of 
others on these points. In order to convey to the mind of the reader an idea of 
the general scope of this work, we append a list of the newspaper authorities con- 
sulted and used in its preparation, and firom which every thing of importance, oi 
historical value, bearing directly upon principles and acts involved in the great 
struggle, is taken. 



History is distilled N'e wspapers." — Oarlyle. 
" The Rebellion Eecord is the Leart of the newspaper press." 



NEWSPAPEES USED IN THE PBEPARATION OF THE KEBELLION- EECOBD. 



Maine. 

Portland Advertiser, 
" Eastern Argus, 
•' Transcript, 

Augusta Age, 

St. Croix Herald, 

Eastport Sentinel, 

Bath Eastern Times, 

Belfast Journal. 



Ne w-Hampsliire . 

Concord Democratic Standard, 
" Independent Democrat, 
" Patriot, 
•' Statesman, 

Exeter News-Letter, 

Portsmouth Morning Chronicle, 
" Journal, 

Manchester American, 

Keene Sentinel, 

Dover Inquirer, 

Lancaster Republican. 



Vermont. 

Burlington Times, 

" Free Press, 

Green Mountain Freeman, 

Montpelier State Gazette, 
" Daily Journal, 

Rutland Herald. 



Massacliusetts. 

Boston Transcript, 

« Post, 

" Advertiser, 

" Courier, 

" Journal, 

" Christian Register, 

" Saturday Evening Express, 

" Ch'n Watchman and Reflector, 

" Traveller, 

" Christian Witness, 

•' Congregationalist, 
Barre Gazette, 
New-Bedford Mercury, 
" Standard, 

Lowell Journal, 

" Citizen, 
Fall River News, 
Old Colony Memorial, 
Newburyport Herald, 
Salem Gazette, 

" Advertiser, 
Taunton Democrat, 

" Gazette, 
Springfield Republican, 
Worcester Spy, 

" Transcript, 
Nantucket Enquirer. 



Rbode Island. 

Providence Journal, 

" Post, 

•' Press, 
Woonsocket Patriot, 
Newport News. 



Connecticut. 

Bridgeport Advertber, 
Ntw-Uaren Courier, 
«* Palladium, 



New-Haven News, 

" Register, 
Hartford Couraut, 

" Press, 

" Post, 
Norwalk Gazette. 



NeTT-Yorlc. 



N. T. City Tribune, 

" Times, 

" Herald, 

«' World, 

" Evening Post, 

*' Commercial, 

" Express, 

" Journal of Commerce, 

" Christian Inquirer, 

" " Advocate, 

" Examiner, 

" Observer, 

" Home Journal, 

" Vanity Fair, 

" Wilkes' Spirit of the Times, 

'« New- York Hlustrated News, 
Buffalo Courier, 
" Express, 
Brooklyn Eagle, 
Albany Argus, 
" Standard, 
" Journal, 
Elmira Advertiser, 
Delaware Gazette, 
Canandaigua Times, 
BLingston Courier, 
Long Island Democrat, 
Newburgh News, 
Chenango Telegraph, 
Ogdensburgh Sentinel, 
Mount Morris Union, 
Poughkeepsie Press, 
Syracuse Courier, 

" Journal, 
Oswego Palladium, 

'• Times, 
Troy Budget, 
" Times, 
Rome Sentinel, 
Schenectady Times, 
Port Byron Star, 
Yonkers Examiner. 



Ne^T-Jersey. 

Newark Advertiser, 

" Mercury, 
Jersey City Courier, 
Princeton Standard, 
New-Brunswick News, • 

" Times, 

Cape Island Ocean Wave, 
Paterson Guardian, 
Trenton State Gazette, 
Woodbury Constitution. 



Dela^vare. 

Wilmington Gazette, 

" State Journal, 

" Republican, 

Dover Delawarean. 



Pennsylvania. 

Philadelphia Press, 
" Inquirer, 

" North-American, 

" Bulletin, 



PhiladelpUa Ledger, 

" News, 

" Pennsylvanian, 

Conneautville Advertiser, 
Alleghany Register, 
Chambersburgh Times, 
Harriaburgh Patriot, 

" Telegraph, 

Easton Argus, 
Lancaster Inquirer, 
" Express, 
Doylestown Intelligencer, 
Erie City Express, 
" Gazette, 
Lebanon Courier, 
Pittsburgh Chronicle, 

" Free Press, 

" Gazette, 
Westchester Herald, 
Reading Press, 
" Post, 
Norristown Free Press. 

Maryland. 

Baltimore American, 

" Sun, 

" Clipper, 
Frederick Herald, 

" Banner of Liberty. 



Virginia. 

Norfolk Herald, 
Petersburgh Express, 
Fredericksburgh Recorder, 
Richmond Dispatch, 

" Examiner, 
Winchester Republican, 
Lynchburgh Virginian, 
Wheeling Intelligencer, 

" Democrat, 

■' Times. 



Pfortli-Carolina. 

Beaufort Journal, 
Newbern Progress, 
Raleigh Press, 

" Standard, 
Wilmington Times. 



South-Carolina. 

Charleston Mercury, 

" News, 

" Courier, 

Camden Journal, 
Sumter Spartan, 
Columbia Guardian, 

" South-Carolinian. 



Georgia. 

Columbus Sun, 
Atlanta American, 

" Confederacy, 
Savannah Republican, 
West-Point Citizen, 
Augusta Constitutionalist, 
MllledgevlUe Reo« ■ Jcr. 

Florida. 

Fernandina News, 
Pensacola Times, 
Key West New Era, 
TallatiuMe Floridiaa 



G 



Alabama. 

Rufitta Express, 
Decatur Alabamian, 
Gainesville Independent, 
Mobile Advertiser, 

" News, 

" Register, 
Montgomery Blail, 

" Advertiser, 

" Confederation, 

Selma Reporter, 
Wedowee Democrat. 



Mississippi. 

Grenada Conservative, 
Coffeeville Intelligencer, 
Columbus Democrat, 

" News, 

" Press, 
Jackson Mississippian, 
Natchez Courier, 
Vicksbui-gh Whig, 

" Sentinel, 
Yazoo Banner. 



lionisiana. 

New-Orleans Delta, 

" Picayune, 

" Crescent, 

" True Delta, 

" Bee, 

Baton Rouge Advocate, 
" Planter, 

Donaldsonville Coast Journal, 

Monroe Register, 

Opelousas Courier, 

Shreveport Gazette, 

Plaquemlne Gazette, 

Winfield Sentinel. 



Texas. 

Galveston News, 
" Civilian, 

Austin Intelligencer, 
Brownsville Flag, 
Houston Telegraph, 
San Antonio Herald, 
Nacogdoches Chronicle, 
Liberty Gazette, 
San Augustine Texan, 
Rusk Sentinel. 



Arkansas. 

Brownsville Democrat, 
Helena Shield, 
Napoleon Planter, 
Fayetteville Arkansian, 
Fort Smith Times and Herald, 
Little Rock Democrat, 
Searcy Eagle, 
Jacksonport Democrat 



Tennessee. 

Mempliis Avalanche, 

" Bulletin, 

" Argus, 
Knoxville Bulletin, 
Chattanooga Advertiser, 
Nashville Gazette, 

" News, 

" Union and American, 
Clarksville Chronicle, 
Shelbyville Expositor, 
Purdy Argus. 



Kcntncky. 

Louisville Democrat, 
" Journal, 
" Courier, 
Covington Journal, 
Lexington Statesman 



MaysvLle Eagle, 
Paducah Herald, 
Shelby News, 
Mount Sterling Whig, 
Frankfort Commonwealth, 
Bowling Green Gazette, 
Catlettsburgh Advocate, 
Hickman Argus, 
Owensboro Democrat, 
EuaselviUe Herald. 



Ohio. 

Cincinnati Gazette, 
" Times, 
" Commercial, 
" Enquirer, 

Ashtabula Telegraph, 

ChiUicothe Advertiser, 

Circleville Herald, 

Findlay Courier, 

Dayton Gazette, 
" Empire, 

Coshocton Democrat, 

Cleveland Herald, 
" Plaindealer, 

Ohio Statesman. 

Hillsboro' Gazette, 

Lancaster Democrat, 

Ironton Register, 

Marietta Democrat, 

Portsmouth Correspondent, 

Maumee Weekly, 

Penn Yan Chronicle, 

Ravenna Democrat, 

Sandusky Register, 

Springfield Republican, 

Tiffin Tribune, 

Vinton Journal, 

Toledo Blade, 
" Herald, 

Steubenville Herald, 

Xenia Torch-Light, 

Zanesville Courier, 

West-Liberty Banner, 

Columbus Democrat, 

Akron Beacon, 

Cambridge Sentinel, 

Bellefontaine Gazette. 



Indiana. 

Indianapolis Gazette, 
" Democrat, 

" State Journal, 

" Sentinel, 

Auburn Democrat, 
Evansville Inquirer, 
" Journal, 
Laporte Herald, 

" Union, 
Crawfordsville Journal, 
Edinburgh Republican, 
Leavenworth Journal, 
Monticello Democrat, 
New- Alb any Ledger, 
Terre Haute Express, 
" Journal, 

Vincennes Gazette, 
" Patriot, 

South-Bend Register, 
Lebanon Expositor, 
Portland Democrat, 
Logansport Journal, 
Albion Democrat, 
JeffersonvUle Democrat 



Illinois. 

Galena Advertiser, 

" Courier, 
Alton Democrat, 

" Courier, 
Galesburgh Democrat, 
Belleville Advocate, 
Chicago Tribune, 

" Times, 

" Christian Times, 

" Evening Journal, 
Kankakee Democrat, 
Grayville Advocate, 



Centralla Republic, 
Jacksonville Argus, 
Oquawka Plaindealer, 
Rock Island Argus, 

" Register, 

Peoria Democrat, 

" Transcript, 
Quincy News, 

" Whig, 

" Standard, 
Shelbyville Banner, 
Springfield Democrat, 

" State Journal, 

Rockford Register, 
Urbana Clarion, 
Warsaw Bulletin, 
Waukeegan Citizen. 



Mlcliigan 

Coldwater Republican, 
Adrian Expositor, 
Wolverine Citizen, 
Flint Democrat, 
Detroit Free Press, 

" Tribune, 

" Christian Herald, 
Battle Creek Journal, 
Hillsdale Democrat, 
Grand Rapids Eagle, 
Lapeer Republican, 
Saginaw Enterprise, 
Pontiao Gazette, 
Ypsilanti Chronicle. 



Minnesota. 

Blinneapolis Plaindealer, 
St. Paul Times, 

" Minnesotian, 

" Republican, 
Manketo Independent, 
St. Anthony's Falls Express. 
Minesota City Sentinel, 
Austin Mirror, 
Winona Republican, 
St. Peter Press, 
Rochester Press. 



Missouri. 

Jefferson City Examiner, 
Independence Herald, 
Cape Girardeau Eagle, 
Ironton Farmer, 
Gallatin Register, 
Boonville Patriot, 
Fredericktown Journal, 
Kansas City Republic, 
Missouri Democrat, 

" Republican, 
St. Louis Bulletin, 
Louisiana Herald, 
Platte City Argus, 
St. Joseph Gazette, 
Palmyra Courier, 
Warrensburgh Missourian, 
MaysvUle Recorder. 



lOTra. 

Burlington Gazette, 
Columbus City Enterprise, 
Anamosa Gazette, 
Dubuque Herald, 
" Times, 
Muscatine Enquirer, 
Keokuk Gate City, 

" Journal, 
Davenport News, 

" Gazette. 
Sioux City Eagle, 
Des Moines Journal, 

" Statesman, 

Mount Pleasant Farmer, 
Wapello Gazette, 
Oskaloosa Herald, 
Council Bluffs Union, 
Vinton Eagle. 



Wisconsin. 

UlhrAukee "Wisconsin, 
" News, 
" Democrat, 

Cheboygan Advocate, 
" News, 

Green Bay Advocate, 

Fond du Lac Commonwealtli 

Beloit Herald, 

Port Atkinson Standard, 

Madison Argus, 

" State Journal, 

Kenosha Times, 

Racine Advocate, 

Sauk City Pioneer, 

La Crosse Democrat, 

Portage Record, 

Waukesha Democrat. 



California. 

Nevada Democrat, 
Sacramento Times, 
Los Angeles Star, 
San Diego Herald, 
Alta Califomian, 
San Francisco Times. 



7 

Oregon. 

Portland Times, 
Oregon Statesman, 
Salem Statesman. 

Kansas. 

Atchison Union, 
Lawrence Republican, 
Leavenworth Conservative, 

" Dispatch, 

" Herald, 

Olathe Herald, 
Oskaloosa Independent. 

Washington City, 

National Intelligencer, 
Evening Star, 
Congressional Globe. 

Nebraslca, 

Brownsville Advertiser, 
Denver Herald. 



ArlJEona. 

Tucson Weekly. 

New-Mexico. 

Santa Fe Gazette. 

England. 

London Times, 

" Daily News, 

" Herald, 

" Saturday Press, 

" Spectator, 

" Punch, 
Manchester Guardian, 
Liverpool Times. 

France. 

Paris, Le Jloniteur 
Le Pays, 
La Press, 
La Patrie. 



Prom the New- York Journal of Commerce. 



In former times the history of wars was made by 
those who controlled the great sources of public in- 
formation. Kings gave such inclination to history as 
seemed best to serve their purposes. The materials 
for subsequent historical writings were of the most 
meagre sort. The general's report, the conversation 
of courtiers, here and there a manuscript from some 
private individual, these alone survived to be the 
small basis on which to build historical structures. 
We may well hesitate to accept the stories of Herod- 
otus, gathered from such scant sources of informa- 
tion, and Xenophon himself must remain uncontra- 
dicted only for the reason that he was the maker of 
the history he wrote, and no one could require that 
he make or wi'ite it truly. 

So even at as late a period as the American Revolu- 
tion the materials for history are very few, and the 
suspicion has been again and again suggested that the 
scarcity of material had enabled some writers of his- 
tory to suppress contemporary manuscripts which were 
the only existing proofs of the carelessness or the pre- 
judice which had led to mistakes in the historian. The 
Rebellion Record of Mr. Frank Moore is therefore 
one of the most remarkable literary works of any 
age, for it ensures the fact that the war will go down 
to the future ages without possibility of concealment 
as to facts, motives or policies pursued by the con- 
testants. 

Examining it in this view, we are more and more 
astonished at the impartiality with which the editor 
pursues his labors, and the invaluable results for the 
benefit of the country and the world wliich he is 
bringing out of them. As the war goes on it daguer- 
reotypes itself on the pages of the Record, every 
feature standing out clear and distinct. All the move- 
ments of those who stand behind the scenes and di- 
rect the drama are visible to the eye, from the remark- 
able collocation which is effected in these pages. 
Causes and effects are brought close together, and 
none can be so blind as not to see the connection. 

Aside from the great historical value of the work, 
it is also to be noted that in a war like this, where 
millions are directly and indirectly interested in the 
various events, scarcely a man, woman or child in the 
land fails to find in the Record some passage of deep 
personal interest. The battle in which a brother, 
lather, tiusband or son perhaps fell, must always 



possess the deepest interest to the family The song 
that a stranger has written about that battle has a 
music or a pathos of peculiar significance. 

Hence such a record is of special interest in Ameri- 
can homes, and in this regard the work must be con- 
sidered as wholly unrivalled by any former publication 
of a historic or descriptive character. It is a constant 
and unfailing book of reference. It furnishes the 
orator with all the history of the times ; it answers 
the questions which men discuss, and about which 
they differ in every village, town and city ; the courts 
refer to it for the decision of important points, and 
editors are relieved of the labors of hours of almost 
hopeless searching for authorities by tlie index, which 
presents the matter before them at a glance. 

The plan of the work is peculiar and happy. It con- 
tains three divisions: (1) A diary of events, giving 
from day to day the occurrences of the war in all 
parts of the country ; (2) OfBcial documents, and in 
this department the work is peculiarly valuable, from 
the accurate revised reports which it furnishes, and 
which are elsewhere inaccessible ; (3) Poetry, incidents, 
anecdotes, etc. This last feature has a historic value 
hitherto unappreciated. When one wished to write 
the songs of a nation in order to control its character, 
he but expressed the great fact that its character is 
visible in its favorite songs. 

So, too, a vast amount of history, the finishing 
tints, the character-lines of the historical portraiture, 
are to be derived from the anecdotes, the facetice, the 
common jokes of a people. 

We have given more than usual notice to the Rebel- 
lion Record, because it is becoming one of the institu- 
tions of the country during the war, is a novelty in 
literature, and an illustration of the advance of the 
arts and sciences in this age of the world. 

If we had such a record of tlie days of Miltiades, 
of the stormy times of Julius Caesar, of the cam- 
paigns of the great Charles, and of the times of Na- 
poleon, we should be able to appreciate with tremen- 
dous force the truth that God has made all men of one 
blood, and that human passions, arguments, hopet«, 
fears, employments, and ways of doing and thinking 
bear close resemblance to each other in all ages. Ah 
it is, we must be content to go down to posterity on 
the pages of the Record, to be an example or a wam- 
in" to the remotest generations of mankind. 



From Commodore CADWAIiADEB BlNGQOIiD. U.8.N. 

March 10, 1863. 
Mt Dear Sir: 

Having occasion recently to use professionally the various proclamations promulgated 
by the European Powers, touching the " Rights of Neutrals," etc., in my search for copies I could 
not find them until I was directed to the numbers of your valuable work, the Rebellion Record. 
I have frequently referred to this memoir and history of the events of the great struggle our 
country is engaged in, but while recently at sea the opporttmity more carefully to examine several 
numbers was afforded me. I find them replete with information useful to the officers and men of 
the navy. 

Our seamen are generally intelligent, and much more so of late, owing to the introduction 
into our navy of many of our enterprising and well-educated young men, in their desire to serve 
the country. Our people all read much, and take great interest in our national honor and con- 
cerns, and no class of citizens more so than our hardy tars. 

If, therefore, copies of your valuable work were freely circulated on board our public ships, 
I am satisfied the happiness of the crews would be increased and encouragement given to a de- 
votion to duty. To make honorable mention of acts of heroism and merit by our seamen or 
soldiers would be appreciated by their having the advantage of a perusal of its pages, and would 
have the effect to stimulate them to emulation. 

Hoping to see a wide circulation and encouragement given to your excellent production, 

I am very truly yours, 

CADWALADER RINGGOLD, 
■ Commodore U.S.N. 

Headquarters Inspector of Artillery, U.S.A., 
Washington, March 2, 1863. 
Pbavk Moobb, Esq.: 

My Dear Sir: It gives me great pleasure to inform you that I consider the Rebellion 
Record a most valuable publication. As a depository of the documents and statistics of the 
rebellion, official and unofficial, arranged and indexed as they are in so systematic a manner, it is 
not only of great present service, but must prove of incalculable benefit to the future historian. 

The Record has on more than one occasion supplied me with statistical information not other- 
wise to be procured. 

I am, dear sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant, 

WILLIAM F. BARRY, 
Bbioasikb-Gehbral, Inspbctob of Abtilxkbt, U.S.A. 



" The events of no former war were ever so fully and promptly embodied 
ill a single work as arc those of our great contest in " The Rebellion Record," 
wliicli must prove the generous fountain whence all future historians of our 
country may draw at will." — Horace Greeley, m his Preface to the " Ameri- 
can Conflict.'''' 



OPINIONS OF THE PRESS. 



Its Aocuraoy. 

"During the trial in the United States Circuit Court, 
which terminated yesterday in the conviction of Wil- 
liam Smith for piracy, as one of the crew of the Jeff 
Davis, a great deal of documentary evidence to show 
the reality of secession was offered in evidence by the 
counsel for defence — avowedly taken from Frank 
Moore's Rebellion Record, and received by Judges Grier 
and Cadwallader who presided. This is a remarkable 
compliment to the work in question, but not higher than 
it merits from the fulness and fairness of its varied in- 
formation respecting the origin and progress of the 
Rebellion. It is the first time in legal and literary 
history, thai a book not yet completed has been so stamp- 
ed with authenticity, as to be admitted as evidence in a 
court of law, and on a trial for a capital offence." — 
Phil. Press, Oct. 26, 1861. 

" The great essayist, Carlyle, calls history ' distilled 
newspapers.' The Rebellion Record, then, is a model 
history, for it subjects the journals of the day, with all 
their telegrams, (a word which has become an emphatic 
synonym for falsehood,) their rumors, and their re- 
ports, to the crucible of time, and whatever endures 
that fiery test, it classifies and puts into convenient 
form for preservation and reference." 

" By far the most valuable periodical connected with 
the war is the Rebellion Record. It is destined to be- 
come the standard authority of the war. To any one 
desirous of preserving a record of the conflict as it 
progresses, it is invaluable." — Indianapolis Journal. 

"The Rebellion Record, giving, as it does, every pro- 
clamation, message or paper that is of real import- 
ance, and narrating concisely, yet clearly, all that either 
side has accomplished, becomes an invaluable work to 
all who desire to keep clearly in mind the exact status 
of affairs in our country." — Portsmouth {If. H.) 
Chronicle. 

" This will be the great treasury from which the 
future historian will draw his facts, when the proper 
time shall come to write a history of the great rebel- 
lion." — Christian Instructor, Philadelphia. 

" To those who wish to preserve a complete and 
authentic history of the great struggle, from the effects 
of which our country is now upheaved from centre to 
circumference, this work will commend itself. We 
regard it as the most valuable work that visits our 
table." — Hancock Conner, Ohio. 

" The work is considered the standard authority of 
the war, and a complete reference-book in relation to 
the history of the rebellion.^'' — Steubenville (0.) Daily 
Herald. 

" The contents of this work, sifted from a variety of 
sources, constitute the very best memoires pour servir 
a Vhistoire, out of which the future Bancrofts, Macau- 
lays, and Prescotts will draw their best materials." — 
Racine {Wis.) Weekly Journal. 

" The details of the Record are not hastily gathered 
from the newspapers of the day, but are chosen out 
with deliberation after theii value has become known, 



and whenever it is practicable, ofiBcial copies are secur- 
ed. In this way a vast mass of material is being col- 
lected, which in after-times will illustrate the rebellion, 
its causes, incidents and progress, with a fulness and 
accuracy which no similar era of natural history can 
rival."— PAi^. Bulletin. 

"A good evidence of the value of the Rebellion 
Record is the fact that it has been introduced into the 
courts and cited as authority. This was done in Phil- 
adelphia a short time since, as it has also been in this 
city." — N. Y. Commercial Advertiser. 

" The courts, the departments, and the press con- 
tinually quote the Rebellion Record ; historical students 
appropriate it for permanent use ; while every citizen, 
however little of a reader, finds it as useful as a dic- 
tionary, gazetteer or blue-book." — Boston Transcript. 

" It is an easy matter to attain, without really de- 
serving it, a fair reputation for truthfulness and general 
accuracy; but the reputation which the Rebellion 
Record has acquired is not of this superficial charac- 
ter ; it has been subjected to the ordeal of the closest 
criticism and comparison with official and other 
authorities, and in every case has come out triumph- 
ant. It has been our own duty, during a few months 
past, to collate every important fact given in its pages 
with other collections of material of ample extent, and 
mainly official in character, and we have yet to find 
the first important error." — N. Y. Examiner. 

Its Impartiality. 

" Every document bearing upon the great crisis, 
whether emanating from the North or South, is given 
in whole or in part. Every important event, from the 
first unfurling of the rebel flag at Charleston, is re- 
corded, with the date and the comments which it elicit- 
ed from the press. Most of the poetry which the 
conflict has inspired is published." — Albany Evening 
Journal. 

" Its contents have been collected from a vast num- 
ber of sources, from rebel as well as from loyal ac- 
counts, so as fairly to exhibit all views of the ques- 
tion." — Philadelphia Press. 

" It is a compilation of strictly truthful narrations 
and expressions of opinion, taken chiefly from the daily 
newspapers of all parts of the Union." — Washington 

Globe. 

" In his selections, Mr. Moore has given every au- 
thentic document and narrative from the Southern 
side, as well as those of a loyal character, in all cases 
giving his authority," — Providence Press. 

" It is a periodical of great value and permanent 
interest. Communicating statements from both sides 
on all the questions and occurrences of the war, it is 
an acceptable work at the present time, while to the 
future historian it will prove invaluable."— CeMys&urgrA 
{Pa.) Evang. Review. 

"It is as remarkable for the industry displayed in 
its compilation as for its perfect impartiality."— ioww- 
viUe Journal. 



10 



" Commencing with the outbreak of our national 
troubles, the editor, whose reputation for accuracy, 
industry and research is universal, has here gathered 
up every thing in the shape of official documents, 
speeches of public men, letters of newspaper corre- 
spondents, narratives of officers and soldiers, emanating 
from both parties in the war; poetry written by 
secessionists and loyalists, etc., which can possibly 
throw light upon the series of tremendous events 
through which we are passing." — Flag of our Union, 
Boston. 

"Had the government from its contingent fund, or 
Congress at its last session, sent to England for distri- 
bution, through our Minister and Consuls, to the lead- 
ing presses of Great Britain, and to its public libra- 
ries and reading-rooms, a supply of this work, with its 
daily narrative of facts, its documents and accounts of 
battles from the best authorities on both sides, the 
Saturday Review, Blackwood, and the London Times 
would have been forced to desist from palming off 
upon the public their monstrous perversions and false- 
hoods, and those who are really our friends in that 
country would have been furnished with an armory of 
facts which would have enabled them to advocate our 
cause with greater success and confidence." — iV. Y. 
Commercial Advertiser. 

" The Record is eminently just and conservative ; 
there is neither exaggeration, extenuation nor malice. 
In the future it will have an increased value as a cor- 
rect arbiter in all important questions concerning our 
great past." — Phil. Inquirer. 

"It will furnish a standard reference on matters 
touching the great rebellion in all coming time." — 
Dubuque (loica) Times. 

" It will preserve a living transcript of popular feel- 
ings and movements, of every day-phases and incidents, 
as well as of public measures and events." — JV. Y. In- 
dependent. 

" What American readers want is a book of refer- 
ence in regard to the war on which they can safely 
rely. Such a book is the Rebellion Record.^' — Ohio 
Btaiesma?!. 

" It gives the official reports of both parties in the 
contest ; picturesque narratives of eye-witnesses, copi- 
ous extracts from Union, Secession and British jour- 
nals, with anecdotes and poetry of widely varying 
tone." — Springfield {Mass.) Republican. 

" It has met with well-deserved success and praise 
from all who have taken the pains to read carefully its 
pages." — iV. Y. Observer. 

" It contains all the proclamations, messages, let- 
ters, speeches, reports, etc., etc., emanating from both 
sides, their leaders, officers and speakers." — Adrian 
(Mich.) Expositor. 

*' The documents, verified occurrences, rumors, in- 
cidents, poetry, anecdotes, etc., are transcribed with a 
faithful pen, and as the editor has aimed at entire im- 
partiality, these have been gathered from every quar- 
ter. The views of leading minds North and South are 
here grouped together without alteration or comment. 
Every individual who has spoken or written with 
effect on either side, or ' in the fence,' has been placed 
' on record,' and his utterances have been electrotyped 
for the benefit of future generations." — Chore's Rural 
y^ew- Yorker. 

" To every fair mind statements from both sides on 
all questions and occurrences of this war, will be ac- 



ceptable now, while to the future historian thnj wUI 
be invaluable for comparison." — Phil. Inquirer. 

" It must have been a difficult task for an editor aa 
truly patriotic as Mr. Moore, to give with such strict 
impartiality the narratives and statements of the se- 
cessionists, where there was every reason to believe 
them exaggerated or false, but the truth of history re- 
quires the statements of all sides in a contest, and the 
editor of the Record has maintained an unswervbg im- 
partiality which will be fully appreciated in the future, 
if it is not now." — Cor. Indiana Witness. 

" It is a clear and full history of all movements of 
the war, which are well authenticated, to which is add- 
ed comments of the press, North and South, incidents, 
songs and anecdotes, growing out of the war." — Indian- 
apolis Journal. 

" The Rebellion Record is invaluable to statesmen 
of every country. I find in its pages important facta 
and documents, that I look in vain for in the national 
archives." — Letter of the late Senator Bingha>n. 



Its Completeness. 

" The longer and more complicated the war becomes, 
the more important is it to have a work like this, so 
comprehensive in its plan, so full in its details, and so 
thoroughly arranged and convenient for reference." — 
Sunday- School Tunes. 

"As a faithful and complete documentary history 
of the war, this work is vastly superior to any thing 
else published." — Congregaiionalist, (Boston.) 

" The documents and narratives are well selected, 
and comprise every really important public paper con- 
nected with the conduct of the war for crushing the 
rebellion.' ' — Boston Transcript. 

"All the official reports of the various battles, by 
the general officers engaged, the official reports of kill- 
ed, etc., together with extracts from the best news- 
paper accounts, and every anecdote, incident, and 
story calculated to throw light upon and bring out 
into relief the true history of this infamous war, are 
here carefully collected." 

"A complete register of all matters and events con- 
nected with the rebellion as they transpire, embracing 
official documents, statistics, description of battles, 
military reports, etc." — Ypsilantl {Mich.) Times. 

" It is a complete reference-book on the great ee- 
BELLiON ; a book which must be needed while the re- 
bellion is remembered — and that can be forgotten only 
when free governments become obsolete, and human 
liberty nothing worth." — Portland (Me.) Christian 
Mirror. 

•' The Record is the most complete chronicle of the 
events of the war which has been issued." — Philadel- 
phia Sunday Dispatch. 

" It is the standard authority of the war, and a 
complete reference-book as to the history of the re- 
bellion." — Duhique {loica) Daily Times. 

" It has more than fulfilled all that it promised at 
the outset, and constitutes a full, complete, and reli- 
able history of the rebellion." — Galesbiirgh {111.) Free 
Democrat. 

"No one should be without this publication, as it 
will be a complete history of the rebellion, and may be 
relied on as correct." — Lansing {Mich.) Republican. 



11 



" "W hen completed — as it will be when the war is 
closed — it will be set down as the only standard, every- 
day history of tne civil war in existence." — Daven- 
port {Iowa) Democrat and News. 

" As a storehouse of reliable facta relating to our 
great civil war ; as a repository of valuable documents 
relating to the same subject ; and as an interesting and 
amusing casket of narrative and poetry to which the 
war has given rise, the Rebellion Record is unsurpass- 
ed." — Ohio Staietman. 

" The compilation of documents, official or authen- 
ticated, is very perfect, while the diary of events, in- 
cidents, poetry, etc., afford a complete and interesting 
history of the times." — Albany Statesman. 

" With such a Record as this, there is no need of 
another Hildreth or Bancroft." — N. Y. World. 

" The patient labor that thus collects, arranges, and 
indexes documents, is of incalculable value. Every 
American citizen should possess a copy of the Rebel- 
lion Record." — jY. Y. Illustrated News. 

'■^ The^ Rebellion Record cova'^W&il .... with 
such thoroughness and care, will do for posterity 
what its editor has so laboriously accomplished for his 
own generation with respect to the war of the revo- 
lution ; and it will be preserved in households for con- 
stant and familiar reference." — -A^. Y. Independent. 

" It preserves every thing of importance connected 
with the rebellion." — Boston Journal. 

" It will form in itself a history more authentic and 
valuable than any ever written." — N. Y. Sunday 
Mercury. 

" It mamtams the high position which marked its 
advent as a historical record." — Providence Journal. , 

" With each new number we are more and more 
impressed with the value of this work as a reliable 
and complete history of the war." — Boston Congrega- 
tionalist. 

"It should be in the library of every one who de- 
sires to possess a complete memorial of this strange 
and wonr'rous episode of our history." — Pkiladdphia 
Inquirer. 

" We know of no work which, in its fulness and 
completeness, compares with the Rebellion Record.''^ — 
Sandusky [Ohio) Register. 

"We must bear witness to the faithfulness of the 
editor's labor and patience in compiling this full, reli- 
able, and complete record." — Missouri Republican. 

" It is the only complete and authentic record of 
the rebellion, and the future historian will hardly need 
to go beyond its pages for the materials of his vol- 
ume." — Cincinnati Gazette. 

" It gives every thing that can be needed to form a 
complete record of the rebellion." — Hampshire {Mass.) 
Gazette. 

" It is incomparably the fullest and completest ex- 
position of the great rebellion that has appeared or 
probably will appear." — Albany Evening Journal. 

Its Variety. 

"One department presents the poetical and pictur- 
eeque aspect, another the notable and characteristic 
incidents, and a third all the important official and 
unofficial documents." — N. Y. Observer. 



"Aside from the well-authenticated facts and docth 
ments relating to the present difficulties contained in 
It, the incidents, poetry, and anecdotes in each volume 
are worth the price of the yiov'k."— Hendricks Co. 
'{Bid.) Bedger. 

" The sadness and gloom of the general theme ara 
relieved by a collection of poetry, anecdotes, personal 
mcidents and gossip, in which the editor picks up 
many a waif which one would not willingly let perish." 
— Philadelphia Inquirer. 

" It contains accounts of all the important events 
which have transpired from the commencement of the 
war to the present time, all the rhymes, good or in- 
different, which have been perpetrated bv poets on 
both sides of ' Dixie's line,' and all the incidents and 
anecdotes which have found their way into the news- 
papers of either section." — Home Journal. 

" One department is assigned to a diary of current 
events, concise and reliable; another contains the 
documents, important speeches, and long official pa- 
pers of the campaign ; while a third, more entertain- 
ing, is devoted to the poetry which has been elicited 
by the events of the contest, with anecdotes and a 
narrative of incidents." — Phila. Sunday Dispatch^ 

"There is a peculiar charm about a work of this 
kind, written while the contest is still going on ; 
word-photographs, taken on the spot as it were, which 
an after-history can never attain." — Keiihsbnrgh Ob 
server. 

" It is not simply a dry, statistical print — though 
merely this would render it very valuable — but it hke- 
wise contains documents, which materially enhance 
its worth. It also presents numerous incidents, some 
that open the floodgates of the heart ; others that, in 
spite of one's self, will call forth the hearty, gushing 
laugh." — Waukegan {III.) Gazette. 

"A feature of this publication is the appendix, con- 
taining the poetical effusions and humorous and af- 
fecting anecdotes to which the war has given birth. 
Some of the poetry which our national conflict baa 
evoked is worthy the reputation of any of our poets 
and the best specimens have been preserved from 
newspaper-corners and ephemeral publications in the 
Rebellion Record." — N. Y. Evening Post. 

"As the monthly issue of the documentary history 
of the war, this work is invaluable ; but when we add 
to this claim its authentic biographical material — the 
sermons and sonnets — the anecdotes and the poems — 
the facts and the fancies, gleaned, collated, arranged, 
and embodied for reference, preservation, and com- 
parison, we know of no publishing enterprise so sea- 
sonable, thorough, and valuable." — Boston Tran- 
script. 

" It embraces not only every thing of positive im- 
portance, such as facts and documents, even to the 
most remote and minor, but all that incidentally il- 
lustrates and lights up the history of such a period — 
all its anecdotes, humorisms, and practical inspira- 
tions." — Buffalo Express. 

" The design of the work embraces every thing con 
nected with the civil conflict, even down to the poetry, 
songs, and anecdotes of the day." — Missouri Repub- 
lican. 

" The Diary, in brief though concise and accurate 
language, describes the daily warlike and political 
events ; the documents and narratives officially illus- 
trate the transactions of the same period ; the poetry, 



12 



rumors, and incidents, emblazon the fervor of the in- 
tellectual patriotism, and collect strange anecdotes to 
which personal daring and sufiFering give birth." — 
Philadelphia Sunday Bispatch. 

"A living transcript of popular feelings and move- 
ments, of every-day phases and incidents, as well as 
of public measures and events." — N. Y. Independent. 

" The selections of anecdotes and poetry are good 
and characteristic, and curiously set forth some of the 
lighter and brighter phases of the thousand-sided 
American mind." — Adrian {Mich.) Expositor. 

Its Preservation of the Materials for Future 
History. 

" It is a complete library of facts, occurrences, bat- 
tles, documents, speeches, etc., from the first breaking 
out of the great rebellion." — Ohio Statesman. 

" From no other source can such important inform- 
ation of the causes and conduct of the present war 
be obtained for future reference." — Lansing {Mich.) 
Republican. 

" Thanks to Mr. Moore's industry in collecting, and 
judgment in selecting from all reliable sources, he is 
here putting aside the best materials for the future his- 
torian." — Burlington, i,^^-) Press. 

" To the lover of history, it becomes one of the 
most prized of modern publications." — N. Y. Journal 
of Commerce. 

" It will constitute such a historic treasury as has 

never been collected before Even to us 

of the present time such a record must seem of ines- 
timable worth ; but it will remain for the future his- 
torian to fully appreciate its vast importance and 
Talue." — Buffalo Express. , 

" To any one desirous of preserving a record of the 
conflict as it progresses it ia invaluable." — Indianapolis 
Journal. 

"None should be without this valuable work, for it 
comprises information not to be obtained from any 
other source." — Yonkers Exajniner. 

" Those who wish to preserve a succinct history of 
the second war of independence will do well to pro- 
cure it for preservation." — J^^. Y. Christian Inquirer. 

" It contains the events of the day, carefully digest- 
ed, presenting, in succinct form, what voluminous files 
of newspapers could alone otherwise enable the reader 
to preserve." — iV. Y. Times. 

" This Record is an invaluable work for preserva- 
tion, embracing as it does all the important documents 
relating to the history of the war, and may form, we 
hope, the nucleus of a permanent annual register." — 
X. Y. Evening Post. 

''This is a most valuable work, embodying in a 
form for preservation such matter as will be much 
Bought after by all who will hereafter desire a history 
of this, the most unprovoked and deep-laid rebellion 
•which the world has ever known." — Sandusky {Ohio) 
Register. 

" This is by preeminence the time to collect and 
preserve valuable records for the future historian. 
Kever has such a task been so well performed for 
former history as now for our own by the volume call- 
ed the Rebellion Record." — Philadelphia Iforth-Amer- 
^c^m and Gazette. 



" There can be nothing better and more complete 
for the reference of the historical student and general 
writer." — BurlingtoJi (Fit.) Times. 

" It will preserve to the future historian an immense 
mass of authentic facts in a convenient form." — New- 
ark {N. J.) Advertiser. 

" Our readers, if desirous to possess the most com- 
plete collection of documents, and memoires pour 
servir, for present and future reference, can supply 
themselves with no other work at all approaching this 
in historical completeness, accuracy and value." — Pitts- 
burgh Gazette. 

" No other publication possesses such value as a 
work of reference in regard to the history of the 
present time as this." — Home Journal. 

" Historical students appropriate it for permanent 
use." — Boston Transcript. 

" The matter contained in it cannot be obtained any 
where else without an amount of labor and research 
altogether disproportionate to the cost of the Record." 
— Eva7isville {Ind.) Daily Journal. 

" The materials preserved in the Record will be of 
immense importance to the future historian." — Lin- 
coln {III.) Herald. 

"It forms an immense repository of papers, scenes, 
and incidents, which will afford material for future 
historians aa well as meet the wants of present read- 
ers." — Philadelphia Christian Instructor. 

" Teeming with history that each year of the future 
will invest with a historic value." — Waushara Co. 
{ Wis.) Argus. 

" Never has a war been so accurately and volumi- 
nously reported in all its phases as the present in the 
Rebellion Record." — Liberator, Boston. 

" There is hardly a day in these eventful times 
when the facts and principles of the war are under 
constant discussion, in which these volumes will not 
be found important for reference." — Lutheran Mis- 
sionary, Philadelphia. 

"Full of interest to the reader of to-day, and ines- 
timable to the historian and annalist." — Home Mission 
Record. 

Indispensable to all Classes of Readers. 

"The facts, incidents, and humor are a palatable 
dish for all tastes." — Boston Post. 

"Public libraries, at all events, and private libraries 
which contain any works relating to the present war, 
should have the Rebellion Record." — Portsmouth 
{N. H.) Chronicle. 

"It should be in the library of every one who de- 
sires to possess a complete memorial of this strangp 
and wondrous episode in our history." — Philadelphia 
Inquirer. 

*' Whoever deprives himself of the Rebellion Rec- 
ord now, will regret it all his life." — Sandusky { Ohio) 
Register. 

" Every citizen should procure one copy or moro 
for his own use, and for a safe guide to those who 
may represent him in the future of our country's his- 
tory." — Ohio Statesman. 

" No American library will be complete without it." 
— Maquoketa {Iowa) Excelsior. 



13 



" "We do not see how any one who wishes to keep 
correctly posted upon the rebellion can do without the 
Rebellion Record^ — Monmouth (111.) Atlas. 

" It is an invaluable work, and all peraons who wish 
to preserve a history of this horrible war should pur- 
chase it." — Rock Island {III.) Argus. 

"No one can afford to do without it." — Milwaukee 
{Wis.) News. 

" It is a work which no intelligent American can be 
without ; and its low price puts it within the reach of 
nearly all." — Kalamazoo {Mich.) Gazette. 

" The Rebellion Record is a publication invaluable to 
every one who desires to keep fuUy and accurately in- 
formed in relation to the history which we are now 
making."— PAiZ. Sunday Dispatch. 

" All who wish to be well posted in the history and 
progress of this extraordinary war, should take the 
work." — Dubuque {Iowa) Daily Times. 

" It supplies a want which every intelligent observ- 
er of current events must feel."— ^^osto?i Journal. 

" This is a work which every one needs and should 
have." — loioa Transcript. 

*' No estimate can be put upon this invaluable record 
of the war. Who would be without it?" — Medical 
Dial. 

" Those who have not already subscribed, should 
do so without delay, for every family ought to be in- 
terested in procuring a copy of so valuable a publica- 
tion as the Rebellion Record.^^ — Keitlisburg {111.) Ob- 
server. 

" We cannot too strongly urge our friends to pro- 
'ure it." — Davenport {Iowa) Democrat and News. 

" The Record is a standard work, and an absolutely 
necessary book of reference in relation to the current 
history of our country." — New-Yorker, N. Y. 

" It is a work that should be possessed by every one 
desirous of a complete and authentic history of the 
great struggle in which we are now engaged." — Han- 
cock {Ohio) Courier. 

" Every family should possess it, as a means of in- 
struction in the all-absorbing history of the moment- 
ous present." — Philadelphia Inquirer. 

" It is quite indispensable to every private and 
public library." — Ohio Statesman. 

"No one who desires to be thoroughly posted in 
the current events of the civil war should be without 
this record of the rebellion." — Louisville Journal. 

" This publication should be in the hands of every 
one who desires to have a full history of the war in an 
accessible form." — Buffalo Courier. 

" The Record is indispensable to every public writer, 
and to every intelligent citizen." — Albany Statesman. 

" No one should be without this publication, as it 
will be a complete history of the rebelUon." — Lansing 
{Mich.) Republican. 

" The Record is the most valuable publication issued 
in America." — Erie {Pa.) Observer. 

" Every American citizen should possess a copy of 
the Rebellion Record." — N. Y. Illustrated News. 

•'We commend the Record to every one of our 
readers." — N. Y. Sunday Mercury. 



" Every man should take and preserve this Recor^ 
for his own instruction and the information of hia 
children." — Boston Journal. 

" We are more and more persuaded of its perma- 
nent value for every person." — Phila. Christian In- 
structor. 

"Every one who wishes to keep pace with the 
march of events should have it." — Fitzgerald's City 
Item, Phila. 

" The Rebellion Record should and will obtain a 
welcome place in every library and household on thia 
continent." — Wolverine Citizen. 

" We advise such of our readers as wish to preserve 
a record of the men and doings of this great chapter 
of our American history, to take this invaluable pe- 
riodical as it is issued." — Burlington { Vermont) Senti- 
nel. 

" No professional man, nor in fact any family, should 
be without the Record.'''' — Miners' Journal. 

" It should be in the hands of every one, being a 
complete diary of events as they take place, and con- 
taining aU the important documents, messages, pro- 
clamations, etc." — Brookville {Ind.) Nat'ional Defender. 

" This publication is a most valuable one, and 
should bo very generally taken by the reading pub- 
lic." — Winona {Minn.) Republican. 

" Every family should procure a copy and preserve 
it for future reference." — Genesee Democrat. 

" We commend it to every man who wishes to keep 
posted in the events of his times." — Northern Christ- 
ian Advocate. 

" Every body should take and preserve the Rebellion 
Record.^' — Wdkcsbarre {Pa.) Record of the Times. 

" A copy of this truly national work will be indis- 
pensable to a complete library." — Albany Evening 
Journal. 

" No cheaper or better history of the war can be 
found any where." — Alton {III.) Observer. 

" The Record is a work of which every individual 
should own a copy." — Burlington { 'Vt.) Press. 

"A publication which no one who desires to be 
posted can do viith.ovX:''— Philadelphia Dupatch. 

" To any one desirous of preserving a record of the 
conflict as it progresses, it is invaluable."— /nd/aHo- 
polis Journal. 

" No one who purchases it, and has it bound, would 
afterwards part with it for a dozen times its cost."— 
Burlington {Vt.) Times. 

"It is a duty which young men, especially, owe to 
themselves, to obtain a complete set of the Record for 
future reference."— PorfemoM^A {N.H.) Chronicle. 

"Every American should have a copy, that he and 
his children may in after years peruse the record of 
the Great Rebellion of \^n."— Hancock {III.) Cour- 

"To all who wish a full and impartial history of 
the present war, the Record is invaluable. '—Car- 
thage {111.) Republican. 

"We advise aU who desire a continuous and com- 
plete record of the events that are now transp.r.ng, 
to procure this important eenal."—GeUysburgh {Pa. 
Evangelical Review. 



T] 



Save already ap2yearecl in the ''Record." 



Major-Gen. ROBERT ANDERSOlSr, 
Governor JOHN" A. ANDREW, 
Major-Gen, C. C. AUGUR, 
Major-Gen, W. W. AVERILL, 
Major-Gen. B. P. BUTLER, 
General P, T. G. BEAUREGARD, 
Major-Gen. K". P. BANKS, 
Brig.-Gen. LOUIS BLENKER, 
Major-Gen. A. E. BURNSIDE, 
Rev. HENRY W. BELLOWS, 
Colonel E. D. BAKER, 
General BRAXTON BRAGG, 
Com. THEODORUS BAILEY, 
Commander CHARLES BOGGS, 
Brig.-Gen. D. B. BIRNEY, 
Brig.-Gen. D, BUTTERFIELD, 
Major-Gen. J. G, BARNARD, 
Brig.-Gen. H. J. BERRY, 
General J. G. BLUNT, 
Colonel LEWIS BENEDICT, 
Hon. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P., 
Hon. S. CAMERON, 
Hon. SALMON P. CHASE, 
Colonel MICHAEL CORCORAN, 
Major-Gen. E. R. S. CANBY, 
Major-Gen. D. N. COUCH, 
Brig.-Gen. A. CUSTER, 
Brig.-Gen. S. W. CRAW^FORD, 
Hon. RICHARD COBDEN, M.P., 
JEFFERSON DAVIS, 
Major-Gen. JOHN A. DIX, 
Commander S. F. DU PONT, 
Admiral C. H. DAVIS, 
Hon. EDWARD EVERETT, 
Major-Gen. R. S. EWELL, 
Colonel E. E. ELLSWORTH, 
Major-Gen. J. C. FREMONT, 
Commodore A. H. POOTE, 
Admiral D. G. FARRAGUT, 
Major-Gen. J. G. FOSTER, 
Major NOAH H. FERRY, 
Major-Gen. Q. A. GILLMORE, 
Lieut.-Gen. U. S. GRANT, 
Lieut. J. T. GREBLE, 
Major-Gen. H. W. HALLECK, 
Major-Gen. DAVID HUNTER, 
Major-Gen. S. P HEINTZELMAN, 
Major-Gen. JOSEPH HOOKER, 
Major-Gen. E. A. HITCHCOCK, 
Major-Gen. W. S. HANCOCK, 
Major-Gen. O. O. HOWARD, 
Major-Gen. ALBION P. HOWE, 
Major-Gen. HENRY J. HUNT, 
Major-Gen. W. B. HAZEN, 
Hon. JOSEPH HOLT. 
Lieut. H. B. HIDDEN, 
General A. P. HILL, 
General STONEWALL JACKSONT, 
General J. E. JOHNSTON, 
General R. W. JOHNSTON, 
Major-Gen, P, KEARNY. 



Major-Gen, E. D. KEYS, 
Major-Gen. JOHN A, LOGAN, 
Brig.-Gen. NATHANIEL LYON, 
President LINCOLN, 
Brig.-Gen. F. W. LANDER, 
General ROBERT E. LEE, 
General JAMES LONGSTREET, 
Major-Gen. G. B. McCLELLAN, 
General J. K. F. MANSFIELD, 
Major-Gen. IRWIN McDOWELL, 
General G. A. McCALL, 
General BEN. McCULLOCH, 
Major-Gen. O. M. MITCHEL, 
Major-Gen. ROBERT MILROY, 
Major-Gen. G. G. MEADE, 
General A, McCOOK, 
General J. S. NEGLEY, 
Major-Gen. R. J. OGLESBY, 
Rt. Rev. LEONIDAS POLK, 
Lieut. WILLIAM L. PUTNAM, 
Major-Gen. JOHN POPE, 
Commander W. D. PORTER, 
Admiral D. D. PORTER, 
Judge J. L, PETIGRU, 
Major-Gen, W. S. ROSBCRANS, 
Commander JOHN RODGERS, 
General L. H. ROUSSEAU, 
General BALDY SMITH, 
Major-Gen, P. H, SHERIDAN, 
Adjutant F, A, STEARNS, 
Lieut.-Gen. WINFIELD SCOTT, 
Governor WILLIAM SPRAGUE, 
Com. S. H. STRINGHAM, 
Major-Gen. FRANZ SIGEL, 
Major-Gen, HENRY W. SLOCUM. 
Hon. E. M. STANTON, 
Major-Gen. JOHN SEDGWICK, 
Brig.-Gen. J. W^. SILL, 
Major-Gen. GEORGE STONEMAN. 
General J, E, B. STUART, 
Major-Gen, W. T, SHERMAN, 
Major-Gen, D. E. SICKLES, 
General J, C. STARKWEATHER, 
Eon. CHARLES SUMNER, 
Hon. WILLIAM H. SEWARD. 
Hon. A. H. STEPHENS, 
Major-Gen. G. H. THOMAS, 
Chief-Justice R. B. TANEY, 
General E. D. TOWNSEND, 
Major-Gen. J. E. WOOL, 
Hon. GIDEON W^ELLES, 
Major THEODORE WINTHROP, 
Commander CHARLES WILKES, 
Governor H. A, WISE, 
Brig,-Gen. J. S. WADSW^ORTH, 
Major-Gen. L. WALLACE, 
Brig.-Gen. G, WEITZEL, 
Major-Gen, C. C. WASHBURAIE, 
Major-Gen, O, B. WILCOX 
General A. WILLICH, 
General S, R, ZOOK. 



"Without question, the most valuible coatCTnpoM./ History ever prepared, is Frank Moore's 
Rebellion Record." — Abraham Lincoln. 

The embodiment of all that Is valuable, ard the only HISTORY OF THE WAR 

that can be relied on." 



THE 



REBELLION RECORD, 

A Diary of American Events. 



EDITED BY 



FRANK MOORE. 

Publishing in parts, at 60 cents, each part Illustrated with two 

Portraits engraved on steel. 

Nine Volumes are Now Ready, 

AT ANNEXED PRICES. 

Cloth, $5.00 a vol, I Sheep, $6.00 a voL 

Half Calf, or Half Morocco, . . . $6.50 a vol 

The Rebellion Record 

IS INDISPENSABLE TO EVERY PUBLIC AND PRIVATE LIBRARY. 

THE EIGHT VOLUMES CONTAIN: 

L 

A FULL AND CONCISE DIARY OF EVENTS, from the Meeting of the South-Carolin» 
Convention in December, 1860, to the present time. 

n. 
OVER THREE THOUSAND OFFICIAL REPORTS AND NARRATIVES of all the Battles 
and Skirmishes that have occurred during the War. 

m. 
OVER ELEVEN HUNDRED SONGS AND BALLADS, both Loyal and Rebel 

IT. 

ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-FOUR PORTRAITS, engraved on steel, of the most 
celebrated men of the time, and Numerous Maps and Plans of Battles. 

v. 
f;VER SEVEN THOUSAND Incidents and Anecdotes of Personal Daring and Bravery. 

"THE GREAT LIVING HISTORY." 

Jt^ -WORK FOR OONSTA.lsrT RKFKRKNCK. 

D. VAN NOSTRAND, Publisher, 

192 BROAJD^WAY. 

Thi Record will be continued in parts, at 60 cents a part, each part illustrated with Two 
Portraits. Seven parts to a volume. 

N.B.— Letters relating to the Editorial Department of the " Record" should be addressed 
V) Frank Moore, 45 Bible House, New-York. All matters relating to the business of the 
"Record" should be addressed to D. Van Nostrand, the Publisher 192 Broadway, New-York. 



D. VAN NOSTKAND, 

No. 192 BROADWAY, 

HA-S RKCKNTLY I> TJ B H. I S H K D ; 

EISTOBY OF WEST-POINT, And Us Military Importance daring the American Revolution; and the Origin and Propws of tk 
United States Military Academy. By Oaptaln Edward 0. Bonrrotf, A. M., Adjutant of the Military Academy. With nnmeroa 
Ma{)B and Engravings. 1 toI., octavo. Blue cloth, $8; half mor., $7.50; full mor., $10. 

'* Aside from Its value as an historical record, the volume under notice Is an entertaining guide-book to the Military Academy and lU 
sarroundlnga. We have full details of Cadet life from the day of entrance to that of graduation, together with descriptions of the build- 
ings, grounds, and monuments. To the multitude of those who have enjoyed at West-Point the combined attractions, this book will give, 
In its descriptive and illustrated portion, especial pleasure." — New-York Evening Post. 

" The second part of the book gives the history of the Military Academy from its foundation in 1803, a description of the academla 
buildings, and the appearance to-day of this always beautiful spot, with the manner of appointment of the cadets, course of study, pay 
time of service, and much other Information yearly becoming of greater value, for West-Point has not yet reached Its palmiest days."— 
Dally Advertiser. 

OILLMOBrE'S FOET 8TTMTEB. Official Report of Operations against the Defences of Charleston Harbor, i868. Comprising th* 
Descent upon Morris Island, the Demolition of Port Sumter, and the Siege and Reduction of Porta Wagner and Gregg. By Mi^oi^ 
General Q. A. Gilluorb, U. S. Volunteers, and Major U. S. Corps of Engineers. With 76 Lithographic Plates, Views, Maps, Ac. \ 
vol., 8vo, cloth, $10. 

HOLLEY'S TEEATISE ON ORDNANCE AND ABlilOB ; Embracing Descriptions, Discussions, and Professional Oplnloni 
concerning the Material, Fabrication, Requirements, Capabilities, and Endurance of European and American Guna for ftTaval, Be& 
Coast, and Iron-Clad Warfare, and their Rifling, Projectiles, and Breech-Loading ; also, Results of Experiments against Armor, froa 
Official Records. With an Appendix, referring to Gun-Cotton, Hooped Guna, etc., etc. By A. L. Hollbt, B. P. With 498 Illnstra- 
tlons. 1 vol., 8vo, 948 pages. Half roan, $10 ; half Russia, $12.60. 

HATTFT'S MILITABY BBID(JES, For the Passage of Infantry, Artillery, and Baggage-Trains; with suggestions of many new 
expedients and constructions for crossing streams and chasms ; designed to utilize the resources ordinarily at command, and reduce 
the amount and cost of array transportation. Including, also, designs for Trestle and Truss Bridges for Military Railroads, adapted 
especially to the wants of the Service of the United States. By Hermak Haopt, Brigadier-General In charge of the construction and 
operation of the United States Military Railways, Author of " General Theory of Bridge Construction," 4o. Illastrated by sixty- 
nine Lithographic Engravings. Octavo, cloth, $6.50 ; half Russia, $8.50. 

" This elaborate and carefully prepared, though thoroughly practical and simple work, la peculiarly adapted to the military eerviof 
of the United States. Mr. Haupt has added very much to the ordinary facilities for crossing streams and chasms, by the instructloni 
afforded In this work."— Boston Courier. 

CULLTJM'S SYSTEMS OF MILITARY BBIDGES, In Use by the United States Army; those adopted by the Great European 
Powers ; and such as are employed in British India. With Directions for the Preservation, Destruction, and ReSstabllshment o! 
Bridges. By Brig.-General Georqr W. Cullcm, Lleut-Col. Corps of Engineers, United States army. 1 vol., 8vo, cloth, With numerous 
lUustrations. $3.50. 

" It is a trite remark that of all the operations of war, none is more difficult and hazardous than the passage of a large river, in the pres- 
ence of a bold and active enemy. The Importance to this country of such a work as the present, when our armies have to pass so many 
treat rivers, cannot be over-estimated. We have no man more competent to prepare such a work than Brigadier-General CuUum, who 
Bad the almost exclusive supervision, devising, building, and preparing for service of the various bridge-trains sent to our armies In 
Mexico during our war with that country. The treatise before us is very complete, and has evidently been prepared with scrupulong 
care. The descriptions of the various systems of military bridges adopted by nearly all civilized nations are very interesting, even t« 
the non-professional reader, and to those specially Interested in such subjects must be very Instructive, for they are evidently the work 
of a master of the art of military bridge-building." — Washington Chronicle. 

I 
BENET'S MILITABY LAW. a Treatise on Military Law and the Practice of Oourta-Martial. By Capt. S. V. Bknkt. Ordnanca 
Department, U. 8. A., late Assistant Professor of Ethics, Law, etc., Military Academy, West-Point. 1 vol., 8vo, law sheep. $4.60 

"This book is manifestly well timed just at this particular period, and it is. without doubt, quite as happily adapted to the purpose 
fbr which it was written. It is arranged with admirable method, and written with such perspicuity and in a style so easy and graceful, 
as to engage the attention of every reader who may be so fortunate as to open its pages. This treatise will make a valuable addition to 
the library of the lawyer or the civilian ; while to the military man it seems to be indispensable." — Philadelphia Evening Journal. 

DITFABCQ'S ELEMENTS OF MILITABY ABT AND HISTOEY. By Edward db la Barrb Dcpabq, Chef de Batalllon of 
Engineers in the Army of Prance ; and Professor of the Military Art in the Imperial School of St. Oyr. Translated by Brigadier- 
Sen. GtORaa W. CtJULCM, U. S. A., OUef of the Staff of Major-Gen. H. W. Halleok, General-In-Chlef U. S. Army, 1 vol., 8vo, cloth, $0. 
" I read the original a few years since, and considered it the very best work I had seen upon the subject. General CuUum's ability 

and tamillarity with the technical language of French military writers, are a sufficient guarantee of the correctness of his translation." 

H. W. HALLECK, Major-General U. S. A. 

BOEMER'S CAVALBY, ITS HISTOEY, MANAGEMENT, AND USES IN WAE. By J. Rokmkb, LL.D., late an OfBoer 
of Cavalry In the service of the Netherlands. Elegantly illustrated with one hundred and twenty-seven fine Wood Engravings. In 
one large octavo volume, beautlftilly printed on tinted paper. Cloth, $6 ; half calf, $7.50. 
" I am exceedingly pleased with It, and regard it as a very valuable addition to our military literature. It will certainly be regard od 

u a standard work ; and I know of none so valuable to our cavalry officers." Geobob B. MoOlbli.ak, Major-General U. S. A. 

ABMY OFFICEBS' POCKET COMPANION. Principally designed for Staff Officers in the Field. Partly translated from the 
Rench of M. Di RocrvRa,Jiieutenant-Oolonel of the French Staff Corps, with Aditions from Standard American French, and English 
Authorities. By Wm. P. Craiqhill, First Lieutenant D. S. Corps of Engineers, Assist. Prot of Kagfcjserltog at the U. 8. Military 
Academy, West-Point. 1 voL, 18mo, full roan. $2, 

OBBON'S HA1SD-B00K OF THE UNITED STATES NAVY. Being a compilation of aU of the principal events In the history 
of every vessel of the United States Navy, from April, 1861, to May, 1861 Compiled and arranged by B. B. Osboh. 1 vol., 12mo, 
blue cloth. $2.50. 
" As a condensed and compact history, as well as a work containing a vast amoont of Information, tbia work cannot be Btirpa8M4." 

—Alston Traveller. 

* inj of th* above works sent free by mail on receipt of prioa. 



